Re Entry

Randy arrived home this week after a month long tour of the United States. While I am elated to have him back in our house, there is a period after his arrival that we call "Re Entry" & currently we are in the thick of it.

"Re Entry" is a time in which I am adjusting to sharing my space again & he is adjusting to not being on the road. We bicker, we kiss, we bicker more, I roll my eyes often & he sighs. It is a little more intense this time around & I am not sure if it's because it was such a short tour or because I seem to grow sassier everyday (this is another post in itself). Whatever the reason, I am grateful that we talk about it, laugh it off & are comfortable enough to make fun in the company of others.

Wish us luck.

xoxx

Soon Enough.

Wedding Reception.
Porch.
Garden.
D.C. Trip.
Life.

Reflections on these things will come soon enough, thanks so much for checking back.

xoxx

Thirty Two

As I write this I will confess that I am indeed mildly hungover.

I had too much wine last night as I enjoyed our new porch & the fact that I have nothing major to do except to sit, laugh & tell stories alongside my handsome husband and our great next door neighbors.

Oh, and it was my birthday. Thirty Two.

However, a birthday on the heels of an amazing & beautiful wedding reception is really pretty anti-climactic. So we just bummed around all day, hosted National Night Out & then drank entirely too much wine & giggled until about 3am.

What an idealic day, pure bliss.

There is a part of me that feels the need to write a list of some sort to commemorate the new year of my life. A to do list of sorts, or a list of Hopes & Dreams for year 32 of my life. But I start to write it & there are very few things to jot down. This is because at this moment in my life, everything seems absolutely stunningly fine. I live in a fantastic house with an amazing man who I am married to. We both have jobs we enjoy, great friends, and amazing family. I love our life.

And with that, Happy Birthday to me.

xoxx

An Open Apology.

Recently in conversation with someone I had a recollection. This person & I had been out of touch which was silly because we live a mere 3 miles apart. As we were were pledging to do better I laughed out loud & heard myself say, "I don't think I'll call you-- I don't like talking on the phone." This was news to my consciousness.

There was a time when I would talk on the phone so many hours that my cell phone bill would be sky high every month from going over my minutes. (This was obviously in the early days of cell phones as now there are so many unlimited plans that there is no reason to go over; these days, I think I may go under). I would spend my evenings catching up with friends from college or sometimes I would randomly call someone I hadn't spoken to in a long time, just to reconnect. I talked with my friend Jenny nearly everyday even though we lived thousands of miles apart. Currently I'm pretty sure I owe Jenny a phone call & I'm also pretty sure it's from several weeks ago. Sorry Jenny.

This seems to be the pattern. Someone calls, leaves me a message & I don't respond. I think about it, I make a plan to, but I just never execute it. I guess that the days of 6 hour phone conversations (Junior High) or talking until the sun comes up (falling in love) are probably over for me.

So to Jenny & all the others who I haven't called back, or took several days or weeks to do so, know that it's not you, it's me. It's something I know I need to get better at & while I'm not pledging to do so just yet, I will soon enough.

xoxo

Some Good Shots: Wyatt

A few more from last Thursday's dinner. After dinner came cake and the little ones were very excited. This is Wyatt who is cousin to Everett & very much enjoyed his cake once it was time to eat it.


xoxx

Some Good Shots: Everett

Thursday night was lucky to have an unexpected night off of work. I had dinner with my aunt, uncle, two cousins & their families. Everett is a 11 days away from turning two. It was a treat to watch him play by himself with "The Old Woman & The Shoe", a toy that I vividly remember playing with alongside my cousins.




xoxx

It's a Bit Easier Now, Thanks.

Someone I barely know asked how me how Asha was today and I realized that in the blogosphere I left this bleak and sad thing hanging with no follow up.

For those cat peeps and other animal lovers out there here's an update.

It's gotten a bit easier as she is home. She is not her old self as I was expecting, or maybe just hoping, but I see glimpses of it every once in a while. And I've had to come to terms with the fact that she may not ever be her old self completely.

I have to give her insulin twice a day which is not as difficult as I thought it would be and thanks to advice & tips offered on various websites dedicated to Feline Diabetes I am getting better at it every day.

