Some Good Lookin’ Numbers (Mixed with pictures of past few days):
1.$3,000 direct deposited for tax return today.
2. 1 month until my play. I go to rehearsals exhausted and somehow leave feeling excited and glowing. I’ve missed acting.
3. Eight days until hubby and I are in San Diego.
4. 10/10 on my first Mass Media History and Theory exam. I was happy about it but didn’t think too much of this grade until Monday. Professor announced something like, “So I think only one other person has ever made a perfect grade in my class. But one of your classmates made a 100% on this exam….” It took a second for me to register and when I did I gave a little gasp/clap without thinking. He meant me! Professor then smiled and pointed my way. “You obviously all know who that is now…” Class then gave me a round of applause. Embarrassingly proud moment in my life.
(Lookit! All white shirts! I’m easily entertained, obviously.)
Was hankering for an adventure. Went indoor rock-climbing with the dudes pictured above. (Pat and Deesh.) Sucked at it but had a blast.
(Look! No clippy! No, I’m not that dumb. This particular wall was a free-fall wall with squishy things to fall down on. Falling was as fun as climbing. Confession: Deesh laid down to take this picture as to make me look more bad-ass than I really am. I was actually only a couple of steps up at this point.)
Had the pleasure of acting as a beginning wing-man for Deesh and Pat. They’re single and I talk to everyone (including single females), so it all came pretty naturally.
Mini-golfed.
Went on a long run in the cold. I love running in the cold. I noticed a pitter-patter sound as I was running, but didn’t see any rain. I also love running in the rain, so I waited for it. About 1/3 of the way into said run, I realized what the pitter-patter sound was when it started coming down harder. Sleet. I was getting sleeted on! It kind of hurt but was kind of fun too. Eventually sleet turned into little bitty Texas-style snow particles. It was absolutely breath-taking, and I couldn’t help but smile and maybe even laugh with giddiness as I ran. So if you were in the greater Austin area yesterday and noticed a strange girl running and giggling as ice was pelting her and snow was falling, that was I. Do not be alarmed.
Ps: Review all of the above pictures. How old do I look? 14? Maybe 16? I’m about to turn 23! I should at least look legal by now. Oh well. I figure I will be thankful for this one day.
It’s official! Husband and I are going on vacation at the very beginning of March! As we’re on an extremely tight budget, I’ve been scoping out the best deals online for about a week now. By this I mean I’ve been obsessively searching for (practically page refreshing, but not quite) airline tickets on the internet. I didn’t really care where we went, as long as we found ticket prices under 200 dollars a pop. I actually loved the spontaneity and excitement of knowing we were going somewhere together soon, but not yet knowing where. Last night I finally made a decision when I found a deal I just couldn’t pass up. So Guess what, Guess what, Guess what? March 1st, I fulfill an eight year long dream of visiting California. I can’t put into words how giddy I am. But I shall try. Right now. EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!! <<< There you go. That’s a tiny part of my giddiness put onto a computer. I feel like a kid on Christmas right now (Or really, just me on Christmas.) San Diego, here we come!
Other giddy moments lately:
Finding and blowing/wishing on dandelions with the littles ones I nanny. Being around kids so much really helps keep in tact the magic of life.
Date night with my boy.
A fellow classmate/new friend did the sweetest thing for me yesterday. She knew I hadn’t bought my book yet and that we have an upcoming test. I planned on just studying notes and googling terms. Last night after class, she walked up to me and handed me her book. I was confused. “Won’t you need this to study?” She responded with a shrug, said she already studied and I could give it back to her on Tuesday. I gave her a hug and left the classroom feeling heart-warmed and relieved. No googling terms for me this weekend!
My friend Becca and I share a class together, and have taken to writing one another notes this week. Above you can see the page we filled up with random doodles and words. I love sharing a class with this chick. Not only does she make the time fly faster, but she has taken to bringing me random treats to class. Candy, Girl-Scout cookies and once even a whole meal. I have sweet friends.
