30 things I'm Thankful And It Isn't Even November

Around Thanksgiving everyone was writing about what they were thankful for. I think that is great. Go on with your thankful self. I read a few things from people(the haters of the world) that talked about how people gripe and gripe and all year and they are only thankful for things one month out of the year. So, when those comments are made this year in November I am going to pull up this post and say "Nuh uh. I was even thankful in January!".

30 things I'm Thankful And It Isn't Even November

1. My little man
Biggest blessing in my life. One smile, One kiss, One hug and he melts my worries of the day away.

2. My parents
My parents are always there to help and support me. I don't know where I would be without them.

3. My Love
He is an amazing man. He has a big heart and he loves me with it.

5. My best friends
When we say BFF we really do mean forever.

6. My coworkers
6. Owning a car
7. The roof over my head
8. A warm bed at night
When you hear a story about how people are cuddled up next to on the floor, in the cold, and possibly even outside, a bed seems like a blessing.

9. My job
10. Good health
I haven't had health insurance in 5 years. I'm thankful nothing major has happened to me and I'm thankful for getting health insurance that starts next week!

11. Symptom free months for Gage
My little man has a disease that can wreak havoc on his body. He started a new medicine and has been symptom free for 6 months now.

12. Water
Drinking. Showering. Washing clothes and dishes. Wow. It is hard to imagine that there are people who don't have it.

13. Food on the table
Again. When you think about people being hungry. Just said.

14. Money in the bank
15. Freedom to worship or to not worship
16. My days off of work
Spending time with the people I love and sleeping. Joys of life.

17. My cats
18. Ability to read
19. Books
20. Waking up today
Hallelujah. Amen.

21. My eyesight
22. Music
23. The military
My dad was in the Army for 28 years. I'm thankful for people like him.

24. My hands
Without my hands I couldn't do my job. My hands are precious.

25. Laughter
Serenading me through life.

26. Living near a big(ish) city
27. The invention of GPS.
28. Looking forward to things
I'm planning a vacation and had the thought that I'm extremely lucky that I have things like vacation to look forward to.

29. Nature
30. Kindness

Candy Quarters

While, me and the little man were shopping in the mall we passed a bunch of candy machines. I dug in my purse for some quarters. I handed them to Gage and told him to them on top of the machines. I only had 4 quarters. He put 3 on the machines and got a piece of candy for himself. 

About a hour later we walked back by and one of the quarters was gone! I hope someone enjoyed their candy! It was pretty exciting to leave the quarters and come back and see if they were gone. Gage loved it. We hoped we brightened someone's day!

*This was a goal in my 101 in 1001 days list.

10 Ways To Survive A LDR Or At Least How I Did It

10 Ways To Survive A LDR(Long Distance Relationship) 

Or At Least How I Did It

1.  Love Letters. I didn't actually snail mail him because most of the time he was on the go but love lettered in the email way to him. He love lettered me right back. It was fun and cute to wake up to them because of the time difference and when we were on the same time it was still just amazing to get them. He sent postcards of the places he went to so that was a plus, too. It was romantic.

2. Trust. My advice is no matter what trust in the other person. Don't doubt them. They love you and they want to be in this with you otherwise they just wouldn't be. Who has a LDR for fun? No one.

3. Skype. Oh, his face. His sweet handsome face. Skype made it possible to see it quite often! Our favorite was falling asleep to each other on skype. It was wonderful. Make skype your best friend.

4. Read a book together. I promise this isn't as boring as it sounds. We read Gone Girl at the same time. We also tried to read The Beautiful And The Damned but I don't think either of us finished it. It was really fun reading a book at the same time. We talked about it while we were reading it and even after. Gone Girl is going to be a movie so we are excited to see it together!

5. Buy a questions book. I bought 4,000 questions to getting to know anyone and everyone . We just went randomly through the book and ask the questions. We really got to know a lot about each other that we might not have ever known if not for this! It was a lot of fun and made us feel closer.

