A Day With Paprika

Meet My Best Friend!

I go out walking under the stars
Sometimes I see Jupiter and sometimes Mars
With my best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend (shout) “But she eats like a hog!
My best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend.

 At the beach I like jumping in the waves
I make sandcastles and they wash away
With my best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend (shout) “But she eats like a hog!”
My best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend.

I rub her belly and I scratch her back
I give her love and she gives it back
‘Cause she’s my best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend (shout) “But she eats like a hog!”
My best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend.



She barks a lot and she licks my face
Sometimes she leaves puddles all around the place
But she’s best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend (shout) “But she eats like a hog!”
My best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend.



I throw her a ball and she brings it back
I give her love and she gives it back
‘Cause she’s my best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend (shout) “But she eats like a hog!”
My best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend.



She’s my best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend (shout) “But she eats like a hog!”
My best friend (whisper) “She’s my dog”
My best friend
My best friend.

Spring Is Right Around The Corner!!

Pappy and I enjoyed laying on a blanket soaking up the warmth :)

.

Inspiration To Amazing

Sometimes I wake up with ideas bleeding out of my brain.

That was a little graphic...Let me do that again.

Sometimes I wake up with ideas bouncing around in my head waiting to jump right out!

Cheessy but better.

But not this morning, complete emptiness in my brain. I feel weird. I mean, I don't even know what to wear today!?

Kadie and I (Robbie's sister- Robbie is my Fiance...If you don't know that...It's a little creepy you're reading this) are going to Grandma Ballentines house to help her clean and do some crafts! This wonderful lady has a whole craft room dedicated to all her creations! She's fantastic and honestly, I'm jealous of her room. Anyways, were going over today and I don't know what to do...

Should I make a pillow? Fix an old dress of mine? make crafty belts? more baby onesies? more headbands? THE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS!

Everyone should have a craft room and make something! "but joanna, I don't have an ounce of craftiness in me..blah blah blah" OH nonsense, if you really didn't then you shouldn't be allowed to go out in public. Can you dress yourself? Then you have creativity.  Can you do your hair? Then you have creativity. Can you take a shower? THEN YOU HAVE CREATIVITY. Everyone has something that they can give to the creativity world, everyones is different...thats all.  Even your mail man.

Use your surroundings, use the world. Look out your window. Look at the trees and skies and birds! Make a pillow out of it, cut fabric into the shape of a flower and sew it at the bottom of your dress...and voila! you automatically have an anthropology dress.

Use the best source in the world, and it's free! Yourself! Take your personality and explode it on different things!

For those of you who already know you can do something amazing, if you're having a brain fart when you want to make something...get inspiration. Go on a walk, take a drive. Sit on your front porch.

Today, I'll look out my window and use it as inspiration for something amazing. 

Take the word Monday and make it a Saturday, do something amazing.

Keeping It Together

I'm one of those people that want others to think I have it together. Like I just wake up and I so happen to have perfect hair, or like I don't bother washing my face and just have perfect skin. Or not put much thought into my wardrobe...

Ummmmmm I TRY SO HARD TO BE AT LEAST REMOTELY CLOSE TO BEING SOMEWHAT PERFECT LOOKING!

I like to think so.

Now am I one of those girls that take a lifetime to get ready and HAVE to have every piece of hair in place? No, I'm  not. But I DO put effort. 

I put effort into everything I do to look and be the way I am.

Now that I'm a bride-to-be...I have to have others think I have this whole shabang planned out and sorted. 

WELL I DON'T.

I think there should be someone telling you, like a designated person be at the place you're getting engaged at, telling you that as soon as you put on that ring- you should have an appt. set up to get medicated for a stress disorder because planning a wedding sucks. JUST KIIIIIIDING. Wedding planning is fun and it doesn't suck, that's just my stress talking, remember?

I think it's just my situation, being from phoenix and having my wedding money parents far away is kinda difficult when you're trying to plan the wedding on the other side of the hemisphere. Also, my bridesmaids are far too so it's sad planning without them...