The above picture is me trying on a pair of size 5′s. That were too big for me. I did a happy dance in the dressing room. I haven’t been in the size 3 arena since I was a teenager. I’m doing another little happy dance right now, just thinking about it.
I really like life right now. Life seems to really like me right now too. Hopefully that doesn’t change anytime soon.
Life has been getting hectic again lately. A happy hectic, but still hectic. School is back in full swing, my hours at work have gone up since last semester, and lots of fun plans,projects and adventures are already in the works for this year. Husband and I are planning a vacation for somewhere between our two birthdays (February and March), my friend Becca and I are planning a trip for May (We just made it final by virtually pinky promising) and I’m introducing husband to a slew of northern states while simultaneously visiting my best friend sometime in July. That’s three vacations in 6 months time! My friends love to tease me and inform me that I’m always going on a new vacation, but I can’t help it. I get major ants in my pants after three or more months of no traveling. I’m going on a little over three months now, and the antsy-ness has officially arrived. So I’m excited, super excited, but also a bit overwhelmed trying to get finances together while also readjusting myself to a busy day-to-day schedule. Luckily, I have a lot of lovelies in my life who melt away any little bit of stress I may have.
There is not much I adore more in this world than time with my girls. They are a constant source of inspiration, laughter, love, relaxation and joy. This past weekend was no exception. I was able to see a few of my favorite ladies for four days straight. Hot-tubbing and a sleepover at Jenn’s place. Sharing a bed with and cuddling up to my best friend Tessa, who also was sweet enough to buy me brunch the next day. (Cuddling and free food the next morning? Wouldn’t she make a perfect boyfriend?) Listening to live music, strolling through quaint book-stores and making fun of ugly ducks at the park with Melody and, again, my best friend Tessa. Drinks and giggles with Brooke and Emily for happy hour. A pizza buffet and retail therapy with my Little (of Big Brothers Big Sisters), who is growing up too fast and doing so quite gracefully. What I’m getting at is….Oh thank goodness for the ladies in my life. Sometimes I just break into smile thinking about them, our memories and how lucky I am to have stumbled across some of the most amazing chicks on the planet. How cool is it that I get to journey through life and explore the world with the greatest girls in the world?
Pictures help the words come to life:
Tessa and I were talking on Sunday, and I mentioned that I’ve always liked being an adult better than I liked being a kid. I had a really sheltered childhood, and I’ve always loved and have been completely exhilarated by the freedom of adulthood. Later that same day, my best friend wrapped my thoughts up perfectly by saying something like, “We can do whatever we want. We can do anything.” That,in a nutshell, is exactly what I find absolutely spectacular about being a grown-up.The excitement of making new experiences, meeting new people and doing these things whenever I want to. The beauty and wonder and spontaneity of endless possibilities. The fact that I get to explore these endless possibilities with amazing people by my side just makes life that much more beautiful.
The past few weeks have been near perfect. I just feel so alive and young and loved and ready for anything and everything. I’ve been kind of permanently excited lately, and sometimes for no particular reason. I guess it’s just because I’m living. Because I can use all my senses. Because I have the ability to walk and talk and breathe and love. It’s a beautiful thing, no?
Some happy pieces lately:
All red and pink in my package of Dots! If that isn’t a reason for excitement, I don’t know what is.
School started up again this week. I really love my classes this semester. Probably me favorite is ‘Theatrical Performance.’ It’s just started and already I’m falling in love. Though yesterday was a little strange. We were practicing relaxing and focusing, a couple of qualities which obviously help on stage. To practice these things, we partnered up and practiced moving each other’s limbs around. Head, legs, arms, the works. I thought I was relaxed, but my partner kept shaking my body parts and telling me to, “Let go.” I apparently do not know how to let go. Control freak problems. The instructor noticed this and used me as one of the guinea pigs next time around. Next thing I know, five people are moving around different parts of my body, whilst I lay on the ground giggling nervously. I kept my limb-movers laughing and amused by saying things such as, “Watch out for the stubble.” and “I think this is the most awkward moment of my life.”, but I never did learn how to be totally limp and trusting. Maybe next time I find my body being simultaneously maneuvered around in odd places by five almost (albeit kind) strangers, I’ll be better. Practice makes perfect!
