Surprise!

It's a Saturday blog post.

I haven't done one of these in a while.

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Hopefully {you all} had a great week. I really wish that it sounded natural for me to use the word {y'all}, but it just doesn't come naturally. Oh how I love the word y'all. A little part of me still wishes I had retained that Texas accent from when I was 3 years old. My mom said it was worse than hers and my father's when we moved to Michigan. Seriously why did they not video record that?! Not that I'm bitter or anything...

Okay back on track here. I wanted to share this Albert Einstein quote with you: 

This quote hit me really hard last night at dinner, because I feel like I've been a bit of a "Negative Nancy" since we moved out of our place and my husband went off to ground school in another state. Sometimes I get too focused on things that are tough in life, when I really need to look at everything as a blessing or a miracle. Not just some things. Everything! You know that little saying "everything happens for a reason"? Well, it really does. You might even realize it years down the road, but things typically work out for the good. Things might not be the way you want them to be right now, but that doesn't mean that life isn't a miracle every. single. day. I mean, you are alive today, right? Do you have any idea how complicated the human body and its functions are? I'm no scientist, but I know that there are so many things that need to work together in order for us to be alive. Think about it. What is it that makes you take a breath of air? Do you even know? You can't just stop breathing. If you hold your breath, you will gasp for air in a matter of minutes. (If you even last that long). Life is such a miracle, but we take it for granted most days. We wake up, drive to work, go home, maybe cook dinner, chat with family, go to sleep... and then we do it all over again the next day. But you know what? There is so much more to life than just "the grind" of each day. Life alone, just waking up each day, is such a miracle! We get a new chance, and opportunity, each morning to wake up and take advantage of the day's miracles. Why does it seem difficult to function in that way some days? What's getting in the way? Fear? Worries? Jealousy? Anger? Stress? I really want to focus on living each day as if it, and everything in it, is a miracle. No more of this moping around thinking that life is so tough. Suck it up! Sometimes life is tough, but it's so worth it if we just live it as a miracle.

I agree that there are only two ways to live life. One as though nothing is a miracle. The other as though everything is a miracle! We don't get to choose the miracles. They just are. The different personalities of people. Miracle. The different colors of our skin. Miracle! Different interests and strengths of people. Miracle. The fact that there is so much unknown in the world... miracle! No one person has it all figured out. Life is amazing, and every single bit of it is a miracle.

My 10 Favorite Things

Luckily I have been tagged by Kelly

over at  Keeping Up with Kelly & Co.

to take part in a blog post sharing 10 favorite things.  (:

I say luckily, because today my brain feels like mush... and I'm having a hard time thinking of things to post about today.

My favorite things are in no particular order, and I can't include them all... so this is sort of a random selection of my 10 favorites right now.

1. Travel I've always loved exploring new places and seeing new things. I'm pretty sure that I was born that way. I can't help but have the travel bug after being born in Texas, growing up in Michigan, and living in Colorado for the last 5 years. Now we're off to live in Florida. 

Zurich, Switzerland

2. Airports I am not joking, when I say I wish I could spend my free time hanging at the airport. Something about all of the different people, going so many different places, just makes me want to sit down and talk to every single person there. I love hearing people's stories.

3. Photography Looking through the lens of a camera, and capturing the beauty that exists everywhere in life, is such an enjoyable thing for me. There is a never-ending supply of life and amazing things to photograph... and I love being inspired.

4. Clothes I love them... and miss them. Clothes are definitely a great way to express yourself and be creative. Everyone has a different sense of style, and I love seeing what kinds of outfits people put together. I'm constantly looking at what everyone is wearing, and hopefully some day I'll feel fashionable again. ;)

5. Cooking Ten years ago you could have asked me if I would love cooking and I probably would have told you "no!". Thank goodness that has changed, and I bet you my husband would agree. I definitely love making a really tasty meal at least once in a while, because a home cooked meal is usually better than most restaurants (minus doing the work yourself). (:

click HERE for the Roast Chicken recipe

6. Hotel Toiletries So I might have a tiny problem... but I really love the small toiletries that hotels provide for their guests. Basically I've been hoarding hotel toiletries for years, and who knows when/if I'll use them all. Some day when we have a house, and you're an overnight guest, you might see them there. Okay. Don't judge me. ;)

7. Nail Polish I've found that changing my nail polish frequently sort of quenches my urge to buy new clothes, and buying new nail polish is much cheaper than new clothes... so I see this as a win, win situation. Essie has some really great colors right now, and I actually just bought two new colors today. Sssshh don't tell anyone I spent some money on nails. I saw Sand Tropez on Linday's blog Life as Lindsay. She does a great "Nails of the Week" post each week and always shares great colors. I also bought Essie's Chinchilly today too, because it just caught my eye. Target sells Essie polish... go get some!