6. Set a time to talk. When we were on different time zones he had to got up hours before he had to go to work to talk to me. I sacrificed a little sleep as well. It was special and important knowing we were making time for each other. It doesn't have to be skype. We used gmail chat and facebook on the non skype days.

7. I love you's. Never let the other person forget how much you love them. Tell them every day. Tell them a 100 times a day. Scream it. Shout it. However you do it just do it.

8. Pictures. When you FINALLY get a chance to see other. Take a lot of pictures. I felt so much more at peace with the situation when I had pictures of us to look at. They brought back memories and made me think about the memories we were going to make when we saw each other again.

9. Date nights. This might seem weird because you are long distance but having date nights with each other is fun. We were always suppose to watch the same movie at the same time but we never ended up doing that. We got busy talking and the hours went by every time. We had some amazing date nights.

10. The struggle makes you stronger. I had this in the back of my mind the whole time. Being in a LDR makes your relationship grow leaps and bounds. More than you could imagine. You have to fight everyday to be in a relationship that isn't easy. Trust, loyalty, honesty, and respect will be the values your relationship is based on. Those sound like pretty solid things, right?

After almost a year of my long distance relationship has come to a close. He is home. Hopefully for good but I know we could survive distance if it needed to happen again. It has been quite a journey. An adventure all around. Now we are on to the next chapter: How to survive being around each other all the time. It will be quite an adjustment but I'm sure we can handle it!

Saturday Style

I got my nails did. I always feel like a cute lil thang when I get them done. I just get the french shellac manicure. It is a pretty classic look. I have to shellac my nails because of how much I use my hands at work. They are always in water, chemicals, and a other hair stylist tools. The shellac makes me have pretty nails for almost 2 weeks as oppose to regular polish that would be gone by the end of the day.

My boo thang comes home from South America in a few days. This weekend I'm going to do a lot of pamperin' and gettin' all purdy for him. I see a deep conditionin', leg shavin', toenail polishin', purple shampooin', and facial-in' in my future this weekend!

Bring it on!

Love Lettering

Love Lettering

I'm love lettering you because I love you

I love when your hair falls in your face

I love you when you act stubborn and you know you do

And I love you even when you need your space

I'm love lettering you because you make me happy

I love it when you bring me a yellow flower

I love you even if you think this is sappy

And I love the days I see you even if it just a hour

I'm love lettering you because you are wonderful

I love you because you're smart

I love that you make life less dull

And I love you because you have a big heart

I'm love lettering you because who doesn't like love letters?

I love you

I love that things are only going to get better.

And I love that I know you love me, too.

----------

As I was writing this silly little poem at work a song was stuck in my head. A really random song. I don't know how it got there but it hasn't left. 

Skidamarink a-dink, a-dink

Skidamarink a-do

I love you

I love you in the morning

and in the afternoon

I love you in the evening

and underneath the moon

 #backthatazz up to this song.

Skeet. Skeet.

A Day Of Warm Weather And Dino Hunting

I feel like winter is never going to end. Do I feel like this every year? Probably. The fall of the year is my favorite time of year but you won't hear any complaints from me when spring and summer finally hit. It has been so cold this. A few little spurts of snow but nothing major in that department.

When this past Monday came about, it was so beautiful outside! It was still cold but the sun was shining and it didn't feel that bad outside. We have been cooped up in the house for so long we decided to take advantage of the amazing weather and head outside.

After playing with Gage's new outside toys he got at Christmas we decided to on an adventure. Gage decided that we were going to go look for dinosaurs because that is what 6 year old little boys do. So, exploring we went with a field journal, a pen, and a camera strapped around my neck.

"Mama, just take the picture already! I got dino's to hunt!"

This, apparently, is where dino's are held captive but we just missed them.

A dino must have trampled this gate!

This fence must keep the dino's enclosed. They have to be around somewhere!

I'm sad to report that no dinosaurs were found on our adventure. We took plenty of notes in the field journal and can't wait to back out when it is warm again. The day after this the weather turned cold again and isn't expected to get warm for awhile!