My friend Becca has just started training at the Cheesecake Factory. Yesterday, being the wonderful and thoughtful person that she is, she brought me a box full of yumminess to class.
As I opened my take-out box of goodness, she took the time to write me out a menu. It read:
“The grilled chicken is ‘skinnylicious BBQ chicken’
And the crusted one is Idk
And the pasta is tomato basil pasta with cheese.”
The crusted one, whatever the hell that was, was my favorite.
During my week, I have about a 35 minute break between work and school. Instead of lounging or eating, I’ve started to take this time to work out at my school gym. I’ve been running on the treadmill and have started lifting light weights (A New Years resolution!) I’m also doing ab work-outs three times a week and am starting to see traces of a 4-pack. I’ve cut out all fast food (even my beloved Chipolte) and soda from my diet. I feel awesome and constantly energized and I’m currently in the best shape of my life. I don’t know why it’s taken me this long!
Tuesdays and Thursdays are my long days. I leave for work at 8:45 and don’t get back home from school until around 7:30. Last night I came home,exhausted, to the aroma of a home-cooked dinner. Hubby had made me chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and homemade gravy. Later, he made chocolate chip cookies. I put the picture of him slaving away in the kitchen up on my facebook. A couple of my favorite comments:
Girl Friend: “What a sweet ol’ house husband.”
Dude Friend: “Look at that piece of meat! Also the steaks look pretty good…”
My best girl friend has been begging me to get a Twitter for some time now. I usually just blatantly ignore her requests. I am extremely slow and hesitant when it comes to being comfortable with different social networking devices. It took me a good year, maybe even two, to transfer over to Facebook after everyone else had. The same best friend finally convinced me, and even helped me register and uploaded most of my pictures to Facebook. I still didn’t use it until almost everybody had left Myspace. Even knowing how stubborn and reluctant I am, Meggie is quite persistent. She asks me or tells me about once a week to get a Twitter. Last night, she resorted to bribery. I said something on a blog comment that she found quotable (“I’m sure if men ever ‘fixed’ women, they’d be quite bored anyway.”) and then she informed me, “I’m quoting you, Tina. But I’m doing it on Twitter so….you should get one.” Sigh. I’m still not convinced. But she is slowly but surely wearing me down.
I mentioned last week that I was a promotional model for an event in San Antonio. I also mentioned how completely amazing the people I met were. I miss them so much already. Morgan, one of the girls that I miss dearly, left a comment on the rest of our little group’s facebooks that wrapped up our time together pretty perfectly :, “Sooo yeah I already miss yall so much. I miss our long hours of goofing off, eating lollipops, changing our hair every hour, singing, taking as many breaks as we can to walk around, and long talks about boys. Let’s PLEASE reunite soooon. Y’all are so great “ I never went to summer camp as a child, but from watching movies and stuff, I feel like these are the kind of bonds that I missed out on back then.
While I was working this event in San Antonio, I came upon an older man with the last name, ”Wagemaker.” How neat is that?! I informed him that I loved his last name and he informed me that if I was a bit older I could have married him and had that last name too. Christina Wagemaker. I like. But Christina Boudreaux is pretty nice too, I suppose.
I made a video blog! It’s been too long. Unfortunately, my computer is having all kinds of technical difficulties. The colors are very off and at the end my voice distorts to sound like one of those creepy phone callers from horror movies. I’m trying to work through kinks because a couple of girl friends and I are about to start a project with said web cam. Thought I’d might as well show y’all what I came up with:
One more class until my weekend begins! I have lots of lovely plans with buddies this weekend, including exploring and hot-tubs. All the more reason to be excited and happy.
