It's my best friend's birthday

I was reading some of my blog posts from a couple of years back and found one from when Amber and I were on our "break".  This isn't really a time that we talk about.  Like, ever.  I don't know about for her but for me that was a really painful time and I'd just rather not re-live it.  Why bring it up if we don't need to?

Anyway.  Since we don't talk about that time, we don't have a name for that time so I'm just going to say it was during our break that I had written this post.  And in the post I'm talking about how I don't have a best friend and I remember writing it and how much it hurt to say those words.  Yeah, sometimes as I'm typing I'll say the words aloud.

Saying, "Right now I don't have a best friend" is freaking painful.

I remember the ache.  I remember the hurt.  I remember just wanting to reach out to her but not knowing how.  The longer that you let things go, the harder it is.  I wish I'd reached out to her the very next day and apologized.  Maybe it woulda helped.  Maybe it wouldn't have.  Maybe we needed that year to grow separately.

I don't know.

I just know that God has reasons for stuff, allows stuff to happen and I'm not going to regret that time or mourn that time, I just rejoice that it's over.  I'm thankful that I've had her back in my life for the last two years and I know that I never ever wanna be without her again.

"but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." Proverbs 18:24

Amber has been that for me.  She's been closer to me than family.  She's was there during the whole appendicitis/cancer surgery and morning sickness, my postpartum crazy, and my days when I wanna just up and leave the world.

She gets me and loves me.

Sometimes I wonder if she stays close to me just for my husband.  It's no secret that the day I die is the day she moves in.  It's sort of a joke.

But mostly it isn't.  I asked Josh if he was okay with Amber moving in after I kick the bucket and he says, "do I have a choice?"  He just knows.  She'll be here.

Besides Josh, Amber is probably one of the least selfish people I know.  You need something, she's there.  I'm the type of person that I want someone to tell me what they need from me so I can do it.  Amber's the girl who gets in there and just does.

She does the dishes, she loves on the kids, she brings the coffee, she sits and listens, she makes inappropriate jokes.

She makes me happy.

Our former yoga instructor told me a few weeks ago, and I kid you not, these were his exact words, "you guys would make great lesbians, you love each other so much."

I loved it.  It's true.  We do love each other so much.

I love that we can get in the car and have no destination, we just know to turn up the radio and drive.  I love that Thursdays mean yoga and Bern's.  We work our butts off for an hour and then go drink a beer and we catch up on the week and interrupt each other and laugh at each other and get pissed with each other.  I love that we joke about skipping class and going just straight for beer but we don't do it because we love yoga just as much.

I love that we go to Ross and pull every ridiculous prom dress off the hangers, try them on in the dressing room, take pictures and then post them to FB to display our ridiculousness.  I love that we bought the last ones.  I love that we've signed up for a 5K and we're going to wear them while we run.

I love that we both have issues with being on time for stuff.  And on time equals 15 minutes early.  For everything.  Always.

When someone isn't nice to me on FB I know that all I have to do is tell Amber and she'll fix it.  She always has the right comeback.  The right words.  And she's not afraid to use 'em.  Where I'm the chickenshit, she's the brave one.

She's raised two fantastic daughters.  I love how well they play with my girls.  I love that her 11 year old is sassier and smarter than us already. Though it does worry me...

I love that Amber calls Josh "our husband" because that's what he is.  He'd do anything for her.

"What did we do before Amber?"  Is a line Josh has said many times.

I don't know.  I don't ever wanna know.

you don't ever have another best friend like that first one you have when you know who you are in life.

Happy Birthday, Amber.  32 is our year, chick.  We're gonna get it together.

In our prom dresses.

I love you.

Thursday Random

i'm finally finding the decorating me.  no.  i cannot decorate.  but i'm finding, finally, what i like.  and it's a lot of color and maybe a lot of color that doesn't necessarily go together and i'm sure anyone who comes over after i've finished doing what i want to do to the place will think i've lost any marbles i may have had.

i have zero sense of style.  zero.  i don't know how to put anything together.  i'm always asking my friend Melissa if i can put such and such together.  thank God she can put stuff together.

