New hair cut

As you can probably tell, I'm craving change. A change in glasses. A change in thinking. A change in hair!

The salon I had been going to for the last ~2 years for some reason is closed. So by the suggestion of my BFF, MK, I went to Allure. Knowing the trials and tribulations I've had with my hair, I asked for a curly hair specialist off the bat.

Friday after work I went to this new salon a little apprehensive. Going to a brand new stylist is kind of a big deal for me. I tend to stick with the people who know how to cut curly hair, my hair in particular. But I was in need of a change, so I went in with positive thoughts.

I explained my hair to my new stylist. I learned that she had been cutting hair for over 25 yrs (big plus) and she her self has a head of curls.

So I sat and held my breath and she cut away. Snip snip snip. She fixed me right up. By the end I was a happy girl. I guess I ended up with a bob-sort of hair cut...a style I hadn't really tried before. I like it!

The real test comes when I wash my hair and wear it curly...

Happy Tuesday!

Love & Hugs!!

Life update

I think it's time for a little life update...

Professional life: (I need just a moment to vent.) Last week I was handed an additional task on top of my 8 hour work load. This new task is an full job in itself...yet somehow my boss wants me to cram it all into an 8 now 9 hour period. No I am not getting any sort of compensation...

I went in to talk with him this afternoon because I'm feeling overwhelmed and I'm seriously concerned that I am triple-booked. And he basically said, "you'll figure out a way to handle it once you get used to the ebb & flow of your new work load. And you can always give some of the work to your co-workers." Okay fine, but as far as I know, they are already full up with things to do. I feel like his response just shows how out of touch he is with us minions.

So I'm frustrated. I'm angry. I'm annoyed. But mostly, I feel taken advantage of. I know it will all work out and I'm probably being a big baby. But right now I just want to be mad.

Personal life: My dad's cousin died last week, so I'll be attending a funeral this week. It's pretty sad because cousin Bill was still young (in my eyes) and so full of life. It's hard to imagine his family without him. So if you remember, please send some prayers to my cousins in MD.

As I mentioned, this past weekend I was dog sitting and it went really well. I've been hesitant about getting a dog because I didn't want the additional responsibility. But after hanging out with Jax for a weekend, I realized that it isn't so bad...and it was actually quite enjoyable. And Jax-sitting gave me more faith and confidence in myself as a dog owner. Hooray for that!

This weekend I also got together with my college roommate, KDog. I heart her. I love getting together with her because we get along really well. She's one of those friends where conversation flows easily, we laugh and it's nourishing for the soul. She took me into Georgetown to walk around. I visited Zara for the first time and I like it! The quality of some of the clothes isn't the greatest, but there are so many cute things. And their sale section was pretty good.

After Zara, we walked down to Anthropologie and Kdog said, "It's like being in someone's really cool house; it's huge!" She was right on the money. Anthro in G-town is BIG. We headed downstairs and I almost bit the dust and tumbled down the stairs. Luckily I grabbed the hand rail and Kdog grabbed me and together, we stopped gravity from taking me down. Even though I was embarrassed, I was pleased when I looked up and realized no one really noticed.

So that's the latest with me. I'm sorry I haven't been posting and haven't been commenting the lately...the hours in the day seem to be filling up faster than I can count. I hope everyone is doing well and I miss you.

A weekend away

It had been too long. A year and three months, to be exact. I was North Carolina bound to see two of my high school friends, MK and MC. The drive was a little eventful with an accident on 95 halting my drive for a good 45 minutes. And then a few hours later when I stopped for gas, I couldn't find my debit card! EEEK!!! I called MK slightly hysterical and realized that the only place I could have lost it was when I went to ATM the night before. Husband was the next call, "honey could you search my coat and pant pockets for my card, please and thank you." When he couldn't find it I called the bank and reported it lost, so a new one is on the way, thank goodness!

When I finally got to NC, I met the girls at McD's so we could drive to dinner together. We went to Sweet & Savory a cute but packed little restaurant/bakery. At dinner I met MK's significant other, Frank and their friends Chris and Teresa. Such sweet people. We sat around a long table and chatted and got to know each other. Teresa is a sweetheart and I can understand why MK and MC have her as a friend. She's smart and sweet and funny too! And while I was sitting next to her I tried my hardest not to stare at her sparkler...omg from what I could tell it was a 3 diamond ring with diamonds in the band. It almost blinded me a couple times. Seriously. We stuffed our faces with chicken sandwiches and home made chips. YUM.

After dinner, Chris and MK started smack talking about their 50 chicken nugget challenge. They will go head to head and eat 50 chicken nuggets AND large fries in 60 min or less. The loser has to jump in the pool...in January. I have no doubt MK will kick butt. Good luck Chris, she's a determined chick.

