Maybe 25 Won't Be So Bad

Hey guys,

So I expect that this post will be a little more somber and less upbeat than usual. I mean, I do usually write my posts when I'm in a good mood. But I've just finished crying (good crying, I promise) and I feel like in order to be true to myself and to this blog (which I'm not sure anyone reads anymore since I've deactivated my Facebook and therefore have a much smaller platform to share my posts on) I need to share the good and the bad. I swear that this post has a happy ending, I really do. I have every intention of posting it along with a very nice Instagram collage if all goes well. 

So anyway, let's start with the bad.

I've posted about anxiety and depression in the past, and when I wrote those posts I felt like I was in a very good place. So many people (I literally mean people I've never spoken more than five words to or even flat out openly hated in the past) came out of the woodwork to share their stories with me and ask me How? How did I get better? How did I fix myself? The answer varied in different conversations, but I the bottom line was always that I truly believe that taking myself out of a toxic environment and finding a partner and a group of friends that loved me and embraced me for me changed the game entirely. 

But sometimes the environment can change, and things can get worse again. Sometimes the toxic environment can follow you. Sometimes that toxic environment can swallow up the entire country and make things bad again. 

And it has. 

Since about October I've been feeling more and more down (although as a small bonus, my anxiety has taken a back seat to my depression, which is a common thing I've learned can happen in people who experience both illnesses). I deactivated my Facebook. I cut off communication with a lot of people I couldn't stomach anymore. I've tried to fill my days with kittens and rainbows and things that make me happy. 

Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I am definitely getting better. I've done a lot of crying today, thanks to having seen The Perks of Being a Wallflower for the first time (those happy tears I was talking about). But in general, since hitting an extreme low about three weeks ago, I have been doing everything in my power that I'm willing to do (and by that I mean all of the easy stuff and none of that "cardio" my doctor keeps talking about... I'm not sorry) to lift my mood, and it has definitely been working. I'm keeping a chart. I've changed a bit of my diet. I'm keeping up communication with the friends and family that love me and support me. I picked up a couple of new hobbies that I'm working on.

As a result of how I've been feeling lately (which, let's be clear, is because my feelings are easily hurt and the fighting/hatred going on in the country lately is really making me very sad), I've really not been looking forward to my birthday. 

I turned 25 today. I say today because I haven't gone to sleep yet, therefore it is still my birthday. But if you want to get all technical, my birthday ended just over two hours ago. My point is, and the entire point of this post is, I really haven't been looking forward to turning 25. Turning a quarter of a century old is supposed to be one of the "big birthdays,", but it was even less than "just another birthday" to me. Every year my birthday comes with a little bit of dread. I dislike being the center of attention and that just comes with a day dedicated to you, you know? But this year, as the days crept up to my birthday, I just felt numb toward it... And then it got to be February 6th, the day that I was going to celebrate my birthday because Patrick had the day off of work (until the weekend when we head off to Astoria, Tillamook, and Seaside), and I started off the day with a bang. 

Because within maybe a half an hour of waking up, I was sobbing. 

I think it was a combination of things that set me off. First of all, the general feeling of the weight of the world (you guys know that feeling) was really killing me that morning. Then, it was the neighbors below us that have been making us miserable with their stomping since the day they moved in. I had also just woken up from what was apparently too much sleep (?????????), and therefore I was a little off balance. I was out of my good cereal and the cereal I thought would be "just fine" tasted like literal sawdust (pro tip: Don't buy the Kashi GoLean cereal if you care about yourself). I was experiencing an HS flare up after months of peace with a nice, red, angry cyst smack dab at the bottom of my widow's peak which made my entire face extremely painful (and unsightly). A lot of little things were piling up on my heart and in my mind that morning

So midway through my bowl of literal sawdust, I burst into tears. 

After lots of hugs, an English muffin with "so much butter" (as I requested it from my chef *cough* I mean my loving, doting husband), opening my surprise secondary gift from Patrick (because we purchased my official birthday gift together about a month ago), and curling up on the couch to watch Space Jam, I was feeling much better. I rejected my original idea of going to paint pottery at Color Me Mine that afternoon and just opted to go to Benihana later in the evening, both ideas which I initially threw out that morning because I didn't think I could cover my forehead with any type of makeup with as much pain as I was in.

