May.

Lately I've been writing in my paper journal again while this space has become more of a place to keep photos I love together. I think I'll come back here more as things evolve but for now I'm happy with the way things are.

<3

New house is slowly coming together.

My best girls came to visit.

An amazing view & comfy robes in our hotel room in DC.

Officially became this sweet boys godmama.

All the kids got christened in the church my sisters and I grew up in.

I love this time of year.

April.

April has been incredibly busy and exciting. The never ending winter finally gave in to the sunshine, which was really all I needed. I saw my goddess, Stevie Nicks, in concert and it was one of the greatest things in my life. We moved into a new house and let's just say I'm snickering at anyone who thought I'd make grown up decisions when it came to painting because while the main level is modern and beautiful, the upstairs has wall colors ranging from hot pink to mint to purple to yellow and it looks like Easter exploded. Heh. We snuck away to Durham for a quick Haley visit before heading to Outer Banks, NC for a weekend away at the beach. I'm hoping I can finally slow down this next week and get the house together nicely and have some time for myself. 

Moving.

We're in the process of moving again! No where particularly fun this time, just a few miles down the road, BUT this will be Our Home for the next several years, which is something completely new to me. Since moving out six years ago, I have moved ELEVEN times. A few of them were just for a month or so, but still.. that is just dumb. Really dumb, considering how annoying it is to move. 

I'm kind of terrified to commit to living somewhere for a few years since I get so bored of places so quickly - what's up with this water pressure? Did this closet get smaller? Why don't we have a giant back yard? - are things I usually complain about after a few months. WELL NO MORE, SARAH, because this time I'm locked in and being a grown up and learning how to commit. I mean, this is a house that we picked with having a real human child in mind, which is even weirder. 

I'm so excited though! I love moving so much, I love the feeling of change and something new and all the possibilities. I'm painting all the rooms in all the colors to wash away the memories of beige walls and beige carpets of past apartment living. There's tons of windows and natural light and a sunroom (not technically but that's what I'm calling it) which I'm filling with plants and plants alone. There's a big bathtub under a big window where I'm going to spend my life when I'm not on the deck in my hammock that will be bought immediately. There's a backyard for Oliver so I don't ever have to put pants on to let him poop in the morning. GLORIOUS.

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.

Lately.

A post of pictures that have nothing to do with the writing. 

Lately I've been trying to spend less time online. I've taken a step back from the internet community I was most active in (my life sounds cool, yes?) because everything felt so heavy and negative all the time and I'm still trying to always take notice when things bum me out more than they lift me up and it was becoming one of those situations. I (as well as several of the editors and writers) decided to stop writing for Feminspire after the way the EIC handled criticism (or didn't handle it, I should say) about the lack of diversity on the site. I hope that they can change and grow from everything that happened, but it isn't something I want to be a part of anymore. I've never really been into facebook and I feel like a lot of my favorite blogs haven't been around so much lately. Maybe there's something in the water.

I got my wisdom teeth out a few days ago and surprisingly realized I spent YEARS being terrified of doing it for no reason. I literally had no pain. I had anesthesia but it was nothing like real surgery, as soon as they woke me up from it I got up and walked over to a chair and was talking away (well, mumbling, I had a mouthful of gauze) and immediately went to get smoothies. I didn't really swell and I never even had to take painkillers which I am SO happy about because I hate them and taking an antibiotic is bad enough. I can finally bite down without biting my cheek in literally years and it's so exciting! This is my life. This is what I'm excited about.

Monique and I went wedding dress shopping and it is SO WEIRD. I am so looking forward to not being the only married one in a family full of people who.. kind of hate marriage. I had to try on one of the dresses that was stupid sized and it was one of those moments where we were like "...this is the very last thing we ever imagined" and had to take a picture before one of us broke out into a rash Carrie style. (Being married is cool, I swear)

I just finished This is How You Lose Her by Junot Diaz after hearing it was amazing by a million people and it they were right. I got too many books recently and I'm excited and overwhelmed trying to decide what to read. I think I'm going to start Wild by Cheryl Strayed tonight, and then The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Or Paper Towns. Or Beautiful Creatures. I DON'T KNOW I DON'T KNOW I wish I enjoyed reading multiple books at once but I'm too obsessive for that. 

I AM RAMBLING and now all my pizza is gone. 

Lately.

Lately my life is full. Full of faces I love, sisters and babies and closest friends. Full of reunions. Full of homemade dinners and desserts. Full of beautiful trees and leaves and weather. Full.

Bijou and I had a sleepover last weekend. We stayed up late, ate ice cream (twice), watched Jem and the Holograms, went to the park and played with one of my oldest, closest friends, Jason, and his girls. I thought it was going to be my temporary baby fever cure as it usually is (she is my heart, but babygirl is a handful) but it actually just made it feel like, wow, this is what it's all about. Walking around the town center holding both of our hands, swinging her in between us like my parents used to do to me. Waking up early to her poking her head in, a huge smile plastered across her face, crawling into bed with us and saying "Auntie Sarah, I'm SO happy I woke up here!" and making bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches together. 

This week my best friend moved home and I couldn't be more thrilled. We haven't lived in the same state in three years and it has been so refreshing to be together and talk about the stupid stuff we did when we were 16 and sing at the top of our lungs to our old favorite songs. Being apart for so long resulted in a lazy friendship of texting and emails, so to go back to seeing each other a few times a week is so much fun and I feel like we have been renewed. And when Chris, her boyfriend, is around, it just completes it. Him and I are basically the same person (Sorry, Alyssa) and we just talk talk talk talk talk. He gets me on everything, even spiritual stuff, which makes everything feel right and united.

Monique's boyfriend came home after being away the entire year and I feel like I'm going to burst with emotion because of it. We didn't expect him to be home until next summer, but a fabulous turn of luck/fate/whatever it may be, brought him home this week. I really didn't think it would effect me so much, but waking up and finding out I literally felt my heart swell. I'm just so so so so happy for him and my sister and Malakai and their beautiful little family. He's been around for years and years and I have always loved him so much, and I still can't get over seeing his face around the house and out with us. It's perfect.

<3