But the sun always shines right? Even on a cloudy day. You just have to wait for an opening of clouds to get that sunshine. 

The Ballentine's are my opening of clouds. They've been so helpful with trying to find a location, food, lodging, cake ideas, laughter and hope. 

Thank you Ballentines for helping me so selfishly and willingly. 

Thank you for reminding me that this process is suppose to be fun and exciting!

Thank you my dear Robbie for being the best groom ever. You're willingness to help me plan and your wanting to write addresses on envelopes is a like a breath of fresh air. Thank you for being so excited to put your input and ideas in. Thank you for holding my face in your hands while you force me to listen to you say "it's going to be ok". 

Thank you for making me feel like I have it together...

Even if I don't.

To all you Brides-to-be, Don't stress it. It'll come together, I promise. Just have fun and make this part of the incredible future you're about to have. 

Put A Ring On It!

The bright morning wasn't what woke me up, it was Robbie. He welcomed my awakening with a soft forehead kiss and said something that made me throw a little fit and smashed my face back into the pillow.

He said he had to work all day!

I mean i did have a reason to act like a 3 year old right!? We had a day planned! Ok so we didn't.

He left for "work". I laid and tried going back to sleep. I again awoke to a little letter :)

THE GREATEST LETTER EVER.

It started off saying that I'm the greatest thing since sliced bread. OK SO IT DIDNT, but it basically did.

"Good morning Joanna!

The past year has been amazing and i am looking forward to spending many, many, many more with you. Thanks for being such a blessing in my life..."

......and there was a lot more but i wont bore you with that, i'll just give you a preview. OH and at the end of the letter it said:

"Ps Be ready at 11:00am. Mom and Kadie are taking you out to lunch!!!

Text "will smith" when you get this message"

haha Text "will smith"

I laughed hard.

Eleven couldn't come any slower. I was so excited! What was going on in my head at this point?

Well, at the moment i was thinking..."lunch with the girls?" nice treat. Must be making up for working alllllllllllllll day.

Mama Ballentine Kadie and I end up at PF Changs!

We have a nice little lunch. Laughed and joke about the waiters hair. WHAT! I liked it. And made the mistake of telling him. We all know how awkward i can get. Well, i did.

Anyways, after our lunch the waiter comes back....

with this:

(except the one Robbie left was green)

My heart DROPPED.

Again, i wont bore you so i'll just put the highlights:

"How was lunch? Dessert? I'm sure the girls wouldn't mind stopping by the cheesecake factory!"

So we went to the Cheesecake factory to get yummy dessert!

OH but theres more....

it also said:

"but you guys don't take too long. I would hate for you to miss your spa treatments! They'll be expecting you at 2:30!"

Thats right Ladies, I got him.

Oh and this letter had at the bottom:

"Text "roll tide" when you get this message"

haha

So we go and indulge in our treats. Nails, pedicures, massages...

I felt like a princess.

What was going on in my head then?

Well I started to suspect he had something up his sleeve now. Making up for working alllllll day just doesn't cut it anymore....Hmmmm....

SO! When our treatments were done, guess what?

THE SPA LADY GAME ME ONE OF THESE!

(except the one robbie gave me was green...)

It read: (again, just highlights)

"Hope you enjoyed....So i was wondering if yo were in the mood for a 'hot date' tonight? Need something to wear? Time to go shopping! I'll pick you up at 7:30!"

Ok so that's not me. But close? kinda?

I would never wear those jeans.

This one at the bottom said:

"Text 'hey girl hey' when you get this"

hahaha!

SOOOO by the time i got the third letter it was 4:30ishh So we had to rush rush! We go next door and got the cutest little classy dress i could find within a half hour. (I'll post pics of us soon) We rush home and i jump in the shower and start getting ready!

I got ready.

I waited.

Yes i waited, i was on time :)

Why thank you.

I waited...I was nervous...

