A Month (+) in Photos

I'm not sure of the dates on most of these photos, but I can guarantee these are from the last month. I'll work on getting back to my glory days of knowing dates and being more timely about updating soon. Anti-anxiety medication, here I come!!

July: In the days before we moved, the cats were getting real freaked out. All of their play toys had disappeared as well as the furniture. I think they thought they were getting left. In the whirlwind move (3 days total), we had given our cat carrier to my dad to take our outdoor kitty to Olympia with him, not thinking about how we were going to get our two feisty felines over to the new house. It involved me and Ryan trying to shove them both into a moving box (I swear we are against animal cruelty) and it ended up with both of us wearing some ferocious scratches. Now that we're all settled into our new place, I think the cats are a lot happier, the setting is much more peaceful and there are many deer for them to lust after.

August: A couple weeks after the move, my mom had some time off from work and she decided to come down to Astoria for a weekend! My brother, Ryan and I collaborated on getting my mom a birthday gift of pottery classes, and she has been gracing us with new bowls ever since. She saw an example of a bowl that was selling for $75 in the magazine Real Simple and she decided to replicate it (I tried finding the article, no such luck). It's an adorable little bowl with a white bird perched on the side, we haven't decided what to put in it yet, so it sits proudly displayed on a shelf in our kitchen.

August: As part of my mom's trip down, we decided to make a stop in Portland. It had been quite a while since I had done any major shopping and I had a few major things I needed to get. While we were there, I took my mom to Montage for the first time ever where we chomped down on some Spold (for those of you who don't know what that is, I'm sorry, you're really missing out. It's Spicy and Old fashioned style macaroni, thus Spold. It's to die for). It had been a long time since I had been there, they changed their handwritten menus! I was bummed, but it was wonderful none the less.

August: In a previous post, I talked about our little book nook. I'm not the only member of the family that has been enjoying it. Peanut gets to get acquainted with the neighborhood felines and Marley gets to act like he is the king of the castle on his throne. We finally go the light above it to work, so I am very much looking forward to using that this coming fall.

August: Ryan and I still haven't unpacked most of our belongings. I think this move was pretty taxing on both of us, I still haven't gotten back into the groove since. Also, I think we lack a lot of shelving (in our old house, it was all built in) and I haven't quite decided what I want to purchase yet (well I have, but they're $649 from Pottery Barn). I have been able to unpack just enough boxes to make this beautiful little corner in our bedroom though. I love everything about it, it looks like something straight out of Pinterest.

August: Now that I've lived in Astoria for two years, I know that there is no such thing as summer. You have sunny 62 degree days. It's nearly impossible for it to get any warmer than that (I'll save the rest of this rant for another day). This was one of those sunny cold days that Ryan and I ended up getting off a couple of hours early. I'm not much of a golfer but I can appreciate that Ryan loves it. For that reason, I will sometimes go out golfing with him and either ride or walk along. There's a 9 hole course in Gearhart called Highlands that I actually really enjoy because I can day dream about the beach houses along the course that I hope to one day own. The course is very scenic, this dock extends all the way from the course to the beach.

August: While we were at the course, I wanted to get a picture of the two of us since it had been a while that we had one together. We had a really good time!

August: The whole family in the book nook (Ryan was taking the picture).

August: The beauty of working in a treatment center is that I get to help people through the same difficulties I had in early sobriety. For those like me, I looked at every single problem I had all at once and it became overwhelming really quick. There was a client we had that I have become close with and he is much like me, a worst case scenario-ist. What I have learned over time and through some personal growth is this: "How do you eat an elephant?" Answer: "One bite at a time." I would always have to remind the client this. That you can't handle large tasks all at once and that you have to take it little by little. To show his appreciation, he purchased me this keychain elephant, I loved it.

August: For a long time now I have been putting off going to the dentist, the doctor, everything, for fear what I might find out. I finally bit the bullet and scheduled myself for a teeth cleaning. I found out something I had been thinking for a really long time; I'm a teeth grinder and clencher. After seeing an episode of Sex in the City where Miranda finds out she has TMJ, I was convinced that's what I had. That's not the case though, it's more that when I sleep, I can't help but clamping my jaw together really, REALLY hard. To where it's really painful in the morning and I get headaches throughout the day from it. Finally I got myself this little baby, a night guard. I feel the epitome of cool, I'll tell you that much, but man, she helps so much.

