Rant Rant Rave

Brand New
Last week I saw Brand New tweet out that they would have pre-sale tickets on sale for three different Florida shows. One of those Florida shows was for the HOB in Orlando. I immediately texted Dustin and he and I were both really excited. I went on the appropriate website for pre-sale tickets but it wasn't working and I was unable to get tickets. I was bummed but I knew I'd have another chance two days later when the tickets went on sale to the public. I logged on to the website 10 minutes in advance. As soon as the clock struck 12, I pounced. Again, the website kept messing up. It wouldn't let me select a quantity no matter how hard I tried. And I tried for almost my entire lunch break. No luck. Then Dustin thought to go on Stub Hub where he found TONS of tickets for $109+ thanks to asshole scalpers. I knew the show would sell out fast. I mean, I can't remember the last time they were in Florida especially Orlando. But in 10 seconds? No way. Scalpers really fucked over a lot of actual fans and it pisses me off. Brand New is one of a couple bands I've never seen live that I have been dying to see. It looks like I may never get that chance because I'm certainly not paying over a hundred dollars when the original price was $28 plus services fees. No fucking way. I was furious the day this happened. Livid! And Dustin was too. We both tweeted at Brand New and HOB several times. It obviously didn't change anything but at least we got to let off steam. I'm still annoyed by the situation but my anger is gone. I did everything within my power to get those tickets and still didn't succeed. Oh well. Such is life.

Cavities
Yesterday I went to the dentist to get four cavities filled. (Yeah, my teeth suck!) I've had countless cavities filled over the years and have never had any problems other than the fact I hate the needle aspect of novocain.

When I sat down in the chair and the dental assistant was going over my plan of treatment with me she asked me several times if I was sure I wanted to do all four cavities at the same time. Since two were on the right side and two were on the left side, the majority of my mouth would be numb. She also warned that I would have no control over my tongue. This all of course freaked me out but I agreed to it because I had to get them done in one go for various reasons. The dentist was very nice and calming and smelled great. I've always had male dentists and they never smelled like anything. But my new female dentist was wearing just enough perfume! Unnecessary details. Anyway, when she came at me with the needle I tensed up but remembered to just keep breathing through it. Most doctors assume that anyone with tattoos are fine with needles but that is very untrue. The needles are completely different for one thing and not only that but one I'm getting because I WANT to, the other I'm only doing because I HAVE to. Again, I'm getting sidetracked. She got through the novocain on both sides of my mouth and sat me up to wait for it to kick in. I was shaking from anxiety so I decided to text Dustin to help me get my mind off of it all. That of course helped me to calm down. The hard part was over...so I thought. My dentist starts working on the right side but while doing so hooks some weird contraption in my mouth. Side note: I just looked on google for 5 minutes for a picture to no avail.  The device was metal and it felt and looked like she was screwing it onto my teeth. Part of it was sticking out of my mouth. Internally I was freaking out. WHAT IS GOING ON? So I politely raised my hand and she stopped so I could ask what the device was for. She said it's only used for cavities that are in between teeth. Whew. That eased my mind a lot. So this was totally normal and I wasn't going to end up in a horrible Saw movie. Awesome. The next issue came when she was trying to remove it and dropped the pliers on my chin. Thankfully the handle was coated in rubber so it didn't really hurt. But it sure as hell surprised me causing me to jump. She moved onto my other side and near the end her dental assistant accidentally sprayed water down my throat causing me to choke. I immediately flung my body upright and coughed for a little while. Ugh! And then to top off my visit from hell it ended up costing $50 more than originally quoted. I questioned it but I was too drained to argue. Just take my money and let me go home! Unfortunately, my misery didn't exactly get any better once I got home. It was taking forever for the novocain to wear off. Dustin thought it was hilarious that I couldn't shut my mouth straight. He even made a video of it which I'm not exactly eager to post. Maybe I'll include it in my end of the year recap video. Ha! The numbness made it difficult to eat dinner but finally went away just as I was finishing. Hallelujah! But once I could feel everything again I noticed my bite was off on my left side. UGH!! AND THEN I was unable to floss between my teeth on the right side. It would shred my floss! Can I get a break or what?! No, I can't because on top of all of that my jaw is still sore from having my mouth open for an hour and a half yesterday. The good news is they are fixing my bite/floss issue on Monday so it's not a huge deal. Annoying yes, but it's getting worked out. I just needed to get out my frustration in blog form and now that I have I feel much better.

Free Weights
I've been going to a gym off and on for over a year now. I feel very comfortable on all the machines. I, however, do not feel comfortable using the free weights. I use them at home all of the time. I work from YouTube videos and Pinterest fitness posts. I just feel super self conscious doing my little free weight routine in front of other people. I feel like they are all just staring at me just waiting to tell me I'm doing something wrong. I told Dustin of this really stupid fear and he gave me a little pep talk. I knew I was being silly but his talk helped me overcome my fear. So the other day after my elliptical cardio workout I went over to those weights. I picked up two 5 pounders and did some dead lifts, squats, etc. It was totally fine as soon as I stopped caring what other people thought about me, assuming they even noticed I was there, which I doubt they did. I know it's a seemingly small thing but it really made me so proud of myself. Small victories!

