i caught myself

aj and i have been frequenting our local park a lot lately for like, the past two weeks for him to get his exercise to get into the navy and for me to practice my skateboarding.

and i'm starting to think that it's really starting to pay off :] though i'm not 100% sure on aj's part hahaha but he looks like he's getting smaller so i guess that's a good sign of progress no? :]

as for me, i'd have to say i've gotten a lot better :] i can turn a lot better and my balance has really improved :] i can actually go around the park without having aj around in case i wobble and possibly fall.

even today i skated at balboa park in a dress and flats ;D i'm pretty pleased about that too since i was doing it all by myself and i actually feel nervous skating in things other than jeans and slip on shoes.
they're kinda like my protection from scrapes since y'know, jeans require some effort to tear and slip ons just feel a lot more stable on a board as opposed to other shoes :/

but it still feel pretty good to get over your fear of falling off and totally eating it. it hasn't happened to me yet [[THANK GOD]] and i'm pretty sure down the road i probably will [[maybe when i learn how to ollie or manual but that's later]] but for now, i'm enjoying the fruits of my labor :]

aj and i have also been bringing our dogs with us once in a while for them to get exercise and also try and get them to pull me on my board c[: haha i kinda had this in mind:

though i doubt my lil forest prince zorro could do that hahaha [[maybe my other dog frisco since he pull on the leash anyways but we haven't tried that out yet...]] but zorro usually just acts like a good pack follower and likes to either walk/run next to me while i'm skating which is good and all, but i think it'd be a lot better use of his endless energy if he did more work you know what i mean? meh, we'll see. [[or maybe i can have a pack of small dogs pull me...hahaha that'd be pretty funny c[: ]]

also all the skating stuff has gotten me into my inner tomboy. [[i think i've said this before? hmm not sure :/ but i'll say it again! >:D]] i don't usually wear jeans and a tee unless i'm too lazy to put together and outfit or if i'm just running errands.

but i'm actually looking to follow chick skaters for outfit inspiration on what to wear because as much as i love style, i love it even more when it has a function to it as well. like how i've noticed that a lot of skaters wear jeans and flannel. [[well, my nephew actually... he's a skater and every christmas he asks for flannel shirts hahaha]] since flannel is pretty durable when you fall and it's pretty comfy no?

o yea, and there's also this girl in the sociology class before mine who i think exhibits excellent skater style. [[i my opinion anyways]] i'd take a picture of her but i don't wanna look like a creeper lol. but she just happens to be one of those people that you see everyday and look forward to seeing what they're gonna wear because their style is just so flyyy B] she's got like, the perfect balance between tomboy and femininity down while i usually just look either kinda sloppy or like a boy .____. hahaha

o well, new lessons and tricks to learn i guess ;]

band tee-hot topic

jeggings-pacsun

shoes-converse

skateboard-zip zinger

like a gull takes to the wind

yesterday would definitely be labeled as a photo adventure... c[:

yesterday, my friend aj had the day off from work and he agreed to help me take photos for le blog and also to be in them! :D i was pretty happy about that since i like taking pictures and i also got to style someone else. [[and the opposite sex too! so different!]] it was a bit of a challenge since i've never really styled someone other than myself before but i would like to think it turned out pretty well. :]

we matched in a way that didn't make us look like a couple taking engagement or couple-y photos but made it look like we're, i dunno, fashionably competent? hahaha idk. at least i know he looked good in what he was wearing :] [[sans jacket+baseball cap which i hated >:( it gave him hat hair! >< ugh, these boys...]]

we also ended up taking the first set of pictures in balboa park since we thought at the time the weather would be better there and less overcast [[wrong!]] and c'mon, it's like balboa park which is like, one of the places in san diego to take photos. seriously, on any given day, [[or nice day]] you'll see people having their pictures formally taken for one thing or another.