August: Ever since we moved into our new house, Marley has become even more water snobby and will only now drink fresh shower water. It used to be the running sink water would suffice for his highness, but not anymore. At any given time, Marley will herd you into the bathroom and just expect that you are going to run the shower for him. He's also to the point now where he will pop his head in if you are in taking a shower. Ryan said when he first got him, Marley would come into shower with him and Ryan would sing this song:

"Mister Marley-kins McGillicutty lived down by the sea,
And every single day he would pick an apple tree, 
No he didn't know his name and he didn't know his way,
But every single day he would go down by the bay"

I don't know who is more insane, Marley or Ryan.

August 27th, 2013: Not only did I celebrate my 2 years of sobriety on this day, but Ryan also quit smoking. It was truly a day to revere. Ryan had quit smoking about a year and a half prior, but had a slow relapse when he started smoking cigars, then hooka and finally cigarettes when we first opened the facility. It took him about 7 months to come around to the idea of quitting again. Already he's seeing the benefits- both physically and to his wallet. I am one happy lady, not having to kiss an ashtray everyday is wonderful.

August 27th, 2013: I know I didn't upload this photo, but one of my best sober friends Allison put this up on my two years. She's one of the girls I went through the Rosebriar with, and I absolutely adore her. She lives down in LA so we don't get to see or talk to each other as often as I would like, but every time we talk, it's like no time has passed. Two years is a big accomplishment for me, considering in the past I could barely go a couple of days without wondering when I was drinking next. I owe a lot to the people I surround myself with and the changes I have made in my life to get here.

August: As an early birthday present to myself, I ordered the J. Crew necklace I have been eying FOREVER. I really liked the red version of this, but the white is a close second. I'm trying to slowly compile some nice statement necklaces, this is the first of my collection! I'm in love.

August: Ryan and I are Duck's season ticket holders now. It's still crazy trying to wrap my head around that. It was such a surreal experience being back in Autzen after three seasons of not seeing a game there. For the first game of the year against Nichols State, Ryan and I had the opportunity to sit with some friends in the second row, it was pretty damn sweet, especially when the plays were happening right in front of us. I can't lie, I may or may not have started tearing up a little when I first saw the players run out of the tunnel on to the field with the Duck and the guy that rides the motorcycle. It was AWESOME!!!

August: Ryan and I had to take the obligatory picture in front of Autzen. It's one of my favorite sights in the whole world and it's the first one I have been able to snag with my boy.

August: August: I think the goal here was to try to snap a pic with the stadium/field behind us, which obviously was a pretty epic fail, but none the less, here's another picture of me and my boy all ducked up!

September 10, 2013: I'm the first person to admit that I'm not a girly girl. I do love fashion and I try to make my hair and makeup as presentable as possible, but I'm not huge into nail polish, jewelry, so on and so forth. To my memory I have not purchased myself nail polish. In my entire life. So because I watch a lot of beauty gurus on YouTube and because I look at Pinterest a lot, I've been believing more and more that I want to get into painting at least my toes. For an early birthday to myself I picked up Essie's Peach Daiquiri. This first time turned out to be a total disaster, I'm still learning how much paint to load on the brush so it doesn't look totally gloppy and ick. I'm a work in lady progress.

September 12, 2013: One of my favorite gifts this year for my birthday is this delightful Oregon tote. From the minute I laid eyes on it, I knew I had to have it. It's now my daily computer tote to and from work, it's the best!

September 13, 2013: Sometimes, it's just one of those days. This Friday for Ryan could be classified under that category. The second we got home from work, this is how I found him. With our census (number of residents) growing, it's becoming increasingly busy for all of us, Ryan especially since he is Intake and he works with clients insurance companies for all of our facilities. He's one busy, busy man.

September 14, 2013: We woke up pretty early to get down to Eugene for the Tennessee game. Thankfully we stayed in Portland the night before so it wasn't a 6:00 AM drive, but still, 8:00 AM on a Saturday isn't great. The only thing that really helped us through is the wonderful decision we made to start drinking Redbull at that time. My sponsor saw this photo and his comment was, "I didn't know two people could make Redbull look so fun!"

September 14, 2013: Finally Ryan and I got the opportunity to watch the game from our seats. Autzen is a pretty small stadium, so even though we are basically up at the top, the view is wonderful. We actually really love our seats, we're thinking for next year, instead of paying the extra "donation fee" to move closer to the field, that we would purchase four tickets so that we could instead bring family and friends with us to the games!

