philly

   Adventure called us from within, loudly enough to wake us up on Sunday morning. Knowing that we had a Monday off in observance of Labor Day made it okay to say yes to the idea if throwing our bikes in the truck and seeing where the day would take us. My heart feels so good and so right when I'm driving away with Kyle. 

   We ended up in Philadelphia, PA. Parking in the city center was about as non-existent as you'd imagine so we pulled into a paid parking lot. A very sweet, thoughtful person handed Kyle their parking ticket - they were done for the day but paid for weekend parking so the ticket wouldnt expire until 4am! We took their spot, unloaded our bikes, and started to cruise around the windy, busy roads. The hot and humid day drained us almost immediately. Looking up at the buildings around us, taking in all the history and remarkable architecture with sleepy eyes made me feel really thankful for everything I am lucky to have. I appreciated everything that I was seeing. Including the amazing guy riding next to me ;) We shared a dirty water hot dog and a pretzel (both with mustard!) on the giant steps of the Franklin Institute. The sitars face this giant fountain across the street and was almost as great to watch as the people who would run-and trip- up the stairs we were on. We laughed and laughed and drank some water and headed into the museum. It was only open for another hour which meant half price tickets. We learned about electricity and walked inside a giant human heart replica. 

   Hunger eventually took over and our growling stomachs led us to a little pub on a side street- I don't remember the name of it but it was good and we enjoyed their air conditioning. As the waitress presented our check, our focus was drawn to the massive group of bikers riding by the restaurant- who were all NAKED! Ah! The people outside cheered them on as they rode by. We threw some cash on our table and ran outside to see all the excitement. What the hell were they doing?! And more importantly, should we join?! The answer was YES! Of course we should absolutely join without hesitation. Kyle convinced me to run across the parade so that we could unlock our bikes on the other side of the street. We were encouraged to "get naked and get on those bikes" but we were the Brad and Janet of this Picture Show and modestly stayed clothed as we joined them for part of their bike ride. It was exhilarating! The energy of the group was so positive and crazy- I felt so alive! A passerby said they were riding to promote green living but... I didn't really care at any point. I figured it was something along those lines since the group consisted of people of all shapes, sizes, ages, rages, and orientations. Amazing. Of course the flacid manjunk and bouncin' boobies were a little weird but.. the energy is what kept us with them for a mile or so. We turned off as we realized we had no idea where they were going. 

   Smiles were plastered on our faces as we took the scenic route back to our truck. We were happy, we were together. Bikes were locked back up in the truck and the parking ticket, good till 4am, was passed on to another motorist who was just as kind, thankful, and psyched as we were to be saved howevermany dollars thanks to a stranger. The sun was setting and stars and darkness quickly took over the city sky and we headed home, wiped out and stunned from one of the funnest days ever. 

more of you

  There are only two people who know of this blog (to my knowledge)- Corinne and Kyle. I don't have any intentions of telling anyone else about it yet because I don't really know what I'm doing here or where I'm wanting this to go. But, I do know that I wanted bigger pictures, more pictures taken by me. So at 7 something this morning, I played around with the widths of this blog and am very happy with the result. Just a little more of everything. A bigger picture. Eventually, I'd like to make the pictures take up more space but... theres only so much you can do at 7 something when you still have to shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, and be out of the house within the hour.

my moon, my man

  

   Today is Kyle's birthday! He is the best, most caring guy I know. I'm so lucky to be loved by him. :)

mug me some newness

  I know I've only been an official resident at my new home for 4 days but I can already feel a change. Having always been the kind of girl to daydream about her future, I am happy to experience the joy of living in the present. This is what I've been waiting for, what I've been dreaming of.
  To celebrate my life these days, I bought myself a mug from Anthropologie. We don't even have any coffee in the house! Just a few sachets of bedtime tea. And I'm so excited to take my very first sip from my very first mug in my very first home.
 

dos cinco!

source: Global Cookbook

 
 Feliz cumpleanos to me, ladies and gentlemen. On Monday, the 15th, your girl turned 25. I celebrated with a full day of work followed by dinner at Sweet Mandarin with Kyle and carrot cake with family and friends. They sang me the sweetest off-key rendition of Happy Birthday that I've ever heard.
  This new age has brought me tons of happiness and excitement. For once, I can honestly say I am thrilled to start this new chapter in my life, as cliche as that sounds. Want to know the super extra exciting news? Kyle asked me to move in! The fact that I have my own little home now to love, take care of, and grow in hasn't officially sunk in yet but its slowly becoming more real to me and I'm loving it. I'm sure something as simple as doing the dishes or Swiffer-ing the whole house will get old eventually but right now? I'm more than happy to do it all. This is the healthiest happiest thing to ever happen to me and I want to take care of this house, Kyle, Scott (our roomate!), and Sprocket (our pup!) in the best way I can. We're super busy this week with Kyle's birthday being tomorrow and getting ready for our double birthday party on Saturday so I probably won't be able to officially start moving all my stuff in until Sunday afternoon.
   Obviously, I have done what any girl would do, and have spent all morning e-window shopping online browsing sites like Anthropologie. Is it so bad to maybe purchase myself one little thing? It would be in celebration, you know? It only seems right. ;)

Weekend!