All in all I am quite lucky. Asha is the best cat I have ever had in my 31 years and until now has had never a reason to go to the vet aside from annual vaccinations. And I am in a place where while it's a slight pinch in my finances to have her medical needs looked after it is not out of the question.

xoxx

This is Hard.

When I was growing up we always had cats. Always. There was Whitey, Rainbow, Popcorn, Pudding, Pom Pom & Stevie. When I was in my third year of college, along came Asha.

Aaah, Asha. The pretty gray cat from The Pierce County Humane Society in Tacoma, Washington. Originally, Ghosty, she had the sweetest disposition and cutest chirp. Her first night with me she climbed into bed, beneath the cover and laid on her back (with her head on the pillow) between my boyfriend and I. We laughed, but she was serious. And she's been best cat I've had. Ever. She is my 7th of 8 cats (Cyrus came along about a year after Asha when we moved to Minneapolis), and she is the best cat I've ever had. I keep saying this because it's true though a little bit monotonous.

She greets me at the door when I get home, she is everywhere I am whether it's in the bathroom taking a bath (always next to the tub) or in the kitchen doing kitchen stuff (on the sink rug gazing at me). She's the best, the most loyal. Which is why I am at odds this weekend.

A few months ago when I brought Asha & Cyrus in for their annual vaccinations the vet warned me that they were both overweight. Overweight in older cats meant risk for diabetes, especially males. So a diet ensued, and their food intake was cut in half. I joked that no cat of mine would could be diabetic as I wouldn't put up with such high maintenance of a cat.

Huh.

So through out the last week my lady Asha just wasn't herself. A little slower, always hungry, ridiculously thirsty and much more tolerant of Cyrus (she typically gives him a daily ass kicking) than usual. I noted, but was not overly concerned.

Then on Saturday night I arrived home from work and she wasn't at the door to greet me. "Asha, Asha," I called, and soon enough she walked into the kitchen slowly and disheveled. I scooped her up. She was scruffy and not her chirpy self. I brought her into the living room and decided to give her a good brushing. She was happy: purring and licking my hand as I brushed her, and then I got to her hind legs. They hurt. I discovered this because she bit me when I brushed her right hind leg. I turned her over to see if the left was also sore and was given another bite and a little bit of a growl. With her ears back in annoyance, she jumped off my lap and onto our hardwood living room floor sliding on her hind legs in a way which made me feel like it hurt her to land. So I called the University of Minnesota Emergency Vet Clinic.

20 minutes later I loaded Asha into the car and to the U of M we went. The person on the Vet Clinic emergency line warned me of possible kidney failure or heart problems. When I pulled up to the Clinic that night I was prepared to say goodbye to her.

When the vet came into the waiting room after Asha's exam and told me she was Diabetic I laughed outloud. I think the vet was as taken aback by my reaction as much as I was. Cyrus was the one who was going to get Diabetes. He's the male, he's the one who's hungry all the time, he's really over weight.

But no, it's Asha.

Asha the Cat who drove from Tacoma, Washington to Minneapolis, Minnesota in 5 days on the dash of my '88 Subaru Wagon with a leash on.

Asha the Cat who sleeps with me (only when Randy's on tour) until I am ready to wake up.

Asha the Cat who chirps instead of meows and rolls on her back to tell you she loves you.

Asha the Cat who licks my hair to clean me and let me know she's watching out for me.

Asha the Cat who seems to be in tune with my emotions and willing to make all better. Seriously. I mean she licked my pants today as I cried when the vet left the exam room briefly, almost as if to tell me all would be okay. This only made me cry more.

So I stood in the exam room this afternoon, after the vet went over all the possibilities and liklihoods of a living with a diabetic cat, and silently weighed in my mind whether treating her diabetes is for me or for her.

She is a lovely cat. Our school aged nephews can tote her around the house beneath their arms and not only does she tolerate it, but when they set her down she either sits down beside them or slowly walks away. Personally, I would run if any child walked around with me under their arms.

