Current Book(s): Work in Progress: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles, Haruki Murakami;
Finished: Dead as a Doornail, Charlain Harris (I’m in a bit of a reading slump still! I blame work.)
Current Music:
Bon Jovi
Journey
Pretty much anything from the 80s
Current Shame-Inducing Guilty Pleasure:
Homemade chocolate chip & oatmeal cookies
Current Colors:
Purple
Current Obsessions: Rediscovering my Domestic Diva
Raking leaves; odd, I know but the green of the grass is much prettier than the dead, brown leaves all over the lawn
Current Drink:
Water
Peppermint Tea
Current Songs:
I honestly can’t think of a single song right now that’s my favorie or that I’m listening to over and over again. Unusual for me!
Current Movie: The Last Kiss
Casablanca
Current TV Show:
Color Splash, HGTV
Dawson’s Creek (I’m rewatching them because, well, I feel like it)
Current Wish-List:
Less pain and suffering amongst my friends; there’s been too much of it lately
Current Needs:
Clarity
Current Triumph(s):
Well it hasn’t happened yet but I’m taking a whole week off of work this month and will be disconnecting my work email from Blackberry. First time in three years I’ve done NO work on a vacation so if I can pull it off, it will be huge for me.
Current Bane(s) of my Existence:
I signed up for NaBloPoMo but no idea if I’ll make it
House Hunters on HGTV because the demographic of people on that show bothers me. First homes that cost $350,000? Seriously? And don’t get me started on House Hunters International; I wish I could have a second home in Italy!
Current Goal(s):
Three more pounds to go to reach my weight loss goal
Pull off NaBloPoMo this month so I can improve my writing
Current Indulgence:
Target shopping trips
Afternoon naps on the weekends
Current Blessing:
Each day is a blessing. I know, corny, but lately, it’s so very true.
Current Slang or Saying:
I’ve been dropping the F-Bomb a lot as of late. Terrible, I know.
Current (Fav) Outfit:
Comfort is what I’m going for lately, at work, at home, at the gym
Current Excitement:
Trip to Florida this month for my cousin’s wedding
Thanksgiving & lots of family time
This past weekend turned out to be one of the best birthday celebration weekends I’ve had in a long time. I didn’t spend it drunk and hungover but instead very in the moment.
My brother came into town to surprise me (one of the best surprises ever!), I made some style changes to my bedroom meaning it’s almsot the way I want it to be, had beer with my favorite three men in the world (Irish, my brother, my dad), received ah-mazing presents from my long distance friends, Irish and my family as well as scoring tickets to a Deluxe Suite at the StL Cardinal’s last game.
Originally I had four tickets to sit in the nosebleeds which is really one of the best ways to see a Cardinals game but then Irish’s dad had tickets to a Deluxe Suite and I had to refrain from screaming “HELL YES!” into the phone.
On Sunday five of us piled into the car to start the adventure that would entail seats behind homeplate, unlimited free food, beer, wine and soda, as well as fantastically comfortable seats, great people watching and one of the best baseball experiences I’ve had to date.
Our view from the box:
With the always handsome Irish:
With the best brother in the world:
And we saw Albert Pujols break an old record/earn a new record:
With regular season out of the way we can now focus on post-season and hopefully make it to the World Series…
Current Book(s): Work in Progress: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles, Haruki Murakami;
Finished: Club Dead, Charlain Harris (I’m in a bit of a reading slump currently)
Current Music:
The Beatles
The Supremes
Marvin Gaye
Stevie Wonder
Current Colors:
Sunflower yellow is quickly growing on me
Current Obsessions:
Cleaning/organizing
Baking
Reading cooking magazines
Thinking up crafty projects
Current Drink:
Water.
100 calorie Coca-Cola if I need one
Slim Fast
Current Songs:
A Little Less Conversation, Elvis Presley
Current Movie: Duplicity.
Can’t wait to see Away We Go
Current TV Show:
Sons of Anarchy
Current Wish-List:
I’d like my hair to grow faster and stop growing gray hairs
Believe it or not, more hours in the work day
Current Needs:
Sleep, always sleep.
To plan my week long vacation at the end of October
Current Triumph(s):
Slaying work projects left and right.
Conquering new dishes in the kitchen.
Staying in better touch with friends and family.
Current Bane(s) of my Existence:
Not enough time in the day to read books, catch up on blogs
Current Goal(s):
Lose five pounds by December (I’ve lost a few in the last two months)
Read a memoir by one of my favorite political figures or actors/actresses by end of the year
Current Indulgence:
Homemade chocolate chip cookies
Current Blessing:
It’s fall!
Current Slang or Saying:
I’m not sure what I’ve been saying a lot of lately.