we did not keep up with school throughout the summer the way i intended.  this doesn't bother me in the slightest.  it did.  now it does not.  i ordered books yesterday for Spice who just turned four in may.  she'll start some kindergarten work, not because i'm pushing (i learned with my first one, don't push - wait for your kid to show interest) but because the kid loves to sit and write and i think it will be fabulous for her.  we'll be starting with Get Ready for the Code, Book A.  for Sugar, we'll finish up last year's books and move on to this year's books.  i asked Josh if he was concerned that we hadn't finished last year's.  "nope."  talked with another homeschool mom friend of mine who has kids older than mine and she tells me they've never finished a book.  oh the relief to know life doesn't end if a book isn't finished.

i'm thinking school will start on Sept. 10.

i read on Pinterest the other day that putting eucalyptus oil (or Vick's) on the bottom of your feet stops coughing.  Spice came home from Mt. Rainier with a cold and i rubbed it into her feet before bed, put socks on her, and she slept through the night without a cough.  sweet deal!

i rushed my cat to the vet the other day because his cheek was swollen and his eye was watery.  my kids can be puking, fevery, rashy, and i don't take them in.  but Clifford?!  it's just nothing ever happens to Cliff.  Cliff happens to everything else.  he's fine.  they shaved part of his face, he just stood there.  they gave him a shot, he just stood there.  never has there been a more laid back cat.  i love that dude.

til 4 am when he's standing on my chest meowing in my face because he wants out.

watched where the red fern grows the other night.

the end of the movie, the mama said, "i guess God doesn't want families separated."

no.  no, He doesn't.

sometimes that's in our control.  sometimes we can choose our family to be whole and we opt not to.

and other times it is out of our control and all we can do is rest assured God's got us covered.

i've seen both lately.  both hurt my heart.

there was a hailstorm here recently, i dunno a few weeks ago or so.  just got the quote back for the damage on my van.  4 grand!  crazy, huh?  we have a $500 deductible and i don't really feel like shelling that money out to have the van fixed.  it's not a big deal to me.  i don't know why i even took it in in the first place.

speaking of my van, i took that bad girl apart the other day.  i took my seats out and you know those little runners where all the fishy crackers and McDonald's fries go to live forever?  i took those runners off and i vacuumed and i vacuumed some more.  she looks new again.  i have to mix it up with my van.  make her feel new so i don't wanna go out and buy a new rig.  it's so hard.  i love me a new car.  we have no debt.  no car payments.  no credit cards.  a ridiculously low mortgage payment.  we could afford a new car.  well, we could afford PAYMENTS on a new car.  but it's not gonna happen.  we've agreed to never put ourselves in that position again.  the next "new" car i get will be used and paid for with cash.  like 20 years from now.

today is thursday and that means yoga and Bern's.

and yoga and Bern's makes my heart happy.

oh.  and my mom is moving back from Vegas.  so there's that.

Make the Call

Today I had to do something so out of my comfort zone.

I had to make a phone call and apologize to a friend.

Texting and emailing just don't cut it when you need to say you're sorry.  Those methods are so much easier, though.  You don't have to hear the person's hurt/disappointed voice, you don't have to stumble over your words, you can backspace all you want until you get it just perfect.

But a phone call takes guts.

Guts I don't have.

Didn't have.

I called my friend and she wasn't thrilled with me.  But I apologized.  She listened.  And thanked me for calling.

It's the hardest thing I've done in awhile, but let me tell ya, it felt good to do the right thing for once.

So, this is me, encouraging you.  Maybe you have your own tough phone call to make.  Just do it.  Sitting around stewing about it doesn't get you anywhere.  You can do it.

You'll be glad you did.

A post about Kit

My friend Chelsea is one of my favorite people.  When I need someone to tell me what I need to hear in my homeschoolishness, I call her.  She's not a sugar-coater.  She's all sorts of fabulous in a lot of ways BUT this post is not about her.

It's about her husband. Who I think is pretty great too.

I'm not sure if I've ever shared how Kit and I met for the first time but it might have been that he was shirtless and wearing his wife's slippers and opening a gate for me so I could enter their driveway.

And I may have made some fun of him and his little slippers.  And then introduced myself after that.

Nice start to any friendship, I think.

One of the things I like about Kit is that he and Josh get along super.  The last time we were over there he and Josh had a coupla beers, talked cars and at one point I think I saw the two of them skipping, hand in hand to the shop to look at Kit's truck.  It was a special moment.  (hi, Kit!) (you're welcome!)

