The Husband's Side of the Story

Hello everyone my name is Manuel. I am the husband that Andy keeps talking about. I've known Andy for about 5 years now. 

Now where can I start? I guess, I shall start at the beginning. I first met Andy when I was 16 and she was 15. I met her through my dad. My dad and her dad were at the time, close friends, her dad would bring her to my house a couple of times and every time she would visit I would seclude myself in my room.
After a while, I started to spend some time with her, though we didn't really talk. I finally decided to talk to her after some motivation from my cousin. Soon after we started talking during her visits and not too long after that she invited me to go to Knott's Scary Farm. It was fun, even though I thought she was a big scardy cat(; I still do:) Soon, we started a nice friendship soon and after that, on Christmas of 2010 I asked her out. We had tons of fun that year so when our anniversary came along I gave her a ring, which at the time was just a nice present. Eventually, we got engaged about half way through the second year and nearing our second anniversary she moved in with me:) That same year I upgraded her ring into an engagement ring. At first we moved in to see how it would be to live together and after a year of living together and having a lot of fun and getting along we decided to get married. We chose a cool date to get married, we got married march 28 2014, three years three months and three days after we first became boyfriend and girlfriend :) and now we are happily married. Our story has just begun. So, that was a glimpse into our story from my point of view. I will be posting once in a while too, so keep checking in:)

-Manny

Chuze Fitness

I never in my life imagined that I would ever have a gym membership!

I've been going to this gym, CHUZE, for about three months now. I have to say it is amazing! I mean, it's affordable and it gets the job done. I don't know if I can call this a review of this gym but I have to say I am happy to be going there. I do want to recommend it to anyone who is thinking about joining a gym, or getting a gym membership.

I go to this gym at least three times a week at night. My routine is not complicated. We usually walk, or run on the treadmills for about 30 to 40 minutes and then move on to some heave machinery! Just kidding, but no really. My husband really likes to encourage me to do as much as can until I end up really tired. I appreciate it that because if he didn't do that I wouldn't last more than the treadmill.

Anywho, I really like this gym. It is so clean and everyone of their staff is really nice. I specially  like how it is asked from us that we clean the equipment after it has been used. I mean, I've never had another gym membership but I think that is awesome. There's even a circuit, where we get to exercise for one minute at a time. I really like that one, even though in the last couple of weeks we haven't been there.

There is also an option of having a personal trainer, which I think would be really cool for someone who was looking for a little more encouragement. I got my own personal trainer already! My husband :)

So anyone out there is wondering about trying out a gym membership, check CHUZE out! I give it 5 out of 5 stars. I honestly think you won't regret it :)

Stay motivated
!
Andy

Having a pet....

I recently had to surrender my dog to the pound because of... well because of family issues. When I moved in with my boyfriend, I had my dog, and I kind of did the thing where I told my boyfriend that it was both me and my dog or neither one of us. Well, he said yes, and then I asked my parents in law, they reluctantly agreed as well.


I guess I should start with how I obtained my dog in the first place. When I still lived with my parents, my sister and I wanted a dog.. We begged our parents for a dog and they said they would get us one, a tiny one of course with the condition that we cleaned up its mess. My dad took us to the local shelter and there we found so many pretty and cute puppies. When we went up to the people that were in charge we asked what we had to do in order to get a dog. The price, well the price was steep because they did the shots, they neutered them, and handed them out all clean. My father being the stingy person he is, said no.

We walked out of the shelter with no dog and almost in tears because we had fallen in love with so many dogs. On the parking lot there was a couple in a truck attracting much attention. They were giving away puppies. I jumped at the idea and ran over there with my sister. The puppies were pit bull mixes, there was a brown one, a black one, and a little one that was brown and white. My boyfriend grabbed the one that was mixed and before we knew it that was the only puppy left. My sister and I begged my dad to let us keep the puppy, and well since it was free, he couldn't say no. He neglected to tell my mom of this.

Anyway, point is, a couple of months after we obtained our puppy the only ones looking after it was my mom and I. By the way it was a girl. We fell in love with this puppy, we just loved her. We decided at the end to call her Cocoa. Perfect name right?

