Category Archives: Celebrations

Doing Some Challenges (or Mondays Are Going To Be Tough)

Posted on September 22, 2014 | 4 comments

It’s been another week of workouts at Orangetheory, and this past week also marked that last week for the weight loss challenge. I had my weigh-in for the challenge yesterday and there will be a party next weekend where they will announce the male and female winner of the challenge.

Honestly, I don’t think I won. I had some setbacks over the past 6 weeks and my food has not been as good as it could have been. But the key for me is that even with all my setbacks (and some unexpected weight gain from the heat), I’m still a few pounds lower than I was when the challenge started.

This past week of workouts has been all about challenging myself.

This started with the newest thing that Orangetheory is doing: Monday Challenges. Every Monday at the end of each class there is a challenge that you can choose to participate in. I was exhausted after the Monday class, but I’m always down for a challenge.

This week, the Monday Challenge was a 500 meter row. I got off to a great start, but I overdid it. I was so tired by 300 meters and I had to take a few second break. I ended up finishing in 1:56.8, which I think it pretty amazing. My goal is to be at 30 seconds per 100 meters or less. So my time definitely fit into my goals.

They posted the challenge winners (the top 5 men and top 5 women) on Tuesday so I got to see it on Wednesday. I didn’t make it to the top 5, but I was happy to see that I was only 20 seconds away from that top 5. That’s not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.

On Wednesday, it was another challenging workout. I always do the cardio portion of the workouts first because my hip issues seem to get worse after the weight training. So on Wednesday, I hopped onto the treadmill at the beginning of class like normal. Except this class it wasn’t going to be 30 minutes on cardio and then 30 minutes on strength. The cardio people went to strength after the warm up. Then after the first strength block, the sides switched (strength to cardio and cardio to strength).

I tried to go back to the treadmill but my hip kept catching. So after the second block of strength when we were sent back to do cardio, I tried the spin bike that they have in the workout room. I actually used it for 2 cardio blocks. It wasn’t bad, but it’s wasn’t as good as it could have been.

The pushes and all out moments in cardio are not as easy to set on the bike. And I didn’t have my spin shoes so I couldn’t clip in (there were straps to strap my feet into, but it’s not the same).

For the final cardio block, I sucked it up and used the treadmill again.

The workout week felt like it came full circle on Friday. It was a run/row day (which I love because it means less treadmill time). The first row section of the run/row was a 500 meter row.

I was a little scared to do that 500 meter row, especially in the beginning of the workout, because I knew how exhausted I was on Monday doing the challenge. So I tried to take it easy and I managed to do all 500 meters without taking a single break! It took me a little longer than 2 minutes to do it (I don’t exactly remember my time), but it’s almost more important to me to do the row without stopping than it is to do the row quickly.

I’m looking forward to the next Monday Challenge. As long as it isn’t a timed treadmill thing, I know that I can do it and have a decent chance on making it to the top people board. I guess I’ll find out what today’s challenge is when I go to workout in a few hours!

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Posted in Celebrations, Fitness, Fun Stuff, Health, Weight Loss

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Another Week In Workouts (or Finally Able To Do Some Jumping Jacks)

Posted on September 15, 2014 | 1 comment

First of all, if this post is a little crazy, I apologize. I’m writing this after having been up for 38 hours straight. I’ll write about that soon, but for now, I’m doing another weekly recap of workouts!

In my sleep deprived state, I really can’t remember a ton of specifics about each workout this week. But there is one thing that totally sticks out in my mind.

Pretty much since 2005, I haven’t been able to do jumping jacks. 2005 is when my hip issues started. And honestly I don’t know the time prior to 2005 that I ever did any.

Before my hip surgery, everything was just too painful to try any higher impact activities. And right after my surgery, I had to avoid them as the bone healed from where the bone spur was removed.

I had been warned for several years in follow-up visits that high impact activities can cause my other hip to go bad quicker or to need a hip replacement quicker. So I did modifications for most high impact things (or avoided them all together).

When I used to workout with Richard Simmons, modifications were easy to find. He would always do several types of modifications (including some for the people who worked out while in chairs). So I was fine doing them there.