September: Even before it was officially fall, fall was here in Astoria. I had an opportunity to wear my gorgeous new Hunter Boots (that Ryan got me for my birthday) and my Handsome Devil Boston Terrier sweatshirt (that my mom got me for my birthday). I have been wanting both of these items for as long as I can remember (well at least a year). I was so proud of my outfit that I had to have Ryan take a picture of me wearing it.

September: On our most recent trip to Eugene, we stopped in Portland at New Seasons (my second favorite grocery store of all time) and I acquired the most delicious licorice of all time. I found this stuff back in my Enterprise days (when a customer had left a bag in a returned car) and I have been in love ever since. I find though that when I start eating this stuff, I can't stop myself at just one piece. It's just so damn delicious!! For those of you who are licorice fans, I would highly recommend getting yourself some of this heavenly treat.

A Week in Photos: Weeks 10 & 11

I got just the kick in the ass I needed to write a new post. I got my first comment on my blog and it was from a high school friend saying to get my butt in gear. Thanks Doro- that's just the motivation I needed!

I promise I really am working on a post that will be long and informative, I just work on it chucks at a time and only when I'm feeling the writing vibe, so not very often obviously. Procrastination, I need to work on that.

Sunday 3/3: On Saturday, Ryan got his oil changed and the perk of us taking his Camry to the Toyota dealership is that they wash the car, in and out! It was a surprisingly sunny Sunday, so we decided for some reason it was the right day to put the Oregon sticker up in the back window. Of course I viewed this as a photo-op, thus the ensuing picture. GO DUCKS!!! (March Madness starts TOMORROW!!! Ducks play at 1:40 PM, and yes I will be watching from work :)

Monday 3/4: Over the weekend while I wasn't at work, we acquired this handsome sign. Before, the building we are in was a convalescent center, so it was good to get our insignia up before any families tried dropping granny off at a drug and alcohol treatment center. Ryan had a large part in creating this sign and I think it's magical (it has a ton of detail close up).

Tuesday 3/5: There were some aforementioned shirts in another post about The Chive, so it was a wonderful day when we came home to find these packages. Of course the packaging was really catchy and creative with a large sticker that said CENSORED. Sadly though, Ryan has yet to take his shirt out of the package to wear it, it's a point of contention in our relationship. Peanut was glad to ease the tension with posing for this picture though.

Thursday 3/7: Though this isn't really "Throwback Thursday" worthy because it was only taken a week or so before, I thought this was a lovely photograph that I had to share. I hate to admit this but often times now, I picture photos I can take just to post them on Instagram. I will admit though that I have gotten a little burned out and have slowed my roll a little bit. Maybe that should tell me something about my days though, that I'm not doing enough beautiful things or that I'm not seeing the beauty in the everyday? As with everything, I think there is a fine balance between too much and too little, I'm working to find that.

Friday 3/8: One of the things I love most about it being winter is that we get to run the gas fireplace and we get to see our kitties loving the heat. I know I have snapped shots of Marley like this before, but I can't get enough. He just so unashamedly flaunts his kitty goods to get the most comfortable he can be in front of that fire. I admire him. He's one heat loving cat.

Saturday 3/9: It was a surprisingly warm, sunny day for early March. My dad decided to come down to spend the day with me just to get out of Olympia for a while. Ryan and I had given him a gift certificate for a restaurant on the river called the Bridgewater Bistro. It's one of the most beautiful spots in Astoria if you ask me. We were able to capture some shots of the foggy bridge but the pictures don't do it justice! It was truly a stunning sight.

Sunday 3/10: I know everyone will bemoan "springing forward" part of daylight savings. I for one, love it. This picture was taken at 7:00 pm and it was still daylight! I went on a bit of a walk about, just to take in all of the exquisite old homes in Astoria, and I came across this scene. This down the bushes to the street that leads to the river in some respects reminds me of some of the streets in San Francisco or Seattle to some extent. Astoria is a very picturesque town full of beauty like this.

Monday 3/11: I don't know if anyone else has this problem, but when my father takes pictures on his phone, I know it will take days of me hounding him to finally give them to me. That being said, this time wasn't so bad. He had taken this picture of me and Ryan on Saturday and it only took him two days to get it to me. Old men and iPhones might not mix.

