Home

Home..


Home is where the heart is…

Home is where you lay your head…

Home is where you live your life..

Home is where you learn.

I have been fortunate over the last few weeks to visit two of the three places I have called home in my life.

The first where I spent my formative years.

Visiting with friends…

Kicking around the roots that lie there and continue to grow.

There is something about the way the air smells…the way the food tastes…the way the wind blows.

Taking a moment to be a part of the everyday lives of those people who watched you grow up.

Those people who know the history of the awkward teenage years and the time before that.

Those people who were there for your first kiss, first love, first heartbreak, first sleepover, first fight, first show, first bad hair cut, first dream coming true. That shared history…and old photos…mean that you are forever connected.

Reconnecting, talking, laughing and some tears.

Leave knowing that those people, their laughter, their love and their history runs deep in your blood and that no matter how much time passes, it will always be home.

The second is that place that you went and exerted your first independence from your parents.

Away from home, a kinship automatically grew.

A place, where you spent endless hours in one building with people who had the same goals as you did.

Working together on a show, prepping for an audition, hanging lights, rehearsals, classes.

Once upon a time, that place was your life. What happened in those four walls was magical…and still serves as a common bond between you and those who came before and after you.

A place where there was homesickness, laughter, tears, sing alongs, late nights, drinking, breaking some rules, love, fights, yelling, swearing, and an end result that produced magic (most of the time).

A small, quaint New England town that as you drive in the yellow lines in the middle change to red white and blue, and the small shops and pubs have settled into a great combination of college town and New England charm.

Sitting by the water, enjoying one of those sandwiches that were dinner so many nights with hubby, down the road from where he proposed.

A deep breath, smelling this air, feeling this energy, knowing what’s in store for the rest of the day.

Knowing there are people and places you will go, memories to relive, laughter and some tears in the reminiscing.

Knowing that this place has a piece of your heart and soul and that the memories are on the gentle coastal breeze that blows.

Heading home last night, my third and final home, the place that my wonderful husband and I have chosen to build our lives, I realize that the last few weeks have filled up my heart and soul with positive energy again. I know I leave part of my soul in these two places and every once in a while, I need to go back and visit it to become whole again.

miss you all..

I keep saying I am going to sit down and write a "real" post...
to write down just how fantastic Pittsburgh was..
how wonderful it was to see old friends
how great it was to be "home" for a little while...
to not have to worry about anything...
but I haven't..
Work has been crazy...
Home has been crazy...
It's all good...but most nights after dinner is done I sit and play mindless games on facebook for a little while and go to bed.
And we are off again this weekend to go back to college for the celebration of a very special professor's birthday...
So I will have to owe you a couple of posts...
but I wanted to check in from my couch before I head off to make sure I packed everything we needed to say hi...
and I miss you all..
and I am sending positive thoughts and a million smiles out to each of you...every single day!!
hugs!

Leaving on a jet plane

Bags are packed (and repacked)
Purse is cleaned
I am ready to go...
for a weekend away...
to the place I grew up
With friends who have known me "forever" (or almost 23 years)...
Those friends who know what you want to say without saying..
those friends who you can say anything to...
Who's hugs make you melt and who's lives you don't get to be part of everyday..
It's going to be a busy weekend...
Seeing some friends who I haven't seen since high school
A teacher who inspired me more than she knew possible.
Friend's parents who love me like one of their own...
Who disciplined me when I was younger and acted out..
Who I talked to around a dining room table when I needed to...
those second parents that were always there...
to the place where my roots are...
hubby is staying home...gives him a chance to miss me :)

sending positive thoughts and hugs to all of you...see you when i get back

Monday...

today was an icky day....
knew it was going to be an abnormally long week because I am looking forward to going away...
but I found out officially that I didnt get the job I was so excited about...
Ick...
estimate for the roof came in...
double ick...

But then you read about tragedies going on in other parts of the country and it puts things in perspective...

Hubby was wonderful today ( i don't know that I have gushed quite enough about him lately)...
He listened to me cry..
looked up new jobs
And when that all failed to cheer me up...
he took me to dinner...
made me get this:

It is a black and blue margarita...blackberry and blueberry and super yum...
Plus it came in a really cool shaker thing so it was actually two drinks for the price of one!
And then, we were on our way home and passed this:

Not the best picture really...
but we drove past the woman who was walking the pig and he turned around and pulled over as I jumped from the car...
her name is leah and she is a pot belly pig....
I got to put her and snuggle her a bit...
Spent the last few hours researching them cause I want one.
Nothing like a date night with hubby and a snuggle from a pig to make a crappy day better....
and my wonderful husband for putting up with me :)

Sending hugs, love and positive thoughts out to the universe...I hope some land on your doorstep...

Fabulous Day...

Today was just a really good day...
laundry's put away
House is kinda clean (or at least clean enough for the cleaning lady to come in hopefully next Tuesday)
Hubby and I  spent some quality time together...
had a really good conversation about some stuff I didn't even realize was bothering me at work...
Then I went and got my hair done..
blended away some of the gray....
came home, had dinner and snuggled on the couch watching a movie...
he went to bed and I ended the day talking to one of my best friend's that I am going to visit next week....
I have to tell you I can't wait to get out of here for a few days....
There is nothing like a friend you have known for twenty plus years...
The fact that we talk all the time can't replace a hug....
or just hanging out on the porch being part of every day life...
The weekend is scheduled but still time for just us to hang out...
Can't wait...
I know that when I get back I will feel better about everything...
I love my husband....and being with him...
but sometimes, there is nothing like missing him and coming home knowing that this is all waiting for me...
random thoughts for a saturday night..

