MIXTAPE: THINKIN BOUT YOU

February is winding down, folks. I am trying to savor the last week of my 23rd year. I know once March rolls around this year is going to rocket on by. It's a machine gun blast of activity this spring. Birthday parties, bridal showers, baby showers, weddings, trips, games, adventures, Disney, puppy obedience classes. These last few days of calm before the frantic hurdle jumps of activity, no matter how enjoyable I know they will be, call for a slow jam.  It's not a Tuesday, and I haven't done a mixtape in awhile, but today just seemed right, you know?

I am always down for a great slow jam. Except in spin class. Never in spin class. My wierdo spin teacher kept playing Enrique Iglesias slow jams in my class Monday, it was terrible. I mean, it wasn't even the ping pong song. Come on dude. I need some fire in my belly

SLEEPY MONDAY

-It started raining sometime last night and I don't think te weather has any intention of stopping. Luckily I've had lots of items to check off my list this morning; autonomy would of had me laying in a twilight state all day.

-I actually enjoyed the Oscars last night. I always enjoy the Oscars, no matter how bad or how long. I just do. Jennifer Lawrence has my whole entire heart, and I died laughing at the VonTrapp gag. Something about Anne Hathaway is so simpering and calculated and irritating to me, but whatever she deserved that little statue.

 Let us never forget my favorite Oscar moment of all time.

-This weekend I dyed my hair. It's funny how a little thing like hair color can completely change the way you feel about yourself. I'm  a natural dishwater blonde, but I always feel most like myself with dark ash brown hair.Insert creep self portrait.

THE FREAKIN WEEKEND

It's finally here! Hallelujah! A few quick notes:

-I worked out twice yesterday, I was so proud of myself!
-Hoping to take some pictures this weekend, and visit the library for a book on manual photography.
-I have become consumed with finding a mid-century modern credenza or dresser to replace our current tv console. Anyone know of someone who has vintage for sale, help a sister out.
-My valentines roses are still so beautiful, which makes my heart happy.
-Is there anything cuter then Thumper and Flower? No probably not.

-Kind of silly, but I made some layout and design changes to my blog and I really like it! what do you think?

OH HI, WHAT'S YOUR NAME

Invariably when you meet someone you almost always say "Oh hi, I'm ____. What's your name?" Then that person tells your there name, maybe Sarah or Kenneth or Langston Hughes or what have you, then they ask yours. A simple exchange.

This is what happens when I meet someone new.

Oh hi, I'm ____. What's your name?

Kipin, nice to meet you.

Kim?

Kipin.

Kibbi?

Kipin.

Kingpin?

Kipin.

Kippin?

Kipin.


Before you scoff and call hyperbole, I have numerous witnesses who will tell you that during my four years in the high school lunch line, I was always called either "Kingpin" or "Skippy". Maybe Kip like....twice.

SURTSEY AND THE WEEKEND

This picture truly takes my breath away. It's a picture of the formation of Surtsey, a volcanic island off Iceland. I want to blow it up and cover my wall with it. Gorgeous.

Yesterday Jared surprised me in nice valentines day way. I love him so much.

Tomorrow we'll go to the temple with friends and eat a delicious meal at the Earl of Sandwich.

Tonight we will jog on the beach with Gilligan.

Monday is a work free day! Meaning a major overhaul of our apartment, including hanging our new light fixture, finally taking care of some art work and maybe even cleaning out our spare room? Scintillating stuff.

What are you planning to do this weekend?

AWKWARD AND AWESOME THURSDAY

AWESOME

• I printed these giant valentines from Oh Happy Day and hung them all around our apartment this morning. I love them!!
• Gilligans first day with the house all to himself and he didn't destroy a thing! 
• Roses this morning, hopefully I'll get a Valentines brinner tonight. All these pictures of heart shaped waffles have gotten to me!

AWKWARD

• West Elm Market is hocking this cream which they say is for feet....ya ok. 
• Still shopping for a floor lamp! My goodness will this never end. 
• Didn't make it to the gym last night after work. I got some crunches and planks in but it was a little bleh.

HAIR CUTS ALL AROUND

Gilligan has been looking quite strange lately. And I don't mean the judgmental look that's always on his face.

Labradoodles blow their coat as they transition from puppy to adult, meaning a trad of soft, cloud-like fleecy puff for...well who knows. You never know what kind of coat they'll have until after they're grown. The thing about this process is it's supposed to take months. Not so with little dogbert Gilligan. Within a month he went from a slight patch of missing hair to a full blown catastrophe. Pretty soon the only fleece left was in a sort of cumberbund around his waist, and the weird bird feathers on the top of his head.



You can see the difference between the fleecy middle and the wiry behind. It was hard to take a decent picture, he was quite embarrassed over his hair loss.

Yesterday I took him in to get groomed and he came back a new man! He looks like a completely different dog, its sort of disturbing. While I can't wait for his fluff to return, I'm glad he doesn't look like an abused street urchin anymore. If you live in Jacksonville, I really can't recommend Bark Boutique enough for grooming. I have never met a nicer bunch of ladies in my life, and for 10 bucks extra Gilligan was able to stay in play group all day. The fact he immediately curled up and fell asleep as soon as I got him home last night is a vouch that he had a great time.

By the way, did anyone watch Westminster last night? Jared was watching a hockey game on his computer, but by the end even he was rooting for Best In Show, Banana Joe!!! We love you Banana Joe!

GIRL ON FIRE

Via Natalie Dee

My first spin class I lasted 30 minutes.

Exercising is hard for me. I have been chubby for a long time and I am mostly ok with it, while always wanting to change it, if that makes sense. I have very little determination, and an even smaller amount of stamina. 