After I decided to move out, which was after my mom moved out, I knew that our Cocoa would die with only my dad and sister watching after her. So, I brought her with me. My husband's family rents a big house so there was enough space in the back yard for her. We allowed her to run around and she was happy. After a year and so many months... everyone could tell that our Cocoa didn't have the attention she had when she had barely been brought to this house. I neglected to look out after her and I didn't hang out with her as often. My parents in law told me that I either had to get on my doggy and take care of her or give her up. I cried my heart out and I started cleaning up on her mess, showering her once a week, etc.

Everything was good for a couple of months until we found out we might be having to move houses. Once again I felt my heart sink... I was so sad... The day before I got married, I made up my mind.

I got her blankets, her food, her toys and her leash on the car. Heard my Cocoa cry and cry and drove her to the shelter were a year and half ago I had picked her up.
------------------------------------

Moral of my story.... Dogs are wonderful friends and wonderful companions, but they need attention, they need time, they need to be walked and they need a friend in return. I know for a fact that my Cocoa understood me, she recognized me, and she loved me... but sadly, I must have not be that great of an owner...

I will miss my Cocoa, but I do pray that at the shelter she will find a family that will love her more than I ever could.

Missing my puppy,
-Andy

Changing my name after I got married

I know for a fact that there is controversy around this topic...

As some of you guys might now, I recently got married. When I decided I did want to marry my husband I also made another important decision, I changed my name to my husband's name.

Now here is where the interesting part comes in, I am from a Mexican background and my dad is, well let's just say he is more like a traditional Mexican. Point is, my dad is very proud of his last name. I remember very clearly a conversation I heard when I was little. My dad was talking to someone and he told them that he wished he had had sons instead of daughters because now we (My sister and I) weren't going to be able to carry his first name or his last name because when we got married we would lose his last name. This hurt me, and for a second I wished that I had been the son he wanted. I am glad that I wasn't though, I like being a girl, thank you very much.

I don't understand why men, specifically coming from a Hispanic decent, are so worried about last names and passing on theirs. It just doesn't make sense to me. Now, as a wife I have my husbands last name and I am fine with that. I don't mind if I have sons or daughters, and I am sure my husband doesn't mind either. So why are traditional Hispanic dads so worried about their last name??

I come up on a couple of theories, but they don't make sense with my dad. Theory #1: If a family had a family business, I would understand why they would want their kids to have the family's business name, so they can be recognized as part of the business.... But my dad doesn't own a business.
Theory #2: I got nothing........

Anyway, I love my dad and everything but I honestly think that it was heartless to say something like the thing he said those many years ago about wishing he had had at least one son to pass on his last name. I mean come on! He has a bunch of brothers who had sons who will keep the family name running. So why be so heartless to the women... I suppose, at the end of the day, those traditional Hispanic "machos," like I like to call them have to learn a lesson...... Your wife changed her last name for you, so it is fine that your daughter takes someone else's when she marries. Oh! Please stop asking and wishing that your daughters were male!

Sincerely,
Andy

I have become a Supernatural Fan

I started watching the series a couple of weeks ago and I am on the third season!

When I still lived with my parents my dad would watch Smallville without missing a single episode. Naturally, I would watch this too and was a fan of Smallville, up until all the new superheroes started showing up. I can't remember if Supernatural was before or after Smallville, but point is that I always thought that Supernatural was silly. "Too exaggerated," I told myself.... My dad of course thought the exact same thing so I never even bothered to check it out, or find out what is was about. Yeah, I know, can you blame me?!

Anyway, when I moved in with my boyfriend, who is now my husband, I found out that he was a fan of Supernatural. SHOCKER! However, he was on like the Seventh season and so nothing on the show made sense to me. I always walked out of the room so I could avoid being confused. One day, I actually sat down and saw an episode of this show. In this episode, one of the brothers was stuck in hell and an angel was helping him survive. I become intrigued!

A couple months later, this past February, I decided to give this show a chance and I started watching it from the first season and boy am I hooked!!! Honestly, I feel sad for myself because I never gave this show a chance before and I missed everything that was so good for the crappy Smallville! Okay, Smallville wasn't that crappy but honestly I think Supernatural is way better.