The first week of 2012 has turned out to be a big one for me. I kind of thought it would be but didn’t want to jump the gun, so I kept my mouth shut for a while. A couple of weeks ago, I applied online/sent pictures to SCW Models representing The All American Bowl. The All American Bowl is like the Superbowl for high schoolers, and this Superbowl for high schoolers all over the country happens in San Antonio. Army sponsors the whole thing, and the promotional models for this gig run Army’s booths. It’s a pretty huge event that receives a lot of hype and support. I’ve expressed lately how I want to follow through on more things. How I stumble upon or seek out a lot of great opportunities, but sometimes don’t attempt finishing them. When I got a call back, a phone interview and then the job offer from SCW, I knew this was my perfect chance. So I took the job. Why wouldn’t I? The pay was great, the experience sounded amazing (and is awesome to put on a resume or portfolio) and I had a place to stay with family nearby. The only small issue was that I was slightly nervous as hell. But that’s a really silly reason not to live life, now isn’t it?
So I forced my brother to be my driver/mini road-trip buddy to San Antonio (He’s a good boy.)
Booked it to a hair institute to dye my hair a golden brown. (I’m too pale for blonde now and it makes the green in my eyes show better. I’ve only been able to show a few loved ones, but comments are super sweet so far. My best friend said she wants me to keep it forever and my husband is excited I’m a brunette again.)
Spent some much needed family time with my cousins, aunt and uncle.
And made my way to the Great American Bowl.
I worked 21 hours in two days. It was exhaustingly fantastic. Gaining this kind of experience was definitely a plus, but still just a part of the wonderful time I had.
The bonds I made in two long days were the best part. Michael and I hit it off right off the bat. As noted and respected by one boss dude, we traveled to other booths as a pair. A few asked how we knew each other. Our answer was always a tickled, “We don’t. We met a few hours ago.” We constantly giggled and would occasionally sneak off to ride the plane-life simulator, or to go find food, or to get pictures from the photo booth. Near the end of the first day we were placed in our permanent booth, which registered people for Army info and gave away free water bottles. This is where we met Mandi and Morgan, and once again, we all hit it off immediately. Despite working our booties off, we still made plenty of time to bond by dancing,singing, laughing, wandering, playing, eating and chatting about nothing and everything.
I wish I could describe in words how incredible and once-in-a-lifetime this whole experience was for me, but I really can’t. I made so many memories and met so many people that I’ll never forget. I’m still glowing from the past couple of days. I am thankful and happy to have started this promotional modeling gig and especially to have met the lovely people that I did. As completely tired as I was by the end of last night, I was still sad to leave. Luckily, my friends are all from Texas and love traveling from their respective homes to downtown Austin, so hopefully it won’t be too long before we all meet again.
As of right now, I’m feeling ready to go out there and conquer more goals. I’m feeling confident. I’m feeling like the whole world is at my fingertips. I’m feeling like the possibilities in my life are endless and awesome. I couldn’t possibly think of a better way to knock off about a handful of my newly made resolutions or to spend the first week of my 2012. And I’m feeling ready for so much more.
A couple of evenings ago, hubby and I took one of our gift-card presents and treated ourselves to a lovely date night. 2012, or what there’s been of it thus far, has been pretty great and full of happy stuff. Hopefully I’m not jinxing anything when I say I have an inkling that the rest of the the year will follow suit too.
I mean, how could it not when I have such a dreamily hot husband? Hee.
And if that’s not enough, I have a list of 2012 resolutions to help the whole year live up to it’s full happiness potential:
-Go on a cruise.
-Watch the sunrise.
- Join/Try out/Volunteer for new things.
-Decorate my house.
-Do at least one of the following: Zipline, Skydive, Bungee-jump.
-Travel to at least three new states. (I did it last year without making a goal, so seems pretty attainable.)
-Visit best friend up north.
-Explore more of Texas.
-Eat healthier. (This especially means no significant undereating/cracker/baby food diets, missy!)
-Maintain current weight. (Within 5 pounds either way.)