Current (Fav) Outfit:
I’m digging the preppy look: black pants, white blouse, argyle sweater/vest and lots of fun jewelry to go with it
Current Excitement:
Birthday celebration with the family this weekend.
A fun, graphic desinger wedding to attend in two weeks
Visiting my BFF and her husband in three weekends for winery trips, a pumpkin patch & corn maze excursion and lots of relaxing
I admit I wasn’t organized enough to find a photo of myself as a young girl for today’s post so a photo of me from my 21st birthday will have to do:
I’m 26 today (and the end to the birthday-blogging theme)! The last year has been one of the best years in my twenties and I’ve enjoyed every moment, new opportunity, my new and old friendships, my fantastic family, my amazing dog (who I’m convinced is a Border Collie mix after much discussion this past weekend), Irish, this blog, my readers, and the many new experiences I enjoyed.
A quick, down n’ dirty list of things I’ve learned over the years:
* You can’t go wrong with hugs.
* Baking is therapeutic.
* Sex & The City relates to my life more than I would have thought (or cared to admit).
* Sleeping in until noon is rejuvenating.
* Love is worth the fall.
* Getting a Blackberry will change your life, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse.
* After a long day there’s nothing like a hug from your man and smooch from your dog.
* It’s true: if you pluck one white hair, at least three more grow in its place.
* Sweatpants are fabulous.
Birthday request time! If you’re a reader but rarely comment, please, let me know who you are. If you’re a regular reader/commenter please share your words to live by or favorite life advice for me to add to my arsenal.
It’s Monday already? I really don’t know how the weekends fly by so quickly.
* One of our co-workers had emergency surgery late last night so the whole office is in a tizzy trying to figure out how to cover his work the next week or two. Which means I’ll be working a few more hours this week. Which means blogging may be light. Which means I may be like the Tazmanian Devil, running around in a cloud of my own dust.
* Many of you know that we (meaning me, Irish, and Jack) went to visit Nilsa, Sweets & SoMi this weekend. In a word: INCREDIBLE. In many words: please go read Nilsa’s blog for now until I have more time to write about what an amazing trip it was because seriously it was the perfect little getaway. I can’t wait to return to Chicago for more visits with Nilsa and the other fabulous Chicago bloggers I didn’t get to catch-up with.
* I’m struggling to wrap my brain around the fact that tomorrow I’m turning 26, which I know is no big deal, but I can’t believe it’s really tomorrow. I’ll be celebrating in a low-key fashion with my family and Irish around me for a Mexican dinner. That’s about as celebratory as I get these days and I’m more than okay with it.
* All you need is LOVE. Congratulations to EP on her engagement! And Mel on her upcoming nuptials. And two of my near and dear friends on their one-year wedding anniversary (Miss Kyla and my BFF MelO). All the excitement has me singing the “Love Is all Around Us…” song from Love Actually in my head non-stop.
When you’re little birthdays are all about toys, streamers, balloons, party favors, junk food and really amazing cake with fabulous icing; staying up past your bedtime; having your name read over the loudspeaker at school; your favorite dinner cooked by your mom; the thrill of presents from your friends, and themed birthday parties.
When you’re a teenager (13-17) birthdays are all about wondering if your outfit looks ok at school; how many balloons will your friends buy you and stuff into your locker?; will today be the day the high school football start finally tells you he loves you?; your friends and parents trying to surprise you and surprise you they did with limo rides (13th birthday) and a DJ (16th) birthday; hoping against hope that some boy you liked liked you back; and that you have a decent showing with no drama at your birthday party which will be supplied with tunes from Cake and the Empire Records lots of junk food and copious amounts of soda.
When you’re a young adult (18-23) your birthdays are about freedom; the ability to vote and drink (legally); celebrating a birthday away from home; planning your own party which often doesn’t sound so fun so you don’t do it; taking so many shots that the entire night is a blur; waking up to find out that you danced on a bar, kissed a stranger and proclaimed your love to every single one of your friends; it’s about going through your digital camera to see what pictures were taken and then daring to check facebook to see what embarassing shots of you may have surfaced; it’s about relishing in the here and now because you’re in your early twenties and this is how you do it!
When you’re in your mid-twenties (24-26) *birthdays are about quiet celebrations; not letting your friends buy you shot after shot because you know too well that hangover feeling; being thankful for everything that you have in your life; not asking for presents because you do have everything; being pleasantly surprised by the presents your friends and family do give you because you really didn’t need/want anything; reflecting on where you are and where you want to be; thankful for the lack of wrinkles on your face; recalling the days of yesteryear and smiling on all memories fondly; resolving to be a better person; reminding yourself to live in the now; ignoring your dad’s comments about how your more than halfway to fifty even if he says it with a smile on his face; indulging in birthday cake; going to sleep at a decent hour because you’re working the next day; hugging all your friends and family at least twice- not because your drunk- but because you love them.