Pic Credit

We picked up some wine and headed home to for a low key evening catching up on Glee and Oprah's favorite things. We woke up early the next morning so we could meet Mr. K and Mrs. K at the bagel bakery about 20 min away. In high school, I was at their house often so it was really good to catch up with these folks. Mr. K has cancer but from looking at him, I never would have known. He came in bursting with energy and smiles and gave me a big hug. He's a talker but I don't mind listening. Mrs. K is doing well with her job and is saving a facility that was going down the drain. Way to go Mrs. K!

The girls asked if I had a hangover from my wine the night before (I happened to pass out on the couch and then crawled into MK's bed around 5am). I had felt a little iffy during b-fast but after a warm bagel and lots of water I was good to go. After breakfast we headed to the outdoor shopping center for some good old fashioned window shopping. We were up so early most of the stores weren't open yet. It was nice to walk around and gab about the store offerings, since these days I normally do most of my shopping solo. I hit the jackpot later in the afternoon, but I will share my new items later; it deserves a post all to itself.

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Anyway...MK and I headed back home and were greeted by a sad little niece, Allie. MK being the great aunt that she is, called Gma aka Mrs. K and asked her to come cheer up our sad little girl. Little Allie perked up so fast it made my head spin. And then after MK told her Frank would be stopping by, Allie FREAKED OUT. All frowns were turned upside down, her eyes bugged out, put on the widest smile you've seen on a 4 year old and screams of "FRANK AND GMA ARE COMING!!! FRANK AND GMA ARE COMING!!!!!!" You would have thought the Queen of England was coming with the President. Holy goodness.

Dinner time was rolling around so MK, Frank and I headed to the grocery store to pick up fixings for taco salad, YES! I love me some taco salad. We got home and got everything prepared but when we sat down MK said she couldn't eat. Since about 3pm that day her throat had been slowly closing up, like an allergic reaction or something. She freaked me out when tears started falling and she said, we may have to go to the ER. We're talking about one of the strongest women I know. This girl can handle and juggle a lot, so seeing her worried was hard. MC is a nurse and she recommended taking some medicine and having Frank there definitely helped calm her down. She was fine, it ended up being a cold/flu that came on fast. So the rest of the evening was quiet as we watched movies and just enjoyed each other's company.

I helped get Allie ready for bed since Aunt MK wasn't feeling well. Brushing little teeth, changing into pjs, reading bed time stories. She was a good girl. Unfortunately I was leaving really early the next day, like 6am, so I wasn't able to say bye to little Allie. MK told me later that Allie was sad that I left and asked, "where'd the pretty girl go?" Aw! That melted my heart.

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It was a low-key weekend but exactly what I needed. I just wanted to spend some time with some of my favorite girls. I miss them bunches, but I'm really happy that they're doing well. I am not going to let a little distance get in the way of friendship that heals the soul.

(Sorry this is a massive post.)

Girl time is like therapy

Scale Image from LenovoBlogs

There's nothing like a little girl time to help me feel more balanced. I met 2 co-workers Friday afternoon to watch Eat Love Pray. The movie was great, I loved Julie Roberts and think she portrayed Liz Gilbert pretty well (at least in comparison to the character I created in my mind). I'm glad I was with girlfriends rather than Husband to see it too. There were a lot of interesting points made in the movie and I am happy I had girlfriends as discussion partners afterward.

As we sipped wine & ate appetizers, we started discussing portions of the movie. For example, since I'm the only one who has not traveled out of the country, every time I saw delicious Italian food or lovely scenery I sighed out of my desire to travel. One friend noted that instead of feeling bitter about not having traveled, she noticed my sighs were optimistic. With that we segued into a discussion about expanding and broadening our life experiences, whether it be trying new foods or traveling or opening ourselves up.

Both of these women have seen more life than I have...and their lives have been more complicated too. They've experienced crazy ex-wives, step-children, divorce, parental loss, you name it. I'm a baby in comparison so I appreciated hearing their perspectives. I tried to soak in as much guidance and wisdom as I could.

I realize this now as I look back on the evening that this was a bit of a milestone in our friendships. This was the first time we really opened up and shared ourselves with each other. This is not an easy choice to make, to open yourself up and be vulnerable. We all made the choice, although I'm sure wine lubricated the conversation and gave us some liquid courage, but we each still made that choice to open ourselves up. We know some details about each others lives like they know about my adoration of Charlottesville, I know about their latest vacations and such. But on Friday we delved deeper into the things that we struggle with.

I shared a piece of myself I reserve for only very close friends. I struggle with my relationship with my parents, just like everyone else. But I felt like I could be vulnerable and honest with them and in return I got good advice on how to work through some of my issues. I think this is the heart of friendship. Being open with each other and helping each other grow and move forward.

These ladies have crossed over from co-workers to friends. And as I headed home I noticed how rejuvenated and positive I felt. Like my girl time tank was on empty and now I was filled to the top with happy memories. Girl time is like therapy, but with more wine and laughter.