8. Seashells This might seem like a funny favorite thing, but I seriously love seashells. I feel that stooping over next to the sea, while collecting beautiful shells, is basically free therapy. While on our honeymoon I spent hours picking up shells from the beach on Sanibel Island. I plan on making some things out of the shells that I collect... I'll share whenever that happens. Maybe someday I'll even find the "mythical" junonia shell.

9. Craft Beer I 'strongly dislike' beer brewed by the "big breweries", so we won't go there. I love great beer brewed by passionate brewers who care about the whole experience of brewing and creating inspired and tasty brews. I love touring the breweries and learning how beer is made, and I am really going to miss the great selection of craft beer when we move to Florida. Does anyone know of some good local Florida breweries?!

10. Books I love to read, so naturally I love books. That's always been the case for me, and I used to read entire books in one day when I was younger. (Granted the books were much simpler then). I can spend hours and hours browsing books at the bookstore. Someday, when we have our own house, I would love to have a library for all of the books we own! Do you like to read? What's your favorite book?

So there you have it. 10 of my favorite things!

Since it's getting later, and it took me a long time to write this and select pictures... I am not going to tag 10 people to participate. However, if you would like to... please do! Just link back here saying you found the 10 Favorite things idea here. (:

Happy Thursday!

Hey! We're Moving To...

This is the moment you've all* been waiting for

* (okay, so maybe not too many people have been waiting but whatever).

This is the big reveal of where my husband and I will be moving!

Goodbye Colorado...

Hello....

... are you ready for it?

Here it is:

Hello Florida!

Here we come.

We're going to have some big adjustments, good and bad,

to get used to...

* gators, snakes, and bugs...

* major humidity and heat

* water... and lots of it (this is more for my husband since he's never lived by water)

* palm trees anyone?! yeah!

* possibly hurricanes, yikes.

* green trees and sandy beaches (this will be tough getting used to I'm sure)

I've got to say, I am pretty excited for Florida **

** my husband said the HR person said that the base is subject to change but probably won't... whatever that means?!
I am just going to pretend that this will not change! Okay good.  (:

The Life of a Cat

Do cats have it made or what?

They're always napping, sleeping, bathing, pooping, or eating. Then they repeat the cycle. Cat lives seem so simple and laid back. Really take a look at these pictures.

I found my family's cat, Twister,

all twisted up under here this afternoon:

I saw a tiny bit of paw poking out,

so I pulled back the comforter to find this:

Right after I snapped this picture, Twister jumped out at me and ran off of the bed in one fluid motion. It was as if that was his way of communicating anger for waking him up at noon on a Wednesday. Gosh, sorry buddy!

His mood changed quickly though.

Cats are silly... and sometimes moody. Oh, the life of a cat.

Anxious Waiting

I hope you all had a wonderful

Easter weekend

and that you feel renewed, rested, and loved

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As you may**, or may not, know... my husband and I are moving soon. We'll be moving to an all new (at least for us) state. I grew up in northern Michigan, and my husband grew up in eastern Colorado. Together we'll be moving somewhere all new, which is pretty gosh darn exciting, but it's also a little nerve wrecking too. This move means an all new start somewhere where we probably won't really know anyone. After I moved to Colorado from Michigan, I still feel like I'm not settled in Colorado, so it's sort of hard to imagine moving to an all new location, but I'm honestly excited for a new beginning with my husband. Hopefully we'll be moving somewhere that we can call home for at least a few years!

** you probably already know about this, because I can't stop talking writing about moving! ;)

If there is one thing I could practice right now...

it would be patience.

But I can't wait to find out

where we'll be moving!

 
 ** p.s. Yes these are recycled pictures, but I don't have a lot of energy for new ones right now. I have moving on the brain.

Happy Friday, Some Photos, and a Song

It's really been one of those weeks. Just thinking about it all makes me feel exhausted, and I'm really not that old (yet...). Sometimes I think that I don't have the right to be so exhausted, but more than anything I am mentally exhausted. Can I at least have that? While finishing moving everything out of our old apartment, I did multiple trips up and down the stairs by myself, and I am still more mentally tired than physically. Good thing I have decent health or I would be a train wreck here. I cannot even begin to imagine* how things would be if I was physically and mentally exhausted.