The dino hunting is to be continued...

Reading My Height In Books Part 2

I read 3 books last week. One was a easy enjoyable read. One was a book I didn't even want to finish reading. The other was really long and took most of the week to finish. I didn't take a picture but I think I finally read enough books to make it the size of my head. I'm getting closer to reading my height in books.

Crazy Love by Francis Chan

My Review: I didn't like it at all. I really didn't even want to finish it. He wrote in circles the whole book. In one chapter he said this and the next he went back over it but had a different take. It was awful. He describes most Christians as being "lukewarm". That might be a true statement. No one wants to admit that they are lukewarm but I am. I fall in that category and I would like to change that. This is the wrong book to get me inspired to do that. It was far from inspirational. I felt like through the whole book he was saying "LOOK HOW GOOD I AM. IF YOU DON'T LOVE GOD EXACTLY THE SAME WAY AS ME YOU ARE GOING TO HELL". It just didn't sit well with me. I probably could write a whole post about this book but there are already plenty of them out there.

Hollow City by Ransom Riggs

My review: Ahh! I preordered this book and was so excited when I got it. I absolutely loved the first novel. I loved the 2nd one just as much. I couldn't put it down. I finished it in a day. The pictures in this book are amazing. It really gets your imagination going. It is about children who are "peculiar". They have/can do special things and they've been hidden away for years. The first book tells that story. The 2nd book is them finally leaving their hidden island and going out in the world to help other peculiars and the one's who look after them. The story line was great. The plot twist was shocking and I didn't see it coming! These novels are really something special.

                                               

                                           

The Shadow Of The Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

My review: My coworker really wanted me to read this. It was one of her favorite books. It was a very long read. I think it took me almost 4 days to read it. It was wo

rth it. This is a pretty magical book. It is about a special book, too! The boy in the book picked this book and was told to guard it for the rest of his life so it would never be forgotten. The book brought on a great mystery and the characters tried to solve it for years. They were trying to figure our what happened to the author and why was someone trying to burn all the authors books. The book definitely kept me hook. I don't think it ever got boring to me. It was a great book. I look forward to reading more of Carlos Zafon's books!

Not My Scene

I leaned against the bar and sipped on my Sam Adams. Trying to take in the scene around me. I didn't know what I was getting into. I won tickets to see a very different type of music than I usually go see. I decided to go anyway and by myself at that. The people that were pouring into the venue were quite different themselves. They were wearing belly dancing like outfits with glowy light sticks twirling around them. I wondered where their jackets were as it is only 30 degrees outside and I was cold in my tissue thin turtle neck from JCrew and my lace printed leggings from Anthropologie.

The people watching was definitely amusing. If nothing else I was entertained by that. I looked over to my left and there he was leaned against the bar sipping on his bourbon. I've seen him in this exact position doing the exact thing many times before. He had this cool way about him. It might be his shaggy dirty blonde hair almost covering his eyes and his long legs crossed at the ankles. He just looked comfortable by himself leaning against the bar. I just looked awkward doing the same thing.

He threw a smile at me like I wasn't a stranger and I'm not a stranger to him at all. I haven't seen him in almost a year. I've barely spoken to him in that year as well. He left his perch by the bar and walked over to me on my end of the bar and just casually said hi while flashing yet another smile. He tried to small talk with me but his eyes said something completely different.  I knew I was in trouble. Not in a dangerous trouble in the way that he was going to hurt me. It was in a flirty way with intentions of wanting more from me tonight. Things may be bad with my love right now. I don't know what's going to happen between us but I knew that nothing can happen with this dirty blond headed boy beside me because my heart definitely belongs to someone else.

I decided I need to clear my head. I walked outside to get some air. All around the people were talking to their friends while smoking and they were having the time of their life. I was just feeling uncomfortable and more uncomfortable they were talking about drugs doing ecstasy and shrooms and many more things that I have no clue about. I don't do drugs. The headliner hadn't even performed yet. I had only seen 2 opening acts but I was done. The scene around me was definitely not my scene.