So February 6th, although it got much better in the evening, started off really, really rough. And though it got better in the afternoon/evening, I thought that there was no way in the world that my actual birthday could be even remotely decent. 

And you beautiful people all proved me wrong. My friends. My family. My loved ones who, just when I think I know what to expect from them, continue to surprise me at every turn. And now I'm crying again, but they're still happy tears, I promise. They're tears for you all. 

I'm not the only one who has a lot of stuff going on lately. Every single one of my friends and family members is going through something rather serious right now, whether it be medical, financial, of emotional. Some of them are being hit with more than one. Or even all three. 

With the way I've been feeling, I don't know how thoughtful I've been towards others lately. But regardless of what they've been going through, all of my loved ones came through yesterday and today. You wrote me things. You sent me flowers. You sent me little gifts that made you think of me. You, without even being prompted by Facebook because, as I've said, I'm no longer on there, still wished me a happy birthday. My grandmother even, in her typical nutty spirit, answered the phone when I called her back after a nap and in the middle of buying her bingo tickets sang me happy birthday. 

I've been so frickin tickled and touched all day by all of the little and big things that the people I love the very most in the world did for me. Maybe it's because I'm over emotional anyway (and still raw from a good movie cry), but man am I just feeling the love. 

So yes, I'll continue to struggle with my mood in the future. I'll have good days. And I'll have really bad days. But on those days, I'll remember today, with the happy birthdays and the gifts and the I love yous. I'll eat an English muffin with so much butter. I'll watch Space Jam. And I'll remember that my 25th year of life kicked off pretty damn well.

Birthday Weekend & General Life Update!

"Pardon me while I burst 
A decade ago, I never thought I would be. 
A twenty three on the verge of spontaneous combustion. Woe-is-me."

- Incubus, "Pardon Me"

Hey everyone! I had a FANTASTIC birthday weekend and I thought I would share it with all of you! I know I've posted quite a few "issue" related posts lately (more article-like than blog posts), so I thought you all could use a life update!

Patrick didn't have to travel for work for all of January and is just now going on his first business trip of the year to Austin Texas, so we've been able to spend a lot of time together! He really needed to get out of the house, though. I kid you not, he rearranged his office four times and the living room five times. He gets stir crazy after a while of strictly working from home!

Friday was February 6th, the day before my birthday, and I got to have a really great birthday dinner! Last month, I told Patrick that I wanted to "have a birthday dinner with our close friends at a sushi place" and let him run with the idea. He began inviting our friends to go out with us... until we found out that our chosen restaurant would be closed for the month of my birthday! Boo! He had already began inviting people and because we ended up having to switch restaurants, the guest list had to be cut off where it was (we had actually over-invited guests!). Even though I wish everyone had been able to come, especially the ones we got to invite, some people ended up not being able to make it so we did end up fitting in the space we reserved, which was a relief but definitely a bummer because it meant people weren't able to make it.

Regardless, I ended up having an AMAZING birthday dinner! We reserved two tatami rooms with the divider between them removed at a Japanese restaurant in San Carlos called Kaigan Sushi, where we've eaten several times before, but it was my first time in a tatami room!

For those who don't know (because I sure didn't until I moved here), a tatami room can be many different things depending on what context you're using it in, but in our case it was a small room with a raised floor and a step to get into. You take off your shoes and place them below the step, and then walk up into the room and sit at a sunken table. I could try my hand at describing it, which would likely turn out really poorly, or I could show you this nice image, courtesy of Google.

Example of our tatami room, courtesy of Google Images.

As you can see, the table is sunken in and the seating is one long, continuous bench around the table. Though our seats did not have chair bases, we did have some nice chair cushions to sit on! Our tables were smaller than the one in the image, though. 