So the initial treatment requires an overnight stay and monitoring and such. I agreed and negotiated a payment plan and kissed her little ears goodbye. Only to lose it as I paid the receptionist my first payment: "Will (dry heave) you (dry heave) put this (dry heave) blazer of mine (dry heave) in her cage? (Sob, sob, sob,) Maybe it will be (dry heave) easier for her (dry heave) if she smells me (sob)."

Oh, I am such a sad little cat lady.

I guess in the end, I did what I needed to. Handsome Randy soothed me tonight as I cried to him via Skype. He reminded me that I should at least give it a shot and see what happens as she is the world's greatest cat. And so I have and we will see.

Asha the Cat: We all wish you well. So well. xxxxoooxx.

xoxo

Back to Earth.

What a crazy thing getting married is.

Amazing, but crazy.

I have finally landed back on planet earth after 2 weeks of floating around on cloud nine, giggling at the introduction of my husband, Randy and his introduction of his wife, Dahli. Our glimmering left ring fingers...it's been really quite lovely.

Other than our titles, rings & change in insurance rates, our lives have not changed very much. This is a great thing, as we were both completely happy with our lives previous to our nuptials.

And so life has gone on.

Handsome Randy has embarked on a tour to Australia and New Zealand for a little less than 3 weeks and I am granted the amazing gift of having our house to myself.

Perhaps all this time to myself will produce many enlightening & inspiring writes on this blog. We will see.

xoxx

Meeting Floyd

This week my friend, Evan needed a ride to see his new puppy, Floyd. Floyd is a chocolate standard poodle who is just about 3 weeks old. He is somewhere in the huddle above. Handsome Randy fretted that I would come home with a puppy in hand, while this was tempting, I abstained & snapped away at Evan, Floyd, the litter mates and mama poodle Dandelion and papa poodle Turbo. I took this one just as we were leaving & was happily surprised with the colors & composition.

xoxx

coming to a mailbox near you...

oh the trials & tribulaltions of putting together a holiday card. Christmas or New Year? Photo or not? By the skin of our teeth we went with New Year and a photo in a very chilly Minnesota vein. It turned out well, if I do say so myself.

Happy New Year to You!

xoxx

The Absentee Blogger.

I find it funny that I feel guilty when I haven't blogged in a bit. And this time it has been a bit. Ten days to be exact and that was only a video post. I feel guilty for myself more than anyone else.

I have this grand vision that every morning I'll wake up early and sit at the dining room table drinking coffee and blogging. I would do a morning post everyday & a night post 3 times a week. It hasn't happened yet & I don't know if it ever will, but every night when I fall asleep I think to myself, "Tomorrow morning I'll wake up early to blog."

I am not a morning person, although I do think it must be nice to be one. Waking up early with the entire day ahead of you. I am a night person, I wake up late with only half the day left.

Much to my chagrin, I have always loved staying up late. When Handsome Randy is in town our regular bedtime is 3:30, not because we're just home from the bar & full of drinks, but because we just stay up late.

At one time we would stay up late and I would blog. Then it changed to staying up late and settling in the new house. Well, the house is all settled but I took a knitting class and now it's that we stay up late and I knit. I do think about blog posts while I knit, but then I need to change yarn, start a new row, or find a lost stitch...what about my blog again?

So at last dear readers, please bear with me. I will find a writing routine again soon enough. The new house is all settled and I am 2/3 done with the hat that I am knitting. Maybe, just maybe tomorrow morning will be the one that gets me out of bed early to blog.

xoxx

Good Thing.

Late last spring a little rattling noise started somewhere in the hood of our car. We commented on it to each other, talked about bringing the car into our mechanic, but never did anything about it. About three weeks later we were driving on the freeway & our car just stopped. When our mechanic looked at the car the first thing he asked was if we had heard any strange rattlings or noticed any burning smells. When we admitted to the rattling he told us that if we would have brought it in right then our repair would have been $300 tops. But we didn't, so our repair bill was nearly $3k. Yes, $3k. We kicked ourselves for a while after that.