Without going back inside to say goodbye to my old friend I just walked across the parking lot, got in my car, and started to drive home. I was uncomfortable and I left uncomfortable situation. My heart just knew that that wasn't the place for me to be at.

It's really good to branch out sometimes, learn different things and experience new things, but sometimes the new thing just isn't the thing for you and sometimes even the old thing is really not for you either.

1 week

In a week My Love will be home. I've missed this man so much and I can't wait to see him.

It has been a very long 6/7 weeks. It really does feel like he has been gone so much longer. At times my heart ached because I miss him so much. That could be because when he was home he was only here for a few weeks where we didn't get to spend nearly enough time with each other. It feels like a dream now. The memories are starting to fade. I'm starting to forget that special way he looked at me. The way we held when we were driving around. Our Monday Day Dates. I'm excited to bring all of these back and make plenty of more memories with him.

It has been a challenging 6/7 weeks since he has been gone. There were plenty of highs for us but we have had a lot of problems. Some trust was broken. Doubts were put in our minds. It was decided last week to just be on a break from each other. As if the miles between us weren't enough. This break is suppose to give us time to clear our heads and reexamine if our love is enough to make things work between us. I know it is. My heart doesn't want it to be any other way. I'm not giving up.

I really do love this man. I know he loves me. Everything is going to be okay.

1 week!

I'm so excited.

Saturday Style

Last Saturday I wore a dress to work and it started something I didn't even planned on doing. It started a goal from my 101 in 1001 list. To wear a dress/skirt everyday for 2 weeks. I didn't know when I was going to actually do the goal. I guess now is as good as a time as ever, right? The first week was pretty easy peasy.

I wanted to do this for a bunch of reasons. I really need to weed out the undesirables in my closet. Also, because I love dresses and skirts. They make me feel purdy.

I have run into a few problems with this fun little goal.

 1. I have no clue how I am going to pull of 4 more outfits for work. I might have one or two more dresses/skirts in my closet that are black. I might have to just restyle one of these gems pictured.

2. Why am I doing this in the Winter? It is so cold outside! As you can see in the last picture I threw on some leggings, a stripey dress, and my gap hoodie. It was just too cold(and snowy) to even try to look cute. Believe it or not I left the house looking like that! And a lot of my dresses are for the warmer months. They aren't going to get touched. I might have to do this goal twice!

It wouldn't be a goal if it wasn't challenging, I suppose.

Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming.

Or in my case Just keep dressin'

Beautifying The World

I wonder how many people actually do what they wanted to do as a career when they grew up. I wanted to be a rodeo cowgirl but then realized that rodeos actually smell really bad. I wanted to be famous singer but I don't sing that well and I am terribly shy. I wanted to be a teacher but dropped out of college. I wanted to be...

a hair stylist?

No. That thought never crossed my mind growing up. That is what I am and I love it.

Last night at work the phone rang and I answered. It was the last customer that I had in my chair. It was my first time doing this customer but she was a regular and I knew she was very picky. A nervous feeling went through my whole body. Phone calls like this can go either way. They hate what I've created or...they love it.

She loved it.

That is the best part of my job. When someone loves how I made them look. A phone call is not always needed. A look on their face when they see the finished result is usually all I need.

I make people feel beautiful or handsome. People leave me and they feel like a million bucks. People leave me and they feel like they can conquer the world!...Ok, that might be a bit of a stretch but I hope they do! I make people feel good about themselves and that really is lovely. It really is a great feeling that runs through my body and fills me with joy!

-----

#backthatazzup

If I'm not a 10 I'm a 9.9 and don't you forget that.

Luke Bryan is in concert around here tonight. I'm a little sad. I want to be singing at the top of my lungs and swaying my hips to him. Oh, heck. Who am I kidding? I don't need to be at the concert to do that!