Patrick and I headed out several hours early to account for traffic, and even though we had had an entire week of clear, beautiful weather, it started raining on Friday morning and really hasn't stopped much since, and now it's Sunday! We overshot the traffic a little bit, so to kill time Patrick and I did a little bit of various shopping (specifically searching for one item-- I'll explain later), and he ended up with a new coat and I got a new pair of Captain America PJ pants! Yay Target! 

When it got closer to the reservation time and we finally got to San Carlos and found parking, we trudged through the rain and eventually got to sit down to dinner. We all ordered various dishes, and I had an appetizer of shrimp tempura and gomae (steamed spinach in a sesame sauce) and then a chicken teriyaki bento box, which included grilled chicken in a teriyaki sauce, a small salad with a sweet, creamy dressing, sticky rice, California rolls, fried dumplings, and miso soup. I'm a little picky, so I gave away my fried dumplings and I only ate the crab out of my California rolls (is that disrespectful? I think it is but it was my birthday so I think I get a pass), but everything else was DELICIOUS!

For dessert, we had my traditional assorted variety birthday cheesecake (my slice was chocolate cheesecake with chocolate drizzle and chocolate chips-- YUM). It just wouldn't be my birthday without an assorted variety cheesecake!

*Fun fact, I was talking to my mother on Saturday and she told me about a random craving for cheesecake that she had. She ended up purchasing an assorted variety cheesecake and eating only one slice, which was the same exact type that I did-- not even knowing that that was what I'd eaten 18 hours before. How's that for ESP? 

After dinner was over, some people decided to head home while the rest of us headed over to our favorite Hawaiian restaurant down the street, Noelani's! They have the BEST french fries (I don't even normally like french fries!) and drinks for those who like alcohol (I still can't get a taste for it) and so we sat outside on their heated patio by a nice fire while it rained all around us. It was so cozy and beautiful!

On Saturday, the actual day of my birthday, we had a Rocky show to do! However, Patrick had to leave for Texas on Sunday morning, so we worked it out with our friend Delfino that we would drive to his house, he would drive us to the show, then we would drop Patrick off at the airport directly from the show, then we would drive back to Delfino's house, and then I would drive home from there. I ended up going to bed at 5:30am, but it as worth it to have been able to go to the show!

Our show this weekend was one of our special theme shows, so instead of the normal characters, each character dressed up as a different cartoon character! We had examples like Tina and Louise Belcher (Bob's Burgers), Scar (Lion King), Betty Boop, Jessica Rabbit and Roger Rabbit (Who Framed Roger Rabbit), and a set of Minions (Despicable Me)! The show was fantastic and the most fun I've had at a show since probably October. I'm so proud to be a part of such an awesome cast!

And now for the part we've all been waiting for... PRESENTS! I had a bunch of fantastic, thoughtful presents this year, but there are some that I really want to give mention to!

On Friday, Patrick gave me my early birthday present of...

An Instax Mini Instant Camera! 

Do you know how hard it is to find film for this thing in stores (which is what we were searching for before dinner on Friday)? I'll tell you: It's next to impossible! We didn't find ANY! It's going to have to come from Amazon!

(Most of) The gang's all here! Thank you all so much for coming out to my birthday dinner, it meant so much to me! 

:) I love this guy!

On Friday I also got a random, unexpected package in the mail! It was...

A pair of Bluetooth headphones from my dad! 

My dad and I have always been able to connect through music and it was so cool that he sent me these. They're so awesome! I've been wanting a pair since Patrick got himself a pair for Christmas, and out of the blue I get a pair on my doorstep from my dad! He didn't even know I wanted them!

On Saturday, my actual birthday, I woke up and Patrick was gone. When he got back, he had me open my already wrapped presents, and I got... 

A new water bottle (and two extra ice sticks)! 