-Take a yoga class.
-Go camping.
-Continue working out at least 5 times a week for 30+ minutes. (This isn’t hard for me as I get pretty grumpy if I don’t, ((Must. Have. Endorphins.)) but seems like a nice thing to add anyway.)
-Begin lifting light weights.
-Buy something from Etsy.
-Read at least three books a month OR 40 in a year. (outside of school.)
-Read more non-fiction.
-Try my hand at more arts and crafts. (It still counts if results suck.)
-Pick up a new hobby.
-Take more time to relax/enjoy alone time.
-Treat and be as giving to loved ones as well/much as they treat/give to me.
-Take a big chance on someone or something.
-Stay 22 forever.
-Make significant progress in novel I’m attempting to write.
-Improve both organizational and financial skills.
-Take Little (of Big Brothers Big Sisters) to visit my house.
-Cook 15+ new recipes, and record them in recipe diary husband bought me.
-Maintain or improve current gpa. (3.55)
-Do something that scares the crap out of me.
-Do something incredible. Or somethings incredible.
-Continue going on adventures, trying new things, meeting/getting to know new people, loving on others and living life as fully as possible.
I’ve gotten pretty decent at this accomplishing resolutions/goals stuff. That’s a good feeling. So 2012 resolutions? I plan on owning you. Be ready.
I’ve been procrastinating on starting my 2011 review just because it’s been such an amazing, eventful year and my organizational skills are crap. I wasn’t sure how I’d put it all together. I did a lot of debating and decided to do a monthly review, whilst ending each month with the new years resolutions I accomplished in that time frame. As I had to do this mostly by going through old blogs, I ended up feeling overwhelmingly grateful. This year has been so great,and this is mostly due to the opportunities and wonderful people I’ve been blessed with. I can only hope 2012 lives up to what my 2011 has been. The way things are looking so far and as long as the world doesn’t end (Fingers crossed!) looks like it’ll be quite the competition. I’m thankful for this year and beyond excited for the next. Well. Without further ado, here is my 2011:
January:
-Went to Louisiana for the first time. Gambled and had a romantic time with the hubby.
-Went kite-flying for the first time since childhood with a couple of my close girl-friends. Had a blast.
-Went to my first hockey game.
-Rode a mechanical bull
Resolutions accomplished:
Ride a mechanical bull,Travel,Try more outdoor activities, Discover/ Do at least 15 new things in Austin.
February:
-Had a photo shoot with my on campus radio show, Un Poco De Todo
-Played in (Texas!) snow
-Auditioned online for a country radio show I’ve listened to since childhood. Had my radio audition played on air and was told the dj’s really liked me. Amusingly enough, I was only aware of all of this because other people heard me on the radio and informed me of it.
-Hubby, as usual, made my Valentines Day very special.
-A friend made a pasta meal for me at my house, and days later a dude coworker made me pasta and brought it to work. I felt the noodle love.
Resolutions accomplished:
-Maintain and better on campus radio show, Discover/Do at least 15 new places/things in Austin
March:
-Friend Crystal brought Ferrero Roches to my work on the same night I came home to a giant Twix bar from the hubby. I felt the chocolate love.
-Was completely and ridiculously spoiled by friends and hubby and coworkers for the entire week of my 22nd birthday. Mimosas, breakfast, chocolate-covered strawberries, flowers, clothes,cookies, cakes, birthday songs,etc….The works. Felt very loved. On birthday weekend, had reserved seating at a fabulous rooftop lounge in downtown Austin.
Resolutions accomplished:
Focus less on cultivating new relationships and more on maintaining the ones I already have.
April:
-Went to hubby’s cousin’s wedding. My first wedding to go to in adulthood besides my own. Drank too much. Danced with the in-laws. Had an amazing night.
-Left my job at Starbucks (of two+ years) to become a nanny. Had mixed feelings about this. Excited to start a new chapter. Sad to leave behind my beloved coworker buddies.