The Sunrise That Got Away

A coworker joked around with me about how I am not a morning person. I don't think I'm very unpleasant in the morning. Maybe I am. I hope not terribly so. It might have something to do with me coming to work with no make-up and my hair not brushed on more than a few occasions. No worries. I have the luxury of doing those things there. By the time I usually see faces other than my coworkers I am pretty presentable. I would say it could be because I'm always almost late but that isn't true. I like to be early and I'm always the first one at work, coffee made, and the opening tasks already done.

I actually have no idea where she gets the idea that I'm not a morning person but she is right. I am not.

One of my goals on my 101 in 1001 list is to take a picture of the sunrise. I made this goal for two reasons. The first being I really need to pick up my camera and start shooting again. It has been too long and my camera never use to be out of arms reach. The second being because I rarely get to see a sunrise. If for some reason I am seeing a sunrise I'm sure I'm in no state to notice the breathtaking event happening. It was probably a good night, though.

I want to capture a sunrise.

And this is a story on how I almost did it. Almost being the key word.

It was really early in the morning. The time when sunrises usually happen. Possibly a little after but still early enough that it was barely peaking through the sky. I had a few errands to run before work one day. It must have been important because that never happens. I'm usually never out of my door before exactly when I need to be. Just by chance I had my polaroid camera in a tote bag that was slung over my shoulder as I walked to my car. I started to open my car door when I turned slightly and noticed the sky and the gorgeous color it had. I'm surrounded by trees where I live and that just added to the beauty that I was witnessing. A soft orange color meeting the hazy morning blue color of the sky. It was mingled low in the trees. Beautiful, I tell you and as about as close to a sunrise that I have ever been.

I whipped out my polaroid. I knew wouldn't capture the details as well as my 7d but it would have to do. If anything I could remember this moment and feel inspired to capture another sunrise again soon. I snapped my first photo and out popped the picture from the side. I thought I'd better go ahead and snap another just to be safe I had a good picture. Snap, and out it popped. I put the polaroid back in my tote bag, climbed in my car, and drove off.

It was that easy! I did it! I captured my first sunrise!

Or so I thought.

I looked down at the snapshots on the passenger seat and I could have cried. The pictures were just white. Blank. Nothing. Nada. Zip. There was nothing. There was no picture of a sunrise on either one.

What happened? I somehow moved a setting on a camera that wasn't meant to work in the light I was trying to use. Sad but it happens. It especially happens to a girl who has forgotten all about her cameras for the better part of a year.

And that is my story on how I almost captured a sunrise.

Better luck next time.

An Ugly Cry Or Not

The tears started falling down my cheeks. They were slow at first but now they are flowing in a steady stream. My make-up was starting to ruin. My eyeliner was joining in the river of tears and my mascara was clouding my eyes. I just want to scream and let it out. I was starting to look like one big mess.

You would think I was in midst of a sad ugly cry but that is not the case...

I just waxed my eyebrows.

And it hurt.

And now I'm plucking my eyebrows and it hurts even worse.

It is said that "Beauty is pain". I can absolutely vouch for this. My eyebrows look so much better but the freshly waxed and plucked places are red and irritated and in some serious need of milk or aloe vera. Just give it a hour and I won't see or feel as bad as I do now...until next month when I get to do it again!

A little Advice

Advice to my son for when he is older

•  Love. Love life. When it knocks you down, get back up, and continue loving. Don't become bitter and jaded. Life is too short. Don't ever let your heart get hard.
• Work really hard at every thing you do and want to become. I'd really like it to be school and more school but if you want to be a famous musician or a clown then do it and do it good and hard. 
• Take care of your responsibilities. Work, bills, family, life. Doesn't matter. If it is YOURS take care of it. Life will go along more smoothly and you won't feel so disappointed in yourself.
• Be humble. Don’t think you’re better than anybody else and never think you know everything.
• Have a strong moral compass. Know who you are, what you stand for, and what you value. Try your best to remain true to them.

