WELCOMING ZOEY THE GUINEA PIG

A little story...This past Friday, my sister Brianna decided she was going to get a hamster. She has had her mind set on getting one for a long time but just hasn't gone in to get one. So after lunch at Red Robin, we went to Petco to look at their Teddy Bear hamsters. I personally like guinea pigs more because I feel you can interact with them better, so while Brianna tried to find her perfect hamster, my other sister and I went to look at the guinea pigs and ended up getting to hold them. Brianna comes over and wants to hold one too, so the three of us are huddled around holding guinea pigs and it was just fabulous. They're so cute! I've also never gotten to hold one until then and really liked how they just lay on you and let you pet them. Of course after this, Brianna had to go hold a hamster to make her decision. Both the hamsters she held tried to get away and with that being said, she went for the guinea pig.

Even though the guinea pig isn't mine, it was still exciting because the guinea pig that Brianna chose was the one I was attracted to and held first. Also, out of all the animals our family has had - dogs, cats, snake, turtle, chinchilla, fish, hamsters, iguana, birds, you name it! - we have never had a guinea pig.

On the way home, we all tried to think of a name for her and Brianna ended up naming her guinea pig Zoey. She's too cute not to share on my blog so...welcome Zoey! 

Isn't she the cutest? I love how her two left feet are dark brown and her right are light brown. Our cat has no idea what to think. He sits by the door and meows until we let him see Zoey.  By the way, CHRISTMAS IS COMING WAAAHHH!!! I'm so excited! Are you? I love the winter season in general. The fashion as well: the boots, hats, scarves, leggings, Christmas sweaters, everything! Even Zoey has a festive scarf to wear. I hope you've enjoyed these images. I'll talk on here again soon!

Love,

Mickey

DECORATING FOR CHRISTMAS

Yesterday marks the end of the semester for me! I have completed all of my finals, so I am officially done with this set of classes, and I honestly couldn't be happier. I feel I have worked harder this semester than any other year in school. Elementary school was easy. Middle school I didn't even really try. And in high school, the work came easy to me, so I would get straight "A's" without really having to study. Just do the work and nothing more. My first year of college, I didn't try either. But this past semester in college, I decided that college is a waste of time if I'm not going to get serious.  So this time around, I feel like I have been doing homework and studying nonstop. I've had to turn down my friends on numerous occasions when they've asked to hang out, just so I can get work done. Basically, I'm am so glad I have focused on my studies and can say I have a 4.0 GPA for this semester, however, I am glad I can finally relax for a month long winter break!

Moving on. I've recently started reading my father's book, A Christmas Treasury of Yuletide Stories and Poems. It contains many Christmas tales and poems by authors like Robert Frost, Charles Dickens, Hans Christian Anderson, J.M. Barrie, and more! It's a perfect read for the winter season, and it's fun to read this while sitting near the fire place in cozy pjs while drinking hot tea. Along with that, I have decorated the side of my dresser with a little "Charlie-Brown" Christmas tree, little reindeer figurines, and a snowman. The candle I have is Marshmallow Fireside from Bath and  Body Works (I have the mini one, but I can only find the larger one online - you'll want it though). It literally smells so good. I can't get enough of it. I am really in the Christmas spirit right now!

I've just realized that Christmas is only 6 days away! Are you excited? I know I am. I hope you have enjoyed this set of images and hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season!

Love,
Mickey

Testing ULTA BEAUTY Products

Today, while my mother and I were at Red Robin, I happened to look outside and see Ulta, a chain of many beauty and cosmetic brands. I had been on their online site, but I didn't even know we had an actual walk in store near us! I was so happy and I told my mother that after our lunch we must stop by there. So we did, and the first thing the both of us said were, "Oh my gosh!" We fell in love instantly. There was Benefit, Lancôme, Michael Kors, La Roche-Posay, you name it! 