- Had a blast and made an A in my Martial Arts Class.
-Arguably took part in the most insanely amazing bowling league to ever exist.
Resolutions accomplished:
-Look into finding a better paying job, Improve skills in bowling league, Learn/Have fun in upcoming Martial Arts class.
May:
-Traveled all over New Mexico with my friend Katie. Met Indians, saw the wonder that is White Sands, played with snow in May, ate a burger with an egg on top, and visited about 343242 other places I will never ever forget. Had the time of my life and barely had to pay anything for it at all. (Thanks to amazing Katie and her wonderful grandma!)
-Made this Youtube video on my trip to New Mexico, which is by far my favorite of any video I’ve ever made. Perfectly captured the magic of said trip.:
-Hosted a jewelry party.
-Went from dark brown to light blonde and shoulder length to chin length. Loved it.
Resolutions Accomplished:
Travel, Go on a road trip.
June:
-Started nannying. Loved it even more than I thought I would.
-Parasailed
-Made sushi for the first time. It looked horrible but tasted amazing.
-Went tubing with buddies.
-Met my blogging friend (now in real life friend!) Jenny.
-Changed my blog domain and had blog ‘business’ cards made.
-Participated in a charity bikini car wash.
Resolutions Accomplished:
Help the community in multiple and creative ways, Try more outdoor activities.
July:
-Family reunioned it up in Colorado.
-Went horseback riding in the Rocky Mountains.
-Wore flip-flops while climbing up a mountain and played in the snow whilst wearing a dress. Fun? Yes. Recommended? No.
-Best friend Tessa bought me milk and cookies.
-Went and participated in my first ever nude lake. Felt brave and free and exhilarated.
-Went to Louisiana with my boy again.
Resolutions Accomplished:
Travel, Do something absolutely, spontaneously crazy.
August:
-Bought cute, matching journals with my Little (of Big Brothers Big Sisters.) This could be considered a small celebration of our one year match.
-Friend Jennifer treated me to a free sushi date.
- Received a heart-melting scrapbook and letters at the end of my summer nannying job.
- During a stressful and grumpy week of mine, Husband surprised me with a flower-filled glass swan, a new computer mouse and a sweet card. He put all of this inside a brown paper bag which he drew a bat and poop on. Inside the card he wrote, “I love you,even if you’re bat-shit crazy!”
-My best friend, who lives up north, came to visit me.
-My brother and two best girly friends took a mini-road trip and vacation to the beach.
-Rain-danced on a baseball field. It didn’t rain, but it was a pretty neat experience.
-Friend Kimber and I had a sleepover. She cooked me blueberry muffins and I found out she has a very comfy bed.
- The best dude friend and I went to our first deaf football game.
-Decided I needed to lose weight and started that journey. Three+ months later, I’ve lost almost 30 pounds.
-Partook in my first 5k. Loved it.
Resolutions Accomplished:
Help the community in multiple, creative ways; Focus less on cultivating new relationships and more on maintaining the ones I already have, Try more outdoor activities.
October:
-Husband and I celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary.
-Bonded with my girlies at Chelsea’s awesome bachelorette party. Wore a very sparkly dress.
-Went on a field trip with my Intro to Counseling class and discovered the benefits of Equinox (horse) therapy.
-Road-tripped it to Little Rock,Arkansas with the husband. Stayed at my first Bed and Breakfast, and was pleasantly surprised at what an incredible,beautiful state Arkansas turned out to be.
-Attended Chelsea and Jake’s wedding, which was also my first ever open-bar wedding. Had a wonderful night celebrating love and happiness and tipsiness with some of my closest friends.
-Discovered the joy and therapy of soup-making.
-The best girlfriend and I went to the Gypsy Picnic, a scrumptious food-trailer festival in downtown Austin. Ate and Hula-Hooped. Fun and Yum.
-Celebrated a great Halloween with some of the amigos.
