"I urge you to please notice when you are happy, and exclaim or murmur or think at some point, 'If this isn't nice, I don't know what is.'" 

- Kurt Vonnegut

I haven't felt much like writing lately, but I'm still here and I thought maybe I'd acknowledge life these days. Because it's fantastic. Nothing has changed other than my mind and I realize now that's all that needed to be done. I still have plenty of grump days (HELLO, gemini rising and moon) but I've noticed such a shift in my mind set and it has left me feeling better, physically and emotionally, than I have in a while. A long while. 

Practicing Abraham-Hicks is really what started it for me, and even though it took a few weeks (or months) to kind of get it down, it's finally coming to me naturally and I'm able to release the negative things as quickly as they come. Maybe it's also being in the last year of my almost 20 year journey of having mercury in my natal chart in retrograde, I don't know, but I'll take it. 

I know that I'll always be an up and down person, I know that i'll always complain about where I'm living, what job I'm doing, etc., but right now I feel really, really great and I thought I'd take Kurt's advice and exclaim that this sure is fucking nice. 

Austin.

I've thought about writing about Austin a few different times, but I just don't have the words. It was literally perfect. Those friends. Those friends of mine deserve to be called something more than friends, because they make me so goddamn happy. Visiting them is like I'm visiting my old self at the same time, the happiest version of me that exists within, waiting for the right moments to be free. And it's always with them. I'm almost never happier than when I'm in the city I love surrounded by the most beautiful, true friends I have. I smiled and laughed all day. My energy was higher than it's been since.. well, probably the last time I was there. Everything felt right. Everything was perfect. Tacos every day, talking until 4am, from couches to fancy hotels to borrowed beds. To Hamilton Pool to Liberty to Sunday Funday being the most perfect day to ever exist. I am so, so happy to have it in my life. Those moments are what I live for. 

January, you're cool.

Two weeks into the new year and 2013 is treating me fabulously. 

A new spiritual guide that is seriously changing my life

A new job with an amazing mindset 

Fried chicken for the first time since going GF / GF menu at PF Changs

House hunting

 

A trip to the mountains which somewhere along the way became my favorite place to be, my energy instantly lifts and I feel a different sense of calm and clarity

A flan anniversary and tomorrow my first born turns 5

Keep it up, year.

Visits and friends.

I had the best weekend. Austin friends from all over (Austin, Durham, Boston, DC) came to town to celebrate Kara's birthday (and pulled off the greatest surprise ever) and see each other since we all moved away. We cuddled, laughed until we cried, drank tons of booze, ate delicious things, acted like tourists, did tarot readings, had terrible/amazing ideas like stick and poke tattoos and underwear handstands, and generally just died of happiness. Sometimes I'm sad that most of my friends/favorite people are so far away, but it makes times like this that much better. It was perfect.

feminspire!

The ladies over at feminspire (one of my favorite websites) recently asked me to become a regular contributor and I am THRILLED. I definitely don't fancy myself a writer and I was doubting myself (as usual) if I could even come up with content that would be on par with the other ladies, but TO HELL WITH SELF DOUBT, I can do it. I CAN DO IT. It feels so wonderful to be a part of a collaboration with such smart, inspiring women and I can't wait to be more involved. I'll probably be cross posting some articles, but I'll try not to too much!

Oliver says hello

In other news, I'm still super into my new job because I keep getting free stuff (lol I mean, just being honest) and I'm still obsessed with Old Town. I've been hanging out with the babies a lot lately and Monique and I have been having lazy nights in with Sons of Anarchy (you know how I feel about TV) since it restarts in a few weeks. I sense a TV post coming soon....

Currently.. because I am THE WORST at anything else.

