Musical Inspiration

J and I started taking guitar lessons together last week. Anticipating our next lesson on Tuesday, I have been spending some time this week (only about 15 minutes a day because my fingers aren't callused yet!) practicing what I was taught. J is a much more talented guitar player than I am, but he told our teacher we want to start from scratch, so we're learning the basics! This week is all about the 1-4-5 so my little songs are nothing special, but still so exciting for me! One thing that I love, love, love about our teacher is that he's really tuned into what we like as individuals. I told him that my passion is writing (creative writing, not music specifically), so he said that at some point in our guitar lessons, he is going to assign me some songs to write, both musically and lyrically. It's so awesome to have an instructor who-- after 30 minutes-- is already gearing these lessons towards our creative interests. I am so excited to see Jacob grow in both skills and confidence. He has written some really great bits and pieces of songs and he definitely has talent! I can't wait to see how he progresses, especially because music is such a huge passion of his!

Maybe one day you'll hear a little bit of music written by yours truly ;)

Blessed Life

I live a blessed life. So many of my days are filled with happiness. Supportive family, loving friends, motivating boss, giving boyfriend. They all impact my days and make this life so great for me. Today was one of those BAD days. For me, they're few and far between but when they hit, they hit hard. There were quite a few moments where I was lost in pain and misunderstanding today, not comprehending the cruel actions of others. As I'm getting ready for a hot shower and a good nights' sleep, I am suddenly overcome with gratefulness for the life I live. What's one bad day? What's one person wasting their time trying to break me? Compared to the blessings in my life, it's nothing.

A Thing Called Love

Jacob has been in my life for over 10 years now. We met in high school and were instantly best friends. I think I spent just about every day at his house, whether we were watching movies, sitting on the couches listening to music, or babysitting his younger siblings. I have always been attracted to his huge heart, but other than a brief weekend of being swayed by friends, I have never felt anything more than platonic feelings for him. Over the years, we have come and gone from each others lives, but J was always so great about calling to check in. Our phone conversations were never too long or too deep, but between the work, dating, and eventually married life, we stayed in touch and always made a point to remind each other that we were still #1 in each others books... "You know you're still my best friend!"

Just over a year ago, it was back to the old days. I made an appearance at his house almost every day. What I loved about his presence was that it brought me back to the person I used to love... Me! I felt myself again. Passionate again about things I once loved. I was fun and outgoing and felt alive again. Feeling those things again quickly made me realize I wanted to be with him. Despite all of the thickness going on in my life, he was really the only thing that cleared things up. He supported me and loved me through a very difficult time and honestly made all of the difficulty probably a fraction of what I might have felt.

J and I have had some AMAZING memories this past year. I saw some places and experienced some things I have always wanted to! He took me on my very first trip to San Francisco. What a memorable trip! I will never forget walking across the Golden Gate Bridge with our arms wrapped around each other and just feeling completely overwhelmed with love for him. I've loved others in the past, but never have I felt it physically, mentally, and emotionally all at the same time. That night was the first time I told him I am in love with him (and to my complete joy, he felt the same!). The next few months brought even more travels... a trip to Denver where we saw Heart and Journey play at the Red Rocks Amphitheater, another trip to San Fran for a 3-day music festival in the park, my birthday trip to Chicago where he treated me to an in-room massage when I woke up and the most extravagant dinner I've ever had! We explored Seattle and enjoyed a small break from our busy lives.

Today we are celebrating one year of our relationship and I can't even begin to express how crazy in love I am with this boy! He is more than I could have dreamed of... and can you believe he was here all along??? He has the kindest heart of anyone I know. He is passionate about things and it is inspiring! He pushes me to be my best... he knows I want to be a writer, but despite my lack of confidence, he continues to push me and motivate me towards that goal. He is a man's man, yet shows such vulnerability with me. He makes me excited about life... not only am I excited for the next big steps in our relationship, but probably even more so, I am excited for all of the little mundane days of my life that I will be able to share with him. He is so smart and is always teaching me new things. We have FUN together! We are ridiculously childish and laugh constantly. He trys. My goodness, does he try! There was a period of time where I would push every single button, pick every possible fight, and play every game in the book-- expecting him to respond the same way every other guy had ever in the past. But he never did. He always tried to better himself and do whatever he could to right whatever wrong I was feeling. Every ridiculous fight I ever picked always ended with me being surprised at how much love there is in his heart, how gentle of a person he is, and how he is someone that is going to stick around. He's not going to shut down or walk away when I push. So now I've learned to stop pushing and just relax in the idea that he's here to stay. I feel so blessed. I can't tell you how often I throw a little shout out to God for sending J to me.