Resolutions Accomplished:
Travel, Go to at least 3 Austin events (I’m pretty sure I ended up way surpassing this one),Discover/Do at least 15 new places/things in Austin.(and that one)
November:
- With a couple of tech-savvy dude friends, started up a project for my first ever web show (Coming in 2012) & finished the video intro.
-Met my first celebrity, the twelve year old Chandler Riggs of The Walking Dead. Was completely starstruck and acted like a ten year old girl.
-Hung out with a monkey in my sign language class.
-My friend Samm spoiled me by bringing me cookies and Starbucks in the same week.
-Spent Thanksgiving with my in-laws. Wasn’t prepared for the all day drinking and had a little too much fun. (Puked in the in-laws toilet)
Resolutions Accomplished:
Meet a famous person,Discover/Do at least 15 new places/things in Austin.
December:
-Met two of the members of the youtube sensation, Dude Perfect.
-Tried moonshine for the first time.
-Had a great semester at school. Four A’s, and one B, which brought my overall gpa to 3.55.
-Was video-taped while role-playing a counseling session in Intro to Counseling. Reviewing myself later kind of reaffirmed that I should really consider counseling as a future profession.
-Went on a train ride with the in-laws and Santa.
-Went to a fabulous Christmas party and had a small,cozy one of my own.
-Caught up with friends and family and felt spoiled with lots of gifts and love and giggles.
-Speaking of giggles. Yesterday my best guy friend came over and he started cracking me up with his dance moves. Between my fits of laughter, he informed me, “I don’t show anyone else this. That’s how comfortable I am around you.” Awesome.
Among the 5 that I didn’t accomplish, I’m probably most irked with the, “Be more financially responsible.” (Just a total fail on my part) and the “Make only A’s and B’s (I made one C . In Old Testament. A required course at my university that I really just didn’t care about. Grumble. Still, over a year period I’ve made 6 A’s, 3 B’s and one C. I suppose I’m still okay with that.) Among the 19 that I did accomplish, I’m probably most amazed that I didn’t break my phone. I never thought I’d accomplish that one. I break everything I touch. Of course, I still have a couple of days to go on this one….
More than anything, I am just blown away by what a near perfect year this has been. I knew it had been a great one, but upon review, it is still amazing all that’s been accomplished and how spoiled with love I am. At the end of 2011, I’m feeling grateful and proud and content. 2012 is already promising to be another wonderful year with so many projects, opportunities and adventures in the works. Not to mention the people who have helped make this year so splendid are following me over into the next one too. Still, 2012 has a hell of a lot to live up to.
2011, I love you. 2012….You’re looking good over there.
The other day I informed one of my friends of the newly planned adventure I had for this weekend. I also informed her it would be a good adventure of the week. Her reaction was that, “It’s more like adventure of the year.” After going through with said adventure, I might agree. On Saturday, a close friend and I (and really, you’d have to be rather close to do something like this together.) went to Hippie Hollow. This is a lake in Austin. Have you guessed what kind of lake it is yet? Did you guess that it was a clothing optional lake? Well, you would be correct. Em and I went to our first nude lake on Saturday. And we were nude. And this was awesome. Sure, I saw some older people in a totally different light than ever before, but I suppose that sometimes comes along with the territory of leading a liberating life. And yes, we are maybe probably out of our mind, but you have to be kind of crazy if you plan on doing it all, no? It was, though at first a little intimidating and giggle-inducing, also one of the most freeing and exhilarating experiences I’ve ever had. I highly recommend trying this running around naked in public thing. You’d be surprised how comfortable you become so quickly AND how good the wind feels on certain parts of your body. Here are the only other pictures I can show you:
As for the rest of my 4th of July weekend (by the way, happy 4th,y’all!), it was pretty perfectly adventurous as well. Not adventure of the year material or anything, but fun and lovely just the same. More pictures:
Downtown girl’s night+ New dress= Great night:
Barton Springs+Happy hour+Girlfriends= Mondays are sometimes awesome.
Dear fellow bloggers and friends: Will you please go run around naked publicly and then report back? For me?