This might seem silly, but I was so stoked about this water bottle! I'm really picky about stuff, so when I find something I like, I usually try to stock up (and if you follow me on Twitter you know my struggle of trying to find a good pair of slippers... And how when I found a good replacement pair for my ones that are tearing, I bought five pairs...). During my trip to Michigan in December, I kind of "adopted" one of my grandparents' water bottles and ended up taking it home with me because I loved it so much, and it has been attached to my hand ever since! I never go anywhere without it, but I wanted a backup for when I need to wash it so I don't have to go without a water bottle. Lucky for me, even though the original bottle was probably 5+ years old, the same company still makes the same exact bottle, so Patrick ordered another one for me! I'm probably irrationally excited about my water bottle. I know I'm a crazy person. It's okay. He also ordered an extra two pack of ice sticks (since I lost the one to my original bottle) so now I have a nice rotation of three sticks so I can always have a nice cold drink :)

Then Patrick pulled a box out of his pocket. Apparently he had been out shopping that morning for a last minute gift. He bought me...

A diamond tennis bracelet!

We had just gotten an advertisement book from Kay Jewelers the other day in the mail and I had dog-eared a couple of bracelets that I really liked, and Patrick wanted me to have something shiny for my birthday, so he went out that morning and purchased the tennis bracelet I picked out. It is beautiful and I was blown away. I never expected it!

However, when I mentioned that I was worried that he would think I didn't like it because I wouldn't wear it just anywhere (I would be too afraid I would lose it, and I definitely wouldn't wear it to Wal Mart with my yoga pants and hoodie!), he took me back to the mall...

And got me the second bracelet that I had dog-eared in the advertisement! I think maybe Patrick has started taking crazy pills, but I'm not complaining!

I, of course, got several other awesome gifts, including flowers, balloons, and books, all from people I love very much! I had an amazing birthday! Thank you so much to everyone who was a part of it! You all sure know how to make a girl feel special :)

It's the 80's!

We've been quite busy lately, what with Patrick and I both working, so finding time to get out and do things is getting more difficult. I know everyone knows what I mean when I say that going out is the LAST thing we want to do after a full day of work! But we still continue to try!

This past Monday our friend Lindsey came over to cut my hair. I've been wanting to try something shorter for quite some time now. My main issue with hair cuts is that I'm always handing my stylist a picture of something super cute and I (usually) say "I want this, but a little longer." I don't know why I have always been so afraid of short hair! And the sad part is that, all these years, I've probably prevented myself from having some super cute hair cuts, just because I was too afraid for it to be too short. Well no more! This time, I handed Lindsey a picture, and said "Cut it off!"

Before/After

Bye bye, hair!

I couldn't be happier! The first night, after we first cut it, I was very apprehensive. However, the next day-- after I went out and bought some styling product for it (something I've never done because I hate having "stuff" in my hair, but I'm getting used to it)-- I was in love! I wish I had done it sooner! It's an asymmetrical cut, meaning it's longer on one side than the other, and it is awesome. Lindsey did an amazing job and I'm so so thankful!

It also really worked out for this weekend! It was the weekend we've all been waiting for... Jared's birthday party! I've been anticipating this for so long! They decided on an 80's theme for the party-- and I have always loved dressing for that decade-- so I was super excited to go out in my get up and have some fun!

Too bad they didn't have smart phones in the 80's!

I wore my new jean jacket that Patrick bought me (one with sweater sleeves and a sweater hood-- thanks babe!), skinny jeans, white nikes, a red bandana tied around my knee, a Night Ranger t shirt, a nose hoop, a long dangly earring in only one ear, an original Swatch (that I borrowed from Patrick... until it got randomly sticky), a pair of red plastic sunglasses, hot pink lipstick, a ton of blush, and bright blue eyeshadow. I would honestly dress like this every day (mostly... I think I would go without the bandana and the crazy eyeshadow)!

For Jared's gift, Patrick decided on something really awesome... A Kraken Gift Box! Jared loves Kraken Rum and also loves the Kraken (so much that he founded Kraken Appreciation Day, which is June 13th). You can pre-order them from KrakenRum.com. They come with the following: A Kraken T Shirt, a Kraken tooth, a Kraken laptop decal, a Kraken scroll, a Kraken lore book, a DVD about the Kraken, and a letter reassuring everyone that the Kraken IS REAL (beautifully sealed with a wax seal & Kraken stamp). The box is all laid out very nicely and comes with a slot for the bottle of rum to lay in, however, they cannot ship that across state lines, so we added that ourselves. Jackie and Dan, Julie and Doug, Victoria and Delfino, and Patrick and I all chipped in for this awesome gift. It was really cool!