With that experience you can imagine the dread I felt early last week when a rattle started to sound every time I pulled into 4th gear. I put off bringing the car in for about a week, but it nagged at me. I called our mechanic's garage where the person who answered the phone informed they were "really busy and I could bring it in but it would probably just sit until Thursday." Well, that doesn't sound helpful. So I just continued to drive it and wince with every rattle I heard while trying to discern if the rattle was getting worse or staying the same. Meanwhile, Randy is frequently asking how the rattle is and when I am going to bring the car in. My ears were ringing.

Yesterday I drove by our mechanic's garage on the way to run some errands & noted that there were very few cars in the lot. On the way back I impulsively stopped. I took one of the technicians for a drive and after hearing the rattle he was certain he knew what it was. We got back to the garage & he said to me, "Good thing you brought this in now or it could have been really expensive later,"

xoxx

Finishing Sentences.

Thank you, Camille, for sharing this on your blog. This was a nice one & I felt it was too good to pass up.

I recorded the first thing that popped into my head upon reading each phrase.

Outside my window
The quiet night, a wet street that leaves evidence of yet another fabulous summer storm & some drunkards stumbling home from that one bar by our house.

I am thinking
about the inclinations I have and the emotions that arise in me because of them. Yep, pretty vague.

I am thankful for
my job. My handsome partner in crime and the love I incessantly feel for and from him. Our home, our impending home (wherever it may be) & all that lies ahead for us in that realm. My pals and comrades, my family. My talents. My everlasting optimism. My cats. The opportunities I have had and those that are coming my way.

From the kitchen
lots avocado, olive oil & sea salt lunches, a pretty mean cold press in the fridge & the best fresh whipped cream you will ever have.

I am wearing
this great brown calico 70s dress that I recently acquired from Rewind.

I am creating
songs, baby blankets, dresses, stories & other writes, photos, and a plan for my post apron wearing life.

I am going
to go crazy from anticipation. I will post a more detailed post when I know something. I don't know when this will be as we've been waiting for nearly 3 months as it is.

I am reading
Vodka Neat, a mystery recommended by grandfather.

I am hoping
for continued prosperity in health, love & happiness through my life.

I am hearing .
the podcast that I am listening to (The Story), Asha the cat meowing intermittently, the hummmmmm of the fridge, cars driving by and the splashes of water their motion causes.

Around the house
it's a little too quiet; HR is on tour.

One of my favorite things
falling asleep to the music of a thunderstorm on a hot, hot summer night.

A few plans for the rest of the week
a ladies bbq, lots of work, bike rides, matt & sara's wedding(!!) & a pedicure.

A picture to share
This my friend, Becca & her sister Emma. We Rocked The Garden last weekend & had the best Saturday ever in the process. I love this photo - it was a great moment & I was excited to have captured it.

xoxx

A New Fight.

In the past few weeks I have been seemingly fighting a lot of battles. There have been some with others (our landlord). There have been some with myself (why did/didn't you say/do that, Dahli?!). And then, of course, there are just the every day battles of life (traffic, long lines, work, etc).

There is now one more to add to the roster.

Tinea Pellionella

Wish me luck.

xoxx

productivity.

It will never cease to amaze me how much more productive I feel when our house is clean and I am all caught up with various menial tasks.

We are having a furnace problem and while it is spring, it is still cold at night & I would like more help keeping warm than the 3 blankets that are on our bed. So our landlord is allegedly stopping by tomorrow or Saturday to take a look at & hopefully remedy the problem.

This is when the messy house becomes a problem.

Our back hallway where the furnace resides is a disaster - it is our recycling area and it's also the drop off point for things that need to go upstairs except those things never seem to get there. The majority of my clothes that are in current circulation of being worn are on the floor in the bathroom as well as 4 or 5 pairs of my shoes. Junk mail is in a pile on the living room floor. I took the garbage out yesterday but the trash can is still in the middle of the kitchen floor waiting for a new bag.

You get it. Embarrassingly messy.

So tonight I remedied all of it. All of it. No joke. And to top it off I finally downloaded 6 CDs into itunes that I've been meaning to for so long. And that is what felt the best of everything.