At SoulCycle, it wasn’t as much modification, but more avoiding specific motions that aggravated my hips. Since I didn’t have to find a new way to do something, that was easy too.

But at Orangetheory, modifications aren’t always given (they are given a lot though). And sometimes I have had to remind the trainer that I’m not able to do that specific motion that they have asked us to do.

But as I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been pushing myself to do more and more things. Part of it is that I’m getting stronger, and the other part is that I’m no longer living in fear of hurting my hips quicker (but I still am avoiding things like skiing or ice skating that are really dangerous for me to do). I’ve done jump squats (and it turns out I can jump pretty high!), plank jacks, and mountain climbers.

And for the first time this week, I did jumping jacks!

They weren’t pretty but they were done. I think we only had to do 10 at a time so that wasn’t too horrible. And I did take it easy on the second round of them.

But the point is that I did them! I’m sure if my hip surgeon is reading this he wouldn’t be thrilled about it, but like I said, I can’t live in fear of hurting my hips. I’ve pretty much been told that these other surgeries are going to happen eventually, so I can’t put them off forever.

I wish I could tell you more about the workout this week, but honestly my mind is so foggy right now (I’m writing this at 9pm on Sunday night and I’ve been awake since 7am Saturday morning). But I wanted to make sure that I got my Monday Workout Recap out to you all!

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67 Years (or Celebrating An Anniversary With Fondue)

Posted on September 10, 2014 | 1 comment

This past Sunday was my grandparents’ 67th anniversary. I’ve been lucky enough to get to celebrate with my grandparents on their anniversary a couple of times. For their 50th and 60th, we had big events (their 50th was in Africa and their 60th was a family party in Portland). This year, we were doing a low-key dinner in San Diego.

That morning I went to breakfast with my parents and Krystle (and Tucker of course) and then we did some walking around at the seaport. Then Krystle had to get to the airport so she could get back to San Francisco. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to stay for the dinner because there weren’t that many flight options for her.

After saying goodbye to Krystle, my parents and I headed back to the hobbit house where we got all of us stuff together to go out that evening (and I packed my car since I’d be driving home straight from dinner).

We got to my grandparents’ place around 1pm and spent the afternoon talking. We asked my grandparents what their big memories were from their wedding and I asked my grandparents how they met (I had never heard that story before). It was really cool to get to hear them tell it and my mom actually took video of it so we can share it with other family members who couldn’t make it out to San Diego that weekend.

We all got ready to go to dinner and then we drove over to the place where the restaurant was.

We went to The Melting Pot for dinner. I had never been there and had never really had fondue before. My only experience with fondue was a single serving of goat cheese fondue that came with some bread at a restaurant once. But this was nothing like that.

We all decided to get the 4 course dinner (it was actually cheaper than getting 2 courses on our own). Between the 6 of us at dinner, we selected 2 cheese fondues to start with, then we each got our own salad. The main course was interesting. We each got to choose up to 3 meats and then as a table we got to choose 2 different cooking liquids. Then you had to cook your meat in the hot cooking liquids.

While it was fun, it was a little messy and crazy at times. All of us lost at least one piece of meat in the cooking liquid because we had so many fondue forks in the pot at one time. But it was pretty yummy.

After the main course, we were all stuffed. But we still had the dessert course to go. As a table we selected 2 types of chocolate (I don’t really remember what they were but they were both dark chocolate). Then they brought over a selection of cakes and fruit to dip into the chocolate.

The plate that my grandparents got had 2 candles in it for their anniversary.

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I tried a little of the dessert fondue, but I was only able to take a few bites since I was so full from the other courses.

Before we knew it, dinner was over. My mom and I left a little early so we could get our cars (we didn’t want my grandparents to have to walk too far to the car and it was parked in a parking garage). When my mom and I got our cars back to the restaurant, everyone else got into my mom’s car so they could all go back together. I said goodbye to everyone and made the 2 hour drive back home (no car breakdowns this time!).

I’m so lucky that I got to spend time with my grandparents on their anniversary. Since I live pretty close it makes it easy enough for me to come down to see them. I don’t think I’ll make it down again before Thanksgiving, but November will be here before we know it!