Jared's Kracken Gift 

(because I forgot to take pictures beforehand and 

my phone was dead during the present opening)

Patrick leaves for Florida on Monday on a business trip, so I will be mostly alone for the next week or so. Thankfully Jackie still lives here so I won't be alone the entire time! Empty houses at night are not my thing. Overall I've had a great week!

Rock on!

A Very Rocky/Disney Birthday!

Hey everyone! I know it's been, like, a week since I've posted, but we've had a lot going on and, in my down time, I've wanted to just chill. I can't seem to relax. The stress and anxiety of the big changes that have taken place are really taking a toll on me. I've been having issues with sleep and my social anxiety is the highest it's ever been. That being said, keep in mind that I am going insane here. Back in Michigan, I was almost completely independent. The only thing I wasn't able to do was pay rent to anyone, but other than that, I took care of everything. I fed myself, worked, paid my bills, and drove everywhere and anywhere whenever I pleased. Here, it's different. I'm letting Patrick pay for small things because we know the next step (which is me saving what money I have left for bills so that I have something to work off of while I job hunt) could really go any way and we have no guarantee of when I will land a job. I'm also bored. Even with everything we've been doing, my life lacks schedule and routine, which kills me. Lately, I've been in a rut, and, for me, that means I'm losing control of my emotions. The biggest sign of that is that I have a really hard time remembering anything, like what day/date it is or what I did the previous day. I'm really hoping that getting back into blogging will help with that because it will force me to remember what I did by recalling events, even if that means I have to ask someone for help. It's better than nothing.

Alright, now that we've gotten through that intro, here comes the fun part! After a few "I'm not leaving this house, I'm going to nap on the floor and eat whatever I want" days, Patrick's birthday weekend started! I'm going to make this post as short and sweet as I can since so much happened, but the upside is that you get to scroll through a lot of fun pictures at the end! So, anyways, Patrick officially went on vacation starting last Wednesday, however, we didn't "do" anything until Friday. Friday we went to a local pub called Cameron's. The cool part about Cameron's is that they have the world's ONLY Smoking Buses! When the smoking ban passed in California, Cameron, the owner, had English double decker buses brought on site. He then ripped out the insides and put in tables, chairs, and booths, and dubbed them "The Smoking Buses!" It was a really quick and easy to allow patrons to smoke in a sheltered, comfortable area. You can even bring your drinks/food out there, however, you have to order them inside first. Cameron's was really super neat and we had a wonderful time.

After Cameron's, I drove home, which was a big deal because I had to drive through some pretty big hills with a lot of sharp turns, in a car I've never driven before, at night, with no guard rails, and to top it all off I have really terrible night vision. However, though I knew Patrick was fine to drive, I wasn't comfortable because I knew if we had been pulled over, he would not have passed a Breathalyzer test. So I insisted on driving. We were both really proud of me when we got home.

Saturday was a Rocky day! The first and last Saturday of every month are dedicated to Rocky shows, but this time, Patrick didn't have to work because it was his birthday show. Early in the day we drove around, running little errands, stopping by Patrick's friend James' house to get Patrick's birthday present (a bacon-themed "Man Crate" from mancrates.com where James works) and stopping for lunch at Chipotle (which I've never had before. It was alright, but I still prefer Qdoba). Later, we got ready and headed out for Rocky! We didn't stay for the entire show, however. We were there long enough for Patrick to get up on stage, be spanked by myself and a lot of the cast as part of their tradition, and then he was surprised by his directors with a lap dance from a Disney princess, aka Jared, aka Riff Raff in full Riff Raff costume with a pink princess dress costume on top. Everyone thought it was hysterical.

Patrick was, I think, most excited about the tiny crow bar that came with his Man Crate.

Bacon themed! Unpoped bacon popcorn, already popped Bacon Ranch popcorn, two types of bacon jerky, bacon flavored sunflower seeds, and bacon peanut brittle (which was delicious)!

Chipotle!

Missing home, rocking that MSU shirt! 