anyhoo, it's pretty much a nice place to be in general and the food at the cafes at all the exhibits ain't too shabby either ;]

afterwards we walked around a little bit looking for potential photo settings. it was a bit embarrassing since there were more tourists about at noon. [[i usually go there around closing time when everybody is packing up to go home]] and it was kinda funny running back and forth between the tripod and aj and posing hahaha.though i have to say, he's a lot better at posing for photos by himself than i am. :p but if we're in a picture together, he either goes into prom photo mode or outshines me completely xD hahaha

it was also his first time being in outfit shots with me and also using my new dslr to take pictures of me. personally, i think he's gonna need some more practice with using the lense and taking more artistic stretches/leaps when it comes to photography/portraiture. but i think he's also got a bit of beginner's luck since i did get some pretty good shots yesterday :]

in the end though we probably spent like an hour or so there since it started to rain and aj's dog lilo was getting tired. the poor sweet ol gal :]

we also took another set of photos at our local park. y'know, the one where we usually go skating at? because i did want to go skateboarding after taking pictures but we ended up taking more pictures [[of me this time haha]] in some tall weeds since i've always wanted to do something like that c[: but i think i'll save that for next post yea? ;]

i also had this song stuck in my head yesterday: "new slang"-the shins while roaming around balboa. i first heard it on the soundtrack of the movie Garden State and it's quite catchy.

Garden State also happens to be one of me and aj's favorite movie [[mostly mine c[: ]] since it has zak braff and natalie portman is in it :] and the movie soundtrack is one of my favorites. it's one of the albums that i can pretty much listen to from beginning to end without hitting fast forward or next and i like that :] it tells a story apart from the movie and it lends well to my constant daydreaming x]

i hope you guys enjoy :]

on me:

jacket-forever 21

dress-target

wedges-hand me downs

on aj:

shirt-sears

jeans-levi's

slip ons-vans

skyline drive

yesterday was the 2nd day of my spring break and though i know i should've been more productive, i didn't really do much accomplish-ing. most errands around the house and around my neighborhood. :/

i usually don't really "dress up" for errand running. maybe some shorts or pants and a big comfy tee that i'm sure that if i wore to school and my friends saw me, they'd be like, "you're wearing that to school??" hahaha. i get that a lot whenever i choose to dress down esp for hip hop class. i've given up dressing in work out clothes for that class since my street clothes seem to suffice. i mean c'mon, when you're dancing outside of class, what're you wearing? street clothes! so yup, that's my class where i just dress comfy :]

anyhoo, i digress. yesterday just felt like any other weekend day, well, except for the fact that it was tuesday but i'm guessing you guys know what i'm talking about. and i had been cleaning my room last saturday and found my old "fat jeans" from like, ehhh last year? and since they're horribly baggy on me, and i don't like to waste good pacsun jeans, i figured, hey hey hey! i could wear them as boyfriend jeans! :D

i don't usually wear baggy jeans because i'm more of a skinny jeans type of person and the whole "baggy bottoms=fitted tops" just seems foreign to me since it's usually the other way around. but hey, a style challenge is always welcomed :] that means more room for improvement and you get to learn more about yourself right?

plus i'm also pretty proud of myself for getting so fit these past couple of months :] i actually used to be quite fit in high school, but then again, who hasn't said that before? hahaha but seriously though, back in high school, i wasn't particularly skinny or overweight and i was actually happy with my body image. and since college, and being hospitalized, i've been trying to get back to that along with trying to build my self confidence back up. but i have to say, after finding the style/fashion blogging community, i'm learning to love myself and how i look unconditionally as opposed to "ugh, i gained two pounds! guh-roooossss! i don't wanna leave the house!" i work with what i have now and though it might sound a bit materialistic or whatever, since i've learned how to dress myself better, it's helped me to love how i look :]

or perhaps that goes along with age and how there's less pressure in college to impress your peers. but eh, why should i bother myself with the reasons behind it when i could be enjoying what's happening right now? :] sometimes ignorance is bliss x]

faux leather jacket-hawke&co.