Another thing I like about Kit?  He and I can flip each other sh er, crap and it's all good.  Offense taken?  None.  Ever.  And that's why I love that after reading my post about my Mexican head vintage find I get an email from Chelsea with a quote from Kit:

"Whenever I go into second hand stores I always wonder who buys this shit...now I know."

Now I can't wait to invite them over for dinner.  And put Pedro on the table right next to Kit's spot.  They're gonna get along GREAT.

The vintage find that has changed my life

We try to make it to Portland a few times a year to watch my niece's in their sporting events and then once during the summer for our annual trip to the beach with their family.

Last weekend was the weekend for our beach trip.

We got there Friday evening and since we planned on going to the beach Sunday, we had time to hang out and do some shopping beforehand.

One of the perks of Josh's sister having kids quite a bit older than ours is that they can babysit ours now while the four of us double date!  It's a treat for us since we don't get to hang out with them very often.

I wish I knew what was making us cheese this picture so badly, but I can't remember.

So Friday night was good and fun, I can't say enough how much we wish we lived nearer to them.  I told Treena her house is the only house where I sleep just as well as I do at my own house.  I also get into the fridge as comfortably at their place as I do my own. :)

And while Friday was great, Saturday was just around the corner and oh boy.

OH BOY.

I can hardly contain my excitement.

Treena said she had a couple of places to take us that she figured we would like.

LIKE?

How about LOVE?!

We went into a rebuilding store where people can donate household items and you can get them fairly inexpensive.  I was in heaven.  There was the fabulous board, I'd guess about 18" long, inch thick, and was covered in several coats of paint.  I loved it.  I wanted it.  Just to hang in my living room.  Husband put the smack down and said no.  That we have plenty of our random pieces of board covered in several coats of paint.  But that even though we have them, I can't hang them on the wall.

Pfft.

this was just outside the rebuilding store

The next place we went to was House of Vintage.

There just aren't words.  Okay, there are several.  Just none that can do the place and my love for it justice.

Oh my.

It's full of amazingness.

I kept touching things and loving on things and telling Josh I needed things.  Sadly we didn't have our truck and flatbed or I would have gone home with new (to me) furniture.

There was one thing though that I didn't need a trailer to haul.  One thing I needed.

Yes, needed.

I saw it and knew I had to have it.  And just like that piece of wood at the rebuilding store, Josh told me no.  Like, a very adamant, you cannot have this item no.

Silly Joshy.  He shouldn't have used his No Card so early in the day.

I walked away and looked all over the store without said item in my hands but I knew I was going back for it.  There was no way I was leaving that store without him it.  Josh and I separated at some point while walking around and then he made a phone call and while he was busy doing that, I made a beeline back to my soon to be prized possession.

And once the transaction was complete, what could he do?  Why absolutely nothing.

Except take my picture with it.

Oh yes.  That's my purchase.  That's my new love.  That's what I was not leaving the store without.

I know he looks like he's worth hundreds of dollars.  But ladies and jellybeans, I got him for the steal of a mere 18 bucks.

Josh just shook his head.  "I feel like I don't even know you."  How could he not know my love for something like this??

I posted his picture to Facebook.  People think I'm crazy.  "Where are you going to put him?!"

Oh I knew as soon as I saw him where he would go.  I had the perfect spot in mind.

In my living room on my end table.  Duh.

Tell me he doesn't fit perfectly?  See.  You can't.  Because he SO does!

I feel like my life is complete now.

Smoothie Recipe

I know I need to blog.

But I'm busy.

Don't ask with what, I don't want to try and make something up.

I'm not usually one who passes on recipes here on my blog,

but I'm a huge fan of super easy breakfasts because I hate making breakfast.

(because I don't usually eat it)

This recipe is quick, easy and healthy.

I know, healthy?  Me?  I'm surprised by myself, too.

I'm really bad about sharing recipes because I don't measure anything, I just throw stuff in and call it good.

This recipe is no different.

Here are the ingredients:

Roasted flaxseed peanut butter

(you could just use regular PB and throw in some flaxseeds)

Some honey

(maybe a Tbsp or so)

1 or 2 frozen, sliced bananas

Some almond milk

Put all of this in your blender and, well...blend.  And make sure to get all the banana chunks.

*shudder*

The girls and I have had this for breakfast the last two mornings.  

Super tasty, filling, and healthy!