Yes, Brandon and I are very excited to announce that we are expecting!  I hope in light of this news that my posts here will be more frequent…I’ve missed blogging here!

Okay, this is a little belated, early in the year Edyta asked if she could use my apartment as well as my face for an bridal shower inspiration shoot. I was thrilled with the request and agreed immediately (well, after it was cleared with the husband).

I have to admit I was a little nervous about the” modeling” aspect, but I was ridiculously excited about the whole event and to see how it would come together.  I really didn’t know exactly what would be happening, other than it would be taking place in my dining room.

There were a whole slew of extremely talented people who brought this together and made this gorgeous shoot happen so pop on over to Ruffled, where this was featured, to get all the details.  There’s a link to a gallery at the bottom of the post to see all sorts of photos!

I absolutely love this print by Austin Kleon, titled “Overheard on the Titanic,” and I love 20×200.  It’s an awesome place to get affordable art.  Go ahead–check them out!

On Friday as I was waiting for Brandon to get home (from Dallas…he just got home and now he’s going back), however, I got an itch to do a little something special this year to make the apartment feel festive.  I decided to scrounge through old photos, get out some red yarn and do a little “Valentine’s Installation.”  Top it off with a vase full of fresh flowers, and instantly the top of our bookcase turned into a very happy place.

I am more a fan of thinking of Valentine’s Day as a day to celebrate everyone you love, not just in a romantic way.  Don’t you think that’s more exciting?  What did you do to in honor of this day, whether you love it or hate it?

Another thing that has been a little pre-occupying is a little thing I like to call BASEBALL DOMINATION by a team known as the San Francisco Giants.  I was quiet on the blog during the season because, like most baseball fans, I get pretty superstitious.  They were winning and I wasn’t trash-talking or posting on Facebook (in fact, I wouldn’t even go on Facebook during a game) but now that they’ve won, GO GIANTS!  Being in San Francisco for the whole thing was pretty amazing.  I watched game 5 by the ballpark, and then went to the ballpark and Civic Center after to see the festivities.  I also attended the Giants parade, which was SO much fun to see.  I do have pictures from that, I’ll have to post later.  I have a backlog of photos.

Finally, the other thing besides work and sports and life that has been consuming is a very excited little something I’ve been working on, but you’ll have to wait to find out what it is!  It’s been very fun but I’ve had to pack it into my “spare” time which means the blog has fallen by the wayside temporarily.  It happens, and I’m okay with that.

Here’s to a Giants win, being employed (this is what I remind myself of when work gets tough), family, friends, and an exciting new little project.

On a more serious note, this has been one of those years where I have gone “man, we are really adults now, aren’t we?” People are having babies, getting laid off, having money troubles, health troubles…all in all, just having “adult” problems. This past month has especially broken my heart. Two friends have recently come to me and confided in me regarding some past and present personal struggles. Their difficulties are different but equally as serious, and I am just left completely heartbroken.

First off, I was thrown off…when did we enter the phase of having these issues? I mean, I know that people battle with these things from a very early age so I don’t want to sound naive…it’s more like, how did we get to this point? Secondly, and most importantly, I feel a sense of neglect–I know I probably couldn’t have changed it, but perhaps I could have been a little more supportive. These are both people I’ve practically known all my life, but sort of had a period where I lost contact with them.

I don’t really know where I’m going with this…I just have a very heavy heart. Thankfully both have gotten/are getting help and I can’t be more thrilled for them. I’m also flattered that they have confided in me and let me know what’s going on. I love both of these ladies to pieces and if I could do anything to take away their pain, I would. At this point, however, the best I can do is support them and stand up for them and let them know they are loved unconditionally.

Alright, I’ll end it there. I just had to say something…these issues are waving heavily in my heart, but not in an “I feel burdened” sort of way, more of a “I hope there’s a way I can be helpful and supportive” way. To all my friends out there, I love you to pieces and please know you can always confide in me.

Head over to dofunstuff.net to take a listen to this album.  From there you can link directly to iTunes if you are interested in purchasing, or if you just feel like donating, there is a link to do that as well on the bottom right.  Also, if you feel inclined, you can grab the widget from there for your own blog.  You can also help out by promoting through Twitter, Facebook, or whatever media you like!

Stop by PRISMS to learn more about the genetic disorder, or better yet stop by Pacing the Panic room to see more about how this affects real people, namely “LB.” You will fall in love with the kids (LB and his sister Tessa) and the beautiful photography of Ryan Marshall.  I first found this blog when Ryan was photographing his wife Cole through her pregnancy with Tessa, and I’ve been reading ever since.

I don’t often do this type of promotion, but I felt this was a worthy cause AND the music is happy an enjoyable!  Who doesn’t want to help kids and listen to cheery music at the same time?

These are my first few images that I took–I have to say, I’m quite thrilled! I can see a new love affair forming here. It’s been a great learning experience, starting with reading the owner’s manual that came with the camera (it’s amazing the amount of information you can get from those). Now, I will say that many of my photos came out looking like poop, and you guys don’t get to see those, but you do get to see my favorites.

Without further ado…

The lines represent the trail of my mouse, and the dots are any place I paused. It’s pretty much covered up, but there was a HUGE dot called lunch break.

I first saw this over on Door Sixteen a few months ago. Randomly the other day I remembered it, and then went to work! I must say, this little doodad from IOGraphica is pretty sweet!

“hello?”

“hi……”

“hi…..”

“I’m moving to New York!”

Of course squeals and congratulatory remarks followed.  When I hung up the phone, however, a flood of tears came.  Brenna and I have been friends since freshman year in high school.  I couldn’t even begin to tally the number of notes we’ve written, hours we’ve spoken on the phone, number of texts/emails/chats we’ve exchanged…in high school a joke emerged (I believe our junior year math teacher started it) that we shared a brain and we still refer to that to this day. It always seems that we’re either on the same wave length, or one person completely balances the other out. While in college we didn’t talk as much, I always have viewed Brenna as a sister, and have always known she and I could rely on each other for anything.

Over the past few years, Brenna and I have begun hanging out more again, and it’s been absolutely wonderful. She stood beside me on my wedding day, and through many of life’s trials. I’m going to miss her terribly, but she *promises* that she’ll be back to the Bay Area at some point. Plus, I get an amazing place to visit–one of my favorite cities. I’m thrilled for her, completely jealous, and sad for myself. Thank goodness for gchat, Skype, email and texting!

Phew. A slightly long-winded post that all boils down to one point. Goodbye Brenna, good luck, I love you more than words can express, and I can’t wait to visit.