Semper Fi

The Marine Corps birthday is fast approaching, November 10th. I am bummed, because I will be working the evening of my ball, and also I would not be thrilled to be going alone this year. But, I do seriously love the Marine Corps. There is something extremely special about it, and I can't say enough good things. I have met some of the most spectacular, selfless, intelligent, interesting, and holistically well-rounded people thanks to the Marine Corps. I have been reading quotes about the Marine Corps all week, and I thought I'd share some of my favorites here. Keep in mind that some of them are slightly inappropriate, and some of them mock other branches of the military. But... would you expect anything less?

"There are only two kinds of people that understand Marines: Marines and the enemy. Everyone else has a second hand opinion."Gen. William Thornson, US Army

"Freedom is not free, but the US Marine Corps will pay most of your share." Ned Dolan

"A Marine is a Marine. I set that policy two weeks ago- there's no such thing as a former Marine. You're a Marine, just in a different uniform you're in a different phase of your life. But you'll always be a Marine because you went to Parris Island, San Diego, or the hills of Quantico. There's no such thing as a former Marine." General James F. Amos, 35th Commandant of the Marine Corps

"Marines know how to use their bayonets. Army bayonets may as well be paper weights." Navy Times, Nov 1994.

"I have just returned from visiting the Marines at the front, and there is not a finer fighting organization in the world!" General of the Armies Douglas MacArthur

"The Marines I have seen around the world have the cleanest bodies, the filthiest minds, the highest morale, the lowest morals of any group of animals I have ever seen. Thank God for the United States Marine Corps!" Eleanor Roosevelt

"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they've made a difference. But, the Marines don't have that problem." Ronald Reagan

"We are the United States Marines, and for two and a quarter centuries we have defined the standards of courage, espirit, and military prowess." Gen. James L. Jones, USMC

"I love the Corps for those intangible possessions that cannot be issued: pride, honor, integrity, and being able to carry on the traditions for generations of warriors past." Cpl. Jeff Sornig, USMC

"My only answer as to why Marines get the toughest jobs is the average Leatherneck is a much better fighter. He has far more guts, courage, and better officers... these boys out here have a pride in the Marine Corps and will fight to the end no matter what the cost." 2nd Lt. Richard C. Kennard

"You cannot exaggerate about the Marines: they are convinced to the point of arrogance, that they are the most ferocious fighters on earth- and the amusing thing about it is that they are." Kevin Keany, 1st Marine Division Chaplain

There are so so many more, but I will stop there. Like I said, I could ramble on and on about the Marine Corps. Being a part of it involves facing some very challenging events, but I am so thankful to have the opportunity to be a part of the elite of this country. My husband is the one who earned it, by all his hard work at OCS, TBS, Comm school, and day in and day out every day. I have the privilege of carrying the Marine Corps name as well, and I could not be more honored. It has given Jason a career he loves, it has given us lifetime friends we would have never met otherwise, and a chance to see the world and have perspectives broadened. It is often a love hate relationship, but at the end of the day, I would do it all over again. Semper Fidelis, and Happy Birthday!

Yes, my nephew is adorable

Gumby and Friends

Disclaimer: this is about my dog

Almost 2 years ago, while we lived in Virginia, I was wondering down the pet aisle at WalMart, when I stumbled across a Gumby dog toy on clearance. It was only $3. At that point, Starbuck had gone through many dog toys, and I thought it couldn't hurt to try out a clearance toy. Plus, major bonus, it's GUMBY! Who doesn't love that green flexible little dude? Well, I took Gumby home, and it was love at first sight. Gumby was always Starbuck's favorite toy. Over the months, however, Gumby suffered some basic wear and tear. Most of his more severe damage was due to rough-housing with Starbuck's dog friends, who didn't understand what a special toy he was. That brings us to present day. Gumby looks a little something like this.

Needless to say, he's a little worse for the wear.

The funny thing is, we stopped buying Starbuck toys shortly after Gumby, because he never liked anything as much as Gumby. He knows him by name. The words "where's Gumby?" have great meaning to Starbuck. He plays fetch AND hide and seek with Gumby.