It was so sweet, it was so amazing and thoughtful how he picked me up for our date. Robbie and I never really get the chance to be a "real couple" sometimes because we're long distance. So simple things like Getting ready and being picked up for a date i haven't been able to do since i stay with his family. The anticipation of waiting for a date is so great! I loved it! and I'm so glad and grateful that he put that in there for me :)

7:30 on the dot the bell rang...

HEART DROPPED.

His mom haha...his mom answered the door asking him what his intentions were with me. His sister Kadie and cousin Angie were upstairs with me waiting for him to come get me...

He looked so cute...

I indeed was in Love with this man.

The man that stole my heart, quite literally. The one that overpowered my own desires and passions...and also has made them stronger at the same time. The one that has challenged and grown my love with our Christ. The one that makes me laugh like no other, he makes my face so sore from smiling all the time...

He smelled so good...

We walked out. The late afternoon muggy streets were so charming. The moon, I'm convinced decided to be extra big and yellow for me :)

What am i thinking now?

GEEEEEEZZZZZZ......he looks good....

Just kidding, but seriously. ANNND where were we going?

Dinner?

Yes.

He takes me here:

I wish i could find more pictures that do this place justice. Incredible. Delicious. Service? PERFECTION. It was a Wednesday night and it was popin'! This restaurant is one of the nicest in the state of Alabama. You can tell...

Yummy.

S0, we finish dinner...

Were driving back to his town...

He say's "lets go for a walk"

"umm...ok..."

We kinda always go for little walks so i didn't think too much of this.

Mmm ok i wasn't totally honest, this is what i really thought about taking a walk:

"walk? right now? i'm in a dress...which means my legs are bare..and my arms... one word...MOSQUITOS!!!!!!!!!!"

No i would not like to go on a walk with you. No i would not like to get eaten alive.

With a HUGE smile i got out of the car he parked infront of a park and we walk around the block, back towards the other side of the park. As were walking up close to it, there was a fence...with a posterboard on it...

:)

IT WAS A CROSSWORD PUZZLE! a large one.

I haven't gotten a chance to get a pic of it but it was amazzzing.

There was also a large permanent marker and a piece of paper taped to it. THE CLUES!

How amazing are you robbie?

Amazing.

The clues were just inside jokes and stuff related to us. There was only a few. Like 3 across and 4 down or something like that. Once i was done with those, on the bottom of the posterboard it said "pull when done" ....i did. The bottom had another across word i had to do!

well....there was 4...

The one's i did before the bottom one had certain squares extra bold and darker. The letters in those had to go on the bottom 4.

:)

After i figured the letters into words it read this:

"Will you be mine?"

HEART DROPPED.

Ahhhhh!!!! Thats what I'm thinking about right now!! Omg... OH MY GOSH!

I turn around and he looks at me with a HUGEEE smile! I can't help but copy. His soft blue eyes were too amaaaazing, his stance so strong and confident.

Oh....my...gosh...

He say's:

"Do you think God wants us together?"

UGH YES!

"Do you still feel good about this?"

UGH DOUBLE YESSS!

"Good, because so do i"

(or something like that...keep in mind, i'm kinda getting proposed to here!)

He gets on his knee...

I nearly pee myself.

SHAAABAAANG!

He pulled out the ring...

Oh my gosh....

OH MY GOSH!

"Joanna Cuamba, will you marry me?"

HEEEECK MOTHER FREAKIN YESSS!!!!!

(well it was more like a "yes, omg yes" then a long hug and lots of forhead/face kisses)

He put a ring on it. He liked it.(me)

In the mist of us celebrating by hugging and kissing and loving the ring he signals his family out of the bushes and tress! hahaha!

out comes his dad from a tree with a camera, then his mom and sissy and cousin and friend out of the bushes! Haha

Then came the "LETS TELL THE WORLD!"

Mom cried, family freaked out, friends paced back and forth as i told them, God smiled upon us :)

So there you have it folks, the day the boy put a ring on it :)

I'll be sure to upload the video and pics soon!!

Oh and ps. Robbie only had to go to half a days worth of work. His dad and him went to play golf in the morning! haha...sneaky sneaky...

Oh love :)