Twelve months have passed and I am still just as crazy about him today as I was when we made things official! My friends and family, you have seen me go through alot of changes the past couple years, and you have heard me say I am happy... please KNOW I am happy! I can't imagine my life any better than how it is now. I am in love with my best friend and I remind myself just how lucky I am every day!

Bucket List: Cookbook Challenge

It is so important to have goals... no matter how small or trivial they may seem. My entire life revolves around goals. Lists and goals. My bucket list includes random things like creating my own pasta sauce, going horseback riding, writing a novel, holding my newborn baby, and learning to speak Italian. Adding things to the list and crossing things off the list are both equally exciting to me. I LOVE to cook, but don't have the confidence or the time to be fortunate to consider myself capable of preparing a meal for others. After watching the movie, "Julie and Julia" I have a new goal to add to my list: cook my way through an ENTIRE cookbook. I don't care if it takes me years, I want to cook every single recipe out of one single cookbook. I don't eat fish and there are alot of dishes that don't even look appetizing to me, but I want the challenge! I want to feel comfortable in the kitchen, enough to know that I am not going to cause any serious illness to the poor souls who eat my food ;) So the search is on for a cookbook that inspires me enough to keep me motivated through every last recipe. I can't wait to share my journey with you!

Change of Heart

Last week while making dinner with J, I started naming off all the ridiculous reasons why our apartment is too small (laughing about doing the first thing on the list). It is a little tiny for 2, but we've made due...mostly because J is such a sweetheart and knows how much I love it here! Well, we gave it a shot again and visited the leasing office yesterday. We've already looked at the bigger 1 bedrooms and the 1 bedroom + den, all with no luck. My teeny tiny apartment just has too much charm to give up easily. We toured the "big dogs" in the community... the 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom. We LOVED the floorplan of 2 of them but when touring the available units, we were so disappointed with the doorway and the hallways leading up to them (I guess a picky thing to dislike, but who likes walking down a long dark hallway just to end up at your front door, which is surrounded by doors to the water heaters?!?). Finally, FINALLY, we decide to look at the big, BIG dog and we fell in love. So, I'm very excited to say that J and I will be moving into our new home in less than 3 short weeks! It is bittersweet for me-- 6207 is the first place I've ever been alone. I had to grow ALOT here over the first 6 months. It was the first time I've been financially on my own, as well. But this little guy finally feels like home and I'll be so sad to leave. However, it makes it all worth it because 1308 is a place J and I chose together and feels like another step for us. Plus, it's bigger, which means more comfortable and more rooms to furnish and decorate!!

So, just for the sake of keeping 6207 in our hearts:

You know your apartment's too small when...

You have to wash the spinach in the bathroom sink

Your boyfriend is forced to watch "The Hills" because there's only room for one tv

Your boyfriend is in the bathroom, so you have to pee in the kitchen sink

Your dining room, living room, laundry room, and kitchen all share the same room

The smoke detector in your bedroom goes off because you’re cooking in the kitchen

Check it out: AN EDUCATION

An Education was one of those movies I knew I was going to love before ever watching it... which is probably why I opted to buy the Blu-Ray-- I just knew it was going to be amazing! It's one of those movies that makes me want to be cultured. I've always been drawn to the arts, but never been able to pursue a life of them. I've seen a couple Broadway plays and absolutely LOVE theater. But I've never had the chance to see an opera, ballet, or orchestra, Paris, Rome, or Vienna. I could totally relate to the main character, Jenny, as she's smart, witty, and wanting something more. When she meets an older man, she is introduced to this lifestyle and gets a taste for some of the finer things in life. Without spoiling any of the drama, it is a moving story and I definitely recommend it!