I hope that you are well and enjoying the changing of the seasons...
hugs and love tonight from my corner of the world to yours..

Ages.....again

I wouldn't blame a single person if they stopped reading what I write...
I am inspired by all of you who write every single day.
I wish I could.
I don't really have anything to say...
I work
I come home
I sleep
I do over.
Boring life..
Work is okay...
I was excited about an opportunity...
Like....really, out of my head, I want this..
It doesn't appear that's happening...
Bummer

Hubby turned another year older....
Like most (old) married couples his presents were terribly practical (I am sure I have written it before..but I HATE practical presents...there always should be some whimsy)...
I got him an electric toothbrush...
That's what he asked for ....so that's what he got..
Terrible.
I did get him a ring he wanted for his super secret club he joined.
Boring.

I do have tomorrow off and am heading north all by myself (hubby has to work and has a super secret meeting tomorrow night) for the youngest nephew's kindergarten play....I can't believe that is happening already....but as I told him the other day, we have a date.
They will restore my heart and soul...I know that they will...
I must remember to grab my camera because we want to try for some family pics at some point this weekend...
Then we celebrate mother in laws birthday with a ladies brunch saturday morning, hubbys and bro in laws birthday with a BBQ Saturday night and Mother's Day Brunch on Sunday.

So, nothing exciting in my corner of the world....I head back to Pittsburgh at the end of this month for some much needed girl time with one of my oldest and bestest friends in the whole world....I can't wait...
In the mean time, I will try (I really do try) to pull myself out of this funk and post more regularly...but know I am reading (even if I am not always commenting) and always sending my love and positive thoughts to your corners of the world!!

Catch Up

It has been a crazy week…


Thank you to everyone who emailed, commented or reached out on my last post…I was feeling a bit vulnerable.

Besides the craziness of last Monday, my birthday was last week. I was a bit of a brat about this birthday with my husband. See for his 35th I planned a huge party, had 75 people at my house, cooked, cleaned and hosted for him. I had told him a few months ago that I wanted to have a party.

Nothing

Nada

Zilch

I was upset. I am like a little kid on my birthday and love to celebrate. 35 years old was worthy of a celebration.

So I was a brat, upset and disappointed that he didn’t have anything planned. Not to mention that he wasn’t even going to be home that night due to his initiation ceremony for his super secret society he is joining.

My sister in law came down with the kids and we had a birthday lunch on Monday. Super yummy and awesome to see them.

Wednesday came around and he woke me up at some ungodly hour to say good morning and happy birthday…not because he needed to be anywhere but because he wanted to be the first one to say it. It was 5am and I was less than happy about being woken up. He did inform me that he was working all day and wouldn’t even be able to have lunch.

Got up and went to work. I was on the phone and around the corner I see some balloons. I hung up and out jumps a pink gorilla. I was mortified as she proceeded to sing and dance in my office. Okay, less upset with hubby.

He sent me beautiful flowers…and they were for a good cause so I was less unhappy.

Some flowers from mom and dad came as well

He called me and said lunch?

Now, let me tell you, I was really hoping that my mom would come. They are in the middle of selling their house, looking for new ones etc and she had told me the night before that she couldn’t come up. I was disappointed. She didn’t call me at 8:24 (the time I was born) like she has for the last 15 years because she had a dentist appointment. I was disappointed that I hadn’t heard from her. In the back of my head, I was hoping that I would walk downstairs to meet hubby (he was picking me up for lunch) and she would be there, but I was trying not to get my hopes up. I went out and she wasn’t in the truck and I felt the tears that had been threatening for a week pop into my eyes. I walked around to the passenger side of the truck and she was hiding there, out of the truck , and I started to cry.

We went to lunch and literally the first thing I said to hubby was, I hope the cleaning lady is at the house. He laughed and said that he had reserved a hotel room for the two of us, worked it out with my boss that I could leave and would see me tomorrow.

So I spent the afternoon with my mom. We shopped, laughed and hung out at the hotel. It was awesome. I dropped her off at the airport at 7am the next morning. It was a short trip but totally what I needed.

As some of my facebook friends know, I had some major crow to eat with my husband but you know what it tasted damn good. In the 17 years I have known him, he has never surprised me like that , so I was shocked and in awe that he had pulled it off.

Friday, I left work early, went and had a massage and hung out while hubby worked late. Saturday we bought new cell phones, had a lunch date and went to the movies (Oblivion- decent…enough action for him, enough of a love story for me). We came home and I watched Sick, Fat, and Nearly Dead. If you haven’t seen it and are at all interested in what processed food can do to you and how changing up your diet can make a difference, I highly recommend it. We bought a juicer on Sunday and have been juicing ever since. So two days in and I have found out that I don’t like kale, green is just a color not necessarily a flavor, and everything is made better by watermelon!

Woosh…so that’s all that’s going on with me to date. I have a job interview today so cross your fingers for me.

I hope your corners of the world are warm, sunny and full of love….sending hugs and positive thoughts!