Dustin Says

I have two settings; be mad for 10 minutes or hate you forever.

Danny Tanner is the original Pinterest.

I hate snakes. No legs = no respect.

Dustin heard a song in a gas station or commercial, somewhere random, and couldn't for the life of him figure out what song it was. So he turned to the app store for assistance. 
Dustin: I'll be right back.
Me: Where are you going?
Dustin: Outside. I just downloaded an app. where you can hum the tune of a song to figure out what it is.
Me: Bahahaha. HAHA. Ha. Nerd.
Dustin: It didn't even fucking work! I still have no idea what song it is I heard!!

A Long Weekend

FRIDAY: I got off work early and had a busy afternoon of errands. One of those errands was the lovely dentist. Except it wasn't lovely because they told me I have 4 cavities. Womp womp. Fun fact: I've never been to a check up and NOT had at least one cavity. I know that seems awful but I am blaming it on genetics. It's got to be genes because I have always been crazy about oral hygiene. I'm one of those people that brushes twice a day with mouthwash AND I even floss. Yeah I actually floss. Something that 99% of the population doesn't take time to do. I'm doing it and it's not even paying off. What the hell! My dentists over the years give me a look when I tell them this because apparently they don't see any sign of good oral hygiene. Whatever. I'm getting all four filled tomorrow afternoon and now I'm on a special mouthwash for cavity prevention. Geez louise!

Later that night we decided to rent The Wolf of Wall Street. WHOA WHOA WHOA. That movie is on a whole different level of insane. AND I only could stay awake for 2/3 hours of it. Let's just say you definitely don't want to watch it at your parent's house or with a kid anywhere in the vicinity. Ha!

SATURDAY: We went to see X-Men: Days of Future Past Saturday morning. The theater hadn't even opened their doors yet when we arrived. We just wanted to make sure we had good seats. And we did. The movie itself was great. I love all X-Men movies but the newest ones are extra strong in characters and plots. I mean, you can't beat Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy, and Michael Fassbender - among others. I thought Quicksilver was especially fun.

 

We spent the rest of the day running around town checking off various errands from our list. Guitar Center! My sewing shop! Home Depot! I stopped by Blue Bonnet and introduced Kelly and Dustin.  She said to Dustin "You look exactly the same as you do on Instagram!" which I thought was hilarious. The Florida necklace I wanted was already sold to someone else but I found another necklace that is just as cool. I also purchased a cute little sleeveless top. It's perfect for these miserably hot days!

SUNDAY: I got lots of sewing done! Dustin bought me fancy fabric scissors as an early birthday present and they mean serious business. They cut like butta! My craft room looks like a bomb went off. Fabric is thrown everywhere. Oh well. Every time I try and clean it up I just end up pulling everything out again anyway. I'm basically like a 2 year old. Ha!

We re-watched The Darjeeling Limited and The Royal Tenenbaums for the umpteenth time back to back. Wes Anderson sure knows how to make a movie you never get sick of.

MONDAY: I cleaned most of the morning and then went to the gym. I'd like to take a moment to pat myself on the back that during my long weekend I made it to the gym 3 times! I don't know where this sudden urge to work out all the time is coming from but I'm just going with it. I'm sure it will pass.

I was laying in bed in my pajamas when I got a text from Sam asking us if we wanted to meet her and Pat for an early dinner. Dustin and I changed into real clothes and met up with them at BurgerFi. It was our first BurgerFi experience and I'd say it was rather enjoyable. Their burgers are very similar to Steak-n-Shake's but healthier and fresher. They even stamp their buns! I don't know why but I was really impressed by this.

It was the first time we had spent time with Sam and Pat since their engagement. It was awesome to see Sam's pretty ring up close and of course discuss wedding plans because it's never too soon! We ended up sitting and talking for a good 3 hours. Time flies when you're having fun!

"You didn't watch Murder, She Wrote with your grandma when you were a kid?" - Pat

Finding New Music

I have friends ask me once in awhile "Where do you find all this music?" and Dustin even says on a regular basis "You're so good at finding new music". I feel like it's just a natural talent of mine. Some people can play instruments and others are just good at finding something new to listen to. I've always been the latter.

I grew up listening to everything from classic rock to pop to country. When I hit high school I moved to the punk rock variety. These days I still listen to everything but I've always gravitated more toward anything with a more rocking sound.

Listen Closely
Every time I'm watching a TV show or movie (or even a commercial) I'm listening closer than the average person. I've found tons of songs that I love by simply listening to the background music or checking out the soundtrack. Thankfully certain shows post a list of songs played in each episode on Twitter nowadays and for all the others there's always Google!

Also, I listen to the music played in stores when I'm out shopping. Most of the time stores play pretty awful music (I'm talking to you Forever 21!), but once in awhile I'll hear something I like and I'll make a note in my iPhone to check it out when I get home.

