!! THANKSGIVING !!

🍗 + 👪 + 🏈
{{IT'S HERE!!!}}

There is so much signified by this holiday, and for ALL of it I am wholly grateful.
The first thing on my agenda today: Bake a pie. Ya know, because food is like, 90% of why we all gather together at 2 in the afternoon on Thanksgiving as opposed to normal-people dinner times of like, 5 or 6....

>> 🍛 <<

And then, we loaded up the pups for the mini road trip to Mt. Vernon [Sydni's with dad this year for Thanksgiving.. she'll join in on the travelling extravaganza for Christmas!] to my parents' house.

💑 + 🐶🐶 ➡🚕➡ 🏠

Once we were there, it was only a few short hours before we all loaded up again for the short trip out to my cousins' house in Fredericktown, where the real festivities for the day would be taking place. We probably would've opted for a later dinner, but since my cousin's wife is in retail, and the world has disappointingly digressed to a place where we just... must... shop ON Thanksgiving, she had to leave earlier than originally planned.. to go to work.

Let me just take one second to say, on behalf of my family & every other family who has been interrupted by this STUPID new phenomenom of "pre-Black Friday" shopping:

 

{{NO. YOU REALLY SHOULD BE ASHAMED if SHOPPING on THANKSGIVING is a higher priority to you than spending time with your family. SURE, I get it: some of us don't have the opportunity to be with our families today, or even more unfortunately don't have families we want to be around, but really? We're diluted, admit it.
I REFUSE to shop on THANKSGIVING... because MY PRIORITIES are PEOPLE, not THINGS. }} //end rant

 

Aaaaanyway, we made the best of the day and wasted very little time digging into the meal collaboratively constructed by my family. It of course, wouldn't have been complete without a little company. Mine happened to be my cousins' 15-year old parrot, Joey. He, like a typical teenage boy, seemed fascinated with the simple fact that I was a female, and refused to perch on anyone else's shoulder for a few hours. Oh, teenagers... ;)  

🐦 💘

😏🐥

It was so nice to spend the evening with my cousins; the "younger" ones, both now in their twenties, are 6 feet tall with beards. With my birthday being tomorrow, I feel exponentially older combining that with the fact that I remember them both when they were babies. Good grief. I love my family (:

Oh, and I almost forgot... [sorry!!] our family's annual, sometimes grueling tradition of watching THIS... literally every..... year on Thanksgiving. I somehow skipped last year, so by default I was way overdue.

🎄 griswalds! 🎄

That's a wrap here, blogbots.
Happy Thanksgiving, to you and yours!

xo | cmd

OWL You Need Is Love ;)

Two things.

1. I have amazing people in my life, both new and old.

2. I'm pretty sure I'll never stop loving owls, even once the world-wide trend that they are now, has expired. I've always loved them, I love them now, and those amazing people I just mentioned, make sure that I keep getting my fixes, where they're needed (:

That being said, and ironically enough as it is, these are two things I got from two girls with whom I've worked. Both of them are [or were] Express FOC's, for different offices, but equally awesome in their own separate ways.

This is a shot from Ali:


i might attempt to own this. maybe. haha.

&& this, is from Elisa, my new FOC here in Cincinnati, who in just a few short weeks has noticed my affinity for the little hooty creatures [yes, I almost said hooters, and then remembered that 90% of the population would misinterpret that.... ].


owl magnets. italian marble camera coaster. kitty cat bandaid/tape!
so sweet!! thanks, elisa!!

She's pretty sweet. How thoughtful! I love it; the magnets are now up on my board here and the coaster will get its fair share of use, too.

DRUMROLLLLLLLLLLLLLL... for the BEST part of today:


minime!!

Tonight was our first night together in my new place. I can't even begin to tell you the gratifying feeling I had curled up on the couch at the end of the day with her. It felt exactly how it did when things weren't crazy, when we were like this every single day. It felt as though we hadn't skipped a beat, and I can't imagine having a Monday end any other way. This little girl, the reason I do what I do, just finished the sequence of things that I've needed to feel like I'm "home."
Owl You Need Is Love.
.. sure, you need some other stuff in there, too.. but let's face it, that's where it's really at.

My job. My house. My family. My boyfriend. My faith. My daughter.
I'm set (:

xo | cmd

Pibble. Swag. Owls. Horses. Falafels & Origami. [Oh My!]

I woke up to this [on my phone] today:

hiiiiiiii, meatball! [aka, stella] ♥

I miss my dog :(. Rob said she spends the majority of the morning "talking," which sounds about right, before she and Stella hit the kennels for the day. Aww, the meatballs...