*(Oh wait, yes I can. I had a little meltdown earlier this week, but I think everything is good now.)

That being said, I don't have much mental capacity to get all philosophical on you now, so I am just going to share a few pictures that I took around my family's house. My hope is that these photos induce peace in a hectic day.

Happy Friday!

I also wanted to share this great song for a peaceful Friday.
Enjoy (:

Missing My Husband

This is sort of a rough time of transition for my husband and me. I haven't seen him in almost two weeks, and that's a 'gosh darn' long time* if you ask me! If you've been keeping up with my blog posts, then you might know that he's currently attending training in Las Vegas for his new job. One thing helping me through this transition is knowing that, once my husband gets through training, he'll be home every.single.night. That is a very rare thing when it comes to pilot jobs, and we're both excited to spend more time together! Him being home every night also means that I won't have to sleep with a can of pepper spray on my nightstand every night anymore. That's a major perk of this new job if you ask me.

* {I know that two weeks is nothing for military wives or some professions where people are separated for much longer periods of time... how do they do it?!}

©Alison Rose Photography

On a more serious note, I am incredibly proud of my husband. He deserves every single opportunity that comes his way, because he never stops working hard to achieve his goals. He also possesses this great quality of never complaining. (The few times that he does complain are because stuff is seriously bad. Really. He's not a complainer.) He's so great at seeing the positive when things are tough, and he definitely balances me when I get a little crazy. A couple of days ago, I was having a hard time adjusting to being apart and having no place of our own, and he sent me the sweetest email reminding me that we will be together as soon as his training is done. It's not forever. Sometimes I get carried away, over exaggerate things, and in my mind think something is forever... when it's clearly not. My husband is very patient and calming (most times) in stressful situations. I guess that's one of the many reasons that he makes a great pilot. The email he sent me also contained so many thoughtful things and reminders of why I married this amazing man! He makes me so proud, and I can hardly imagine loving him more... *but I will, because he deserves every bit of it.

* {I really hope you didn't need a barf bag, but I really love my husband to pieces.}

The really incredibly great news is that he's planning on coming home for the weekend! I really don't want to go three weeks without seeing him. That's no good. Plus we would really love to attend the sunrise Easter service at Red Rocks Amphitheater like we did last year. If all goes well, meaning that he can catch a flight out of LAS, then I'll be seeing him tomorrow!

Have you spent a long period of time apart from a loved one? How did you make it?

Oh Happy Day!

So remember when I mentioned that I would be without a computer for possibly up to two months? Well, I have been saved! My aunt insisted that I make some space in their house for my computer, and we ended up creating a little place that will be my home work space for at least the next month or so. Whew! Let me tell you, it's really nice to have a little constant in life when everything else is getting uprooted. Even if my computer and writing/blogging are my constant, it's nice to have them back if at least for a little while.

Before getting my computer back, I disassembled the foosball table that was taking up the space for my future 'office space'. I did a lot of unscrewing, and before I knew it all of the little foosball men (or maybe women) were packed away in a garbage pail. This made the table easy to move, and we'll be putting it downstairs soon enough. 

Goodbye little foosball people!

Hello computer and blogs!

It's nice having my own little work space in someone else's home. My temporary home became a little bit more mine, and I'm super excited that I don't have to say goodbye to blogging for now. There will come a time when my husband and I do have to pack up and move to a new city/state, but for now I'm digging my temporary home. Sometimes it's nice having even just a little corner to call your own.

Thanks to my family for being accommodating and flexible. (:

My Cousin. The Rockstar!

I come from a very musical family, and I've always loved music. My cousin, who is a senior in high school, isn't much different. She began playing violin at age 5, and she's come a very long way since then. She not only plays the acoustic violin but the electric violin as well... among other instruments. (I told you she's a rockstar!) The girl has an amazing ear for music, can play just about anything that you throw her way, and she is just hands down an incredible violinist!

About two weeks ago, my cousin became part of a band called Eucalyptus. The band consists of my cousin and a classmate. She plays electric violin, and he plays guitar, piano, and he sings too. About one week ago, they won their high school's Battle of the Bands! The winner won the opportunity to perform at a local bar/restaurant... and perform is exactly what they did.