Well, a couple days ago, I decided it was time to replace Gumby. I found a new one on Amazon, and couldn't resist getting Pokey so the team could play together.

The package was dropped off today. I had the main door open, so all that was between UPS and Starbuck was the metal screen door. He went nutso. As soon as I brought the package in, He was STANDING on his hind legs, something I have never seen him do before, sniffing the package. He knew it was for him! My dog is the smartest dog ever. (You may have thought it was yours, but you are sadly mistaken.)

I set the package down, and the next few minutes went a little something like this.

Eventually, I was able to pull it together, stop laughing, and stop torturing him by opening the package. Needless to say he is one happy dude today. Everytime I stand up, he freaks out, like I'm going to take them away, and rounds them all up together near him.

desperate to open his package. What a genuis

old friends meeting new friends. Worlds merging.

"If Starbuck ever has an E-harmony profile, this would be his profile pic"

You know that typical sitcom episode? Where the parents kill the pet turtle/hamster? And they go out to buy a new one, hoping the kid will love it just as much, but they never do? Well, it must be different for dogs. Not only does Starbuck have enough love for the new Gumby and Pokey, but also he has plenty of love still for that demented, decapitated Gumby.

What can I say? He has enough love to go around.

Someone raised him right.

Coffee Table

There has got to be another word to describe this awesome piece of furniture. Coffee table? I don't even drink coffee. Lemonade table? Tea table? junk catch-all table? We will consider it a work in progress.

I was running one Saturday morning, and came across a garage sale. One thing led to another, and next thing I knew, I was shoving a $20 scuffed-up pier one brand coffee table. What a deal! When Jason got home, we discussed what to do with it. Between both of our ideas, I was really happy with the final result. It is totally both of our style.

the table, in its original state, with the legs off.

I pulled the nail heads off, one by one, and ripped the leather off.

Let the sanding begin. This is where Jason's skills became more important than mine.

letting the paint dry. One of the many layers. Paint, sand, repeat.

hard to tell in the picture, but the colors are grey and sea foam blue.

laid out postcards I got from anthropologie. Each one is a different classic Penguin book cover.

just waiting for the glass to put on top

Finished with a glass topper, and fresh lemons.

What do you think? I've got some leftover postcards that I'd love to do something with!

Viral

my love for you went viral

He's home!

*Inspire*

Creativity. It's one of the best things ever. It is one of the many attributes God shared with us to create us in His image. I am so thankful for that!





I also love places that inspire creativity. Here are some inspiring spaces and things.

Young, and wild, and free

So what?

We go out.

That's how its s'posed to be

When you're

Young and wild and free

another accidental snapshot of life. Us about to go for a run. I love this one

Color me bananas

The Color Run!! I'm sure you have heard of it by now, but if not, here is a brief explanation, although, I'm sure once you see the pictures, the explanation will be irrelevant. It's a non-timed 5K, all about the fun, not about the run. At each kilometer, you get sprayed in a different color of an all-natural vivid color. That's pretty much the best explanation. It was such a blast. The race goes by so fast because you can see where the next color station is, and you are just so excited to get there, you sort of forget you are running! I don't know how I will ever run again, unless I hire people to throw color powder at me along the way. Maybe a new trick for Starbuck?

I will give you one guess if this is the before or after shot

Laura, my fearless coworker

Our name was the Glowing Joggers. Whoever came up with that was the victim of a great amount of mocking that day. It may/may not have been me.

I'm obviously not a cheerleader, but everything looks better in color!

We met in Virginia, and now she can't seem to get rid of me, haha!

Yes, I did eat that banana later

It was so much fun. You can be confident I plan on doing another Color Run, and you should too!