During high school aka the last time music was on MTV, I stumbled across a mini interview with Maria Mena. She was talking to some VJ on a NYC subway. I loved the interview and her music so much I remember going straight to Best Buy to pick up the CD she was promoting. She never made it big in the US but I've since bought every album she's ever put out (7 total). I'm so thankful for that little interview about an unknown artist from Norway because she turned into one of my all time favorites. 

Word of Mouth
I LOVE when friends/celebs/bloggers post music to various social media outlets. I've found so many new songs just by taking the time to listen to what they are listening to. Beau Bennett just tweeted this not too long ago. And so Dustin checked it out. I heard it playing across our living room and then I checked it out. Boom! New favorite song.

If a friend suggests I check out a musician that I've never heard of then I do. They know me well enough to know what I like and what I don't.

My cousin Hayley and I went on a trip to Vegas and L.A. when we were in high school. On that trip she introduced me to Something Corporate which made me a life long lover of Andrew McMahon. 

Dustin introduced me to Thrice from the minute we started dating and I've been a fan ever since.

My mom introduced forced me to listen to all the classics at an early age which I think should be a requirement for all children. I didn't appreciate at the time but I certainly do now. 

Wasting Time
There are so many Friday nights where I'm parked right in from of my computer just listening to music. I don't ever listen to music radio (more of a talk radio kind of gal) so I have no idea what is popular. I'll go on iTunes and browse through the Top 200 singles just to see if I like any of it.

Opening Acts
Typically one goes to shows for the headliner but more often than not I've been surprised to find out the opening bands are just as awesome. Now sometimes they just suck or it's totally not the style of music you're into but pay attention to those opening bands. I've found some good ones over the years.

Animals As Leaders opened for Thrice on their farewell tour and now Dustin loves them. 

Daphne Loves Derby, Melee, Cute Is What We Aim For, Company of Thieves, etc. were all bands I had never heard of until I saw them open for someone else. I now have music from all of them on my iTunes. 

The whole point of this post is don't let the radio be your only source for music. There's a ton of awesome music that has never been played on the radio or any music TV station. Music is everything to me. I listen to it while I type my blogs, while in the car, while I sew, while I workout, when I'm sad, when I'm happy, to transport me back in time - basically ALL THE TIME. I love my collection but I also love adding to it - popular artist or not. If you hear a song I might like, send it my way!

Found

Interstellar Trailer!

Sims 4 cannot come out sooner!

The most outrageous baby names of 2013. Subaru? REALLY?!

One Million Lovely Letters - An amazing project started by an amazing person. Watch her TED video too.

103 Year Old Orca Bad News For SeaWorld

Sarah Silverman's Advice For Being A Full Grown Woman

Box of Lies with J-Law

Not Being a Mother Doesn't Make Me Any Less of a Woman

Andy Samberg Monologue and Digital Short: When Will The Bass Drop?

TV Show Floorplans

7 Ways To know You Belong Together. This list totally reminds me of Dustin and I! 

I am truly a Gemini from my personal style, home decor, my low maintenance beauty routine, and creative side. Pretty neat.

Back To The Gym

Dustin and I BOTH got gym memberships the Monday after his birthday. That weekend we went crazy in the food department and we don't regret it one bit. But we decided that it was time to get on track. So for almost a month now we've been going to the gym 3-4 days a week each. Dustin usually goes right after work since all he has to do is change his pants and go. I have to run home, change everything, then head out. It's not too fun but I'm doing it! We typically pass each other on the road and wave. Ha! We've only worked out together once which was my favorite because I like having him around. 

I give Dustin 100% credit for being the leader of this little work out team we have going. It was his idea to get a gym membership and his idea to eat healthier. I'm not sure exactly what brought this all on but I think our bud Fiddy had a pretty big influence. I don't care the reason. I was on board from the start. If you remember I had a gym membership that I canceled last fall. I had lost motivation and wanted to cut back financially. But now I have a cheaper option and the motivation is a million times what it was. I find working out and eating healthy is so much easier when the person/people you live with are doing the same thing. 

We are not on some crazy strict diet. We've just cut out a lot of crap and added a ton more water. I already drink a lot of water but now I drink mostly water. I barely drink juice or soda anymore (which SUCKS). I mean, I still do but it's only here and there rather than every day. We don't eat fast food. We haven't been big into fast food in the past couple years anyway. Sure, we'd go once in awhile but not like we use to. And when I say fast food, I'm talking anything with a drive-thru. We definitely have more standards for food now that we're older. But now that we're doing this eating healthy thing, we do allow ourselves one cheat meal a week which we usually enjoy on Saturday. And let me just say, we look forward to that meal something terrible! Because if I'm being honest, eating healthy sucks taste-wise. Yes, it's good for your health but boring for your taste buds. A salad just doesn't satisfy the way a cheeseburger does. And it never will. I think the key is to just eat more good than bad. To cut out everything you love is just going to backfire. I know it has for me when I've tried in the past. 