I'm sure there is so much more I can tell my little man about but this is a nice start.

Do you have any advice for your kids?

Book-A-Thon Book Review

What fun this book-a-thon was! The best part is every one left me alone to read because...I was in a book-a-thon. I wonder how long I can get away that excuse! Also, in my 101 goals in 1001 days list, one of my goals is to read my height in books. I've been completed 5 books since starting my goal list.

This goal is definitely going to take awhile! My 5 books isn't even as big as my head!

My books for the week:

Book 1: Looking For Alaska by John Green
My thoughts: I've heard  lot about this author. I thought I wanted to read The Fault In Our Stars especially because it is going to be a movie soon but I couldn't do it. I knew it was going to be sad. I have a son with an auto immune disease and I don't want to read about a child dying from a disease. So, I picked another book about a child dying! Great! Looking For Alaska kept my attention from start to finish. I like the way John Green writes. It was a pretty sad book. I think I even shed some tears near the end of it.

Book 2: Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer
My thoughts: After the last book I knew I needed something more uplifting. This book still had its sad moment but this book was mostly just inspirational. I have so many pages marked and turned down in the book. It was wonderful. I loved every part of it. It was a easy read. The book wasn't very long but it packed a strong message.

Book 3: The Sweetest Thing by Elizabeth Musser
My thoughts: I was hesitant to pick this book up. Something in me told me to and that something was right. This book touched my heart. It spoke straight to my soul. It had very religious tones it and I loved every minute of it. It is a huge book and I didn't think I would finish it so quick. I started reading around 9am and finished right before midnight with many breaks in between. All of the characters in it were wonderful. They found themselves and they lost themselves. They failed at things and were triumphant in other things. They loved and they lost. Isn't that what is life is about? Overcoming our obstacles. This book was amazing.

I was going to go ahead and break my goal for the book-a-thon but after taking a day break I decided that I needed to take a little more time before picking up my next book. I'm also still swarming with thoughts on the 3 books I just read. I'm a reader, though, and my hands won't be off a book for long!

Saturday OOTD

Dress: Twist&Refresh - Anthropologie

Belt - cute little bow belt - Anthropologie

Cardigan - Forever 21

I went to bed thinking about this outfit and when I pulled everything out and put it on this morning, it just worked! Much like the dress name, I feel refreshed this morning!

Bring it on, Saturday! I ain't scuurrred!

Happiness

I'm quite fond Jone's Soda. Not only do they taste really good but underneath the cap is a little treasure. I look forward to unscrewing the cap and seeing what the "fortune" says. I know it is silly. It just seems like they come at the right time. Even when they seem silly and are things like "Climb a tree". 

One this day I unscrewed this particular soda and underneath the cap was "Stop searching. Happiness is right next to you.". The words hit me like a book in the face. I would be lying if I didn't admit I wasn't having the best day. 

I looked right next to me and my son was on the couch. Of course, he is my happiness. He always has been. I didn't need a soda cap to tell me that. Just look at that sweet face.

The part that shook was 'Stop searching.'. I don't if I was searching or holding on. I don't know if I can say I stopped or going to stop searching. It just made me realize that, in the midst of a bad day, I already have my happy. If things go bad and don't work out in life or love. I will always have my son. He is my happy.

Enamored No More

I've had my first bout of trouble already with my one word for the year, enamored.

Earlier this week I was flying on cloud nine. I thought this word would be a breeze. I had never felt more enamored with life ever before. The sun shined brighter, the cold didn't seem so cold, the laughs were more frequent, a smile hardly left my face. I loved that feeling. I want to keep that feeling. I wish I could have bottled it up for the bad days that surely were to come. Nothing is perfect, after all. Unfortunately, I didn't know bad days were coming so soon and I'm not quite sure if it is possible to bottle up the feeling of being enamored.

What do you do when the days seem grayer? How do you fix a broken heart? Where did my smile go? When will the cold stop being so cold? Why does my heart hurt so bad? Who knows these answers to my questions?