Dancing with Ellen

Whilst my awesome company, Mom and Taryn were with me, we had some big plans. The main event was going to the Ellen show in LA!! Through a series of different events, we had secured ourselves tickets for the April 10th recording of the Ellen show. What fun it was! Free parking, a nice lunch, and great seats! We were actually seated in the front and center row that Ellen dances down! When she danced past us, I'm pretty sure we all just froze. We walked away from the show with $200 gift cards from Khloe Kardashian to Sears, which was such an awesome gift! At first, we were kind of like "eh, Khloe Kardashian?" But, because she gave us each 200 bucks just grew on our hearts so quickly, by the end we were the biggest Khloe Kardashian fans you had ever seen. Here is how cute we looked that day, in case you missed the episode.

enjoying a great lunch just a short walk from the studio

Ellen water. "It tastes funny"

after our dancing, screaming, clapping party with Ellen. Ready to take on the LA traffic.. well, as ready as you can be.

Speaking of LA traffic, I hope the rest of you are as proud of me as I was for surviving the drive to and from LA without getting lost! I thought that was rather impressive (thank goodness for GPS capable phones).

laugh. dance. California.

I sort of completely stole this title idea from my friend Taryn. But, its totally OK, because a) I just cited her and b) she is a big part of this post!

For the rest of my spring break, I was lucky enough to have visitors! First was Taryn. She is one of those people who knows how to squeeze every bit of fun, laughter, and life out of every experience. It is a breath of fresh air to have her around. And, we did breathe a LOT of fresh air on her visit! We were so excited to get to run together once again, and we also went on a very awesome 6 mile hike together to conquer a mountain! Once we got to the top, Taryn and I did some yoga poses, and Starbuck collected some ticks. Here's some snapshots...

Going up, up, UP!

shadows on the top of the mountain

striking a pose

Cause we're the best of friends, having so much fun together!

Taryn is awesome! Striking a real pose, dancer

Starbuck, being traumatized by us asking him where his BFF West is. It's been over a year since they have seen each other, and he still remembers his name.

This was such a fun, exhausting hike! Days later, we discovered some unwelcome friends we made along the way (Starbuck had some ticks, and then passed one onto me... YUCK). There is really nothing better than exploring the beautiful earth God created for us while laughing with a friend.

Later that day, my mom flew in to visit! We had to hurry home to rest so we could all do our 5K the next morning.

We are champs

later that day, we packed a picnic to have at Del Mar beach. The PERFECT picnic spot!

Easter Sunday

I am very thankful for my mom and Taryn, and that they were willing to sacrifice time and money to come visit me! I am one lucky girl.

spring break, the early days

Today was one of the most fun days I have ever had! Before I tell you what I did, I am going to give you a moment to imagine the amazing, fun, wild, crazy day I had... so go on, dream it up...

OK? Is this what you thought of?

Del Mar dog beach, courtesy city-data.com

That's right. Forget all those wild and crazy things you though I did. I was thoroughly entertained by a trip to the dog beach. But trust me, you would be too. In fact, I was far too busy to even take any pictures. It was one of those days where you knew the memories would outrun the pictures by a mile. Starbuck was all over the place: running, jumping, swimming, wrestling, fetching, and climbing. Any activity available to him, he was doing to its fullest.

It's basically the perfect mash-up of two of my favorite things: Starbuck and the beautiful beaches of Southern California.

you can imagine his joy in climbing all over this. (courtesy sandiegoasap.com)

Even better, I was able to spend the day with my friend Christina, and her dog. We were even lucky enough to bring a dear friend's daughter, Piper, along for the day. She got lots of giggles out of Starbuck's crazy hyper state.

I truly felt like a little kid on spring break today. I could have run back and forth across the beach through the waves all. day. long. with my wet'n'wild pooch.

the aftermath of the day. Two salty, sandy, and soon to be well-rested pups

freetime: the attack of the crafter

In the coming weeks, I am going to have way too much free time for my own good. Thanks, Marine Corps, for taking my husband away for 6 weeks to do what I know to be napping and basketball a crap load of hard work. Here's what I did in only 48 hours of him being gone. I can only imagine when he comes home, I will have decoupaged the oven probably.

my new herb garden.

my new centerpiece

my new outfit with clothes i already had

that's it for now, folks!