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Having A Little NYC In LA (or Getting To See A Friend Again This Year)

Posted on September 4, 2014 | 2 comments

I’ve mentioned my friend Alex on here before. Like I said before, she and I met while working at Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios. Working that job bonds you to your co-workers pretty quickly. You work crazy hours, deal with even crazier people, and at the end you feel like you survived something amazing during the month of October.

I got to see Alex for the first time in 3 years when my sister-in-law and I were in New York earlier this year. That was so amazing and I loved getting to catch up with a friend. I also got to see her very quickly after my sister-in-law and I saw “Heathers” since Alex happened to be walking down the street while we were outside (running into people like that is awesome!).

Even though I got to see Alex twice in New York, it didn’t feel like enough. Even though she hasn’t lived in LA for 3 years, when she did live here we saw each other a lot. And I still miss getting to hang out with her.

Earlier this summer Alex told me that she was going to come to LA for a visit. So I marked the date down on my calendar so I would get to see her again.

The day that she had a get-together ended up being a tough day for me. I had a lot of things to get done and my day started at 6am. Plus, I didn’t know it then, but I was about to get sick. I didn’t want to go out in the evening, but I made it out there eventually.

It was so great to get to see Alex again. There wasn’t a big group of friends when I got there, so we did have a chance to talk and hear each other talk. And one of her friends actually has met me through one of my day jobs, so that was pretty cool.

Of course, we had to get a group picture to commemorate Alex’s trip to LA.

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I managed to hang out for a little over an hour before I was starting to get exhausted. I hated not being able to stay longer, but I’m super grateful for the time I got to spend with my friend.

I’ll be seeing my sister-in-law this weekend so I’m hoping to talk with her about when we can go to New York again. I’m hoping she and I can go sometime next year. Then I know that I’ll get to catch up with Alex again sometime soon!

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In the meantime, I’m just so happy that I got to see Alex twice (or I guess technically three times) this year after not getting to see her for 3 years!

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Another Week Another Hollywood Bowl Adventure (or Trying To Enjoy The View From The Cheap Seats

Posted on September 2, 2014 | 6 comments

I was just at the Hollywood Bowl a week ago but I made another trip up that way this past Saturday. I had tickets with my friend (and neighbor) Amber to see the John Williams show!

I’ve been going to the John Williams show for several summers now. It’s so great and he has done the music to some of my favorite movies.

Amber and I bought our tickets pretty close to the show night, so we actually weren’t able to purchase seats next to each other. We did find 2 seats in the same row that were about 4 seats apart. So we bought those and hoped for the best.

When we got there, fortunately the group that had the 4 seats between us were willing to move over 1 seat so Amber and I could sit together (people at the Bowl tend to be nice like that). Even though we had seats almost all the way in the back, we had a very nice view of the stage.

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Well, it was nice until right when the show started. Then the group that had the bench seats right in front of us came in. And I swear that the guy sitting in front of me must have been 7 feet tall. This photo is of my view of the stage with him sitting in the bench below me and me holding my phone on top of my head to take the photo.

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You can see the glow of the stage but clearly my view was completely blocked. I tried to lean from side to side to see, but that always didn’t work (he moved around a lot too).

Even though I couldn’t really see anything, I was enjoying the music a lot. There were quite a few things different this year compared to last year’s show. There was a choir on stage and later a children’s choir joined them. Also, there was a segment dedicated to the Olympics and that was very cool.

During intermission, Amber offered to switch seats with me so I could see the second half of the show. I was so grateful to her for doing that for me! I switched just in time for the Star Wars segment of the show, which is always a highlight for me.

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I need to get a lightsaber before next year’s show!

There were 4 or 5 encores after the show ended, but the very last thing that was played was the music from “ET”. I was terrified of ET as a child (my brother used to hide the VHS case to the movie under my pillow to scare me), but now it’s one of my favorite movies. And the music is so powerful that hearing it played live brings tears to my eyes!

And as I’ve seen every year (and loved every year), at the very end of the show there is a rainbow on the sides of the Bowl.

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It was such a wonderful show this year! I’m already looking forward to next year! And this show was Amber’s first time at the Bowl, so I’m glad that she got to see something amazing for her first time there!