In case any of you guys are wondering I am on Dean's side.


GO DEAN!!!
-Andy

Divergent Movie Review

Just saw this movie on the first!

I listened to the book on audible last year and I fell in love with the plot. My husband and I heard and when we found out a movie was coming out we went crazy. Just like with the Hunger Games, but honestly I liked this one better.

I think the cast is pretty much perfect, even though I imagined Four a little more older and Eric was a little different, other than that I loved the movie.

I liked the fact that the movie pretty much stayed close to the book and there was only a few changes. Well there were multiple twists on the movie but to be honest they made sense, unlike other movies where the plot takes a 360 degree turn to make sense, but this one was great. By the way Tris is pretty much portrayed amazingly ! So props to Shailene Woodly for her acting. I don't think I had seen her in another movie but if this was her first lead role she did awesome! Theo James is really goodlooking!! Just had to leave that out there before I end this.
-Annie

PS Sorry if this is short... First time I do a review in a long looooong time!!

My Relationship with my husband

It has been a little over a week since I got married.

I know I talked about this before in another post but I am finally coming through and telling you guys how this wedding went. I am not just going to talk about the wedding, but more about the relationship that I carry with my newly husband. How we came to be how we are, because in my honest opinion I believe that we have a beautiful relationship.

On March 28, 2014, Manuel and I got married at the local courthouse of my town. We have been in a relationship for 3 years and 3 months, we have been living together for about a year and half, and now we have been married for about a week.

Before we started dating, when we just starting to talk to each other, my parents discouraged me from going out with him. They came up with excuses to tell me, that I would stop going to school, that my responsibilities would grow, they even made up a fake girlfriend for Manuel. I still don't understand why they would go through all this trouble just so I wouldn't date him.

This happened on the winter of 2010. Anyway, he asked me out on a date. We went out on a winter night, watched TRON and then went to eat some Carl's Jr. That was our very first date. Not as girlfriend and boyfriend but just a date. We spent hours texting and messaging each other on myspace and facebook. I guess you could say that's normal.

We didn't spend Christmas Eve together though, but we did talk to each other over text that entire night and when the clock hit midnight he told me that Santa had put him on my Christmas wish list. I was the happiest girl! So yea, that's how we become a couple. Even though the first couple of months we were just friends because we didn't really hold hands or kiss until that March 2011. Point is we got to know each other for quite a while. He asked me to marry him on our first anniversary. Of course I said yes, but we agreed that we would wait a while before actually getting married. I was ecstatic! I mean, honestly at the time I was not thinking about marriage but well I did (still do) love him.

The following year we spent getting to know each other more and more.... we spoke about moving in together, as dream of the future, but never as a matter of fact. However, around the time I was going to graduate my parents started the divorce paperwork.... This was a very heartbreaking and sad time in my life. Even though I was the one that pushed my mom to go for the divorce, it broke my heart that my parents were splitting up. My mom gave me her reasons and told me everything that was going on between her and my dad. Honestly, I kind of wish that she wouldn't have done that... I would have been better off if she had left things out because well now I hold a grudge against my dad. I can never take that back. Not the point of the story!!!!

I didn't want to move in with my mom and I didn't want to stay with my dad after the divorce. Manuel offered that I move in with him. Around November 2012 is when I moved in with him. Both our parents wanted us to get married right away, but we decided that we wanted to live together and see how we would get along under the same roof because living together is much different than just dating each other. I know that everyone criticized us at first. They said that we wouldn't last and that we wouldn't get married and look at us now. They also said we wouldn't go to school, and we are going to school. I mean we skipped a semester this year but that was because we couldn't afford school and a wedding.

Back to my point..... Manuel and I have a great relationship because we were patient and we didn't get married right away. I feel like the way our relationship developed helped be the couple we are today. We aren't really just a couple, we are each other's best friend, we are lovers, we treat each other like friends and love each other like husband and wife, we argue, yes, but that's okay, only once in a while.

So yea.... I love the fact that I married my best friend.... I'll let you guys know how it moves along :)

-With love,
Mrs. Andy S.