thankful 24/7/365

i missed my shot to write this list in the actual week of thanksgiving, but then i realized that that shouldn't matter. that one week of the year shouldn't be the only time people should be thankful for the things they have in their lives. so regardless of my terrible lack of timing, I'm thankful all the same for...

+ my health
+ my friends
+ my family
+ the ones i love who i would do anything for - flaws and all
+ the ones who love and care about me - flaws and all
+ my munchkins/chickenbutts/babycakes/dumdums/fatties - chio + basil + puppy
+ my home - where i know i'm always welcome if i need it
+ my home away from home
+ my family away from home
+ my job - no matter how frustrating it can get sometimes
+ my therapy - ultimate
+ my teammates
+ my elders - who are always there to offer help, support and guidance if i should need it
+ my curiosity
+ my desire to travel - to see and experience new things
+ my strength - when everything seems to be going south
+ my independence
+ my passion - for giving me some kind of direction when i start to feel lost
+ my crazy - without which my life would be ridiculously boring
+ my love of animals - animals that hardly ever fail to make me feel better when i need it most
+ my hobbies/interests - for when i need a break from my day-to-day life
+ my stubbornness - to have gotten me through many obstacles and picked me up when i've just hit the wall and fallen down

+ my life - shit may spontaneously decide to hit the fan all at once. i may feel like i can't handle the obstacles being hurled my way on a daily basis. it may seem utterly overwhelming for seemingly unending periods of time. but it's still my life. everything i'm thankful for has made it mine and mine alone. i'm still thankful to have had all of my experiences, good and bad, and to have had them help shape who i am today - someone i've grown to love and appreciate - flaws and all. i'm far from perfect, but at least i'm me.

thank you.

#1

i love my boys.

kitty warmth = the best kind of warmth

a little over one year ago, this little tuxedo-ed bugger spent the first few days in his new home hiding in his crate, only coming out for food and the litterbox. and only when no one was around to watch him. he ran away from everyone, even if they just looked at him. it was a big achievement just to be able to touch him once before he ran off into his crate or some corner or under the bed.

twenty minutes ago, this happened. :) i'm so proud of this little bugger.

scampering like a spidermonkey.

this past weekend was spent camping with aaron, liz and alexis out at gilson pond in jaffrey, nh by mt. monadnock.

saturday morning started with breakfast at sound bites at ball square.

mmm...coffee...

we drove up after and set up camp.

such a nice morning out!

somewhat disturbingly, we set up the tent and ended up with one odd piece that we never quite figured out where it went. womp womp.

we never figured out where this little guy went...

shortly after setting up camp, liz and alexis decided to take a walk around the pond, and aaron decided to take a nap. having recently rediscovered the joys of settling down with a good book, that's exactly what i did. i grabbed let the great world spin and sat by the awesome, warm fire and immediately plowed through a quarter of my new book. :) it was pretty much exactly what i needed after the week prior.

perfection.

i...i like fire...

liz and alexis came back. and guillotine was brought out. fun was had. :)

whiskey + apple cider + guillotine = camp fun goodness!

so pretty...

delicious dinner of hobo bundles was made. sausage, green peppers, onions, potato, salt, pepper, olive oil...so good...

delicious hobo bundles!

we topped off the night with scrumptious s'more-ness. unfortunately, it was too dark for photos. but seriously, i roast the best golden-brown marshmallows...i roast them to win.

sunday morning brought campfire coffee, pancakes and bacon!

mmm...more coffee...

campfire bacon!

post-breakfast, we drove over and hiked monadnock, or as alexis put it, scampered up it. it may have been the best hike/climb i've done to date. past the book-reading by the campfire, this was also perfect for a weekend away from the ridiculousness of real life.

scampering ahead!

more scampering!

i love scampering!

lunch break from scampering. 

hey, look! a traverse!

just like girl guides taught me. :)

at the summit - best. hike. ever.

bonus perk to the hike: seeing two deer off the side of the trail on the way down, towards the end. so. adorable. so glad i ran ahead for that. :)

i may not go camping or hiking much, but this was a great end to the season. :) 

i love fall. :)

i may or may not still smell like woodsmoke... :)

www wednesday #4: goodreads

hey look! my goodreads to-read list! time to pick that back up again. also, the kwan sisters book swap. if anyone else is interested in book-swapping (i'm looking at you, anna), let me know. :)

+ what are you currently reading?
let the great world spin / colum mccann
honestly just picked this one up out of my goodreads list. i'm super excited and happy to be reading for leisure again. :) i've heard good things about let the great world spin and figured it sounded like a good transition from the night circus into something a little more solid. looking forward to it.







+ what did you recently finish reading?
the night circus / erin morgenstern
definitely a fun, easy read for anyone looking for their imagination to just run wild and go crazy. loved it. read as part of the kwan sisters' book swap! :) thanks, twin.








+ what do you think you'll read next?
i love yous are for white people / lac su
i've always been big on these kinds of memoirs. i like history. memoirs combine being able to read about all of that history with the opportunity to still let my imagination do it's thing and picture the scenarios and events being described. now, if only i could actually find a copy of this book in a bookstore anywhere...






"the more that you read, the more things you will know. the more that you learn, the more places you'll go." - dr. seuss, i can read with my eyes shut!

the flynnoreks.

considering i've been away from the blogging world for almost a year now, i figured the first post upon return should be something special. something epic. something awesome. so here goes...

congratulations to the new flynnoreks*!!!

the bouquets at the head table

the place cards

the centerpieces

table #1

i was honored to be a part of the celebration of their nuptials this past weekend back in pittsburgh and i could not be any happier for the both of them. :)

 

i'm also so thankful to them for giving me the opportunity to produce all of the graphic work for their wedding, from the save the dates all the way through to the programs and centerpieces. it was a ton of fun and i loved doing it all for such a special occasion.

 

congratulations, again. wishing you many years of love and happiness to come. :)

*corey and gail have not actually adopted the name, flynnorek. this was purely a celebrity-esque couple name/time-saver.