At our last weigh in Dustin was down 10 lbs and I was down 4 lbs. I've got to say that seeing the scale change for the better is a huge motivation to keep on keeping on. As much as I hate working out, I always feel much better after I do. I'm sure we'll veer off here or there but it's no reason to completely give up. We are doing this!

A Little Bit of This and That

It's obvious that I haven't been on the blog as much recently. I can't really go into the details publicly but it's been a week to say the least. I'll just say that life is frustrating and busy and I'm tired.

I have multiple posts in the draft section of my Blogger account but I just can't seem to finish a thought or get a point across the way I'd like to. My head is kind of all over the place. Even writing this right now is taking a lot of effort for some reason. I'll get it together sooner or later.

I'm here. I'm still blogging - just sporadically at the moment.

FRIDAY:  As I was driving through our neighborhood after getting off work, I noticed no one was at the community pool. Light bulb! I walked in the door and Dustin got up to greet me just like he does every day. While we were embraced in a hell-yeah-it's-the-weekend hug I told him about the empty pool. He immediately understood what I was getting at and we raced to change into our swimsuits. It was so nice to have a big ol' pool all to ourselves. We swam. We splashed. We tried to play cheerleader but failed miserably. It was the best way to start the weekend!

Later that night I did some sewing but got stuck on an invisible zipper. They are so cool yet confusing little suckers. Dustin was able to help me figure it out. And then I had a needle issue. Again, Dustin to the rescue and fixed that too. I was ready to take it to some sewing machine hospital and he's like "I got this!". I really need to take a class in sewing mechanics. One day.

SATURDAY:  I got an early work out in and then Dustin and I got the grocery shopping out of the way right after that. We were pretty damn accomplished by 10 AM.

We decided to try out the new Red Robin in Sanford. We used to have to go all the way to Port Orange (even when we lived in PC) to enjoy the "Yum!" but now it's local which is fantastic! Thankfully we arrived before the place got swarmed by the lunch crowd. It's decorated a lot different than the one in Port Orange but everything tastes just as good. Dustin enjoyed a burger (with an egg on it) and I had a really good (but super messy) chicken sandwich. Mmm. So good!


  
After we were nice and full we did some shopping. We hit up World Market, Old Navy, Ross and Target. I got a few clothing items at Old Navy which I was shocked about. It used to be my go-to clothing store but it just hasn't been doing it for me these last few years. I wasn't expecting to find anything but I did! I got 3 things (a blouse, pants, and the best PJ pants) all for $30. DEAL! As I was checking into Foursquare I noticed a Comic store in the vicinity. Dustin and I drove all over the shopping plaza looking for it until finally we made it. And what's even cooler than finding the comic store was that Dustin found a Batman inside it. He's been hell-bent on buying a Batman action figure for our living room but he couldn't find one he liked - until Saturday that is! He also bought two POP! figures - Commander Shepard and Dr. Peter Venkman. So much nerd. So much awesome.





When we got home we snuggled in bed and watched 2 Fast 2 Furious. Not really. We watched the 6th one. I just call all of them 2 Fast 2 Furious because it's fun to say and it's the last one I've seen. We really aren't into these movies BUT someone (not naming names...DUSTIN) wanted to see it because his girl Gina Carano is in it. It was cheesy and completely not realistic in any way which is probably the point but we still had fun watching it. And spoiler alert, Gina's a bad guy girl! Of course Dustin predicted that from the start. He's so good at figuring out movies within the first 10 minutes. It's actually kind of annoying.

I ended the night with another movie that I found on HBOGO. I started watching 'The Story of Us' which came out in the late 90s. I remember the previews but I wasn't sure if I'd ever actually seen the movie. Nope, I definitely had never seen it. It was a good one though! It's about a couple (played by Bruce Willis and Michelle Pfeiffer) who are trying to figure out if they should get a divorce or not. The whole movie goes back and forth from how their relationship started out and how it got to the point it's at now. After it was over I ran in the other room and gave Dustin the biggest hug. Relationships can change drastically but I never want to lose that spark. I never want the daily routine of life to make us hate each other. Movies make me have too many feelings! Ah!

SUNDAY: I spent a huge chunk of the day working on a pillow for Dustin. He had this old Penguins jersey that he stopped wearing years ago because the player is no longer on the team. I was going to donate it but it was just too nice. The big Pittsburgh Penguins logo was just so cool and I could see the potential for it to be loved by us in a different way. I could just envision the finished product in my head. It came out even better than that! It was well worth all the frustration. And there was a lot of frustration. The fabric isn't my favorite to work with because it's so stretchy but I powered through. I'm so happy I did because it's got to be one of the coolest things I've ever made. It looks perfect on our couch!

Silver Linings

FRIDAY: I got an angry call from Dustin while I was at work about him not being able to start his car. Luckily he has off on Fridays and didn't NEED to go anywhere. Neither of us knows anything about cars but from the research we gathered online, it looks like he was just in need of a new battery.  Fingers crossed! He couldn't go anywhere but he was at home, not stuck on the side of the road. Silver lining number one.

