Sister Act

I woke up to a happy email this morning. My sister sent me a very brief note with pictures included.

Jess is on her mission in Germany right now (!!!). I'm stuffed with pride at how great she is. When we were younger, I got irritated by her a lot, but I knew that we'd figure it out eventually and become the best of friends.

Well, it worked. We're tight now. She's become her own woman, full of spunky quirks and radiant in her own, completely beautiful way. We've always been almost night-and-day different, and that's still true.

Except for one little thing.

We make the same face. 

Even when we're half a world apart (and separated by six months of time).

Apparently I have taught her well. 

Love you, Jess. In about a year, you'll come home and find out that I posted this on social media for the world to see. I regret nothing. ;)

Nostalgia Update

For the record, Simba and Hayley (from this post) are still living contentedly in my box of childhood. Turns out, I really couldn't bear to part with them, and I did in fact go home and rescue them from the D.I. bag.

I'm a sucker for my own memories, and I'm not quite so cold-hearted yet that I can just throw those out.

Simba and Hayley live on for another round of weeding-out-childhood-memories.

The Grand Chop

Yes, I'm aware that this post is going to be old news for the people who see me regularly, but I still wanted to share it. I cut my hair!

After three years of growing it out (and pouring a lot of love and attention into keeping it healthy that whole time), cutting it off was kind of a big deal for me. In fact, I had a hard time committing to doing it (much to my hair stylist's chagrin). It was really beautiful long, but I like the shorter cut more because it suits me a little bit better.

Though, to my surprise, some of my guyfriends actually openly wept when I chopped it off. Guys really do like longer hair. Go figure.

Before

However, I am also my mother's daughter. She's a cosmetologist. She's always done whatever she wanted with her hair, regardless of what my dad's preferences are (though she's been nice enough to never do something that he hates, and he doesn't try to force his preferences on her--he loves her the way she is). I'm exactly the same way. My hair is mine. I'll do what I want with it. That being said, I'm attached (haha, stupid pun) to it, and I like it long enough to run my fingers through, so if my man really hates pixie cuts on girls, he'll probably never have to worry about it. If, by some weird happenstance, he really likes pixie cuts on girls, well, he might just have to live without that.

After!

Whatever, I've rambled long enough.

Pretend that this is seven months ago and you haven't seen me without long hair in three years. :)

I'm growing it out a little more and plan on keeping it around shoulder length for a while. That's probably my favorite length overall.

By the way, I didn't realize how much I changed my hair until I started the whole online dating thing. I put a range of pictures up and didn't really think about it, but then I started getting a bunch of questions along the lines of, "So what does your hair actually look like right now?" Looking back through them, I realized that it's been long, short, light, dark, black, blonde, even a little red (depending on the lighting).

The winners are always the ones who like it all ways. ;)

I'm totally okay with change

You know what I actually really like?

Moving.

I love moving.

I like digging through my stuff, throwing things out, reliving memories as I open up old boxes to see if I still need anything in them, and reorganizing my life into boxes and rooms.

I also love unpacking and spreading out into a new home, watching empty rooms fill up with all the things that matter to me. I've even redecorated my room a couple of times in the last year, even though I haven't moved, just because I enjoy the refresh.

Maybe it's a really stereotypically womanly thing, but I really do love making my house a home. I love the idea of decorating, cooking things that smell good, and having plushy couches that beg people to curl up on them with a good book. And the older I get, the stronger that desire gets.

So yeah, as I may have mentioned, I'm moving. Roommate and I have been simmering over this decision for a couple of months now, and while we really do love living together, we've both been itching for a change. She's looking forward to living with someone new, and I've been dying to get into my own home. For me, it's time. I've had roommates long enough, and I'm ready to have a space that is 100% my own.

Hello, home office and guest bedroom. Little Brother is so excited to have a real bed to sleep in when he comes up to visit for the weekend.

Will it be tough, living alone? Maybe a little bit. I'll be more likely to get lonely, but I've gotten really good at dealing with that in the last couple of years, and I know that I won't hermit up and get depressed. In fact, it might actually be better for me because I'll have to reach out of my comfort zone and invite people over (or go out with them) in order to have company. In some ways, having my roommate around becomes a little bit of a crutch, because I get enough social interaction from her that I don't reach out to other people who might be in greater need of a friend than she is.

I also realize that I'm running the risk of settling into habits and getting used to doing things exactly the way I want them that might present an interesting challenge when I do eventually get married. But that's been a risk for years. My poor husband is going to have to spend the first year or so of our marriage trying to remind me to let him open the dang jars and reach the hard-to-reach stuff on the top shelf anyway. Poor man. :)

But remember? I like change. So maybe that won't be so difficult after all. ;)

By the way, do you know what I really dislike?

Being all ready to jump into action and having to sit around waiting. Yep. My apartment isn't available yet. So I have all this pent-up energy and motivation to get the ball rolling and I can't let it run free yet. So if I seem cranky or like I'm stewing, it's probably because of that.

Aside from that, life is wonderful. And I genuinely mean that. Yes, there are little annoyances and things that throw my mood off for a few hours (or a day, sometimes), but I'm still incredibly blessed, and I never entirely forget that.

ASkldhfpaoiwuewoiajd!!!

Yep. That was my reaction when I found out that they're making a Captain America 2. Ask Savannah. I got so excited my tongue stopped working.

Why yes, this is Hawkeye (from the Avengers) doing the
crazy-dance in an interview. How did you know?
Now I really want to find this vid.

Incidentally, that also sums up my speaking ability throughout the entire Avengers movie. Which yes, I have now (FINALLY!) seen. And I can neither confirm nor deny that I was doing this:
<------------
on the inside the entire time.

I am such a fangirl.

May Day!

Right on cue, and appropriate for the pun involved, my body is sending out a distress call for chocolate RIGHT NOW.

Thanks, cramps. I love you too. (Not.)

Although, to be fair, I don't mind the free pass to indulge in chocolate.

I have more to say. Once I get back from submerging myself in a chocolate fountain.

Peace, love, and chocolate, my friends.