It looked like our day at work was going to be much more hectic than it actually turned out to be... which was probably good since we were itching to take a second and explore the latest box of logo'd swag from our corporate office.

express.. keepin' it classy ;)

Yes, that's right, the glasses and the mustaches on sticks have our company logo on them. Welcome to the power of brand repetition. We. Logo. EVERYthing. Haha. Elisa and I had some fun... wonder what they'll send us next? 

Becky texted me midday to see if I had plans after work. I figured it wouldn't kill me to push off the personal trainer one more day, so that I could get down there and pick her up from the airport. She sent me these drom her layover... it's like my friends know what kinda goofy stuff makes me smile? 

owls everywhere. i love it.... (:

Cute. So yeah, it was off to CVG for the second time in a week's time. From there it was dinner time, and surprisingly enough, we came to a decision without defaulting to the Comet. Good call, too, on Becky's part - we found ourselves at Andy's Mediterranean Grille over off Nassau, a place I'd not been since probably my sophomore year in college.

samosas. pita. falafel. shish tawook! yummmm.... | andy's | cinci, oh

GOOD CALL!
I made an itty bitty box out of the napkin wrapper while we were at dinner, but the remaining square was juuuust a little too small to fashion the horse I wanted to go with it. When I got home though? Different story. Haha.


horsigami! ;)

Ahhh. Good stuff. Haha. It's getting late, and I've just caught up with Becky and her New York adventure [& some amaaazing pictures!]; it's time to get some sleep and get ready for tomorrow.

xo | cmd 

Hodge Podge Day

Ohio Roots. This is a grass roots initiative local to [duh] Ohio. This is one of their newest decal stickers; I saw it today, and while I didn't get one [yet], I did like it and thought I'd share. As much as that crazy state makes me even crazier, it is my root state and I am a proud Buckeye.

o-h.... i-o!!

Secondly: I'm taking a big ole' chunk of blog to acknowledge my awesome co-workers. They are fully aware of my affinity for owls, and they go out of their way to make sure they appease it. I love 'em! Here's a BIG round of applause to Ali, Andi, Linda & Tonya for all of the various owl accessories that adorn my little corner of the office. Andi added a new touch to the collection to day with the little pink lip balm [prolly won't even use the contents... but dang, it's still cute!], which has made a new home with the other pretty hoots. Love!

whooooooooo ... feels loved??! [me!!] 

Dawne had family in town just for the night; two members of which were little girls about Syd's age. I agreed for Sydni to have a sleepover with them tonight, which I'm sure she is enjoying to no end. Rob and I made a quick break up to Granite to see what the deal was with my now wobbly car [= needs new tires, x2. I have such a helpful boyfriend!], then off for some dinner at Bindy's before heading home to call it an early night. 

I'm not too thrilled about the car, but it's okay; there are worse things, and we will take care of that mess next week when we're back from Ohio. 

*Yawn.... I'm spent.... 

xo | cmd

OWLi .. Is Awesome (:

I have an awesome friend, and I want you to meet her.... (:

little trinkets from ali!

Today was one of those chaotic days during which I often forget to just take a breath, stop for a moment, and remember that I have awesome people around me.

Ali made a trip out on her lunchbreak and, in an unwarranted act of awesome friendness [yeah, I said it, friendness], came back bearing these OWLsome little things for me. She rocks.... and for the record, those fleece owl pants could've been printed with neon hearts and I still would've worn them because they are so... stinkin'... comfortable. That's a big old WIN. Thanks, friend!!

just.. like... mama... haha

^ Yep, and just in case you thought my fantastic day ended at work.... I came home and found myself cozying away an evening with this little munchkin. She's turning into a little techy [in addition to her outdoorsy side; please don't think my kid is a couch potato!]. She insisted on watching a Barbie movie on my laptop, and much to both my awe and terror, she figured out how to set the entire thing up.... on her own. Holy smart toddler. Haha. Ohhhh.. I've got my work cut out for me.

No complaints though ;)

xo | cmd

Owl Illusions [Art Post]

owl I shot at the bluegrass festival with catie (: 

I know.
I've got this thing for owls. Haha.

It's gotten to the point where everyone else has noticed it, too. Here's a few of the little diddies that I've found over the last few days and/or have been sent to me from friends who recognize my affinity for these beautiful creatures.

apple of my eye ;) | [sent from max]

coffee bean owl! [sent from ali]

sweet little guy (: | [sent from rob]

latte owl [much better than my latte art] | [sent from tonya]

four eyes illusion ::) | [sent from kanice]

Owl....always love these little creatures! 

Hope you enjoyed them, too!

xo | cmd