After I got out of work I headed over to Blue Bonnet Clothing & Gifts, a consignment shop owned by an old high school friend of mine. We've followed each other on social media for years and years but I'm fairly certain we hadn't seen each other in person in a decade. I saw all of her postings about her new shop and thought it was fantastic. I wanted to go in for her grand opening last month but for whatever reason wasn't able to. So I told her I'd swing by after work and drop off some clothes of mine, check out her new space and of course catch up. It was so good seeing Kelly. It seriously was like no time had passed. Suddenly we were being transported back to first period Interior Design II. It's weird/fun/awesome catching up after so much time. I have a "new" last name. She has a store. It's crazy how much can happen in a decade. Blue Bonnet is the coolest! I don't know of any place like it in Orlando. It's way more personable than Plato's Closet and much less intimidating than Dechoe's. I love how everything is arranged and decorated. It's inviting and fresh. I saw a few items I wanted but I was trying to be good. For now I'm just trying to lessen my closet not fill it back up. It was hard to stay strong though because I saw a few things I wanted. I'll be back to spend money for sure! I also love that she brings her new pup, Elaine,  to work with her. She just laid on the rug and chewed her toys or would look out the door with her nose pressed against the glass. So cute! I had a lot of fun chatting and walking around. If you're local, make sure and drop by and say hi sometime.

From there I inched my way through traffic until I finally arrived at Target where I went to buy my brother his birthday present. Yeah, his birthday was Friday and he turned 17. SEVENTEEN. What the hell is that?

Before heading home, I dropped by the Food Truck Bazaar for some Yum Yum Cupcakes. Dustin and I missed them last month so we were jonesing. We devoured them the second I walked through the front door. The lemonata is out of this world. Mmm!

Pens lost. Womp womp.

SATURDAY: We got up early to get Dustin's car checked out. Thankfully our neighbor was nice enough to let us borrow his jumper cables and we were able to jump Dustin's car. Since we had no clue what was wrong with it I followed him in my car just in case. We got the manager at Advanced Auto to run a diagnostic test and just as we suspected, he needed a new battery. The guy switched out the old with the new and we were on our way. We were so happy it wasn't something more serious. Whew. Silver lining number two.

We had a lovely lunch at Red Lobster (even though it made me sick). And then once we got home I suggested we watch Captain Phillips (finally!) in bed. It was the perfect way to spend a Saturday afternoon - cuddled up with Dustin and Tom Hanks.

SUNDAY: Pens lost again. Now it's on to game seven. One more chance. Silver lining number three.

MONDAY: I was laying on the couch watching Mad Men before work just minding my own business when I heard a really loud noise. Our ice machine is loud but I knew this was something different. I was too freaked out to check it out by myself so I ran in our bedroom and woke up Dustin. Of course he was out of it but he got up and followed me to our kitchen. Water was gushing out from under our sink. Dustin opened the cabinet doors and the water  just started spraying everywhere. All over the floor. All over his face. EVERYWHERE. The pressure was so intense that within 45 seconds the entire kitchen was under an inch of water. Dustin was able to stop the geyser under our sink. Well, mostly. There was still a pretty decent leak though. This time it was only dripping and not spraying...so a small victory. I grabbed a bucket and put it under the leak. And then I grabbed every towel we own and started throwing them on the water. It took forever to soak it all up. FOR-EVER. The leak was filling up the bucket fairly quickly so I made sure to empty it before I left for work. Thankfully I was able to get a hold of the plumber and he met Dustin at our house this morning. It took him pretty much the remainder of the day to fix the leak under the kitchen sink, purchase and install a new faucet and then fix a leak under the sink in our guest bathroom. Yeah the pressure apparently built up so much that leaks were sprouting all over the damn house. The poor plumber! Poor Dustin! What a day! I'm just so thankful that we were home and awake when it happened. Had we been out of the house or even asleep it would have flooded our entire house and we would have lost all of our furniture. We were just in Pittsburgh for 5 days!! Pretty scary! But we were here and we worked to contain it so there was no damage. Silver lining number four.

If you're looking for me this week I'll be washing towels non-stop.

Found

Another reason I couldn't have children.

Emma Stone KILLED it.

Loved this post on anxiety. Important read especially for people who just don't get it.

Yep.

Proud to be part of the "otherhood"!

I wish these cops would pull me over.

8 Year Old Sings Frank Sinatra. WOW!

Lorde/Maisie

The best Etsy shop I've ever seen.

Don't let the White House cut NASA and planetary exploration. Write to the president & congress.

I don't like that this post is called 'Taylor Swift Makes Everyone Around Her Look Like Shit' because it's just stupid. What I DO like about this post is all of her fabulous outfits. She has the best casual style of any celeb. And yeah, she always looks put together but it doesn't mean that random people on the street look like shit.

My biggest pet peeve as of late.