Tuesday 3/12: Despite what Ryan and I think, the cats truly run our house. I really do think that our cats are smarter than we are and they have us trained really really well. I don't know if anyone else thinks this about their animals, but this picture really encapsulates who runs shit around our house. Marley, king of the castle, on his throne.

Thursday 3/14: To try my hand at being domestic, I decided to make cupcakes for two of our clients that were having birthdays on Friday. I spent my 25th birthday in treatment so I knew that it could be a humbling, lonely experience if you don't have someone making it special for you. What I find funny of the Betty Crocker company is that they think if they put on their box not to eat the dough, that you actually won't. Let's just say I ended up with only 18 cupcakes instead of 24...

Saturday 3/16: I have had a weekend in the works with my mom for a while. Her and her best friend Shari wanted to do a girls shopping trip all over Portland and it's not like they had to twist my arm into it. This picture was just off 23rd near the Alano Club and I just died over the magnolia tree in bloom. I am so excited that warm weather and flowers are right around the corner.

Sunday 3/17: We were staying at the Marriott City Center and we woke up to this scene! The St. Patrick's Day Shamrock Run. Singlehandedly this made me feel really guilty about not running like I should be and very envious because it looked SO FUN! There were runners as far as the eye could see and they were spread all over down town Portland. I didn't feel guilty or jealous for very long though, right after this we had a wonderful breakfast at the Original Dinerat where I consumed three large pieces of creme brûlée french toast. I got the better half of this deal :)

 Sunday 3/17: And finally, no trip to Portland is complete without a stop at Powell's Books. This was what I was looking forward to all weekend. Though I have a mild book hoarding problem, I justified buying more books because I had finished 10 already this year. Everyone likes getting new books (even if you already have a stack of 40+ you have yet to read) so I can't deny myself that feeling. I have made a deal through this year that I can only outright purchase new books once I have read 10 from my pile. Sounds legit, right? Anyway, I have been dying to get my hands on a John Green book for ages now, and I have finally succeeded. At Powell's I purchased book two of the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan, Paper Towns by John Green, Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore, and Looking for Alaska by John Green. The other books I acquired in non-buying (aka free-ish) ways. Those include Uglies by Scott Westerfield, Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, Night Road by Kristen Hannah and Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. I was thinking about adding another weekly post that included my currently reading/to be read, because I always love hearing about what people are reading. Thoughts?

That's all for now, I'm working on this whole "accountability" and "adulthood" thing, so I'll make an attempt at creating more regular posts!! Thanks all for reading! Until next time.

A Week in Photos: Week 8

Sunday 2/17: About two years ago when I was living in Portland I got used to going to New Season's market for lunch everyday. This is where I picked up the habit of testing out as many Kombucha drinks I could find. I have finally settled on the Grape Chai Synergy Kombucha being my absolute favorite. This summer, that's all I could drink, but with each costing about $3 a pop, I had to give the habit up. On my weekly Sunday grocery trip, I finally gave myself permission to get one again, and oh my god, it was a heavenly experience.

Monday 2/18: After giving up one addiction, alcohol, I found that I have replaced it with another, books. And my cat, but that wasn't the priority in this photo. I was showing a fellow book lover my piles of shame, aka the piles of books I have yet to read. This picture doesn't do the situation justice, there's a whole third stack with more unread books back behind those piles. My goal is to read 80 books in this calendar year, this will get me well over half that mark. As I have said before, there could be worse addictions...

Tuesday 2/19: Every morning, without a doubt, our cat Marley jumps into the bathroom sink. And it's always when I'm either mid-teethbrush or face-wash. Ryan, over the years, has allowed for him to become water snobs, only drinking out of the kitchen or bathroom sinks. I have decided that in the next place we live, we will need two sinks, one for humans and one for kittens.

Thursday 2/21: For a "throwback Thursday" photo this week, I dug one out from the dark days, aka my past drinking life. This was the summer of 2009 on a trip to Chelan to see Ryan. I think it's amazing how far we have come in the past four years. Both of us are sober now, living productive and fulfilling lives together. It only took us two false starts and seven years to get here, but I finally have the man of my dreams.

Friday 2/22: This is a large gummy bear. I have never seen such a thing before. I had to take a picture and obviously give a size comparison next to my Oregon house key. Why? Because Go Ducks!

Saturday 2/23: It's not often that Ryan ventures out of his office at work, but when he does, he can be seen doing this or sneaking food out of the back door of the kitchen.