I might be going to 1 more show this summer (I’m still looking for people to come with me), but even if I don’t, I picked amazing shows to see at the Bowl this summer! I’m never really disappointed with what I see. And every time I’m there, I’m so grateful to have such an amazing venue so close to where I live!

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The End Of My 8 Week Challenge (or The End Is Really Just The Beginning)

Posted on August 25, 2014 | 3 comments

Last week was the end of my Orangetheory challenge. Well, it’s the end of my first Orangetheory challenge. I’m in the middle of the weight loss challenge they have going right now.

I remember the beginning of my challenge being so scared that I wouldn’t be able to finish or that I would somehow hurt myself. And I’m so happy to say that I did all 24 workouts in my challenge and I didn’t get hurt!

Monday’s workout was tough because there was a lot of lunge work. That’s a tough one for me because my hip flexors don’t always work the way that they are supposed to. Fortunately, the lunges were done while using the TRX straps, so that helps me keep my balance and takes a little pressure off of my hips when things start to hurt a lot.

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Wednesday’s workout was another killer. It had to be a killer because somehow my mind has blocked out that day! But I do remember that at the end of class, I was thinking about how much flexibility I’ve gained recently (I lost a lot of flexibility after my hip surgery), so that inspired my picture for that workout.

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Friday’s workout was a super awesome day. Not only was it marking the end of a challenge that I thought I’d never be able to do, my parents got into LA that day, so my dad decided to join me for the workout!

My dad has joined me for a couple of unique workouts. He came with me a couple of times to work out with Richard Simmons, he tried SoulCycle, and now he’s tried Orangetheory.

My dad works out pretty regularly, but he doesn’t really use a rowing machine. So he had been training on the rowing machine at the gym that he goes to to make sure he was ready for class. Of course, Friday’s class wasn’t a run/row day. There was a little bit of rowing, but not much.

My dad found the class really good and tough. There were several strength moves that he had never done before (including using the TRX straps) so he now has some new ideas for his own workouts.

It was super awesome to have my dad come to class with me. I wanted him to see what I had been doing for the last 8 weeks and I know that he likes checking out new and unique workouts. He’s not necessarily set in his ways with working out, but he is pretty traditional.

And of course, since my dad was in class with me, he had to be in my workout photo!

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Now that my first challenge is over, I have an unlimited membership to Orangetheory. I’m planning on still going every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and sticking with my usual 4:15 class unless there is a reason that I can’t be there in the evening (like tonight when I will be live-tweeting the Emmys!).

I’m not planning on adding a 4th Orangetheory class each week yet. But I am going to start using my exercise bike at home again (I was scared to use it before I was comfortable working out so often).

I really do see this as a lifestyle change. And that’s the best thing that could have come out of this challenge.

And if any of you want to come check out Orangetheory with me in LA, let me know. People can still take a free class to check it out!

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The top row of photos is 2 months ago. And the bottom is from this morning.

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Yet Another Birthday Outing (or Enjoying Benihana!)

Posted on August 22, 2014 | Comments Off on Yet Another Birthday Outing (or Enjoying Benihana!)

Last night was yet another birthday deal. It’s technically not as good of a deal as Truxton’s, but it’s pretty amazing.

If you are a part of the birthday club at Benihana (I think you just have to sign up with an email address), you get $30 to spend in your birthday month!

I haven’t always taken advantage of this birthday deal. The last time I did was a few years ago with my friend Erin (who does my hair) and her kids (who I babysit). Her daughter was old enough to enjoy it but her son was only a few months old, so he spent dinner sleeping in his stroller.

I decided that I wanted to do the Benihana deal again this year, so I asked Erin if she and the kids wanted to come with me. Her daughter, O, was super excited because she remembered it from a few years ago. Her son, K, was a bit hesitant at first. But as soon as I showed him a video of the onion volcano, he was sold on the idea!

It happened to work out nicely that we all had yesterday evening free (well, Erin’s husband couldn’t make it). We went to the Benihana in Encino since that’s pretty much half way between Erin’s house and my house.

