Je Suis...

I turn 30 in 5 days.

I love good music.  New music.  Sing-along-so-loud-no-one-can-tell you-can't-really-sing music.

I'm incredibly short.  No, really.  You didn't notice because I was wearing heels.  Trust me. I'm well-below average.

My humor, however?  Definitely above average.

I am a sucker for cheesy, romantic comedy movies.  You know, the kind that you watch over-and-over-again-until-you-wear-out-your-VHS-copy-and-are-forced-to-finally-buy-it-on-DVD.

I am selfish. And awkward.

I make jokes when I am uncomfortable.  Kind of like Chandler Bing.  With whom I also share a "nubbin."  I mean, we don't actually share one.  He has his, I have mine.  What I meant is we share the feature.

I am the proud owner of a shiny, heavy, impressive new camera.  The D700.  The one I've swooned over. Repeatedly, on this here bloggity.  To the point where you were going to scrounge up all your extra pennies and send them my way so I would just shut up already.  Geez.  But you can keep your pennies.  Because I'm a giver.

I developed my affinity for sarcasm because I didn't have the ability to take it from others.  I can't stand the heat, but I don't want to leave the kitchen.  So I try to be the best cook.  The iron chef of cynicism and lightening wit.

I have the hobbies of an octogenarian.  Knitting.  Quilting.  Clothesmaking.  Okay, maybe a Mennonite octogenarian.  With 13 children.  And a robust garden.

Except...I don't have 13 kids.  And I can't grow anything.  Except for babies in my womb.  And thighs.  Oh, cankles, too.  If I plant something, it will die.  It's like Athena's Law for Living Things.  My mama? Exactly the opposite.  It's as if she taught me everything she knew, groomed me to take over the family business, and then she had a heart attack in the middle of her wedding reception as her spouse, young enough to be her son, looks on in horror.  And then I fail miserably. The company on the brink of being sold only to find it in myself to excel. To win.  At the last possible minute as music builds in the background. Gasp! The company is saved!  Oh wait. Nevermind.  That's Tommy Boy.
I digress.

I can't grow anything.

I'm a sucker for Apple products.

I don't like it when people say "literally" when they're making a euphemism. Or using hyperbole. Or not actually being literal.

If I am ever lucky enough to quit my day job and make a living as a photographer/knitter/hatmaker/quilter/yogi/mennonite octogenarian extraordinaire, I am going to get more tattoos.

I'm a fiend for White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle ice cream.

And good Pinot Noir.

I recently fell trulymadlydeeply in love with The National.  And Adele.  And Mumford & Sons.

The color pink once overwhelmed my wardrobe.  I hardly wear it anymore.

I have bangs.

I thought they'd be a fad. Something I'd be sick of within days of having them cut.  But I still really love them.

I'm ridiculously inspired by people who are living their lives.  Out loud.

I would love to move to coastal Oregon.

Or San Francisco. Or Seattle.  Or the Northeast.

I am a horrible mom.  As I am just now mentioning my kidlets.  The fruits of my womb.  They are the most amazing little girls I've ever met in my life.  And you can call me biased.  Because I am.  But DRL and I are raising them to be the kind of little girls that others find amazing, too.  At least we are trying to.

My favorite color has become the color of my girls' eyes.  Which are completely different.

I still miss my gramma. A lot.

I blog stalk people until they're convinced of my coolness and decide to be my friend for realz.  Lucinda.  Anda.  My latest recruit: Gladys.  Watch out, Jasmine.  Kelly. Miz Boo.  I've doused myself in a fresh coat of awesomesauce...

I stole the idea of this post from Gladys.
Hers was better.
But then, the original always is.

I've told you all about who I am.

Now, you tell me....who are you?

Cheers,
A

Cracked.

The girl who won't smile

when her mama's trying to get a photo...

Smiled.

Cheers,

A

PeachTree

Mama and I went to Fredericksburg yesterday.

A quiet little town about 73 miles west

of Austin.

There's a great little cafe

called "PeachTree."

The food is fresh.

And pretty.

And the Mango Limeade is divine.

This bread tasted like Italy.
Tomato.
Spices.
Cheese.
Herbed butter.

They even served heart shaped
peanut butter jelly and sandwiches
(as Elena calls them).

If you're ever in Fredericksburg,
stop by.

Mama says the Ham and Broccoli quiche
is divine.

She ate it too fast for me to get a good photo.

I kid,
I kid.