What are your birthdays about?
** I consider mid-twenties to be through 27 or 28 but I’m not there yet, so I’ll let you know how it goes in the next two years! **
You know the moments I’m talking about. They reaffirm that you are doing just what you should be doing with your life. Or remind you that yes, this person really loves you. Or that your family really is kick-ass, hands-down the best family out there. I’ve been noticing these moments more and more as I reflect on my last 25 years and prepare for the 26th one that’s right around the corner. Here are a few of *those* moments that have really stood out to me over the last few weeks…
* Small Mexican restaurant. Me. Irish. The couple that set us up. Beer, salsa, tortilla chips. Laughter. Looking over at Irish and he winks. And then he kisses me on the cheek and he held my hand under the table. It was one of those moments where everything just felt right. Sometimes the craziness of the world can really interrupt the flow of a relationship so these moments where it’s just natural, normal and great? Well, they are really special to me.
* It’s not often that I get a day out of the office to attend client meetings but when the client has just renewed three contracts with us, I get to go to the meetings. This particular meeting took us to a town only 30 minutes away from where my brother is attending school so my boss (my dad!) and I met up with him for a late lunch at a very local, very Greek, very awesome restaurant. We were sitting on the patio chatting about politics, healthcare, college girls, bumble bees and who knows what else (all the while sending picture texts to Darling so she could see photos of “her boys” together) and I had that ah-ha moment. I felt blessed. I felt loved. I felt honored that my 21 year-old brother thinks it is cool (or at least humors us) and wants to spend time with us. This is my family and the older I get, the cooler they get. Funny how that works.
* I’ve been living at home for almost three (!) months now. There have been a few adjustments here and there but surpsingly no rough patches. It’s amazing to me how quickly I’ve adjusted to living with my parents again. I don’t feel like a 25 (almost 26!) year-old loser. In fact, I feel more responsible because I’m saving money, paying off (and not using) my credit cards, contributing to some of the daily chores around the house, and feel stable. I loved living in apartments but it always seemed semi-permanent. I love staying with Irish but due to some reservations on his family’s side that can’t be permanent (at least not yet), for awhile. I was really quite nervous about the move but on Sunday night, I had one of *those* moments where I realized I had done the right thing. I spent most of the day with Irish wandering in and out of bookstores, enjoy lunch and just having fun and when I got home my parents and I had a pizza party complete with a girlie movie. (My dad consented to watching Sweet Home Alabama with us.) We were all feeling the Sunday Evening Blahs and so I offered to make us a pot of tea. Hanging with my parents, the dogs, getting play-by-play updates on the Cards game from Irish and sharing a pot of tea brought tears to my eyes.
*This here blog started out over four years ago as a place for me to sob via the internet. No, seriously. I went through a horrible break-up and I boohooed my feelings and thoughts all over my blog for a good six months. After that I started making “blog friends.” In the last year I’ve opened myself up to meeting ”blog friends,” calling them and sending them real mail. I remember when sharing your address or phone number with people you’ve met online was totally batshit crazy but now not so much. I went from calling people “blog friends,” to “my real life friends.” In the last few months several of those bonds have grown even stronger thanks to GChats, texts, phone calls, emails and girls’ nights for those that live close to me. Not to mention the just knowing that there is a huge support group of women (and men) out there if I ever need them. It doesn’t feel funny to me that some of my best friends are people I met on the internet. It actually feels pretty damn awesome.
So, tell me, what are some of *those* moments for you recently? What kind of things do you notice more as a birthday appears?
1. Nailing a work presentation on Friday night thus freeing me to ignore work all weekend.
2. A blessing in disguise when my Blackberry stopped receiving work emails meaning I could really ignore work all weekend.
3. Going to a bar to see my dad’s band play with my mom & Gram. Bonus: my mom got on stage and sang an Irish ballad with the band. Double Bonus: my dad introduced the “three generations of women,” that he’s proud to have support him & his music career.
4. Puppy shopping with Darling. She’s looking for a new dog to add to the family, preferably a Border Collie Mix. We didn’t find the right one this weekend, but we are on the right track. I may or may not have fallen head over heels in love with a Terrier Mix puppy but wound up not adopting him because he was spoken for come Sunday morning. (I really wanted him but trying to be a responsible adult wanted to discuss it over with Irish who was at an all-day bachelor party.)
5. Enjoying the huge Art Fair StL puts on each September. Four or five streets are filled with Art vendors, music (live & DJ), food and of course, amazing people watching. Best person watching: Adult male, mid 50s, long white curly hair, non-descript hat. Ladies short shorts and black high heels with a white tank top. The reason I noticed him? He has better legs than me and walks in heels better than most girls I know.