By the way, Handsome Randy if you are reading this, you are not allowed to give me shit for our messy house that I tout as being so spic and span clean whilst you are on the road. This was a minor slip...

xoxx

Feelin' Fresh with a New 'Cut

When I get my haircut I am always at the point where I cannot stand my hair for one more second. I have been there for the last 10 days. When I called to make an appointment with my stylist & was told the next opening was in 10 days I thought, "Ten Days! How will I make it?"
Well obviously it wasn't that hard. And in truth all I wanted & needed was a trim, so nothing is drastically different. But man oh man does it ever feel amazing to have a new cut. xoxx

And then there's the separate issue of the photo I used courtesy of my iPhoto Booth. Will you promise not to laugh if I admit that I spent ten minutes posing for, taking and re-taking photos for this blog post. Yes. Yes, I did. And the worst part about that? The photo above is the best one of the lot.

xoxx

Photos & Captions.

Easter was yesterday & I am lucky enough to be part of two families who continue to give me Easter Schwag despite being in my thirties. They give Randy chocolate too & he's into his forties. This gives us no incentive to have children as we are still reaping the benefits the little ones are with the all the glorious benefits of adulthood.

In my family we coerce children to perform music for us & then we make them laugh by singing along to "Hot Cross Buns" (which was requested because we knew the words). Liam was a great sport yesterday and played many pieces on his clarinet despite our gregarious singing along to Hot Cross Buns, Let's Go Band & When The Saints Go Marching In.

So, as you may have gathered yesterday was a fun & food filled day. More ham than I could ever dream of, mashed potatoes, au gratin potatoes, asparagus, chocolate fondue, cole slaw, croissants, and so much more. All the food combined with all the laughs and conversation that comes with such family events put me in bed at 10:30 last night.
Too bad I decided to start New Moon (the second book in the Twilight series because I was up until 4am reading. I finished it this morning and went on with a nice spring day telling myself I should go for a bike ride but had a pedicure and a few beers instead. The good news is that it's April so there are many more lovely days upon us & I will have so many more opportunities to go for a great ride.

And then there was this.
This is my cat, Asha, she loves boxes. I snapped this today while cleaning out a closet. She also is completely in the know about how adorable she is.

Have a great Tuesday.

xoxx

online shopping.

I am in the market for a new wallet. The one I have now is this Trifold silver synthetic leather with a snap & a coin pocket that I bought at Urban Outfitters 3 years ago for around $25. I love it, it's perfect, but the lining is all worn down in the change compartment & now all my coins fall out. This will simply no longer do.

$25 lasted 3 years, the wallet before was a coin purse that I purchased for $10 & lasted one year. This time I'm willing to spend some serious money, like Coach kind of money.
I don't need room for much: My ID, my library card, maybe a photo or 2, cash & coins. In the world of fine leather accessories, I need a "Mini".

After searching high & low at Coach, Nordstrom & beyond. I found this. It's perfect. It's small & it comes in green! But for whatever reason I just can't finish the order. It's in my "shopping cart", I have the funds, everything's good to go. I even look at it everyday online. But I just can't seal the deal.

This is what happens when I shop online. I am too contemplative for my own good.

In my closet right now is a dress I ordered from a J. Crew Final Sale last winter. It's a 6P, I need a plain 6. I ended up with a 6P instead because I stared at the regular 6 online too long & by the time I got up the gumption to just order the damn dress all the regular size 6 dresses were gone. So ordered a 6P with the thought, "Well I am only 5'5, that is on the cusp of petite". True. But it's just a little too small (I should have gotten an 8P) & it was Final Sale so I'm stuck with it. If I would have just ordered the dress from the beginning I would have worn the dress by now because it would fit me.

Now if you would excuse me, I have to go press "submit order" on a certain website
xoxx

SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION (makes me nervous).

In my quest to make a living without an apron I have been doing a little networking with the help of my friend, Beth. One thing that always comes up is the importance of promoting yourself, talking yourself up, pointing out how great your stuff is.
Oh! This is sooo scary for me.
I was raised to be ever so modest & complimentary of others, not myself.
But here goes, modesty is going out the window.

**********

Be sure to visit my NEW WEBSITE

xoxx