But it sure looked tasty.

Cheers,
A

Rainy Days & Mondays

Today is gloomy.
It is supposed to rain.

Which will do wonders for the Texas wildflowers
that are trying
so desperately
to grow. 

Bloom.

It's my mama's last day in town with us.
It's been so very nice having her around.

My dishes keep getting done.
The toys keep getting picked up and put away.
There's a constant smile on the faces of my girls.

We're off to Fredericksburg. 
I have some work to do,
and when I'm done,
Elena, my mom, and I are going to putz around
the sleepy little German town.

I hope your Monday
is amazing.

Cheers,
A

Guest Room

My mama is visiting right now.
My brother, too.

We sat outside
on the balcony
for quite awhile this afternoon.

I busted out the Nikon.

I hadn't shot since the wedding a couple weekends ago.

I need to get better at taking photos
every day.

Or at the very least
much more often.

But I digress.

Cheers,

A

quiet

Some days
I just need to go

here.

To a place that's
quiet.

I don't ever get that chance.
Life keeps me far too busy.

Which makes me feel too blessed
to complain.

And so I am happy
that I have my photographs to take me
the places I cannot actually go
on those days
when I need it most.

Cheers,
A

Now Playing

My taste in music is like the weather in Minnesconsin.
Varied.
Unpredictable.
One day I'm listening Bruno Mars and Cee Lo Green and P!NK
and the next I'm all about Muse, the Bravery and Mumford and Sons.
Or Ani and Madonna and Florence+The Machine.
Or Bjork, Radiohead and Outkast.

I like {almost} everything.

But there are some artists
some songs
that I will always carry with me.

Songs that make me roll my car windows down,
turn the speakers up to 11
and sing.
At the top of my lungs.

And then hit "replay."

~Sunshine, Atmosphere

~Dog Days Are Over, Florence+The Machine

~Uprising, Muse

~Both Hands, Ani DiFranco

~Let's Get Incredible, Lifter Puller

~Black Dog, Led Zeppelin

~99 Red Balloons, Nena

~Swim Until You Can't See Land, Frightened Rabbit

~Mrs. Potters Lullaby, Counting Crows

~Gimmie Sympathy, Metric

~Zero, Yeah Yeah Yeahs

~My Only Offer, Mates of State

~Wanted, Dead or Alive, Bon Jovi

~Ours, The Bravery

~Awake My Soul, Mumford and Sons

~Smile, Lily Allen

~Brown Eyed Girl, Van Morrison

~September, Earth, Wind and Fire

~F.U., Cee Lo

~Big Time Sensuality, Bjork

~Mr Brightside, The Killers

~Positive Jam, The Hold Steady

~Revelry, Kings of Leon

~Viva La Vida, Coldplay

~The Greatest Man I Never Knew, Reba McEntire

~The Rhythm Of Love, Plain White T's

I'm pretty sure I could go on forever.
And ever.
And ever, ever.

So this will be my list today.

Right now.

Volume 1 of the soundtrack to my life.

And since no blog post is complete without a photo:

Meet Honey.
(My friend Melissa's dog)

I encourage you to head over to iTunes
and give a listen to some of these songs
that you may not know.

Then suggest your favorites in the comments.
Share your music with me.

And the rest of you dear,
sweet,
encouraging,
loyal
readers.

You are the pages of my book, you know.
Each and every one of you.

Help me write the score...

Cheers,
A

Project 52

I haven't been keeping up on my P52 submissions.
I haven't really been keeping up on taking the photos, either.

My friend Rebecca and I were talking about it
the other night.
If I had stopped doing it.

I told her that it started to feel like work.
Which took some of the fun out of it.
So I stopped spending any real energy on it.

Tonight,
I uploaded the photo above
into the pool for last week's theme:
Lights and Darks.

It's definitely a loose interpretation,
but I thought it fit.

I then found two more photos
taken during "missed" weeks
that I added to my flickr pool.

As it stands,
I'm only missing two submissions.

I think I can handle a P50.
It's kind of like me to be a little different.

Or finish just short of the mark.

But I digress.

Happy Monday,
friends.

I hope to start blogging more regularly
this week.

I've had my break.

And I feel better....

Cheers,
A

...and Mirrors

In the bridal dressing room
at the wedding this past Sunday
was a mirror.

It was leaned up against the far back wall.
In a corner.

The angle of the mirror itself suggested
a "complimentary" view of oneself.