Erin and the kids got there before I did, and when I walked in the door, I had a very nice greeting from O and K. K was so excited to see me, which was a nice treat because he usually doesn’t like when I come over to the house (he thinks that always means that his parents are leaving and I’m babysitting). And O was happy to see me as always.

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We lucked out at the table we were seated at. Everyone else was very entertained by the kids and the funny things they kept saying. K was very excited to see eggs being scrambled for the fried rice and kept going on and on about scrambled eggs for a while.

Dinner was very yummy. With my $30 I was able to get a strawberry lemonade and filet mignon (and all the sides that you usually get at Benihana).

Fortunately, everything that I had (including all the sides) were already in My Fitness Pal so I was able to keep on top of my calorie count for the day (I only went a little bit over).

After dinner, they brought out ice cream for the kids as well as for me (the birthday deal includes it).

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I had some of the ice cream, but didn’t take the leftovers home (like O and K did with their ice cream).

Overall, it was an awesome birthday adventure. I’m glad that Erin and her kids had a fun time. And anytime I get to hang out with them is wonderful to me.

I’ve possibly got one more birthday adventure before the month is up, but my calendar is starting to get full again! If I don’t get it in, that’s ok. I’ve definitely taking advantage of the birthday deals this month!

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My LA Anniversary! (or 13 Years Have Gone By Quickly)

Posted on August 21, 2014 | 2 comments

It’s my LA anniversary! I’m not exactly sure if it’s today or if it was yesterday, but since I can’t remember the exact day I moved into the dorms at LMU, I’ve always celebrated it on the 21st.

13 years ago my parents helped me pack up my car (and theirs) and we made the 6 hour drive down from the Bay Area to LA.

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My parents car held most of my things since at that time I drove a small car.

My friend Kate didn’t start college as early as I did, so she decided to come along for the adventure! So Kate came with me in my car for the drive and my parents drove together in their car.

I remember a lot about that drive for some reason (which makes me shocked that I don’t remember the date). I remember us goofing off and talking about how amazing college was going to be for both of us. I remember the exact route we took to get to the hotel we were staying in the night before I could move into the dorms. I remember the freeway exit, and for years after that, whenever I took that exit I remembered my excitement to move to LA.

Being in LA had been my dream for as long as I can remember, and I was so happy that my dream was coming true. I knew that I was very lucky that I could say that.

The next day, we all drove to LMU to get me moved into my dorm room. I was there before my roommate, so I got first choice in which bed I wanted. My freshman dorm was pretty awesome and I had a very nice view out of my window.

Once we got everything moved in, my parents and Kate had to make the drive back up so I said goodbye to everyone.

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In my 13 years in LA, I’ve gone to and graduated early from college, had about a million different jobs in tons of different industries, had some really horrible roommates and some incredible roommates, pursued my acting career, and pretty much just lived the same dream that I had when I moved down here 13 years ago.

It hasn’t always been easy, but I’ve never regretted my decision to live here. It feels more like home to me than going back to the Bay Area. And in 6 years, I will have lived in LA longer than I ever did in the Bay Area.

Next month is the LMU Alumni BBQ. As I have for the past few years, I will be going this year. I like to go back and see where my LA life started. I always walk by my freshman dorm room and look up at my window and remember how crazy things were for me that first year and how I wondered how I would ever find my place in LA.

I’m so glad that not only have I found my place here, I have filled it with amazing friends who make my life amazing.

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Continuing The Birthday Celebrations (or A Birthday Twin Adventure)

Posted on August 19, 2014 | Comments Off on Continuing The Birthday Celebrations (or A Birthday Twin Adventure)

On Friday evening, I got together with my birthday twin Joanna. It had actually been a while since we had seen each other.

But besides wanting to hang out again, we had a birthday tradition to uphold!

It was time for our free birthday meal at Truxton’s!

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This might be one of my favorite birthday traditions. Joanna and I have been doing this for years, and both of us look forward to it each year.

Truxton’s really does have one of the best birthday deals around, and it would be a shame if we didn’t take advantage of it.

So when Friday came around, I was ready to have an awesome meal (I had also saved up my calories so I could afford to have a meal like that).

Since we knew that our meal was going to be free, we both ordered without looking at the prices. I got a 1/4 chicken with some garlic fries (and they were super garlicky) and Joanna got the salmon.