Source: EleGala

  Today is the never-ending day. I want 5pm so bad. Its only 3 hours away but it seems like an eternity. I'm eager to get home to some delicious take-out, do laundry, pack, and start reading the new book Vanessa got for me. Oh, and sleep. I need to sleep. Kyle and I are waking up at the crack of dawn (my favorite thing to do, actually) and are heading to Clifton Park/Rexford, NY to celebrate my cousin John marrying Brooke! She's wonderful. He's wonderful. So, I'm really excited to partake in lots of happiness this weekend with family.

a few little links!

• Anthropologie's sister-store, BHLDN, is so dreamy.
• This post on Elements of Style makes me want to go thrifting and then leave town with all my treasures and my love.
• I was over it for a while but rediscovered these three Tumblrs and have been loving catching up on all the entries I've missed.

friday

  All about my new shoes today. (and old crocheted tank)

breast fat

 

I can't remember if I was in California or Hawaii at the time, but I do remember this: I was in a wee little boutique witha couple girlfriends, when I overheard the staff members talking about how the lil bit of chub on the outside of your armpit is just "extra breast fat."  Though the girl was referring to her own chub, I appreciated the comment. It kind of reminded me about the time that I overheard someone saying that the impossible-to-lose chub between your bellybutton and your V is supposed to be there. I forget why exactly, but it had something to do with your bod being all maternal and getting ready for making a baby. It'll need cushioning all up in your womb, so... uh, that makes sense right? As much sense as the breast fat thing? I dont know what my boobies are doing by my armpits, but as long they're nowhere near my bellybutton, who am I to complain, right?

coffee eyes

 

Just a little coffee and lens-glare to start the day. 

the one thing i know for sure

source: sometimessweet

  I used to write a lot. All the time, actually. So much so that one semester during my brief but amazing college experience, I took six (SIX!) English and Writing classes. NeverhaveIever written as much, read as much, or thought as much as I did that semester. Naturally, you could imagine my excitement when I saw that Danielle Hampton over at SometimesSweet was doing a new feature called "Journal Day!" I think she posts a new topic each week and there have been one or two before, so I'm stepping onto the court a little late in the game. Nevertheless, I'm here writing, and today's topic is one thing you know for sure. 

                           "Do what you love and fuck the rest."- Little Miss Sunshine

  If I could drill anything into the minds and hearts of my future kiddos and anyone around me, its to stay true to yourself in absolutely every way possible. I may not know everything but the one thing I know for sure, is that you have to do whats in in your heart all the time. You'll go crazy if you don't and will feel underwhelmed all day, every day.

  When I was in high school, I ran with the punks. Like, mohawk-in', bum-flap wearing, filthy skinny black jean sporting, body jewlery'd, loud music listening, super artsy and secretly talented type teenagers. And I loved them so much. The few that we were, were awesome and I was one of them. Since I am an inherently nice person, I got along with other students enough not to have garbage thrown on me. Nowadays its awesome to dye a bit of your hair a color thats not found in nature. But back then? Yeahnotsomuch. 

   One day two of the girls on my bus decided that I should try out for the cheerleading team. They must have still been on a confidence high from the time a few months before when they successfully convinced me to go to the homecoming dance. This kind of participation in a school-spirit related event was unheard of amongst my friends, who in their angsty youth were the first to damn whatever Man was in their way. The truth is though, that I loved attending the homecoming dance and I wanted to tryout for the cheer team so badly. The girls were both on the team, one of them was a captain, and they knew they had my mom's support. Yet another win for them. They were also willing to (shhh) teach me parts of the routine that would be taught at tryouts to kind of give me an edge over the competition. For some reason, I ended up asking my friends what they thought about me trying out for the team as if I honestly thought that it was a good idea. The very sight of a school jersey, no less a cheerleading uniform, made these kids cringe. As it should, right? Why would this band of misfits want to support the very people that made them feel insecure about being who they were? But no one really ever messed with me. So, I guess I didn't really see the harm in joining the cheer team. 

   Needless to say, I was shot down left and right. Discouraged and afraid of losing my friends, I passed up the opportunity. Wanna know what really sucks? If I said that I talk to any of those friends I had once a year to this day, it'd be a lot. For the most part, I can't even remember who I asked. Isn't that terrible? I could have been an awesome cheerleader. And lord knows it could have done amazing things for my almost non-existent self-esteem at the time. I wish I would have just found the courage to do what I wanted, what I thought I could love, and trust that if my friends judged me for it, then they werent really my "friends" to begin with. But, alas, I wasn't true to myself and I honestly do regret not ever trying out.

  So, that was kind of a bummer, huh? Don't be bummed! I'll end on a high note and remind you that it really is so desperately important to stay true to your self and honor your dreams and wishes in this beautiful life you're lucky to live. :)