Supa Fly

Happy Birthday!!

Somebody is 2 years old today...



And don't be fooled by this face-she's actually giving someone "the eyebrows." She soon cracks a semi-smile, which you can sort of start to see here. Eventually she bursts out laughing.

She cracks herself--and everyone else---up all the time. She has a million expressions and about as many words to match.


Her mama made the cake, below, post candle ceremony:


And in addition to bottles of nail polish and costume jewelry, I contributed some fun cake pops:



Happy Birthday Baby Girl!!

Except you are not really a baby anymore. Sigh.

Hiatus

It's been about four months since I last posted and most aspects of my life have majorly changed in the last two. None of the transitions were easy yet none were forced upon me; they just sort of...happened. A whirlwind is a better explanation of how it felt, but hindsight reveals that the events of my life had been leading to where I am now for some time. And, overall, it's a good thing!

There have been numerous times over the last several months when I considered posting something. A fun, spur of the moment weekend trip to San Fransisco with some great photos almost made the cut. So did the yummiest mini pecan pies I made around Thanksgiving.

Oh, and I also quit my job, ended a relationship, said goodbye to wonderful friends, moved 2000 miles, found a job and more.

But, when it came down to it, I just didn't want to write down any of that.

I would never in a million years consider myself a blogger. Yes, I do have this site for some reason but I'd much rather read other people's blogs. I think my main problem is that I don't think the everyday of my life is all that interesting.

Isn't a prerequisite for bloggers to married/parents/foodies/photographers/interior designers?

Adding to that, I'm not much of a fluff person. It's not an easy task for me to be honest without being too personal. I tend to be very private but I'm not afraid to bare my soul when appropriate or necessary. But is a blog really the place for that? Perhaps I just need to loosen up a bit. Or a lot, depending on who you ask.

That said, I'd like to be better at this. A new year, a new season, a new start. Or not. It's worth a shot, though!

Glimpse of Heaven

I am certain there are bits of Glory in the moments right before the sun drops below the horizon.






I firmly believe the beauty of sunsets is magnified a hundred times when coupled with the sound of waves breaking.






It is decidedly one of the greatest things about living in Los Angeles.






For a few minutes everyone on the beach stops and watches the sun steadily sink. Once the last bit of fiery orange disappears, everyone turns to gather their things and brush off sandy legs.






Then it's back to reality.

A Milestone

I was out of town for a busy wedding holiday weekend, so after work I begrudgingly pulled out the Core Synergistic dvd for my first workout in 4 days. To say I wasn't looking forward to it was a major understatement.

After doing 3 or 4 push-up "stations"--on my knees, of course--I decided to throw caution to the wind. I got up on my toes...and did 10 normal-person push-ups!

I know it sounds super lame, but I honestly can't remember doing regular push-ups before. Hooray for me :D (If I did, it was high school...but even then it's really hazy, so I'm thinking not so much.)

Now, off to prep for my fantasy football draft! I know what you're thinking...and I agree. Clueless. But, it's a fun way to do something with the Boy Man Boy Man. Plus, on the off off chance one of us win (well, more likely for him) we'll be $90 richer!

I Love Books!

I have read several dozen books the last six months. I don't even remember most of them. I usually read at least a book a week, sometimes three. It largely depends on the book. I've gone through my personal library (again) and usually have a book or two checked out from the library. I've read plenty of fiction, but some of the most poignant have been non-fiction.

**Please don't remind me that with all of this time to read I could have easily read through the Word...maybe twice. I lament the fact for both of us. My main excuse is that I like to read my Life Application with all the footnotes and...life application...that I don't always get with my tiny Bible, which is much more portable.**

Anyway, I think there are few that are worth noting.

#1. The Hole in Our Gospel by Rich Stearns. READ THIS BOOK. IT'LL CHANGE YOUR LIFE. I am not saying that lightly. The minute I finished the book, I literally got online and sponsored another World Vision child. I now get to help little Flavio from the Dominican Republic as well as continue to support Elaste in Rwanda. I'm not saying that to point out how great I am. I could not have NOT sponsored another child. That's just what this book does. It forces you to act. Rich Stearns is the current president of World Vision and I truly believe his story and experience could be any of ours if we actually followed God's lead. Nearly every day, as I walk past a wide spectrum of God's children--of whom I usually can't get past the stench, profanity, or uppity business suit--I am reminded of this book and how it re-shaped my entire world view. Do I fail at answering God's nudges or in some cases obvious urgings? Daily. I'm a giant scaredy cat. Going out of my bubble is really, really hard for me. Just riding the subway can often push me past my comfort zone. READ THIS BOOK. IT'LL CHANGE YOUR LIFE.

