Chill

Full time work, band, parenting. Sometimes it feels like I never have a moment to catch up on "me" stuff.
Today Hayden and I are spending a day off together. He had no school so I took a vacation day.
We've done some house work, errands, and a little cooking.  Now, we're just relaxing playing video games and making up stories to draw pictures to.

It's nice to step back from the everyday chaos and just chill.

Lace & Pottery

We've been sleeping with the windows open lately and this morning I was a little cold, so I pulled up the comforter and snuggled. I got a face full of curly hair and grabbed the little body next to me. Hayden had snuck into bed with us late at night. Brian's arm reached over and held both of us.

Thirteen year anniversaries are represented by lace. Thirteen years ago Brian and I started hanging out. We went to lunch together on my first day as a Graphic Designer. We had known each other for a few months and ran into one another at work here and there but on Monday October 10th, 1999 I had been promoted into my Graphic Design position and my life would be changed forever. We went to lunch every day that week and hung out after work. We made our relationship official on October 15th, 1999 with our first date being opening night of Fight Club.

Nine year anniversaries are represented by Pottery. Nine years ago today we got married. We had a beautiful wedding that celebrated our relationship with our family and friends. It went by really quick but we had a lot of fun and we got really drunk. So drunk in fact that the only thing I remember from the wedding night is waking up at 2am in Brian's boxers to "decorate" the bathroom with champagne and wedding cake. My wonderful grandma had got us a room on Sacramento river boat. Well, my motion sickness mixed with drinking more in one night than five fraternities combined  didn't go over well for my stomach. No matter what anyone says, a boat that is docked still moves!

The last thirteen years have been a grand adventure for both of us. We are truly each other's best friends and  have built a pretty amazing life together. We have experienced so much, learned so much, and grown so much together. We've made it through hard-ships, played a ton of shows, and made an awesome little man.

T O G E T H E R. 

Weekend Redux: Lost tooth, flaky babysitters and paper bats.

Friday Hayden lost a tooth at school and carried it around all day. He said he was asked by the other kids if they could touch it and he only let them touch it with one finger so it wouldn't get dirty. 

Saturday night we had plans to go to our friends birthday party at a karaoke bar. I had set up a sitter two weeks before and even confirmed with her Friday during the day. She was set to show up at 8:45pm. At 8:42pm I texted to see if she was on her way. She texted back that she wouldn't be able to make it, that she had been called in to work.  Flaky people are my WORSE pet peeve. She had sat for us before and said how much she enjoyed it. So whatever, now I have to find a new sitter. AGAIN. 

I went to the birthday party and Brian stayed home with Hayden. Having worked all day he was pretty worn out anyhow.
Sunday we decided to bring out our Halloween decor and make some awesome bats to take over our front door and a big blank space behind our TV.
They came out pretty cool, and we might want to leave them up year round.

I LOVE decorating for Halloween. Every year though I go to pull stuff out and things are broken or smooshed. I lost a sad little pumpkin candle holder this year and some of my outside guys need new lights.

I have some projects in mind and should be able to post them up in the next week or so!

Making Shit Happen, Fall, and more Skulls

On January 1 of this year Brian and I made a pact that this was 2012: MAKE SHIT HAPPEN.

So far so good. We have done so much to make our lives better, healthier, and happier. 

We eliminated some bullshit, de-cluttered the mess of other people's drama that was lying around, and have patched up the holes that made our own drama. 

We're in a really great-happy-shiny-riding-unicorn-type of place right now and it's pretty damn sweet.

But I don't want to gloat here, I mean I do, but you'll all hate me so I'm gonna write something else now. 

FALL!

So fall is here, although the Vegas weather doesn't show it.

I'm excited to shop for more skull stuff to decorate my house! I was already able to get a few things.

This awesome cookie jar and a skull backpack. 

Now that I was able to buy a car I can start focusing on re-decorating my house just in time for Halloween!

I am also excited for the not so hot weather!

Weekend Redux: Friends and Cars

Last week I bid on a vehicle on eBay and won it. I was kind of skeptical at first about buying a vehicle from eBay. But I did my research and I got the vehicle history plus a buyer protection and by the time the seconds ticked off on the auction I had convinced myself it was a grand idea. 

We decided to take a road trip to California to pick it up and made plans to see our good friends.

Saturday morning we packed up the truck and hit the road. Our first stop a couple blocks from our house to grab breakfast led us to a car show that had a dozen old cars from the early 1900's.

Hayden thought they were cool. The red Ford was a 1912 making it 100 years old. Hayden made up stories about how when they broke down a horse had to pull them out of the mud. His favorite was the green one.

After we ate we hit the road. Hayden played games on my Kindle fire and watched movies on a portable dvd player. He is a good little traveling buddy.

We met up with the seller, took my new vehicle for a ride, signed all the papers and headed back onto the road to meet up with our friends Heather, Steve, Julian and Emily.

Julian and Hayden were born two days apart six years ago. Heather and I were pregnant at the same time, going through similar stuff and actually found out we were having boys on the same day. Five years ago they moved from Sacramento to Southern California and a year later we moved to Vegas.

Since the moves, we only get to see each other once or twice a year. But every time the boys get together they have this magnetic bond that's unexplainable and awesome to watch.

We only got to spend a brief time with our friends but it was nice. The boys played, hugged, made music, and chatted. Both were sad to say goodbye. But we got back on the road and drove home.

Sunday was a nice relaxing day of catching up on chores, taking care of some business, watching football, and drinking some nice wine.

I polished my nails, drank some fancy wine then beat some crap talkers on Madden 12, a great weekend indeed.

TILT: Good things

So many good things have happened this last week. I bought a vehicle that we are picking up in California this weekend. We released our first "official" music video which you can view here.

 

We are wrapping up the details for our next album. We have booked some fun shows to release and promote the new album. 

And today is picture day for Hayden.

He wasn't too stoked at first. Then he said " Mom. I need to take a shower and you can make me all fancy."

Sometimes

Sometimes people are hurting and never reach out for help. Sometimes you need to take it upon yourself to reach out to your friends and just let them know you're around and you love them.

A person I knew who came to parties, shows, and hung out as a friend took his own life this weekend.

I'm sure his family and closer friends are all asking "why?"  because I know I am.

It hurts my heart to know someone was going through so much pain that they just couldn't handle another day.

My heart goes out to his family and friends.

RIP Mike.

http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/