my life in [somewhat recent] photos

[top left] making two ginormous, delicious batches of red velvet cupcakes; [top right] basking in the beauty of spring/summer in d.c.; [middle left] playing in two softball leagues; [middle middle] adventuring to our first brightest young things event with cindy; [middle right] listening to a cute Brit [james morrison] perform at the 930 club; [bottom left] hanging out with these fine folks over memorial day weekend; [bottom right] listening to some fine d.c. DJs at the Howard Theatre last night [with great company].

life’s good.

i love fridays. the office was quiet and the majority of my team was working from home. my supervisor (in baltimore) told me to leave early and wrap up my day from home as well.  i much prefer my windows-open, sunshine streaming in view and the background noise coming from the vinyl on my record player to the office i sat in all day. cheers to the weekend.

i love fridays. the office was quiet and the majority of my team was working from home. my supervisor (in baltimore) told me to leave early and wrap up my day from home as well. 

i much prefer my windows-open, sunshine streaming in view and the background noise coming from the vinyl on my record player to the office i sat in all day.

cheers to the weekend.

some days you just gotta turn off your phone, unplug your computer, erase all distractions and just be.

sometimes you spend too much time about worrying about everyone and everything else instead of just focusing on you. and it’s not til things start to feel as though they’re crumbling around you that you realize, ‘hey, i’m important too.’

so, it may be a little selfish, but i’m going to concentrate on making me better. on doing things and being with people that lift me up instead of drag me down. and hopefully, at the end of it all, i’ll be better. more fulfilled. and feeling more like me. 

is it weird to feel more unsettled at 28 than i did at 23? or is this just a continual part of growing up?

i keep thinking today is wednesday, but it’s really thursday! hooray! 1) this shirt is the old navy one steph thought had turkey legs on it instead of birds. i grabbed it for $11 this past weekend (bargain shopper for life).  2) i attempted to curl my hair today. that obviously worked SO well.  3) coral lipstick! my new jam. 4) can this day be over yet? i need happy hour to be here right now.

i keep thinking today is wednesday, but it’s really thursday! hooray!

1) this shirt is the old navy one steph thought had turkey legs on it instead of birds. i grabbed it for $11 this past weekend (bargain shopper for life). 

2) i attempted to curl my hair today. that obviously worked SO well. 

3) coral lipstick! my new jam.

4) can this day be over yet? i need happy hour to be here right now.

you guys? can this week just be over? gah.  the only thing getting me through this is the fact that there’s a giant panda bear sitting behind me.

you guys? can this week just be over? gah. 

the only thing getting me through this is the fact that there’s a giant panda bear sitting behind me.

someone said i needed to post more outfits, so here’s today’s. whenever i read the daily weather report and the temperature says it’s going to get above 60, i automatically pull out springy things. i got this dress at jc penney last year after someone on here posted about (i’m sorry, i can’t remember who!). jean jacket is from old navy, scarf from eastern market, boots are nine west and the tights are from target. hope that you have as much sunshine wherever you are as we do in d.c. right now. it’s going to be a gorgeous day! (and pardon my very messy room)

someone said i needed to post more outfits, so here’s today’s. whenever i read the daily weather report and the temperature says it’s going to get above 60, i automatically pull out springy things. i got this dress at jc penney last year after someone on here posted about (i’m sorry, i can’t remember who!). jean jacket is from old navy, scarf from eastern market, boots are nine west and the tights are from target.

hope that you have as much sunshine wherever you are as we do in d.c. right now. it’s going to be a gorgeous day!