#2. Raising Up Boys by Dr. James Dobson. This book has been around about a decade now but it had been on my reading to-do list for ages. No, I have no children, I'm not married, nor am I expecting. I don't even have a nephew. But we need good men in this world. How does a boy become a man? And what roles must each parent play in shaping who these little people will become? For me, this book is also a must read. We are living in a dangerous time when the very definition of a marriage and family is subjective and highly contested. From the structure of our education system to the fact that men are often seen as optional on-the-verge-of-irrelevant (or even detrimental), unnecessary from conception to college graduation. This book does not sugar coat topics and you may disagree with aspects of it but it will absolutely make you think (or re-think) about how you want to go about raising up your children. Totally worth it.
**Raising Up Girls by Dr. Dobson was recently released in hardcover, I believe.**

There are more books to comment on, but I'll leave you with an excerpt of a quote in the book I'm reading right now. Can you guess who wrote this? And who the subject of the book may be?

The people of the world still share...hope. The peoples of the world, despite differences in racial and ethnic origin, have very much in common. They want the dignity of having some control over their individual destiny. They want to work at the craft or trade of their own choosing and to be fairly rewarded. They want to raise their families in peace without harming anyone or suffering harm themselves. Government exists for their convenience, not the other way around. If they are incapable, as some would have us believe, of self-government, then where among them do we find any who are capable of governing others?


It makes me giddy :D

Do you Thread?

Today turned out to be quite a girly day, at least by my standards.

I hit the mall in search of some shoes and accessories to go with a new dress I'm wearing to a wedding next weekend. Malls are exhausting. Then again, it was the third one I'd been to in three days. And I don't shop. Like, ever.

While there, I stopped by S.H.A.P.E.S Brow Bar because my eyebrows were in dire straits. I have only had my brows professionally shaped once before, a la wax. So when I noticed last weekend that this shop did threading, I was intrigued. I'd been hearing great things about it lately and thought I'd give it a shot. I read that this technique was more efficient, more hygienic since they use cotton thread, less painful and had fewer after-effects than waxing. And it was usually cheaper.

Well, it was definitely cheaper. It was 10 bucks plus tip.

But holy cow, I was not prepared for the pain. It wasn't a searing pain you get with waxing or pulling off a band aid but at least with those it's one and done. With the threading (and I'm still not exactly sure how it works) they grab each hair or a group of hairs and yank over and over and over. It feels like something in between a bunch of tiny needles and the poking of a fine-toothed comb. Weird, huh?

However, I was pleased with the results and more than pleased with the price. The only downside to this particular place was that it's first come, first serve so the wait was about an hour.

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I LOVELOVELOVE Fresh's Brown Sugar Body Polish from Sephora. I do not love the price tag. $38 for 7oz and (a freaking) $65 for a 14oz tub. Solution? Get someone to buy it for you. Or, make your own!

I've done this several ways, but tonight I didn't want to fuss and just made the most basic paste. Just mix enough olive oil with 1/4 to 1/2 cup of brown sugar (for one serving) in a small container that can travel with you into the shower. After I wash as normal, I slather the scrub all over my body, careful not to fall on my now-slippery shower floor. It's heavenly. After patting myself dry and dressing, I notice that my skin is not greasy at all, just nice and luscious. Try it! **Other nice additions: lemon juice, vanilla extract, essential oils, oatmeal, etc.***

Oddly, there is more girlishness is on the docket for tomorrow:

-Church and lunch with a girl friend (mmm, hello Senor Fish...they have the absolute best scallop and shrimp burrito known to man)
-cashing in the boyfriend's birthday gift and getting a massage!
-catching some of the Emmy's (I totally forgot about the 4pm live showing when I scheduled the stinkin' massage...)
-picking up the boy (man?) at the airport!

I could get used to this :)