They played a great mix of contemporary music, self composed songs, and they even played a few audience participation songs like "Lean on Me" and "Hey Ya" by Outkast. I'll tell you, it was pretty entertaining listening to the entire audience shouting "Shake it! Shake it! Shake it!" during their cover of "Hey Ya". Their cover of "Boston" by Augustana even had me and my aunt a little teary-eyed. It was so much fun seeing my cousin on stage while playing as part of a band. She really is a rockstar! I'm so glad they won Battle of the Bands and that I had an opportunity to hear them play.

Eucalyptus was fantastic, and I hope they play again soon. (:

Blogger Confession

I might be addicted... and scared.

No, actually I'm pretty sure that I am.

Blog friends... being away from my computer for a while scares me. I'm not one of those technologically advanced people who has a smart phone, but I sure do love my computer! My phone is actually pretty idiotic when it comes to things like the internet and such. Crud!

This whole moving thing is really putting a kink into my blogging routine. Unless I stock up by scheduling tons of posts for the next... oh 6 weeks or so, I might not get to blog as often as I would like. Putting everything into storage, until we find out where we're moving, might drive me crazy.

Who the heck goes 2 months without regular use of a computer?!

Hopefully I can figure out a way to blog, and keep up with your blogs, over the next month or two. We're almost moved out of our place, and that means I might not have a computer to use for regular blogging. Ugh! What is a girl to do?!

Can you sense the fear in my voice?! Because I can.

For now, I'm going to resume packing... and then head off to bed.
(And by bed I mean air mattress)

P.S. Air mattresses really aren't that bad.


P.P.S. I probably won't be saying that in a couple of months.

Soul Stirring Utah

Sometimes certain places just resonate with my soul. I can tell instantly that a little piece of me feels at home or that I could be happy just sitting and thinking all day long while gazing at the land. Have you ever felt that way while visiting a new place? Maybe it's even a quiet place in your own back yard that makes your soul feel at home. Who would have thought, but I came across this feeling while my husband and I drove across Utah last week.

As we entered Utah, anticipation for seeing new land grew inside of me. Something told me that this place was going to be unique. It was definitely not like any part of the United States that I had seen before this drive. While driving further into Utah, I gasped at the scene that unfolded before us. The drive across Utah was like driving through a pop-up book, each page unfolding a new experience right before my eyes. I exclaimed to my husband that this was God's country! We drove through so many varied landscapes that I sometimes forgot we were still inside of Utah's state border. I snapped pictures on my camera as fast as I possibly could before we drove away to another photo worthy view. It was almost hard to keep up with the speed of the pickup! A glance in every direction held a picture perfect view. The beauty was almost unreal, but this was real beauty. Not the kind of "beauty" created by land developers, architects, and bankers. We drove across a large portion of Utah, and our drive had me wanting to see more of this state some day.

Part of our drive consisted of driving through some incredible rock, and it actually reminded me of Red Rocks in Colorado. I was amazed by layer upon layer of history right in front of our faces. I couldn't help but think about all of the history contained in each layer of rock. We might as well have been driving through a history museum, because that's surely how it felt at times. Some layers might hold fossils of living things that died long before our time. Others might contain memories of people who crossed this land long ago. It was hard not to think about everything these layers held inside of them. Driving through them sort of felt like passing through hallowed ground that you had to respect. I love when mother nature and the land make you think.

People, my father included, have told me multiple times that Utah is one of their very favorite places on planet earth. I used to shrug it off and think that no way could Utah be that amazing, but the country there is just hands down beautiful, and much of it is untouched, making it easier to appreciate the real beauty of the land. I know of few places like Utah, where the land goes for miles and miles untouched by human hands. There was something greater than human hands at work on the landscapes of Utah. The vistas were absolutely breathtaking. Sometimes we need to see new places with our own eyes in order to create a greater appreciation for the world. I am fortunate to have had this opportunity to enjoy the beauty of Utah, even if it was just from the interstate, with my own eyes. Both my husband and I were blown away by the landscapes that we drove through while on our way through Utah. We're adding it to our list of special places. The beauty of this state made me smile through this transition we're going through in our life right now. Utah definitely stirred my soul.

Do you have any places that stir your soul?

A Little Airline Comedy

I'm guessing that if you live on the planet earth you have probably heard about the Southwest flight where a hole ripped open in the fuselage (fuselage is just a fancy word for the airplane body) of the jet during the flight. It's sort of a big deal when any kind of hole appears in an aircraft, especially at that altitude. You know, the air is sort of thin at 30 something thousand feet up there. Good thing the pilots did as trained and quickly descended to an altitude with more oxygen in the air. The oxygen supply from those masks is only good for so long you know. Boy would it have been interesting, to say the least, to have been on that Southwest flight. Hopefully no other incidents like this occur for a very long time. Things like this happen, but these incidents won't keep me off of an airplane.