While we waited for our food, we spent some time just catching up on each other’s lives. Since we are both actors, we both live pretty crazy lives. We both are always changing things around like our day jobs, representation, or other things like that.

Both of us have had some changes in our lives, so it was nice to have the time to fill each other in on what’s been going on. Since right now we only have 2 annual traditions (birthday and Christmastime) and somehow we never have the time to get together, over dinner we also decided that we are going to add a fall and spring tradition hangout. Right now we only know what we are doing for fall (Disneyland), but we have some time to plan out spring.

After dinner, we ordered our free desserts. We always get this one ice cream dessert that comes with churros so we only had to decide on the second dessert. We opted for a giant freshly baked cookie.

We each had 1/2 of each dessert, and I have to say that saving my calories (and working out like crazy at Orangetheory) was totally worth this splurge. It was so yummy!

When the bill came, we had a bit of a laugh at the difference between what Joanna’s meal would have cost versus my meal.

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Thank goodness it was all free! And since it was free, we were able to leave a nice tip (we left $30).

All in all, it was an awesome evening out. Not only was it a free meal, it was a meal with a good friend who I don’t see nearly often enough!

I’ve still got a few more birthday deals that I’m planning on taking advantage of, but my birthday month is going to be over before I know it!

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A Birthday Present For Me And My House (or Thank You Mom And Dad!)

Posted on August 15, 2014 | Comments Off on A Birthday Present For Me And My House (or Thank You Mom And Dad!)

My parents are pretty great at getting me awesome presents. They do ask me what I want, so that always helps.

A few weeks ago, my mom and I were talking about my birthday and I mentioned that I finally wanted to replace my old couch.

I had that couch in my old apartment before I moved into my house (I think I got it 7 years ago). The couch was actually part of a set of 3 pieces: the couch, the loveseat, and the armchair. The couch and armchair moved into my house with me. The loveseat was ruined by my last set of roommates at my apartment (one of the cushions got sliced open somehow), so I made them buy it off me.

I loved my couch, but it was starting to show some wear and tear.

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About 6 months ago, I saw a couch at IKEA that I loved. It was a couch with a lounge on it and it turned into a double bed! I tried it out then and thought it was super comfortable. I remembered it for future reference.

When I mentioned wanting to get a new couch, my mom decided that that would be my birthday present from my parents!

So earlier this week, I went to IKEA to check out the couch again. I went to sit on it, and it didn’t feel right. The back was super low. Turns out, they changed the couch. This one was similar to the old one I saw, but it was a different one with a different name (who remembers the names of IKEA pieces?).

I was pretty upset. I really wanted that couch. I called my mom and she encouraged me to go look at other furniture stores. You never know what else is out there.

I went around to 4 or 5 different stores with no luck. Either the couches were way too big, or they were way too expensive.

As I was driving home, I passed the storefront for Sofa Club. I’ve driven past it a million times, but I had never gone inside. I found some parking, walked inside, and right next to the door was my dream couch!

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It was exactly what I wanted (minus the sofa sleeper part but that’s ok)! The owner of the store gave me a great deal on it because I bought the floor model and Sofa Club is actually a custom furniture store. Then, I asked if she had any discounts for the beginning of the school year, and she said that if I was a teacher, she would give me free delivery and take another $20 off the price. I’ve never been so grateful that I keep my teacher ID card for substitute teaching in my purse.

The couch came a few hours later. The delivery men were nice enough to move my old couch and chair into my garage (a friend is taking the couch from me and I’m still looking for someone to buy my chair).

The couch looks amazing in my house!

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I am thinking of getting the back pillows switched out. The owner said if I wanted pillows without buttons, they would exchange the ones I have for new ones at no cost (they would just have to take a few days to make the new pillows). I’m pretty sure I will get the other pillows. While the buttons look cute, they aren’t the most comfortable to lean against.

My parents will be in town next week to visit me, so they will get to see the present they got me in person soon. I’m so grateful that my parents got me such an incredible gift. It’s the nicest piece of furniture I’ve owned. And it really makes my house look even better than it did before!

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Posted in Celebrations, Family, Fun Stuff, Shopping

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