Marvel Universe LIVE! looks like it's going to be bad ass. Thanks to Nicole for the heads up!

Best Fictional Moms

I'm sure I'm forgetting some seriously awesome fictional mothers but these are the ones that came to mind and there's always next year! 

Molly Weasley/Harry Potter

 

Molly is the mother of all mothers. No, she doesn't have a lot of money but she's got heart. Not only does she care so much about all of her own children but she includes Harry in that group as well. She always sends him a Christmas present, shops for his school books, cooks for him, and tries to protect him even when he wants to do things on his own. It's always been super sad that Harry never got to know Lily (and James) but he made out real good with Molly (and the whole Weasley bunch). 

Kristina Braverman/Parenthood

The thing I love most about Kristina is how accepting she is of her children. She loves them no matter what. Truly unconditional. She's always on their team and never stops fighting for them. She puts "brave" in Braverman.

Tami Taylor/Friday Night Lights

Anyone who has watched FNL has thought I want Tami to be my mom! She is incredibly encouraging and genuine. I feel like if I bumped into her on the streets of Dillon, I would just spill my guts. She really hears you and not only that but tries to help in any capacity that she can. 

Jill Taylor/Home Improvement

As the only woman of the house of four males she really held her own. I mean boys are gross and messy and play rough. And then to top it all off with an accident prone husband! The patience!! She deserves some serious credit! I just love how much she tried to be involved in her children's lives even if she knew nothing about whatever it was they were interested in.

Becky Katsopolis/Full House

I always admired Becky. She's the cool mom. The mom that's so awesome you think of her as a sister. She was always such a sweet mother figure for the Tanner girls. Sure Danny, Jesse and Joey did a great job but sometimes you really need to have a heart to heart with a girl. And every time those twins gave her a run for her money she kept on keeping on ready to learn from her mistakes.

Lorelei Gilmore/Gilmore Girls

Another cool mom type but in a different way. Lorelei was always incredibly supportive of Rory and pushed her to always be her best. She's the mom you can cry on, watch a movie on a Friday night with, or enjoy sarcastic conversation over a cup of coffee. I don't think anyone has a better mother-daughter relationship than these two.

Daenerys Targaryen/Game of Thrones

She's the Mother of Dragons. I mean, sure teenagers are tough but three DRAGONS?! No contest. 

one / two / three / four / five / six / seven

Currently

Watching: Of course we're loving Game of Thrones as usual. I especially love how fast paced this season is. Things are moving right along and it's so entertaining to watch. Mad Men is back and so far it's decent. I still think they should have ended it two seasons back but now that it is on it's last it's a little spicier. I like the show. LIKE. But it doesn't deserve the hype it gets as far as the writing goes. Some story lines are just a trip to snoozeville. And of course all the Pens playoff games!

A few weeks ago I was too tired to do much but I didn't want to go to bed. So I compromised with myself and decided to watch TV while laying in bed. I typically don't channel surf as of late. I either watch something on my DVR or I watch a DVD. I don't do much flipping around. But any time I am in that kind of mood my go-to station is HGTV. I love a good decor/house/renovation show. Flip or Flop happened to be on and I just happened to watch 4 episodes in a row. I was hooked. I mean the couple who flips these homes are young and cute (so is their little girl!) and they just seem so down to earth. Also, I am always so impressed with their vision for these houses. I love the damn show so much I started following Christina on Instagram as of a few days ago. HA! And I've of course started to DVR all new episodes.

Reading: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn - Ok I actually am technically not reading this anymore. I just finished today during my lunch break. I kept hearing about this book. Friends, randoms, and of course  it's a best seller. Oh and the movie comes out in October so there's been a lot of buzz. I was super curious about this book even though I never ever read thrillers. I've been doing such a good job reading this year (averaging 2 books a month) but I thought I should add a little more variety. I mean the worst that could happen is I don't like it and I stop reading. Big deal. It sucked me in from the get go. Yes it was a thriller but it wasn't super dark. It wasn't scary. It was just super intense. There's a huge twist in the middle of the book and another at the end (didn't like this one so much). It is a serious page turner! This book was CRAZY on a million different levels. It was weird because I wasn't rooting for any of the characters (which never happens for me) but I still found them all so intriguing. I was DYING to know how it all ended. I had to stop myself from reading the Wikipedia page for spoilers or skip ahead to the last few pages. I was good though. I'm so glad I took a chance on a genre that I don't mind watching but am never interested in reading. Check out the trailer below. I hear they changed the ending in the movie which I'm excited about for the first time ever.

 

Thinking about: Kindness. I mean, it's just so easy to show kindness yet so many don't. For example, just yesterday I was in the turn lane at a red light. I could tell that a few cars ahead of me someone was broken down. There was a girl steering and a guy trying to push it into a nearby parking lot. I thought to myself that really sucks. Then a guy in front of me just hopped out of his truck and started helping the guy push the car. They made it to the parking lot,  shook hands and the guy ran back to his truck. We even all made it through the green light. I mean it was such a simple thing to do but what a tremendous help it was. So if someone needs help, even if it's a stranger, help them. We really should be kinder to each other because just witnessing that small act yesterday really made me feel good. And I didn't even do anything! People helping people just to do it. What a crazy idea. 

