Spread Some Cheer.

You know those days when you feel ragged and awful? The days when maybe you've not been the best person you can be and you aren't feeling very happy with yourself? We've all been there. For me that day was yesterday. It was the first day in over a week I've had at home so I woke up @ 9 and let my buddy sleep until noon. I cleaned & blogged while he slept but by the time he woke up I was hungry so I suggested we go get something to eat and we both agreed that Taco Bell sounded good, so off we went. He in his pajamas and me in under armour shorts and a tank. My hair was washed and dried but that was it, I wasn't sporting any make-up either because we didn't intend on getting out of the car. Once we got to the drive through there was a big confusion about what we wanted to eat because they no longer offer what Dylan gets so after a few minutes of back and forth I gave up and told the lady taking our order never mind. She was so understanding and kind. I admit that this was the point when I went from okay to slightly crazy. I was hungry and since my kid didn't change clothes I felt like we couldn't go inside. Truth be told we could have but I was being a little vain and worrying about what others would think of me, of us, if we went inside like that.
I may have been a little hangry but I was frustrated that my child didn't change clothes and he didn't know what he wanted. When I asked if he wanted anything else he said he didn't know and it was up to me. As I drove home in a fury of frustration I started to come to my senses and realize it was really okay. I stopped by the house and made Dylan change clothes then off to the mall to eat at the food court so we could each choose whatever we wanted, since obviously it was different things. I felt so guilty for loosing my cool over something to trivial the whole time though.
When we got to the mall Dylan asked if he could go to Game Stop to look, I said sure and while we were there I wanted to go to Ulta. It ended up being a blessing in disguise because the cashier at Ulta turned my whole day around. I'm standing there in my Under Armour shorts, tank top, flip flops, no make-up on, and my hair not fixed but all she noticed is that I was happy and bubbly. She said "you're so happy and bubbly." She even turned to Dylan and asked "is she always this happy and bubbly?" He responded by shrugging his shoulders and smiling, which could've been worse considering the way the trip started out.
We finished our day by getting lunch and going to Game Stop where my son wanted a Steam gift card (it's used for on line gaming) but he didn't have his wallet with him. Of course I gave him the $ for the gift card because he is the most awesome kid in the world and he rarely asks for anything + he puts up with my crazy hormonal mood swings (sometimes known as hangry). I left the mall in a much better mood than I entered in and I owe it all to the friendly, bubbly Ulta cashier. If I could I would kiss that woman on the cheek but since that's kinda weird I won't. She'll never know just how much she changed me yesterday but I can take that experience and share it in hopes that someone out there remembers this and goes above and beyond to be friendly to the woman or man who seems extra grumpy. Maybe they're going through something and need an extra smile or a little bit of cheer in their day.

We can all do that. We can all smile a little more and be a little more cheerful. We can do something nice for someone else because, somedays, we need someone to do that for us. s

Celebrating my Best Friend.

She's the peanut butter to my jelly.
The icing to my cupcake.
The maid to my Bride.

Missy-I'd be lost without you!


You could count our friendship in the trips we've taken to our favorite mexican restaurant.
Cheesecake.
Nights dancing and drinking & sometimes taking a wrong turn along the way.
Adventures, so many adventures.
Day trips to corn mazes and pumpkin patches.
Guys we've dated and hearts broken.
A Beach trip together.
Laughter shared.
And tears cried.

We met through a mutual friend in high school and though our lives have changed in the last 15 years we've only gotten closer.
There are times we go without seeing each other but we always pick up right where we left off.
We have many stories and memories together and we'll have many many more because...


She's my sister from another mister.
The Lucy to my Ethel (because yes, our lives ARE like that when we're together).







I have no doubt that this girl will be beside me in life through thick and thin.

I'm glad to celebrate #NationalBestFriendsDay with her.

Bravery and Courage.

Okay, I am about tired of hearing about the Caitlyn Jenner story but more than actually hearing about it, i'm tired of people's negative, one sided assessments of it. Everyone has an opinion, that much is true and everyone will share their opinions whether you ask them too or not. It seems to me that people often judge what they simply do not understand or what doesn't agree with their own beliefs. If you do that aren't you just as bad as the person you are criticizing, especially if you're coming at it from a religious stand point?

What defines courageous or brave to you?
The dictionary defines them this way:
COURAGE

noun
1.
the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery.

BRAVE

adjective, braver, bravest.
1.
possessing or exhibiting courage or courageous endurance.
2.
making a fine appearance.
3.
Archaic. excellent; fine; admirable.