6. Finding a birthday present for Irish and a unique wedding present for our friends who are tying the k not in less than a month. Irish is nearly impossible to buy for so I always go out on a limb with some of the presents I get him; I think he’ll like this one.
7. Taking an afternoon nap with Jack while listening to Felicity (almost done with the show!) in the background followed by a brisk 2-mile walk.
8. An hour long chat with Kyla. Eye-opening, inspiring, heart-warming and lovely. (Those words describe both Kyla & our phone call.)
9. The quiet of my parents’ house which I find rejuvenating.
10. Seeing Irish after being apart for five days.
What’s your Grace in Small Thing from this past weekend?
Following Tabitha’s lead it’s time for me to stop slacking and write a proper post. About Me (duh). Specifically, what’s new and what’s up with me:
* Happy! Happy! Joy! Joy! Two of my best friends brought me good news this week. One is moving in with her boyfriend this weekend which is a great next step for them. The other one called to say that she and her husband are taking a walk down Baby Lane. I literally did happy dances for both friends when I found out.
* I’m hooked on phonics. I have a book glued to my hand as much as possible. I’ve started taking one to work for the rare occasions I enjoy a “real” lunch hour, leave one stashed in my purse and have at least four ready-to-read books at Irish’s and a large pile at my parents.
* Follow your Feet. (Can anyone name what movie that line is from?) I haven’t posted a lot lately. The biggest reason is stress some of which is from work, some of which I bring upon myself. When I feel like that I don’t want to overshare or be a debbie downer, not to mention my creative juices are totally sucked out of me by the end of the day. Over the last few weeks I’ve been acutely aware of the fact that I can indeed control my stress and anxiety levels so I’m taking it one day at a time. I don’t make myself feel bad if a project takes longer than I thought or if something unexpected takes place. I make my daily to-do list in the morning, rather than the night before. The result: I’m sleeping better, planning less, thinking more positively and breathing easier. I’m just reminding myself to put one foot in front of the other and taking it one step/day at a time.
* Fall. It’s coming. Leaves are changing from green to yellow, orange and red. The mornings are crisp, car windows are fogged up and evenings call for sweatshirts and jeans. Jack is extra cuddly. Irish and I are making grand plans for the next few months (trip to Chicago, visit my best friend & her husband for a fall winery weekend, MU Homecoming and more). The social calendar is pleasantly filling up and I’ll be taking a look at my graduate school options too.
* Slim Gym. So my body, which is normally pretty cooperative, decided to get one whopper of a strep throat/sinus infection combo (which is 90% of the way gone now) and has killed my exercising efforts for the last two weeks. Starting next week I’m reorganizing my health & fitness goals. Irish and I are challenging each other, in the most friendliest of ways, to each give up one thing we know we enjoy a bit too much/too often. I’m going to the gym four days a week again and if I have time for more? Great. If not? I won’t make myself feel bad about it. I’m contemplating starting Bikram Yoga to help with the relaxation of the mind and body. I’m a bit behind on my 5k training as a result but I’m still going to give it a go in October especially because this particular 5k benefits the school one of my favorite kids that I used to watch. Above all, I’m going to remember to take it nice and slow. Change won’t happen over night, but attitudes can.
* Twenty Faux Birthday. My birthday is in less than three weeks. I’ll be 26 on the 29th. I kind of want to hold onto to 25 because it’s been one hell of a year for me. I’m not really sure how I feel about this birthday; I have no big plans other than having a mini-party at my parents house with Wii games, beer and delicious dinner cooked by Darling. 26. Weird.
And no, I didn’t forget what today is. I just know that even eight years later I still can’t do what/how I felt (feel) justice in a post but suffice to say:
… it is unnecessary to shout out that everything in your former college town is NEW! since you have been gone for five years and clearly almost everything is NEW! Constantly shouting about what is NEW! will prompt your brother and Irish to give you strange looks
… that although there are many NEW! things some things remain true about a college town: the guys wear too much cologne, the girls too little clothing and the temptation to buy more than one thing at the bookstore is overwhelming
… you will walk away with several shirts and a pair of fleece sweatpants even if that wasn’t your intent
… that I am getting a bit old as I had to call it a night by 12am
… falling into the old college frame of mind is relatively easy; watching pointless TV shows, lazing around and just being is a lot more fun than I remember it being
… steroids + antibiotics are a kick-ass mix. Yours truly managed to get strep throat and a sinus infection within one week of each other so I’ve been on a Vitamin C plus lots of rest. Fortunately no hair is growing on my chest.
… it rains on the one weekend you’d rather it not: no pool days for this gal
… cooking is over-rated.
… an extra Sunday is the perfect day to perfect your Wii Wakeboarding Skills
… Rainy days are the best time to curl up with the Japanese book you’re reading for the challenge and get through the more prose-y parts. Still have a l-o-n-g way to go.