Probably no one.

Come back to me, enamored life.

My Favorite Accessory

My bathroom as a hanging jewelry organizer. It filled with all my favorite jewelry. Some big and some small. Some expensive and some not so expensive. I am not that prejudice toward jewelry. I even like "ugly" jewelry...and sometimes I will even wear it! Sometimes I don't wear any jewelry at all. It kind of comes in waves. I'll wear jewelry every day and then not wear jewelry for weeks. I do what I want :)

A few pieces of my jewelry

When I think about my most favorite piece. I think of a piece I have been wearing every day. I only take it off when I am showering. I probably should take it off when I am working but I can't even imagine being without it for that long! It is still holding up quite well despite the abuse it takes at work. I feel really naked now when it isn't on me. I love my bracelet...or should I say his bracelet.

The bracelet

My love left this bracelet that he wore on my bathroom sink the night before he left for his trip. I didn't even notice it until well into the next day. It just mixed it in with all my other jewelry that I had not put away yet. When I saw it I cried. I put it on and I knew I was going to wear this every day until he comes home. He actually comes home in about 20 days give or take! I'm excited!

I don't know if I'm going to give the bracelet back when he comes home. I've grown rather fond of it! We will see...

Life Is Good

The best part of today could be the same as every other day in my life. At some point in my day there comes a time when I stop whatever I'm doing and just sigh. Sigh in a good way. Sigh because my life is good.

I feel so lucky and blessed for all the good in my life.

I have a wonderful child who can definitely press my buttons but can bring a smile to my face in a second. He has one heck of an imagination. You could give him a stick and he will come up with five new games to play. I love playing with him and watching him play but I think the sweetest part of the day with him is when he is sleeping. I don't mean that in a funny way. He isn't terrible when he is awake! He just looks so at peace and lovely when he is sleeping. It really does bring tears to my eyes.

I have pretty spectacular parents. I might not have always been close to them but when I needed them the most they were there and they are still here. I look forward to continue growing with them and becoming even closer.

I have a job that I actually enjoy going to. The days are long and I have to deal with so many people but it is worth it. My job is very gratifying and it gives me money to purchase things and pay bills!

I have the two best cats in the world. One of them really doesn't like me but I saved her from the shelter. I know one day she will thank me. My other cat is the best snuggler ever. She just knows when I need her kitty lovin'.

I have an amazing man in my life. Sometimes I can't even put into words how amazing he is. He is handsome and smart. He pushes me when I need a push. He gives the best hugs. He makes me smile. He holds my hand just right. Ahh..I can't even..This man..Sigh.

It is truly wonderful that I could probably continue this list. My life is good.

I feel enamored with my life.

My Word

I already have a list of goals for the new year but I really like the idea of 'one word'. I thought that it would be difficult to find the one word for my year but it was actually easy. I was scrolling along my instagram news feed and the word of the day I follow was there.

The word is ENAMORED.

As soon as I saw it I knew it was the perfect word. I promise I felt butterflies in my tummy and a smile was on my face. Not too different from actually being enamored with something or someone. That feeling of being around your crush. Playing with your child. Looking over at your boyfriend. Getting a latte from Starbucks. Picking up a new book. Being in the middle of the new book. Listening to your child tell you about their day. Taking a walk and the sun is shining on you. Holding hands with your boyfriend. etc etc...

All of those things make me feel wonderful. They bring out the butterflies in my tummy and that smile on my face. How can anyone argue with that? My word of the year is enamored. I want to feel that feeling all year. I want to be in love with everything(or most of everything). I'm already 6 days in to the new year and I feel like I'm walking on clouds.

 Life is good. Life is good when you are in love. Life is good when you are in love with life.

Fortune Cookies

If I ever had the chance to write the fortunes for the fortune cookies this is what I would say...