Based on those definitions we can say that a person who stands up & speaks out for what they feel is a subject they might be belittled or berated for is indeed Brave and since brave ties in with courage, they're courageous, too. Courage's definition simply states that it's "the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear" and ends in the word bravery. The definition of brave is "possessing or exhibiting courage or courageous endurance. Admirable." Can't we agree that standing up for something you know the majority of the world won't agree with or understand is indeed brave? It takes courage to stand up and allow yourself the vulnerability of being scrutinized no matter what the subject is.


I feel like comparing her to a soldier is completely irrelevant because those are two totally different sides of the spectrum. Soldiers are brave because they go out and combat the enemies to serve and protect the people of America. Soldiers are the tough guys and they go through hell and back, usually. A person dealing with their own inner feelings are fighting a war on a much smaller scale. The hell they go through day in and day out is within themselves and once they combat that inner hell then they are able to fight on a much larger playing field. They are able to speak out to the rest of the world and share their story in hopes that they can save one person's life. I think there's courage and bravery on both sides of that.

We've all had to face times in our lives when we had to be brave and courageous. Maybe it was in 3rd grade when you had to do your very first big class presentation, maybe it was the time you had to tell your parents you messed up and did something wrong when you were a teenager, maybe it was when you had to sing out loud in a college class as part of a presentation, maybe it was simply getting up the nerve to ask that pretty girl out on a date. Whatever the case may be, we've all had to be brave at one point or another in our lives. No it wasn't worthy of a magazine cover and no it wasn't all over the headlines but we've all been there. So before you point your finger at anyone else you better make sure you are 100% perfect yourself and you're not. I'm not. None of us are. Shocker, I know! So let's all stop judging each other because when we're judging others we have no time to love them.

The fact that Bruce Jenner finally is being true to himself (if you watched the Diane Sawyer special you'd know that he's been dealing with this since he was 9 years old. Imagine a lifetime of hiding who you really are) doesn't affect the majority of people in any other way than giving them the next big subject to talk about and scrutinize but maybe he's changing someone's life in a way that you don't know about. Maybe he's helping someone else become their own person by giving them a face to relate to in this storm of his life after all "it takes courage to grow up and become who you really are." E.E. Cummings. I feel that's especially true in a world where we're still not as accepting as we should be about things like this. People are quick to throw religion into the mix in times like these which saddens me. Someone posted on someone else's Facebook wall "My God doesn't make mistakes" in regards that he made Bruce a man and he should stay that way. To that I say you're right My God doesn't make mistakes. He made every person the way they are for a reason, a reason that maybe only he understands but that's not for us to judge. If you want to get all religious then that's your prerogative but man you're missing out on some incredible people in this beautiful life and you're still a sinner, just like the rest of us.

This weekend I challenge you every time you judge someone (we all do) to immediately find something positive about the exact thing you just judged. It'll start to change your life.

Just a few Randoms.

Hey Y'all! I'm still here! I'm alive! I'm just having a hard time getting into a summer routine. We're sleeping in until 9, then waking up, cleaning house and out the door to enjoy the day. It's been a glorious summer so far, even with all the rain.

Just to catch you up with my life lately here are a few random things.



1. Memorial Day weekend we had two cook outs. I'm still feeling the effects from them, I think. I ate entirely too much and have since had a hard time trying to think of anything that sounds remotely good.

2. Summer colds are way worse than winter colds. I've had one due to allergies since Thursday night. It hit me like a ton of bricks when my throat was on fire and I couldn't sleep. I've since pumped Orange Juice, Honey, Mucinex and the occasional antibiotic into my system and am feeling much better.

3. I have this green thumb blooming now and I can't wait to plant our garden and all kinds of pretty flowers. I'm in love with my Cherry Tree that my loves bought me for Mother's Day this year & my Peonies that my Mom bought me for Mother's Day last year.

4. My back porch is my favorite place in the world right now. Our back yard is feeling more homey every day + there's an adorable squirrel who thinks my porch is the place to be since I give her peanuts.


5. I got to see a Unicorn on Saturday. And pet her and feed her.


6. I also found a bag of nothing but the marshmallows from Lucky Charms. As my friend Jessica said, I found the end of the rainbow.


7. I'm still in love with our engagement pictures and i'm dying to share pics of my wedding dress but I can't.


8. I love fresh produce and am loving that I can buy good stuff this time of year. I'm hoping the rain holds off so we can go to the fresh market that always happens in town on Wednesdays.

9. I love my new burlap wreath, i'm just having a hard time feeling like it's complete.

10. My blog is currently under construction. I know what I want it to look like, i'm just having a hard time finding time to complete it.


So that's my 10 randoms now. What's going on in your little corner of the world?