Couches
We sold our couch on Craigslist and I cried. Really? Get a grip, girlfran.
So then we began the great sectional search. American dream, here we come!
And now for the most boring post of all time..
After searching for two grueling days, we bought what may be my dream couch, if there is such a thing! Exciting, huh? No, so why am I documenting this? Well, I like to think that one day we will look back and smile – oh back when we were young, back before kids, back when we bought our first house, back when.. I’m a sentimental fool, what can I say.
Apparently, we are very picky when it comes to where we park our behinds. 2 days, 9 stores, 3 Chuys shakers, a 2 hour game time decision, and 1 custom order later, the dust settled and we come out with a receipt for this beaut. And we only have to wait THREE months to get her! Until then, you can find us on our guest bed which is now residing in the living room. 
Come on over and lounge with us, won’t ya?
Structured vs. Unstructured
Lately I’ve been feeling conflicted about our lifestyle. Nothing serious, just the amount of structure there is. Now that Ryan and I both office out of our home, I feel a need to organize all the parts of our life to keep us (mainly, me) productive.
At first I thought this ‘structure’ would be a turn-off to Ryan. He is very naturally a free spirit who seems to thrive off of spontaneity and loose schedules. I thought my turning into a more domestic wife would take away from our best-friend-type-marriage-thing that we’ve got going on. Like if I started running the home, he wouldn’t see me as a surfing/skateboarding/darts playing companion anymore, I would just be wife.I had it had it in my head that I wasn’t stocking up the pantry on weekly grocery store trips, cooking meals very often, or having any kind of house cleaning schedule implemented because it would bother him, not me.
Long story short, turns out the idea of the apron wearing, meal planning, doting wife ideal just totally freaks ME out. He is all for it and promises it won’t take away from what we’ve got going on. So, this morning I got on Pinterest and (GASP!) searched meal planning, crock pot ideas, and shopping list templates. Oh my gosh it gives me sour face just typing it but, dammit, I’m committed to the idea of leading a more structured life.
We now have a meal planning/recipe binder (shudder)
I’ve got the rest of the month planned out meal wise (and workout too – hey, if we’re doing this, let’s go big)
The weeks shopping done (off of a list!)
Dinner prepped – if you’re curious it’s Lemony Goat Cheese Chicken and Brussel spouts.
A bill payment binder with all account information, too
Tuesday: quinoa with balsamic roasted mushrooms
Wednesday: Pan Roasted Salmon with Lemon Garlic Green Beans
Thursday: Tempeh Curry with Sweet Potatoes and Green Beans
Friday: Pineapple-Ginger Rice with Edamame
So, that’s that. Let’s see where it leads. Maybe, soon, I’ll me all smiles and chevron aprons.
Restart
For a year or so, I’ve been thinking about restarting this blog. And for a year I’ve been like eh… but… meh. But, here I am, starting it up again because I love the idea of keeping a record of our life together. I love thinking about reading through it years from now and remembering the times when we were young. So, the story picks up again. Now were homeowners, anchored down in Houston, Texas and loving every minute of it. Ryan is working in the tooling industry and I’m about a year into being a wedding and portrait photographer. We still travel often – this year we’ve been to Costa Rica (P), San Diego (R), Napa Valley, San Francisco, Paris (P), Amsterdam (P), Wisconsin, Chicago (P), Columbus (P), and we’re about to head up to Colorado to celebrate Ryan’s 31st birthday. I hope we will always make traveling a priority, I just love experiencing new places. We’re on the cusp of wanting to start a family. We constantly flip-flop on the topic. Will we miss just being the two of us, are we old enough, are we stable enough, do we have time, will life just zoom by? I dunno. I guess it will happen when it happens and of course, it will be a wonderful life change.
Happy 30th birthday to muh main squeeze!
