Early 20's Versus Early 30's

Yesterday at work, myself, my temps who is in her early 20's, and my coworker who is around the same age as me, had a conversation about what our weekend plans were. It went about like this:

Temp:  "I'm going to this super hipster concert tonight that I'm really excited about."
Coworker:  "I'm planning to sleep a lot and go to this new ramen place near me."
Me:  "I'm hoping to sleep in really late and then go to a museum with my husband."

I think that about sums early 20's versus early 30's right there.

{via}

Life Lately - iPhone Edition

Llama sweaters are just the best.

The prettiest little flowers for my birthday.

How we cook:  I read the recipe and keep Mike on track and make sure nothing is being forgotten or burning, while Mike does all the hard work. Also, I drink and read my book throughout.

So obsessed with Blue Apron and loving the meals we've made so far.

THIS is a good thing to wake up to on a Saturday morning.

Especially when it leads to beignets. 

My best friend since 2nd grade was in town for two whole weekends! Virginia was a whole lot sunnier and prettier for a while.

My man making me birthday risotto.

Mike always and forever wants me to make him Julia's chocolate/almond/rum cake for his birthday.

That About Sums It Up

I was thinking on the train ride home the other day how some stories in our lives can seem innocuous or pointless, but can really sum up who we are as people. Here is one that I have always remembered and looked back on with a little head shake of embarrassment and a half smile of, "Yep, that's Val."

I spent my freshman year of college at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. I was this horribly awkward girl who still hadn't discovered actually doing her hair and makeup or dressing attractively. I was dumped into this college universe after 18 years of small town, self conscious, non-growing years of life and I was not ready. I was tortuously shy and had no idea who I was. Part of me really wishes that girl had stuck it out at SLO and figured out who she really was because I think she could have turned out pretty cool.

Or, she would have started dressing slutty and doing E with the chicks in the dorm next to her so...we'll just leave her alone.

One rainy day, I was walking around campus on the way to or from a class and while descending down a large set of outside stairs, I ate complete and total shit in front of a giant group of people. I fell and I fell hard, right on my ass. Looking back, I'm surprised that my first instinct wasn't to just run off and die of embarrassment. I was already so self conscious and so not able to connect with the other students around me, that you'd assume falling dramatically in front of them would just send me into catatonic embarrassment.

Instead, I started laughing.

I sat there on the ground where I'd landed on my ass and just guffawed at myself and what I'd just done. I looked up after about 30 seconds of laughing to the people standing around me who had just witnessed my tumble, expecting them to be laughing too. Because really, this chick just ate it on some stairs, it's funny. I was obviously not hurt, as I was sitting there laughing at myself and not crying. But those witnesses to my spill were not sitting around looking at me and laughing with me, they were standing there staring at me like I was completely insane.

And maybe I was/am.

But I think that story sums me up pretty damn well.

If you can't laugh at yourself, what can you do, really.

2014

I posted the year in review I gave out with our Christmas cards here, but let's look back at 2014, shall we? Because, hello, free blog post idea.

I wore leggings as pants a lot. Including these subtle beauties.

I did a ton of styling for Keaton Row

I did a 30 Day Closet Remix and started wearing sweaters over dresses which for some reason I never thought of before and it kind of blew up my wardrobe in a good way.

I turned 31!

It snowed A LOT.

Mike upped his cocktail making skills even more.

Some bad things happened (bad job/getting laid off/tax issues) and we celebrated by making a sad cake. It was delicious and depressing.

I was unemployed again. It was not great.

We went to New Orleans! It was great. And smelly.

We went wine tasting at Slack a lot and I really miss that damn place.

We finally got to see the cherry blossoms in full bloom.

We celebrated our third anniversary. Oh this guy, he really is the best.

I did this. A lot. Hashtag unemployment.

We took some hikes and saw some snakes.

Mike played a ton of soccer.

We had a failed, but fun camping trip for 4th of July.

Mike got a new job and then I got a job, both in DC. Woohoo!

We started commuting from SOMD to DC. Ugh.

We said goodbye to Southern Maryland. Crab cake sandwiches, I will miss you most of all.

We moved to Northern Virginia and the move was A MESS.

The dogs loved their new home.


We found places to hike here.


Our commute got easier. Train > Bus

Mikey turned 33!


We celebrated Christmas in Disneyworld!


The End.

So long 2014, you were alright.

Whatever Else It Is

"That life - whatever else it is - is short. That fate is cruel but maybe not random. That Nature (meaning Death) always wins but that doesn't mean we have to bow and grovel to it. That maybe even if we're not always so glad to be here, it's our task to immerse ourselves anyway:  wade straight through it, right through the cesspool, while keeping eyes and hearts open. And in the midst of our dying, as we rise from the organic and sink back ignominiously into the organic, it is a glory and a privilege to love what Death doesn't touch."

I read the final couple of pages of The Goldfinch on the train today and was struck reading the passage above. Because I guess I needed to read it today. That's all.

2014 Goals

Oh hey, it's not 2014 any more. How weird is that?

I looked back at my first post of 2014 aptly titled "2014" where I talked about what I wanted for that year.

I hinted at a couple of things I wanted that I couldn't talk about then. I got one (a new job) and not the other (a baby).

Among other things, I said I hoped I would drink less and run more. I drink just as much, but I do run more so that's something...right?

I said I should own more pants and I do! What a lofty goal Val, well done.

I wanted us to know where we were going to be living by 2015, we are even more confused than ever on that front.

I wanted to be thankful for where we live and the turns our lives have taken. I needed a reminder of that lately, so reading my old post really helped. I've been really down since the holidays and it would serve me well to be thankful for the good things in my life.

I hoped to make some friends (the most pathetic of new year goals) and we did not so...yeah we're losers.

I wanted to read more and watch less tv and guess what? I do! Although, I get to take no credit as my commute is so long, it affords me to read a ton and they don't have cable at my dad's house so I have no choice on the tv, but still. Go me!

I also listed some things I hoped NOT to do in 2014. And guess what? I did them all. Got down on myself, got frustrated at work (new work, new frustrations), stressed about the future, thought negative thoughts, got demotivated at the gym and at work. Well shit. Sometimes we fail. New year new start new hopes maybe maybe?

For 2015, all I really hope for is to just do better. To get at least one solid answer on something in our future. And to just be a little happier. Just a smidge.

Let's go!

Christmas in Disneyworld

We did Christmas in Disneyworld with a bunch of the family this year. Currently, as I type this, I feel mentally and emotionally exhausted from craziness at work and the holidays so I won't really talk about how Christmas went, but here are some pretty pictures!

Most of these are of pretty sights rather than the awesome people that were here because, well, not everyone wants photos of them standing in a windy line after a long day walking around posted on a dumb blog. But people were there and they were awesome, but here is some people-less pretty shit.

And go!

Mike and I drove to Florida so we stopped for the night on the way there in Savannah, GA. It was so gorgeous, I can't wait to go back.

The chip shop in British Epcot is DELICIOUS, but these birds will steal the food out of your effin' hands.

And this shows you how many effing people were there, oh man.

The rest of the photos are stolen from Gail, thanks Gail!