I saw this SNL video on Gadling first, and I just had to share it.

Do you like to fly? Or does it scare the heck out of you?

Good Morning From the Sky

Yesterday at this time I was on an airplane over Las Vegas.

My husband and I took a little road trip out there (more on that later), and I flew back to Colorado on Frontier's first flight of the morning.

good morning sunshine

The morning sky and landscape were beautiful. I rarely have such great timing with flying, and the luck of snagging a window seat, where I get to experience a lovely sunrise. It's one of those really great things about flying that don't happen all of the time. The weather was clear and the sun was rising. Just lovely!

view from the sky

After takeoff, and snapping a few pictures of the sun rising over Las Vegas, I promptly fell asleep. Sorry there aren't more pictures of the morning flight, but I passed out from sheer exhaustion.

Do you enjoy the view from an airplane?

I hope you all had a great day yesterday and that you didn't struggle with too many Monday issues. (:

Closet Freak

I hope no one is reading this with anything sexual in mind, because it's really far from that. I'm talking about being a freak when it comes to the clothes in my closet people! This girl might have a major tiny obsession with keeping things in the closet perfectly in place as organized as possible.

I'm pretty sure that my time working retail, yeah I worked at good old A&F, has ruined me forever... in a good way though. Spacing hangers, hanging my jeans, and folding perfect stacks of tee shirts are some of my favorite things to do! Ha. Okay maybe they aren't my favorite things to do with my free time, but I do put effort into those things when it comes to our closet and dressers. It's in my blood. I can't help it. Perfectionist much?! Anyone else this crazy about keeping an organized closet?

Moving sometimes wreaks havoc on my o.c.d. tendencies. I'm one of those people who really likes to have everything come out of the suitcases, with no wrinkles in them, after moving, and man is that tough! We're packing everything in our apartment, and I try to pack as neatly as possible. Packing neatly. Is that an oxymoron or what?! Either way, it's a little sad packing away our neatly spaced closet, at least my side of the closet. If my husband had his way, we'd just throw (literally) all of our clothes into tubs and be done with it. Not happening, honey. Nope.

anyone else notice the pink hanger...

he must have hijacked that one! Grrr. I still love him though.

Hopefully wherever we move to next has a closet that's big enough for my our stuff. The first closet that we 'shared' was just big enough for one of us to be in it at a time. Somehow we both made it out of that situation alive. Sometimes being a closet freak makes it difficult to get along with the husband when it comes to organizational matters. We're working on it. (:

Recipe: Chicken and a Disaster at Home

Just a couple nights ago, I made us a yummy home cooked meal. My husband heads off for his job training soon, and I wanted to make something good before we pack up the kitchen and move out of here. When it comes to food, simple and tasty are always favorites around here. I subscribe to Food Network's daily recipe, and a good recipe landed right in front of my eyes.

Roast Chicken with Spring Vegetables

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 pounds skin-on, bone-in chicken quarters
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 lemon, halved
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound fingerling or other small potatoes
• 2 bunches radishes (I used some zucchini)
• 1 bunch scallions (I used shallots, they're sweet)
• 1 bunch baby carrots
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

Directions

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper, then place skin-side up on a rimmed baking sheet. Squeeze 1/2 lemon over the chicken and drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Roast 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut the potatoes and radishes (or whatever you replaced things with) in half and cut the scallions into thirds. Toss the potatoes, radishes, carrots and the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a bowl; season with salt and pepper.

Remove the chicken from the oven and scatter the vegetables around it. Continue to roast until the vegetables are tender and the chicken is golden and cooked through, about 20 more minutes. Squeeze the remaining 1/2 lemon over the chicken and vegetables. Top with the dill and season with salt.

Per serving: Calories 569; Fat 31 g (Saturated 7 g); Cholesterol 132 mg; Sodium 655 mg; Carbohydrate 27 g; Fiber 5 g; Protein 44 g

This was a hit, and it's simple and easy to clean up too!

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Now for the disaster.

After enjoying a nice home cooked meal, which might be one of the last good ones I cook for a while, we packed and packed... and packed.

We're running out of space to put things on the floor...

... and on the counters.