I’m leaving for Colorado in three weeks, with at least one (possibly two) more vacations planned by end of this summer. Plans: Beach trip with girlfriends, whitewater rafting with my boy, and a whole lot of spontaneity in the mix. Isn’t summer beautiful?
I love my job. I (and by I, I mean the kids) get to have play-dates with my younger siblings. Lookit this picture of my little brother and Miss Mary:
Aren’t they adorable?! And in bed together, already! Ha.
If you live in the Austin area, it’s a possibility you’ve heard of or have shopped at one of my uncle’s jewelry stores. He’s the owner of the company Hannah D’s–a boutique-like jewelry store named after my little cousin (Hannah Danielle)–and a couple of James Lewis Gold Exchanges. I’m pretty sure he’s owned the gold exchange since around my birth. Growing up, the whole family would get excited to randomly see and laugh at him on tv, with his country accent in full swing, saying: “I’m Gold Buyer, Jamessss Lewisss!” . Now,when I nanny in the mornings, I see him between breaks of the Ellen Degeneres show. I still can’t help but get excited and sometimes tease him out loud. So guess what, guess what?! In the next year or less, I’ll get to laugh at myself on local tv for the first time. I’m gonna be on his next commercial! Talking about gold and stuff. I’ll let you know when the commercial is filmed, so if you live close you can watch, possibly get excited and most definitely tease me.
I mentioned the other day meeting my fellow blogger, Jenny. She wrote a very sweet/smile-inducing blog about meeting me too, and she remembered some things I wanted to add but forgot. You can read more about our little date here.
A few pictures from the past two weeks that I love but haven’t showed you yet:
On top of all of my happy things, I’m beaming with pride for some of the best girlfriends as of lately. Tessa just got a promotion. Shannon made her goal (with help from our bikini car-wash, Holla!) of $1500 for the Make A Wish Foundation and thus also got to rappel down a 32 story building downtown. My bestest best friend Meg left today for a month in Spain (when she comes back she’ll be visiting me in Texas soon after. Eek!) These are three of the girls I’ve known the longest in life, and also three of the greatest and best gal pals a girl could ever ask for. Tessa always flatters me into feeling like a supermodel, even on days I feel the crappiest. Shannon has been an inspiration throughout my life to be as adventurously crazy as I possibly can be. And Meggie is just the most beautiful person I have ever met, both inside and out. All three have done so much more for me than I could ever possibly put into words. What I’m saying is they deserve all of the happiness in the world, and I feel giddy watching them receive it.
I sometimes like to brag about the fact that I wake up at 8:20 in the morning and leave no later than 8:31. This doesn’t mean I’m bragging about looking my most decent, because in my opinion I most definitely looked like I just rolled out of bed. (Because, uh, I did.) I’ve never been one to really do much with myself as far as getting ready goes, and one could call this being comfortable in my own skin, if one was being nice. But one could also call it indolent and lethargic, if one was not being so nice. All three are at least somewhat true of me. However. There is one thing in the past couple of years that I have gotten much better at. This would be the oh-so-strenuous act of BRUSHING my hair. I used to walk around with, no lie, huge rat’s nests and hair that looked more like a giant weed. Honestly, I’m surprised my then boyfriend, now husband didn’t break up with me. It was that bad. I look at pictures and I think to myself “WHY, Christina, WHY couldn’t you just pick up a damn comb?!” I also probably blush. It’s slightly humiliating. This is embarrassing for me to show you, but I must. I must to show you how far I’ve come. A then and now:
This was how I walked around on a day-to-day basis. Not to be superficial or anything but, Dear 20 year old me: WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!!?!? Okay. I’m better now. Just needed to get that out of my system.
2. 1 month until my play. I go to rehearsals exhausted and somehow leave feeling excited and glowing. I’ve missed acting.
6. One really sexy husband.
“ I never went to summer camp as a child, but from watching movies and stuff, I feel like these are the kind of bonds that I missed out on back then.