This month is shaping up to be the best month we've had in a long time. I love my new job! The girls are amazing and the hours are flawless AND I work on the same block as a cupcake shop with the most delicious GF cupcakes AND a gelato shop. It's the little things, right? I also just really love being in Old Town, and if we stay here past May (when our lease is up) we'll probably move back up there.
Chuckie got a new job that is exactly what he wanted and like, double the money which is GREAT. Everything is coming together! The beginning of the year was so rough that this is feeling extra great right now and I'm appreciating it a lot. Here are some other things that are making me happy lately:

The cutest portrait ever by the amazing Sara

Fabulous days by the water with friends

The cutest kids in the world

Don't be fooled by these bland looks, it is actually 

mascarpone gelato and AMAZING.

July, so far.

July has been pretty busy but great so far. Chuckie and I started planning a potential October vacation, one of my best friends came to visit for a week, I had dinner with one of my oldest, closest friends, had an excellent girls night with some potential new (and old!) friends, spent a ton of time with my babies and had excellent lunch dates with my love. I haven't had a single want-to-kill-myself stomach ache since going GF (although I've had plenty of regular/acid reflux/nausea from neck pain stomach aches, but I digress) and although I'm still a grumpy asshole about it most of the time, I'm learning to adjust. 

Next weekend we're heading up to Philly (and surprisingly going to try to convince myself to move there? Side-eyeing myself, to be quite honest) to celebrate Chuckie's birthday. Things are good.

perfect iced coffee

Asheville

After a week of stressing over bills, putting together our wedding invitations, addressing them (which surprisingly took forever), and realizing we're not going to be able to leave the house next week (Chuckie is having surgery), I decided I NEEDED to get out of this city for a little while. We didn't have enough extra money to take a weekend trip so a day trip was in order, and decided it was the perfect time to finally visit Asheville. 
The weather was perfect. It was incredibly sunny but cool enough to walk around without breaking a sweat. We headed straight to Sunny Point Cafe in West Asheville for brunch, where I had savory french toast (stuff with a mixture of cream cheese, sharp cheddar, and sausage).

It sounded too unique to not try it and my god, it was absolutely delicious. We were going to walk around West Asheville but it felt really cluttered and crowded, so we drove by some (adorable) house and went straight to Hendersonville to a crystal shop to get a feel for the spiritual businesses around. 

We headed downtown where we stopped by the Dripolator, a coffee shop Niec has been talking about forever. We sat outside in the perfect weather soaking it all in, feeling the energy of the city and the mountains and the people. 

We walked around the city and I just have to say again how amazing it was to be in a downtown area that is filled with spiritual shops, hippie stores, and alternative medicine practices. It was fantastic and more than I expected. 

We decided to drive through some neighborhoods in North Asheville, where we would probably live, and oh my god. OH. MY. GOD. The houses! I DIED. Some of the most beautiful houses I've ever seen. I wish I snapped some pictures but I was too busy being wide eyed-mouth open to function. Here's an inn from a google search which was just one of the many gorgeous places (although not all gigantic like this) 

Now that I found the most beautiful neighborhood in the city my day dreaming is going to be out of control.

Anyway, we ended the night with the most delicious meal at Homegrown, a restaurant serving all local food. Country fried steak, pimento cheese with flatbread and veggies, the perfect salad, a gigantic brownie. It was to die for. And again, gone before I could manage to snap a picture. 

I'm still trying to talk myself out of loving Asheville, I have a list of cons (expensive real estate, no jobs, scary roads, far away from my nieces/nephew) but it's going to be tough. I really think this could be a place I finally settle down and buy a house (you know, when money just falls from the sky). I just need to feel connected to a place and with all the nature and mountains and lakes I could really see it happening. Fingers crossed.

Oliver!

Chuckie & I have wanted a dog foreverrrrrrr but I've resisted since we're not in the greatest place to have one (small apartment that doesn't allow dogs, we both work a lot, etc). We decided to go look at dogs today JUST FOR FUN and of course you know what happened....

Oliver!

I told myself if we did get a dog, it had to be over a year old so it was somewhat trained, but this little boy stole our hearts and we couldn't resist. 

Lola has even warmed up to him already and decided to share his little home.