Ryan’s turns the big 3-0 today and I posted a lil’ tribute to him over on my photo blog. Ch ch check it!
oh HI oh
Ello internetz! Long time no blog, and I haven’t even finished updating our travels. The best of the best is to come – Oktoberfest! But until then, a quick update on our lives. Ryan got a new job that has relocated us to the great state of Ohio for a few months. Life is slower, the air is colder, and our friends are more Hispanic than ever. Weird huh? The Midwest… oh it’s also in the heart of Amish country. I can’t get enough of those beards! 
I started a photography business a couple months ago and it has been a blast! I am itching to get settled in Houston and really dig in. We bought a house in Houston, a cute little fixer upper covered in Oak Trees. We close next month and I can’t wait to get my hands on it! Lots of demo and lots of rebuilding, as DIY as possible. I’ve been ‘pinning’ like crazy. This is pretty much another life dream of mine. The trees are a life dream for Ryan. We joined the YMCA and it’s beyond awesome! We play basketball everyday, continually get killed in a class called Shred, and lifts some weights. I continue to hate the elliptical – the motion just isn’t natural to me. I gained an embarrassing amount of puffy weight on our travels and burning it off feels great! Why am I talking about this on the interwebz? Probably because I’m bored and Ryan is watching a show about cars. We are so American now!! Cable! Rent! Gym! Jobs!
I have to say, things are pretty damn great! Although I just leaned over to give Ryan a kiss and realized THAT FOOL IS TRYING to GROW ANOTHER MUSTACHE! hahahahaha ouch. prickle prickle.
What else, what else? Oh, we are vacationing separate this year. Is that weird? I guess it’s a good sign that we still have friends after ditching the USA for half a year. I’m heading to surf in Costa Rica with a couple girlfriends in March and Ryan is headed to surf at our favorite spot in Mexico. I’m jealous/he’s jealous. Gotta keep things spicy, ya heard?
Alright, I’m out. I just schooled some boys at poker. Sometimes the best poker face is spilling drinks and dropping whole desks of cards. They never see you coming!
Surfside
Well hello. I’ve neglected our lil travel blog recently, and am feel pretty lame for having pretty much all of France and Italy to post, along with some USA travel. The reason for my absence is because I’ve been busy starting a photography business, building a website, and having lots of photo shoots. I would love if you would continue to follow along on my new journey.
I’ve also been busy getting in as much surf as possible before the ol ball-n-chain and I move to Ohio to train for his new job. Nothin’ like Ohio in the Winter, huh? We’re actually pretty excited, just a little apprehensive about the cold weather. Flip flops won’t cut it, you say? Maybe if I add socks? Darn, does this mean I have to get Uggs? I really hope there is an alternative out there (read: I’ve never been in snow).
So… surfing. Surfside. It’s one of my favorite places in the world and the surfing has been pretty darn good lately.
And in other news, I ordered a custom longboard from BJ. I think I’m choosing rainbow glitter as a design. I know.. awesome, right!? Yeah.
Crunchy Betty
I’ve got to spread some more Crunchy Betty goodness – this girl has blown me away with her natural remedies and recipes, and she is changing the world one post at a time! If you haven’t checked out her blog, you should. Right now.
First, she talked me into ditching my deodorant and whipping up a batch of my own with only three kitchen ingredients. I was amazed at the results and was so stoked that I made samples for everyone I knew. Now my mom, aunt, husband, neighbors, and mother-in-law have converted to the crunchy-goodness (and smell great!).
Then Crunchy Betty had me washing my face with OIL. Oil of all things! I was nervous at first but the results were amazing. Now I’ve got my mother hooked and she’s never looked so radiant! Skin that is clear, glowing, soft, amazing!
am I right or am I right?
Next it was HONEY. Honey?! I’ve been washing my face with honey and baking soda for three weeks and it’s blowing me away! My face has never been so clear and smooth. I swear that little dark marks are fading as well.
Now I’m like a mad scientist in the kitchen whipping up lotions with coconut oil, mixing up face masks with clay, melting beeswax for lip balm, trying to make perfume (fail) out of essential oils and a variety of other concoctions. It’s awesome.
So, go check out Crunchy Betty and jump on this chemical free bandwagon!
