for daddy butch.

sweet summer's daddy passed away on the 24th.  please join summer's friends as we have a day of silence to honor her father.




The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,

he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.

Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.

Psalm 23:1-6 NIV

pillows of love.

i failed to mention that i made marshmallows last weekend in addition to candy corn.

homemade marshmallows are ridiculous.  ridiculously easy & ridiculously good.  you should try it.  i use alton brown's recipe.  it hasn't let me down yet...and i don't own a candy thermometer.

a friend of mine told me that {in the last picture} the marshmallows resemble an illicit substance.  if you ask me, homemade marshmallows are an illicit substance.  trust me...your sweet tooth with thank you.

feeling candy corny.

i made candy corn last weekend.

no lie!

it was a pain in the butt, but i don't think i'll ever buy commercially made candy corn again.  also, next time i'll be sure to have rubber gloves on hand for the kneading {because using a wooden spoon to mix food coloring into a sugary "dough" base was not. fun. at. all.}.

i used the recipe from nosh with me {i have a love affair with my kitchen aid mixer, too!} & you can find the recipe by clicking here. 

my candy corn did not turn out as beautiful as nosh with me's, but they were still yummy nonetheless!

vicodin with a vodka chaser.

that's what i'm going to need because, folks, i do believe that this family is climbing up that steep, rocky mountain of bullhonkery that is known as mount st. hormones.

she's only nine.

good golly, it makes me wonder if i was a spiteful, mean as hell nine year old...i probably shouldn't ask my mother that.  i'd get some smart "i told you payback was a bitch" response.

there are a few - very few - physical changes.  but, there is more neck wiggling, eye rolling & smart mouthing.

honestly, i don't know how either of us are going to survive. 

this house is not big enough for two queen bees.

{source}

ya heard, sucka?

yeah, i'm not the greatest when it comes to channeling my inner gangsta. 

anyways.

it's fall break for me.  yippee!  i am not going to even think about grad school for the next couple of days.  why?  three things.  no, wait, make that four. 

1. i have a ridiculous amount of kids clothing to list on ebay.  i kind of regret not registering to consign at a used kids clothing event this weekend, but the idea of taking on such a daunting task {washing, ironing, hanging & tagging clothes} this past week was not attractive to me at all.  so, my goal?  to get about half of three rubbermaid tubs worth of clothes listed on sunday.  somebody, just shoot me now.
2. i need to overhaul this blog.  i've been yearning for a new layout design for quite some time now, but we're so effin' broke.  therefore, i'm going to make the changes myself.  thank goodness blogger has a template designer now. 
3. i attempted to open an etsy shop.  what a bust.  but, it's whatever.  i'm thinking about resurrecting the shop.  not sure what i want to focus on.  well, i have ideas, but it's just a matter of moving forward with these ideas.  seriously, if you knew about all the crap that buzzes around inside of my head you would probably think i'm crazy -- borderline, but not certifiable.
4. i'm going to find me a job {i speak southern}.  just a simple part-time job.  ha!  is there such a thing as a simple job?!  if i land a "real" job, that would be great.  but, some stores are hiring seasonally and i'm going for it.  why not?  any extra money coming in would only enhance & benefit our already tight and oh, so strained budget. besides, some of these places i'm applying to are a whopping five minutes from the house.  whoa.  what a commute.

so, aren't you thrilled that i just told you four things that you probably don't give a hoot about?  yeah, the blogging - my blogging - is getting bad these days.  am i the only one with the blogging blues?  honestly?  i'd rather stuff my face {to prepare for a hibernation that will never happen} than type out what's happening in my head life.

as for these four things?  i bet not a single one of them happens, takes place or gets worked on this weekend.

that's {probably} fo shizzle, yo.

suck on this, friday.

do you know momma kiss?  well, you should. 

i'll admit, i'm guilty of not frequenting her blog as often as i should.  she seems like good people to me.  and, i like her style.  i also like that she says the word fuck as much as i do.  oh, and it doesn't hurt that she has some fun shenanigans with her girlfriends {just. like. me.}.




to kick off my fall break {you don't know how glad i am to have a break from grad school}, i need to get some shit off of my chest...

• to the asshole that tried to run me off the road not just once, but twice, on thursday afternoon:  i hope your tail pipe falls off.  both of them:  the one on your truck and the one between your legs.  and they say women are terrible drivers.  puh-leeze.
• star wars.  specifically, "the empire strikes back" & "return of the jedi."  i am over both of these movies.  i am over the fact that my son is obsessed with them.  i hate light sabers.  i hate jabba the hutt.  i hate that my son tries to talk to me like he's chewbacca.  we. are. not. wookiees.  the only cool thing about the star wars series is the imperial march.
  