(and pardon my very messy room)

it’s been a while since i littered your dashes with my mug and since i’ve also been on a big lipstick kick lately, i thought i’d share my latest find (since i got a couple compliments on it yesterday and today). meet maybelline’s super stay 14 hour lipstick. i don’t think my lips ever get as shiny as the model’s, but this stuff does have staying power. i bought mine in eternal rose and love the bright pink.  anywho, happy friday all! hope you’ve got some fun planned!

it’s been a while since i littered your dashes with my mug and since i’ve also been on a big lipstick kick lately, i thought i’d share my latest find (since i got a couple compliments on it yesterday and today). meet maybelline’s super stay 14 hour lipstick. i don’t think my lips ever get as shiny as the model’s, but this stuff does have staying power. i bought mine in eternal rose and love the bright pink. 

anywho, happy friday all! hope you’ve got some fun planned!

i woke up this morning with a chip on my shoulder. and admittedly, I’ve been waking up a lot of mornings with this feeling. and it stinks. it stinks having negative feelings about things out of your control or to feel anxious about things you don’t really even need to be anxious about. and, as i was explaining to someone last week, it’s not that i’m unhappy. i’m just not at the level of happy i’m usually at. the level where things don’t fluster me. or the level where i’m not a nervous nelly about how things could potentially turn out or constantly pondering the actions of others.  so, i decided, the only person who can really change how i feel and get me back to my happy-go-lucky self is me. and it starts simply by letting go of those worries. of those things that are making me anxious. and saying there’s so much more to me than these negative things i’m letting float through my head. and to really remind myself that there is absolutely no reason to not be happy right now. because, the fact of the matter is, i’ve rekindled friendships, i’ve pursued more hobbies, i’ve met people who have made me feel beautiful again - in 2.5 months, i’ve changed and grown and haven’t gotten stuck in old habits. and that’s something to be overjoyed about. so, as january comes to an end (thank goodness!), i’m choosing to be happy. to let go of the things that i truly don’t have control over and to just live. happily.

i woke up this morning with a chip on my shoulder. and admittedly, I’ve been waking up a lot of mornings with this feeling.

and it stinks. it stinks having negative feelings about things out of your control or to feel anxious about things you don’t really even need to be anxious about. and, as i was explaining to someone last week, it’s not that i’m unhappy. i’m just not at the level of happy i’m usually at. the level where things don’t fluster me. or the level where i’m not a nervous nelly about how things could potentially turn out or constantly pondering the actions of others. 

so, i decided, the only person who can really change how i feel and get me back to my happy-go-lucky self is me. and it starts simply by letting go of those worries. of those things that are making me anxious. and saying there’s so much more to me than these negative things i’m letting float through my head. and to really remind myself that there is absolutely no reason to not be happy right now. because, the fact of the matter is, i’ve rekindled friendships, i’ve pursued more hobbies, i’ve met people who have made me feel beautiful again - in 2.5 months, i’ve changed and grown and haven’t gotten stuck in old habits. and that’s something to be overjoyed about.

so, as january comes to an end (thank goodness!), i’m choosing to be happy. to let go of the things that i truly don’t have control over and to just live. happily.

this is how i feel about this day. i’m in a funk today. the kind where you can’t get outta your own head and somehow you end up driving yourself nuts.  at least it’s friday, right?

this is how i feel about this day.

i’m in a funk today. the kind where you can’t get outta your own head and somehow you end up driving yourself nuts. 

at least it’s friday, right?

this past saturday, i was up at 6:30 and out the door by 7, and on the bus by 7:10. the goal of the day? grab some sunrise snapshots on the mall (sans a million tourists), clear my brain, walk off these fun recipes, and just have some me time. oh, and hang out with my man Abe. there’s something about the Lincoln Memorial that gives me peace of mind. i’ve been thinking a lot. and saying “i don’t know” a lot. and wondering where pieces of my old life can fit into my new life, and whether or not i can let those pieces back in. the truth is, i’m impatient. i’m used to having an idea of what’s next. and knowing who and what i am. and for the first time in a long time, i’m coming to terms with the fact that i don’t know these things and that this time is meant for me to grow and change and love. and just let things happen as they happen (sometimes easier said than done for planners like me). and, in a way, it’s refreshing.  so, with that, i thank you. for being awesome, tumblr. and for good thoughts and more. so, until next time (or the next post, whatever), treat yourselves well. you deserve it.