Add to that, a shaped piece of glass
and you get:

Complete.
Utter.
Total.
Trickery.

My stomach is not that flat.
No way, no how.

But my TOMS are that yellow.
And my arm is that chubbly.

I kept stealing glances of myself in the mirror
thinking
"wow, this diet/exercise thing really is starting to pay off."
Then I overheard the bridal party
talking about the complimentary shape
and placement
of said mirror.

My disappointment was apparent.
The girls and I joked about who would take the mirror home.

It turned out to be too large
to steal.

Silly trickster mirror.
I love to hate you.

Cheers,
A

Pink

I bought yarn.
Shocking.
I know.

It's pink.

Another surprise, right?

It's soft, squishy, perfect cotton.

I'm making a baby blanket out of it.

At least I think that's what it will be.

Something I can take along and use on photo shoots.
It was inspired by a blanket I bought at Pottery Barn the other day.
That is also soft.
And squishy.

But it's not cotton.

I thought...
Hey,
I can do that.

So I did.
Only smaller.

It's not done yet.

But I have a feeling it's going to be perfect
when it is.

Cheers,
A

Sunday Photography

I tagged along behind the hired photographer
at a wedding today.

I can't blog the photos yet,
but I can show you this.

This painting hung
in a gilded frame
in the room where the bride got dressed.

This is a crop
of the larger whole.

I
Love
This
Painting.

I want to know its name.
Its artist.
So I can order a print of it.

And I can't wait to find myself a bride
who will allow me
to re-create it.

Cheers,
A

Otolaryngology.

This is my baby.
I gave birth to her.
(With drugs. Because I'm no hero).
She is getting tubes put in her ears today.

Surgery.

Which I'm certain will be no big deal.

It's only a 15 minute procedure.

She's going to be a whole new kid
once all the fluid
hiding behind her eardrums
for the last month
or more
has a chance to drain.

But I could still use all your good energy today.

Pretty please....

(*update*. The surgery went perfect. There wasn't any fluid behind her ears today. Go figure. But the ENT said that's good news. It means she likely won't need more than one set of tubes. Thanks for all the vibes, friends.)

Cheers,
A

luc ends

You all know how much I adore Lucinda.
And I adore her handcrafted bags equally as much.

Recently I won a contest over on her site.
And I never win contests.
Like
Never.

Ever.

As my prize, she said she'd make me a wristlet.
Something I'd been bugging her about for quite some time.

Instead of one, I got TWO.
Because Luc is just that amazing.

The first was her "trial run."
And it happens to be my favorite Echino print from this collection.

The second
is another of my favorite prints
in my signature color.

They are the perfect size for a wallet
cell phone
and a few sticks of Stila gloss.
In case you can't decide which color to wear.

Or in case you're like me
and you blend a couple together.

Lucinda is truly talented.
Head on over to her shop to check out more of her goodies.

Rumor has it
she'll be filling it up with wristlets soon.
But if you're like me,
and have zero patience,
and you'd like one
um...
like
now...
feel free to send her a message.

I'm sure she'd be happy to get one to you.

Cheers,
A

Zilker Kite Festival

Yesterday we went to Zilker Park
for Austin's annual Kite Festival.

It wasn't very windy.
But the people came out.
In droves.

Little kites,
big kites,
kids of all ages.
And dogs.
Then more dogs.

Everyone had a good time.
And got a little sunburn on their noses.

Here are some photos from the day:

The photo on the left was taken when we arrived at the park.
The one on the right was shot moments before we left.

So.
Many.
People!

And so much fun.

Cheers,
A

Lite Brite

A couple weekends ago we went to the Austin Children's Museum.
Elena and DRL ran around exploring the entire museum
while Stella and I hung around
the infant-friendly exhibits.

Her favorite?
A giant Lite Brite sytle peg board.

Elena's favorite?
The sticky icky green goo she made out of Borax, Elmer's, and water.
And bright green food coloring.

That stains her hands green.

And mine, too.

But it's all in the name of science.

Er...fun.

Er....both?

Cheers,
A

New

This is me.

With bangs.

And red highlights.

You should see it in the sun.
It's crazy.
Looks like my head is on fire.

I
l.o.v.e.
it.

But I might have to tone it down just a bit
for work.

Maybe....

Cheers,
A

The photo was taken by my crackberry. I edited it a bit in PS to look more like a ShakeIt/Polaroid/Instax photo.