  
  Star Wars - Imperial March download at emp3
  
  i think it should play every time i walk into a room.  but, i guess i'm just not as big of a badass as darth vader.
• i cannot stand the way coffee makes your pee smell.  but, i can't stop drinking coffee.  it is my crack.

hmm...i'm not too bitchy this week.  now there's a change for ya.  oh, no, wait.  i just remembered there's laundry to wash, fold & put away, dishes to wash, floors to clean.  son of a...

do you have things you want to flip-off on friday?  if so, be sure to link up here {and every friday, duh}.

feel your girls.

{photo credit} 

i think we all know that october is breast cancer awareness month.  but, if you ask me, every month should be breast cancer awareness month.

boobies.  ta-tas.  titties.  melons.  breasts.  knockers.  hooters.  jugs.  tits.  headlights.  bosoms.  girls.  

whatever you call them, take care of them.

feel them.  get to know them.

every month.  after your period. 

in the shower.  on your bed.  in the mirror.

just touch them.

{photo credit}

early detection is key.  it's a curable cancer if found soon enough.

unfortunately, it's still very much a killer.

and, it's not just a girl thing.  although it's rare, men can develop breast cancer, too.

{photo credit}

this month, think pink. 

i know i will.

breast cancer is near & dear to me. 

although i have not had any genetic testing done, i have gone to a genetic counseling session.  numerous cancers run in my family, but breast cancer hits closest to home. 

my mother battled breast cancer and won.  she hasn't hit the five year mark yet, but the anniversary is close.  her sister was not as fortunate.

{photo credit}

my mother's battle with breast cancer taught me that we are all vulnerable.

it also taught me that losing a breast doesn't make you any less of a woman.

seeing her mastectomy scar frightened me.  my father held me, encouraged me to go to my mother & ask to look at it.

my children got to live & learn first hand what it was like to know & love someone with cancer.

there were no secrets.  there was no sugar-coating the truth.

breast cancer is and always will be a part of my life.

---

on october 16th, lis & i are participating in race for the cure.  we've formed a {small} team.  please help support us as we run/walk our way through a 5k race.

twittering for ta-tas

please consider donating or even joining our team.

you don't have to be in our area to join our team - there is a "sleep in for the cure" option that counts towards team membership.

thank you.

shady pup.

i absolutely love this dog.
even when he's up to no good.

thirty-three.

i turned thirty-three last month.

honestly, it was like any other day weekend, but sweeter.
some cards, some presents, flowers, a nice dinner & a fun night out weekend with friends & family.

{so long, thirty-two!}

on my birthday eve, we hung out with a very good friend who was in town.  our buddy, josh, lives in istanbul, turkey so visits with him are very few & far in between.
we danced to some beach music, drank many beers & told stories about our threesome.
{just so you know, the threesome i am referring to is three-way calling.  remember that back in the day?  anyways, josh was the guy who hooked me & adam up.  many, many years ago.  when we were fourteen.}

i hate to admit it, but adam & i fought on my birthday.
c'est la vie. 
all was quickly forgiven & forgotten because we {along with three of our friends} drove down to kill devil hills, north carolina to see jackass flats play at the outer banks brewing station. 

i think it's safe to say that we've achieved "groupie" status with this band.  we saw them for the first time back in 2004 at a wedding and we've been hooked & going to as many shows as we can since.  they play locally, but we have gone to fredericksburg and now to north carolina to see them.

i got a birthday shout out from the boys {they said it was my birthday, that i had never been kissed & that i was indeed only turning 20 years old}. i also met another nine-eighteener {read: another gal celebrating her birthday on september 18th}.

we i drank lots of beer.  we i danced around.  and we all laughed.  

 {why, yes, i'm double fisted.}

i even played on a wooden pirate ship out behind the bar.

{i'm the queen of the world!}

it was such a fun night!

 {stuck in the middle of travis, ring leader of jackass flats & his lovely fiancee, ashley}

the drive home was l-o-n-g, but the trip was so worth it.
best. birthday. ever.
{well, maybe not as fabulous as when i celebrated my 30th birthday in mexico, but still...}

so glad i was able to celebrate my day with good friends & good music.

falling for...fall!

i don't know about y'all, but i'm crazy for fall.  

i love summer, but i love fall even more.  

why?  i'll show you why:

{photo credit}

{photo credit}

{photo credit}

{photo credit}

{photo credit}

{photo credit}

pumpkin spice lattes, changing leaves, the harvest moon, seasonal brews, candy corn & all things pumpkin are just a few of the reasons why i love fall.

what do you love about fall?