Happiness

I heard at church this past week about a study that says our happiness is dependent more on our remembered events/remembering self than on actual events or our experiencing self.  I was so curious that I had to find out more about it.  The man who came up with this idea is Daniel Kahneman - a Nobel laureate, the founder of behavioral economics, and regarded as one of the most influential living psychologists.  He is the business of the study of happiness - I think I would like that profession. 

The video is about 20 minutes long, but I think it's really worth listening to.  It is very profound to think about the fact that what we experience isn't really who we are, but it is how we interpret those experiences and translate them into our lives that actually matters for what we remember and think about ourselves/our lives.  So, the choice is ours.  How are we going to interpret our experiences, respond to our surroundings, and let them form our lives?  As Dr. Kahneman says, the important part of the story is how it ends.

Also, since I will only get this chance once every four years, I want to wish you all a very happy Leap Day!  I think that it's so cool that my blog will have a post dated February 29.  Naturally, I had to blog today. 

Montage Legal Group

I am fortunate enough to know the two amazing owners/founders of Montage Legal Group.  I worked with both of them at Snell & Wilmer, and they were kind enough to let me join their cutting-edge group.

Montage is a nationwide network of freelance attorneys who worked at law firms, gained great experience, and now want a work-life balance. The diverse skills of Montage's attorneys allow them to work at all types of law firms. The firms benefit greatly because they get the legal work they need without hiring new associates. Montage Legal Group was even featured in an article in the American Bar Association Journal!  I am so honored to be a part of this group of wonderful women, and I can't wait to see what is in store for me.

The full ABA Journal article is available here if you're interested in reading it.

Growing Older

Lately there have been so many big changes in my & my friends' lives.  It has gotten me thinking about growing older.  I really don't mind it as much as I thought I would.  Sure, rolling into 3-0 seems pretty daunting (and, I still have awhile left for that), but I wouldn't change the changes.

It has been such a joy to grow older with my friends.  I have loved watching them fall in love, meet the men of their dreams, get engaged, get married (granted, there were quite a few heartaches in between there), and now have children of their own.  It is so amazing to watch my friends become wonderful wives and fantastic mothers (and fathers) right before my eyes.  The transformations make me realize how much we do stay the same, even in the midst of the many changes.  We are still amazing friends and share so much of who we are with each other.  I am so happy that I can be a part of the next chapters in each of my friends' lives.  I love you all immensely.

I got started musing about all of this growing older business because, in addition to a slew of recent and very exciting engagements of a few of my close friends, one of my dearest friends (from high school!) & her husband welcomed their new little girl, Kairi Faith Lopez, into the world on Friday.  I was fortunate to be able to meet her today before she was even 24 hours old & she is just too precious for words.  Congratulations, Kristen & Troy!  

Impromptu Vacation

I was lucky enough to just get back from a last-minute vacation to the Dominican Republic with my dear friend, Kara.  We planned the trip about two weeks before we left & it was perfect!  We stayed at an amazing resort on the beach near Puerto Plata.  We spent our days lying by the infinity pool, lying by the beach, exploring the city, drinking tasty rum, drinking the national beer - Presidente, buying souvenirs & eating delicious food.  It was utterly relaxing, but we really didn't see much of the DR.  It was just what we were looking for, though.  And the parts that we did see were so beautiful, so green, and it was so nice & warm.  We met so many lovely & interesting people, but I really wished that my Spanish was better.  Now I'm back & gotta find a job...

Our amazing hotel room

The main building of our hotel - so pretty!

There were beautiful orchids everywhere

Our "fancy" dinner - I tried goat for the first time!  It was Caribbean goat, after all... 

Relaxing on the grounds

The breathtaking view from the pool

The beach at Playa Dorada

Our hotel bar

It only rained on the day we left - perfect timing.

The lobby was decorated so elegantly.

Happy Birthday, Mom

My mom would have been 54 today & we so wish that she was still here.  The beginning of February is always a bit hard now because my parents' anniversary is February 2 and today is my mom's birthday.  Dad picked out the beautiful pink roses above for his bride and we took them over to the cemetery on their anniversary.  It is always hard to go there, but also peaceful in a way.  We love you so much, mom, and miss you everyday.

Surprise Drew Time

Drew was supposed to be in "training" all last week in San Diego finishing up any of the administrative stuff he hadn't done yet & needed to get done before deploying.  Fortunately, though, he had a really small class of people and had gotten almost everything done before arriving in San Diego so he had some free time at the end of the week.  Since he was done with everything they let me come down for Thursday & Friday night to hang out with my hubby.  It was such an unexpected treat to be able to spend more time together!

I got back down to San Diego late Thursday evening and we went out for a tasty dinner in the downtown area.  On Friday we had such a wonderful time exploring San Diego.  I would be okay with it now if we ended up there - it's a beautiful city with so many neat little neighborhoods.  We went over to Coronado in the morning and walked along the beach and the cute little main street.  We had a fabulous Mexican lunch complete with margaritas in the middle of the day - woo hoo!  Then we went to the USS Midway Museum.  It is incredible.  I had never been on a carrier and it was so fun to learn all about it, especially since a lot of things are similar to what Drew experienced when he was out on the ARG at the beginning of last year.  Also, since I have a strange obsession with little nooks & hideaways, looking at the where the sailors ate, slept & hung out was so fun for me.  Drew thought I took a little too long on that part of the tour, but I wanted to read absolutely everything.  

Amazing lunch!  I highly recommend Miguel's Cocina in Coronado.

Audio tour aboard the USS Midway

View from the island of the USS Midway

What happens when a JAG ends up in the brig??

I am so happy that we got those few extra days together.  It was perfect.  Also, I got to drive Drew to the airport & got a pass through security so I could hang out with him until he boarded his flight.  That is such a nice thing the airlines & TSA do for deploying families.  Hopefully I can go through again when he gets back to meet his plane at the gate - I'll just focus on that & hope the months fly by!