Listening to: Reflections by MisterWives. The story goes like this...I was at my computer and Dustin was watching TV while on his laptop. Then I heard this song playing. I asked him who it was because  I liked it. He told me Beau Bennett tweeted it and he was checking it out which was funny because it's obviously not his thing. So yeah, I started listening to the YouTube version on repeat and then I broke down and downloaded it off iTunes. I love it! It's fun and catchy and the lyrics are ON POINT.

You didn't close the door

Left a crack open

I couldn't ignore the faint possibility

Of having hope in this insanity

That we still could be

But we're stuck floating in between

Put me on the shelf

Discipline myself

To let the sparks die out

Shattering anything that has reflections of you

Vids

It really pisses me off that I dread editing videos ever since the iMovie update. I just don't like it. But I love videos far too much to completely give up. I'm hoping the more I use it the more I'll like it. Or at the very least I'll be able to find my way around better. 

The following videos are from a few weeks back. One of my favorite weekends this year! Friends and friends and ice cream. 

The Sentimental Autumn

I've been crafty and crafting for as long as I can remember. I just enjoy making things. Like I said a few posts back, I used to receive craft gifts as presents for birthdays and Christmas. I'd make beaded necklaces or pot holders or go to town with the latest gel pens and glitter crayons. I'd walk to Sam Flax in Colonialtown after school with Melody and we would oggle all the things we couldn't afford. In high school I became interested in sewing. Both my grandmothers were expert level seamstresses. So with my maternal grandma's vintage sewing machine and my paternal grandma's guidance, I began to sew. For my senior project, I made (with the help of my grandma) a quilt. It took the entire school year but I had so much fun. I continued practicing long after and it's been a passion of mine for over 10 years now. I've been to classes and watched countless YouTube videos in an attempt to learn as much as I can. I've made aprons, Christmas stockings, a valance and oh so many pillows. I've just never sold anything. I've always made things just because it was fun or as gifts or because a friend asked me to make something specific for them. I remember one Christmas (right after I got laid off) I handmade every single gift I gave out that year. And that Christmas was one of my favorites.

I've always wanted to start a shop but I never did. The idea was a nice thought but actually doing it kind of scared the shit out of me. Ok, really scared the shit out of me. All these what ifs filled my head and I talked myself out of it time and time again. At the beginning of 2014 I made a goal to open an etsy shop within the year. While life was busy breaking my heart and kicking me around I dived into sewing. And almost every night after work I would sit there hard at work with ideas swimming around my brain. This year (at least so far) has not been my favorite but sewing and crafting in general have really helped me.

Our guest bedroom started overflowing with pillows and Dustin kept asking "Are you ever going to put these on Etsy?" and I would reply "I'm not ready yet."

Dustin kept gently nudging me to put my pillow covers on Etsy. He'd text me shop name ideas throughout the day and if I liked them I'd put them on the list. He was reading Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut when he thought of the name 'So It Goes' but spelled it 'Sew It Goes". It was my favorite name he came up with but Etsy has been around for awhile now and of course the name was already taken. Back to the drawing board. Actually, the next few we came up with were already in use. But then I got to thinking about why I started doing this. It was in part because I had all this fabric I had collected over the years that were just sitting in plastic tubs unused. I didn't want to throw them out or even give them away. I also had a stack of shirts from myself and Dustin that I thought would make really cool pillows. I usually just drop them off at goodwill but I just knew these shirts were going to be something different. And of course I'd never seen shirt pillows before which made me want to try it even more so. I've always been sentimental about things that matter to me. I always will be.

sen·ti·men·tal

  [sen-tuh-men-tl]  

adjective

1.

expressive of or appealing to sentiment, especially the tender emotions and feelings, as love, pity, ornostalgia: a sentimental song. via Dictionary.com

And the autumn part is easy to explain. Autumn is my middle name (and also the best season). It will also always be a part of me. I ran the name by Dustin and he liked it too. Thankfully, it was not in use and now it's mine.

I never thought starting an Etsy shop would be easy. I'm not that naive. But damn, I never thought it was so hard. I mean, there is making the actual product, then there is taking photos of it, and then posting it and pricing it and getting the word out there. It's a lot. I give everyone who has ever done it and/or is still doing it so much credit! You all rock! So make sure to give anyone you know with an Etsy shop or any shop really - a high five!

I don't know what will become of this new adventure. Maybe nothing. Maybe everything. Even if it's not "successful" it doesn't even matter. I set a goal and I've accomplished it. I'm proud of myself for what I've done and that's something that can't be taken away.  I'd obviously love to sell the things I've poured my heart and time into. And sure extra money would be nice but mostly I'm just having fun. If it ever stops being fun then that's when I'll take a step back. But for now, it's full steam ahead.