My mother and I went C R A Z Y with the testers and I found some of my new favorite products while in there and got a headache from sniffing all the candles. One of my new favorite products is La Roche-Posay's Eau Thermale (here). I sprayed it on my face and instantly felt more alert, awake, refreshed, and rejuvenated. My new favorite moisturizer is the limited edition Triple Moist White Peppermint & Vanilla Herbal Whipped Body Crème by Hempz (here). It has a subtle peppermint-vanilla infused scent that smells divine and leaves your hands as soft as ever. Also, I don't use face makeup, but for those of you that do, I found a makeup powder brush with the softest bristles (here). My mother and I were rubbing our fingers over them for the longest time. It feels like chinchilla fur (a.k.a. the softest thing ever!). I would buy it if I wore powder, even if it is $40. 

We couldn't leave empty-handed, so we bought some of Ulta's limited edition holiday products, which were buy two, get two free. We got the Vanilla & Cream Holiday Body Lotion (here - scroll down to options), the Peppermint & Coconut Holiday Shower Gel (here - scroll down to options), and the Holiday 3-in-1 Smoothie in Peppermint Pinwheel and Candied Caramel (both here), which is a shampoo, shower gel, and bubble bath. 

DEATH OF MY DOG

Snowball came into my life when I was about 7 years old. He's a big, white, Great-Pyrenees, and one of the sweetest dogs I've ever had. Not to say I love him more than my other pets, or that my other dogs aren't sweet, no, it's just Snowball was one of those dogs who almost always had a smile planted on his face, even when he was in pain, and the type of dog who wouldn't hurt a flea. He would lay down outside and let the birds jump on him and pluck his fur to make a nest with. That was the first time I had ever seen a white nest of fur! And when one of our dogs would try and pick a fight and bite him, he never fought back. Snowball would just sit there. And no matter how much pain he was in, he would fix it wit a smile. He was kind-hearted, gentle, and popular amongst my friends - they couldn't get enough of him. I wish he didn't have to go, but all lives must come to an end...

My Thanksgiving began in many laughs and smiles, but ended in many tears. Today I had to part with my Snowball. We had 13 years of memories, love, and fun. He had to be put to sleep tonight, which is something I've always feared. I never wanted my pet's death to result in that. I've always prayed they would just pass on their own. But for months now he could barely walk, as he has arthritis in his hips and legs, and he's lost about 30 pounds just within the past year. And over the past couple of days blood has been coming out his mouth from an unknown source. We couldn't tell where the blood came from - whenever he would bleed, his whole mouth would be bloody and blood would be all over the floor and on him. Snowball would look like he had just been shot in multiple places. On Thanksgiving, it was just too much blood and we had to take him to the vet, and the decision between my step-mom and father had been made. Today was one of the hardest days of my entire life. My step-mom, dad, and sister Brianna, and myself was in the room with Snowball when the vet laid him to rest (my brother Alphonse couldn't make it and my sister Kuyuki thought it would be too hard to witness). Seeing the life come out of Snowball's eyes while he's laying on me, and the doctor saying he has passed, was just heartbreaking. It was such a quick process. One second he was here and the next, gone from this world and into the next.


I love you SO much Snowball, and I always will. Words can't even describe the love I have for my pets. This Thanksgiving, I am thankful God put Snowball in my life, and that I got to be a part of his... ♥

ORANGE EMPIRE RAILWAY MUSEUM

Being a fan of trains, I really wanted to visit the Orange Empire Railway Museum in Perris. I was a bit disappointed driving all the way there to find not many trains (the whole reason I wanted to go). Turns out, the best time to go is a weekend, where there are people to take you on a tour and all their trains and whatnot are accessible. So I guess I need to go back again on a Saturday or something.

For the holidays though, they're having train rides around town, where they have Mr. and Mrs. Claus and the elves riding aboard the train, and everybody sings Christmas songs and drinks hot chocolate. For some reason it reminded me of the Polar Express. I would probably go if it was free, but I don't know if I want to pay $15 for that. Maybe one day...

While I was at the museum, I did take a few pictures around I thought I'd share. I though it was neat to see the benches where people would wait for their train back in the day. In 1912, it was only $3.50 for an 150 mile round trip, traveling to Los Angeles, San Bernadino, and Redlands. I also saw a car in the parking lot I wanted - and old, white 1960 Ford Falcon with a big white steering wheel and pastel blue seats.