That first spin class I was having a hostage-level bargaining session internally. “Just 30 min and you can go, you can walk out the door and never look back, and at least you tried.” That was my mantra. As soon as I walked out, my heart sunk. I was so disappointed in myself. Jared and I went to dinner that night and I blushed when I told him I had wimped out. It was just so hard!!

The next day I went back and I finished.

Last night in spin class that Alicia Keys song came on. You know the one. It was the last song of the session and my thighs were burning and felt like lead weights. I found myself grinning like a freaking maniac. Who was this girl? Was I really sitting here grinning while my legs pumped, going nowhere fast? Was I actually getting pumped? From an Alicia Keys song?! I threw away my usual cynicism and held on tight to that optimism. Cherish that idiot grin, I told myself, because it may not be there tomorrow.  

My goal for February goes against everything that’s screaming inside of me, but so far I've done it and I could not be more proud of myself.

HAIR TODAY, GONE TOMORROW

So I know you've all been on pins and needles to see my new haircut (hyuck hyuck). I'm sorry these pictures are like....really up in my grill...but I had to take them by my lonesome, with no tripod. Without: further ado, here is a true testament to why I should never ever ever be without a lip product of some sort, yikes.

BEFORE/UNDEAD

AFTER/THE BREATH OF LIFE

I'm having an adjustment period. My hair has been MUCH shorter and MUCH crazier than this before, but right now unless I have makeup on, I'm feeling a little bit childish and unfeminine. My hair was looking rough in those before pictures, I know. I swear it usually looked a LITTLE BIT BETTER, I wore my hair in a side pony that day and this was a last minute type deal blah blah blah blah. Anyway, when it all comes down to it, I am glad I cut it, it feels so much healthier and fuller. Plus, it will always grow back. 

AWKWARD AND AWESOME THURSDAY

Awkward

• Spin class sucks, right? You know whats worse? The small woman who always seems to sit in front of me and fart at least 4 times a class. That is not what I want to be smelling on my level 8 climb, lady. 
• Gilligan's puppy coat is...I guess you would call it molting? He has lost his fleecy fluff in patches and now looks like a poor street urchin wearing a sheerling vest.  
• The grand-daddy of them all: While at my conference last week, I was a dumby and wore 4 inch heel. I lasted about four hours on my feet before having to surrender. That's when I realized I hadn't packed flats, which made me race to to the car, slade in and immediatley feel my skirt rip half way up my butt. I had a melt down folks, of epic proportions. Later when people asked why I had changed, I lied and said I spilled diet coke all over myself. C'est la vie. 

Awesome

• My body hurts, but in a very good way instead of a very bad one. 
• I got my hair cut! Still trying to decide if its an awesome, but I sure hope it is. Picture above was the last shot of myself with my poor limp pony tail. 
• Buy one get one free hummus! I am super jazzed about this. Did y'all know you can freeze hummus? Great deal, I say.
• This recipe was so good and took literally 10 minutes to make. My tweaks were using this sun-dried tomato chicken sausage and adding some freshly minced garlic to the pre-made pesto and some cracked black pepper. 

WORK IT OUT FEBRUARY

As a teenager, I always despised February. Bad things happened in February: it was cold and grey and there was Valentines day. It was also the month long barrier between me and birthday bliss.

Once I grew up and started trying to make my own luck, found myself a Valentine and realized that didn't really matter all to much after all, I guess February lost its fangs. Still, sometimes old habits die hard.  I still catch myself giving those 28 days the side-eye, muttering under my breath until they've come and gone.

You won't get me this time February! Nay, I have a plan. So far my 28 days of work outs are going strong. They've included spin class, walking the zoo for 3+ hours and stretching my poor tight hamstrings.

I haven't forgot my other challenge, the one with the pictures and the vanity, unfortunately all the great ones I thought I took over the weekend are gone, after remembering that my  memory card was left behind in the computer -____-. Forgive me.

DRIVING THE BIG GIRL CAR

Last week I was sweating my drive to Orlando hard. Anyone who knows me, knows the Contour, or as she has recently been dubbed, Voldemort. My poor little '99 Ford lives on a wing and a prayer and few choice swear words that have been poured into her over the past 5 years. Suffice to say, she was not up for the long journey to Orlando. So, at the last minute, I decided to take Jared's car, the Cruz. The golden pony. Ok, no we don't call it the golden pony but maybe we should? Anyway, the Cruz is new, has air conditioning and of course is also a manual. 

I "learned" to drive stick shift back when I was a teenager. Seventeen years old, my parents announced they had bought me a car. A very used lilac colored Neon, they paid $200, she was a stick shift and I was terrified. I had never been a very confident driver, failing my written test twice and refusing to drive on the highway until the last day of drivers ed class. My parent's took me on two horrible loops around Palm Coast in the Neon. there were lots of tears and lots of yelling and ya...lets just say my training was never really completed. My father's car died shortly there after and he started driving Grimace (what I called the purple beast in my head) to work. 

Flash forward to a year and a half ago, Jared decided to buy a new car and we came home with the Cruz. He didn't drive stick at the time, so I felt pretty good about myself taking my turn doing loops around the church parking lot, sliding easily from gear to gear. I took off down the road and did swell until stalling at a fresh green light, cars honking frantically behind me, Jared and our friend Mitchell alternately giving advice on how to begin while I did Lamaze breathing techniques. It was easy for me to just let Jared drive.

Last week, I had enough. I swapped keys with Jared, who was frankly terrified of me doing this, and set off. Three days and 317 miles will make you an almost pro. I feel accomplished y’all! I have a skill! Woohoo! Celebrate the little things. If the zombie apocalypse comesand the only get away available is a car with a clutch, I’m your girl!