• Live in joy
• Be kind and good things will happen
• The stars will shine brighter for you
• Love is just up the road
• Your heart has all the answers you seek
• Close your eyes; Be calm
• Play the lucky numbers!
• Go to the book
• Drink more water
• Dream a little dream or even a big one

*This is out of my 642 things to write about book.

Book-A-Thon

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 6th and runs through Sunday, January 12th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 9.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team
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Time Devoted to Reading
I will be reading whenever I can, which isn't far from what I normally devote to reading :)
My Goals
Read at least 3 books
Blog about said books
Books to Read
I haven't really picked out any books to read. I will definitely have to make a shopping trip if the cold outside isn't too much to handle.
Updates
Monday
Reading: Looking For Alaska by John Green
Number of books I've read today:
Total number of books I've read:
Books:
Tuesday
Reading: Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer
Number Of books I've read today: I finished Looking For Alaska, Hope Was Here
Total number of books I've read: 2
Wednesday
Reading: The Sweetest Thing
Number of books I've read today: Eh, This one looks long! We will see!
Total: 2
Thursday
Reading: NOTHING! Woah.
Number of books I've read: 3
Friday
Reading: Ok. Break over. I'm reading Adam And Eve And Pinch Me by Ruth Rendell

General thoughts: I'm having a lot of fun! I'm lucky enough to work next door to a store with tons of cheap books. I'm pretty sure at this point I'll meet my goal of 3!

update- I finished The Sweetest Thing. That book spoke straight to my soul. I love it <3 3 books completed!

Almost A Million Bucks

Almost a million bucks was how I felt like on NYE...

Knowing that I wouldn't get my midnight kiss from my love I decided to make the best out of NYE and go out with my best friends. We had a hotel room and open bar tickets to a pretty cool place in Louisville. I had a beautiful dress and my hair was perfect.

Dress: Overture Dress from Anthropologie

 

Hair by me!

(the lighting was horrible. I had to make this BW)

I was feeling pretty good going out that night. Unfortunately, the lack of food for the day and a few cocktails did me in and I got really sick shortly after midnight. The girls had to bring me back to the hotel. I felt awful for ruining everyone's big night but I guess that's what best friends do for each other. We stayed up giggling in bed until we finally fell asleep. It wasn't what we all thought we would be doing but it was still a pretty good way to start 2014.

And at least we looked good doing it...

If I had A Say In It

If I had a say in it...

The person I want to spend the rest of my life wouldn't be perfect. He will make mistakes. Small ones and unfortunately big ones. He will make mistakes but he will learn from them. He will try not to repeat the same mistakes twice but because he isn't perfect that might happen, anyway.

The person I want to spend the rest of my life with would be kind. He would be kind not only to me but everyone and everything around him. He would be the type of person who will drop change in a homeless person cup while we are walking through the city. He will be the type of person to pull over on the side of the road to help someone that has a flat. He will be the type of man to be kind to me. He will only shout at me if I'm on the other side of the house and he needs to tell me something. He will never strike me. He will never hurt my heart on purpose.

The person I want to spend the rest of my life with will push me in my life. Sometimes I need a good push.

The person I want to spend the rest of my life with will love my child as if it is his own. He will be kind to him. He will include him. He will take him to play in the park when I can't. He will give him piggy back rides around the house. He will hold him when he is having a bad night. He will fall asleep in the chair beside his hospital bed if/when my son goes.

The person I want to spend the rest of my life with will have an amazing work ethic. He will want to provide for his family. He will make sure we have everything we need and then probably some more that we don't really need. He will never give up. He will find another door when one closes.

The person I want to spend the rest of my life with will be willing to compromise. He will know that it is not his way or the highway. He will find a middle ground and be okay with that.

The person I want to spend the rest of my life with will listen to me. He will listen to me when I can't fall asleep at night. He will listen when I had a bad day. He will listen to my goals and my dreams. He will listen to me when I'm upset. He will also comfort me during that time, too. He will have the most amazing ears any man could ever have.

The person I want to spend the rest of my with...will be all of these things and so much more.

To Be Continued...