I applied to be a vendor at the Big Bang Bazaar which will be held on Saturday, August 9th. I was shocked and excited that they accepted my application earlier this week! This will be my first show ever! It's a little overwhelming and nerve wracking but I'm ready to give it my all. At the show, I'll have pillow covers WITH INSERTS available as well as some ceramics (ring holders, vases, etc.) from Dustin's grandma's shop in West Virginia. She sent a huge box down to us a few weeks ago and although I would love to put them on Etsy, I'm too scared they would break during the shipping process. I know August is still awhile away but make sure and put it on your calendars now.  I'll send reminders as the event gets closer.

Big Bang Bazaar Facebook and Website

Please like my Facebook page to receive updates. I'll of course be writing about things on my blog here and there but my Facebook page will be the main source of information. I really appreciate any and all support!

The Sentimental Autumn Facebook and Etsy

Thank you to all my friends who have liked, shared, and commented on my Facebook page and shop already. You guys are all kinds of awesome! Last but not least, I wouldn't have made it this far if it weren't for Dustin helping and encouraging me along the way. He's had so many great suggestions that I've implemented into some of my creations. It was his idea to also sell some of his grandma's ceramics. (Thank you grandma Dee!) AND he offered to help out at the Big Bang Bazaar. He makes my life so much fun and his support makes things a million times easier. Wait. Do you hear that? I think it's the orchestra playing me off the stage.

Found

True Blood Teaser. Speaking of True Blood here's 10 Hopes and Dreams for the Final Season.
I agree with all of these except for Bill and Sookie getting back together. I'm Team Eric!

8 Absurd Lessons Americans Teach Kids About Sex

I'm a long time customer and overall fan of Leonora.

Why You Should Let George R.R. Martin Name Your Kids

10 Celebs Who Choose not to have Kids

The cutest Pens fan.

12 Funniest Ladies on TV Right Now. And big high five to my Parks & Rec gals! 3 of them made the list and of course Amy Poehler aka Leslie Knope is the best. 

Lily Allen - Sheezus.

I love when people are nice to one another as shown here and here.

Happy tears.

25 Things Our Kids Will Never Understand. I know these list are running around all over the internet but this one is really good. And even though I won't be reproducing, it's sad to think of all the things children these days won't experience. I guess every generation thinks that though.

I want NEED Jerk Balloons.

Ice ice baby!

Journal Day 11: Constructive Criticism

Sometimes it can be hard to hear criticism from others. I know for me it's something I may always struggle with- being a people pleaser, etc. At the same time though, constructive criticism can be very helpful, and allow us to look at ourselves in a new light and maybe even grow and change. Take a step out of yourself. If you were on the outside looking in, how would you critique yourself? What things do you see that could change or work on? This isn't about tearing ourselves down; it's about really looking at ourselves and seeing where there's room for growth. via Sometimes Sweet

I don't think anyone likes hearing criticism but I feel it's necessary to become a better person. I mean, I don't particularly like going to the doctor's either but I go because I know it's going to be beneficial. Same idea. I'm the kind of person who wants to continue to grow, learn - and change when necessary. My goal has always been to keep striving to become a better me. Obviously a lot of that is done internally but I do welcome other views especially from people who know me best.

I'm very aware of the things about myself that could use improvement. I don't really try and sweep anything under the rug. I know. Being aware is one thing and doing something about it is completely different. Doing something is tough and there usually isn't a quick fix. It takes lots of time and effort. It's HARD. I feel like yes there are certain things we can improve on or even change entirely but there are other things that are just always going to be apart of us whether we want them to be or not.

I'm too sensitive. I take everything personally EVEN when I know I shouldn't.
I have anxiety.
I'm a perfectionist.
I sometimes give up too easily.
I don't give myself enough credit.
I care too much. Yes, believe it or not this isn't always a good thing.
I can be a control freak.
I can be needy.
I'm really impatient.
I tend to overreact.

My expectations can be too high. I've been told this several times and although I agree to a certain extent I also feel that sometimes we don't hold those we love to high enough standard. Time and time again I've seen so many people just let others slide when discussions should have been had or apologies made. Of course I expect more out of a friend or relative over an acquaintance. Others don't seem to have this viewpoint. I don't think I'll ever not have expectations for people and things and events. I think one day I will get to a point where I don't let it eat at me so much but it's something that is woven into my foundation.

I used to leave my cereal bowl on the coffee table all day. I would just start getting ready for work and forget. I didn't do it on purpose but it was never a priority to at least put it in the sink. Dustin has mentioned how much it bothers him on several occasions and I've made a conscious effort to stop. I think I've done a hell of a job lately. It's a dumb habit and I am more than happy to keep it broken.

After re-reading through this post it made me feel like I'm a horrible person. There's so much wrong with me! Ha! But I think it's just part of being human. With anything there are good and bad.  I do work on these things all the time. I'm trying and I feel like it's all you can ask of a person. I'll never be perfect and that's OK with me as long as I keep getting a little bit better.