this past saturday, i was up at 6:30 and out the door by 7, and on the bus by 7:10. the goal of the day? grab some sunrise snapshots on the mall (sans a million tourists), clear my brain, walk off these fun recipes, and just have some me time. oh, and hang out with my man Abe. there’s something about the Lincoln Memorial that gives me peace of mind.

i’ve been thinking a lot. and saying “i don’t know” a lot. and wondering where pieces of my old life can fit into my new life, and whether or not i can let those pieces back in.

the truth is, i’m impatient. i’m used to having an idea of what’s next. and knowing who and what i am. and for the first time in a long time, i’m coming to terms with the fact that i don’t know these things and that this time is meant for me to grow and change and love. and just let things happen as they happen (sometimes easier said than done for planners like me). and, in a way, it’s refreshing. 

so, with that, i thank you. for being awesome, tumblr. and for good thoughts and more. so, until next time (or the next post, whatever), treat yourselves well. you deserve it.

Smile brought to you by: good friends, yummy food and lots of wine.

Smile brought to you by: good friends, yummy food and lots of wine.

Not wearing mascara, Tumblr, a fabulous new coworker (who didn’t flinch when she came into my cube after I had just read a super nice email from a friend and was starting to cry) and taking the rest of today as a mental health day are what’s saving me right now.

From the bottom of my (broken little) heart, thank you. Really. You all are amazing.

Today, before 10 a.m., I:

  • Got a flu shot
  • Updated my tetanus shot
  • Found out I might have problems with my thyroid
  • Got more bloodwork done
  • Took care of my lady parts

After all the shots and needles, I treated myself to a Cherry Coke Zero. But probably only half. 

Just a friendly little reminder to take care of yourself!

life improvements

For some reason, starting a new job has made me feel more like an adult. Therefore, I’ve been really good about a lot of things for the last few weeks. Does feeling like an adult make me an adult, even though I still eat ice cream from the container and not from a bowl? I’m gonna go with “yes” because not everyone’s perfect, amiright? Here’s what I’ve been doing:

  • No pop during the week and only a little on the weekends. Someday I hope I can cut it out completely. I’m not a huge coffee person and pop was my go-to whenever I needed caffeine. I’m allowing myself the weekends for now because those rum and diets aren’t gonna drink themselves!
  • Going out for lunch only one day a week. This means I’m cooking more and being more responsible with my grocery-buying. Which is a double win. Making good food, saving money - hooray!
  • Going out to dinner only one day a week. Same as above. I haven’t quite figured out weekends yet.
  • Keeping my room clean! I am bad about taking out clothes and never hanging them up again. I finally got tired of all the clutter and having to do “big cleans” once a week and figured if I was smart and just hung crap back up again, BOOM, less of a headache. (and, damn, mom was right!)
  • Painting! And getting back into other hobbies in general. It’s nice to be creative and work on other projects - and to finally realize that work is not your life. You can love your job, but you really should be pursuing other things that fulfill you as well. 

There’s still a lot I have to figure out. Like not spending a bajillion dollars online shopping, or getting to bed at a decent hour, or going to church regularly and not watching hours of “The Golden Girls” on Hallmark. But, hey, I’ll take what I can get for now.

Anyone else got any “hey, let’s be responsible adults!” tips?

Question: Do I look completely ridiculous in these glasses? I haven’t had a new frame since 2006 and wanted to update my old ones (which I still love. I just need to switch things up). I like these ones, but I still want to make sure people take me seriously. So, what do you think?

Question: Do I look completely ridiculous in these glasses? I haven’t had a new frame since 2006 and wanted to update my old ones (which I still love. I just need to switch things up). I like these ones, but I still want to make sure people take me seriously.

So, what do you think?

NIGHTNIGHT by DEDDY

DISCLAIMER: This blog in NO WAY reflects the opinion or standing of my employer, Discovery Communications. All random thoughts, opinions, photos, weird analysis and videos/photos of cute animals are solely a reflection of me, myself and I, and not them. The end.