top-costco

"bf" jeans-pacsun

belt-vintage

heels-hand me downs

necklace-borrowed

cuppy cake

i pretty much adore all my nieces and nephews. i have quite a few since my family is so large including my extended family. they all vary by age and its a bit different from...i dunno, how americans label certain family members. like second cousins, aunts twice removed, blah blah blah [[i never really understood that; when a family member is "removed" .____.]] but i'm guessing in the filipino culture, we don't really have that. we just have cousins and we go by generation.

anyhoo, i digress. although i don't usually like to label "favorites" i'd have to say my cousin michelle's daughter, isabella would probably be my favorite niece :]

she's 5 [[i think...her height always makes me thinks she's a lot older...]] likes hello kitty, clothes and dancing :]she's my little sidekick whenever her momma and the rest of her family comes down to visit us and we always end up playing our made up games. she also says the cutest/funniest things sometimes and, ugh, sometimes i wish i could just take her home x]
she also has a flair for style [[just like her auntie ;] ]] and loves to dress pretty girly with dresses and bows and what not. and sometimes when they're over she likes to pose/help me with my outfits shots [[ as seen here]]

i love my niece and nephews and since i've gained more nieces recently, this is pretty awesome :] i love babies but for the longest time they've kind of been a mixed bag whenever i was around one. they would either love me or cry and give me the cold baby shoulder. ;_____; now i feel like i've gained some "mommy skills" [[as i like to call them]] and now, BABIES FRIGGIN LOVE ME! :D lol. i get all motherly and i enjoy taking care of and playing with my nieces and nephews and i like to think that it shows :]

esp in these pictures haha it kinda reminds me of miss james from bleubird vintage and whenever she features other mothers who also have bomb style :] but obviously i'm not a mom, just an auntie and honestly, i'd like to stay that way till i'm more older haha.

anyhoo, yup. that's my niece izzy :] she's super adorable and my right hand man whenever she's in the neighborhood. we've even made up games and inside jokes and i've also taught her this song when she was little...-er

and sometimes she'll even sing it for me when she's not as shy or remembers the words [[which ever comes first lol]] but yup, she's my lil cuppy cake :]

dress-target

blazer-ross

flats-dollhouse

necklace-gift

adorable niece-cousin's

you get what you give

sooo it was someone's birthday yesterday... ;] mine! :D i'm finally 21 and i'm pretty excited! not cuz i get to legally drink or whatever comes with the age, i'm genuinely excited and happy that i'm one year older :] i always get that way around my birthday. maybe it's cuz i get my family and friends around me and everyone is happy i mean c'mon! birthdays=food=cake! who doesn't like cake??

so anyways, i celebrated my birthday with my gals last saturday at coronado beach complete with bonfire :] [[i've always wanted to go to the beach on my birthday and it's been on my bucket list for quite sometime so i'm happy that i get to cross that off now :D]]

my friend angeli and i got there 9am thinking we were gonna have to duel some people for a fire pit but since it wasn't really full on spring vacation mode at the moment, it just wasn't the case /)____= though i'd like to think we had a pretty good time waiting for our friends to get off work...right? lol anyhoo, i owe this girl big time :]
i had also borrowed a tent from my uncle [[since he's an avid camper/outdoors man]] to shield us from the southern california sun and april winds but that didn't quite work out...lol
[[i could hear a trumpet going "wah wah waaahhh" everytime we looked over at our failed attempt of a tent hahaha]] but i think we put a pretty good dent in our time killing. angeli being my fantastic photographer took some really amazing outfit shots of me in my birthday dress :]

[[gah! so hard narrowing down my favorites!! ><]]

but anyhoo, i think the bonfire was a success :] my girls were all there and we had some good snuggling time in my teddy bear blanket c[:

so yea, happy burday to me x] i had a great time that day and i felt so happy and loved even though we were all freezing our butts off but at least i was surrounded by my friends who love me and that was more than enough :] <3

dress-target

heels-steve madden hand me downs

bracelet-charlotte russe

sunglasses-hot topic