Princess Riff Raff!

We said our goodbyes and headed off to Disneyland at 1am and rolled in around 6am. We got breakfast, parked, and headed straight to the park. We went ahead and got my annual pass (Thanks, Patrick! Sorry I ruined the surprise!), and then midday we checked into the hotel, napped, and then got ready for our fancy dinner at Carthay Circle. We stopped at Mad T for a bit before dinner, and then after we ate we headed to World of Color, which is a beautiful light/water show in DCA.

Breakfast at Denny's! Hot chocolate mmmmm :)

Yay, annual pass!

An entire Disney store dedicated to hats :)

Waiting in line to meet Tinkerbell and all of these little duckies were in the pond. Patrick thinks it's hysterical, but I just love birds and ducks and other little critters! I probably took about 20 pictures of the ducklings.

Fawn!

She was so super sweet. I love to see the little ones interacting with the characters. 

Patrick calls me Grumpy Cat because I have mastered the frown. Tink posed with me and we didn't even coordinate it!

Snow White! I was super excited to see her. She was my favorite princess when I was younger and we couldn't find her when we last visited the park!

Snow was actually standing in front of this gorgeous waterfall with statues of all of the characters from her movie. 

I like Tigger...

BUT I LOVE POOH!

Getting ready for dinner :)

Awesome dancers at Mad T in DCA! I wish Gabe (my best friend's brother) would do something like this, it would be so fun!

Something Patrick had never seen before in DCA, this was a suspended gymnast act! It was awesome!

\

The White Rabbit DJ plays while the band takes its break.

The Mad Hatter

The Mad Hatter & Doormouse

Alice!

World of Color!

The second day, we headed into San Clemente, which is one of the cities that Patrick has previously lived in. He's really trying to sell me on moving there, but I think I'll take my time in making that decision. I just moved! We spent the morning at the local mall, checking things out, having lunch, and making a candle. That's right, a candle! There was this awesome little candle shop in the mall where you could go in, choose your candle shape, color, scent, and decorations, and then make it yourself! It was probably the coolest thing that we did that day. Later, we had snacks and drinks on the pier and then dinner at Carbonara with Patrick's two very good friends, Jen and Fred, and headed back to the hotel. San Clemente is much more small-town than I thought it would be. Patrick stopped into almost every single shop down the streets we walked through to say hello to old friends!

Potted plant at the mall...

And me next to it, for a size reference!

Patrick's OCD made the candle making a little challenging, but we managed :)

Our lovely instructor, Dana, and the yummy-smelling selection of scented oils that go into the candles!

Our "love" candle. It smells so good, we can't wait to light it!

Drinks on the beach :)

Day three was more Disney, but we mostly spent the day in DCA. It was a really nice day, but we could both tell that we were getting worn out from so much activity and we, again, napped and headed back after resting for dinner and souvenir shopping. It was a really great weekend trip.

The new Lone Ranger train that sits outside the front of the park

The back of the train...

Anyone who is familiar with Disney parks knows that the creators and imagineers put "Hidden Mickeys" everywhere in the park. It's a fun game to look for them! My challenge given to me by Patrick was to find 5 on this trip by myself. Unfortunately, a cast member told us about this one, but I did end up finding 5 by myself!

Lining up to meet Mike Wazowski in front of the Monster's University setup

No detail is left undone in Disneyland. Just look at that varsity jacket!

And these bikes!

We even got to see Mr & Mrs Incredible! Here, she's high-fiving me while Patrick snaps a picture.

 Unfortunately, just as we were almost to the front of the line, they went on break, but I still got a hug from Mr. Incredible! This was taken just after he "kissed" me on the forehead. He even made the smoochy noise!

Again, no detail is left undone! Look at these awesome popsicle stick benches in A Bug's Land in DCA. 

Another Hidden Mickey while waiting in line for the Little Mermaid ride!

Even the chairs sport the mouse ears :)

"Buzz Lightyear!" is what I actually shouted when I saw him walking away to take his break. I was pointing and giggling. Hey, Disney brings out the kid in all of us!

Anna, if you're reading this, this one's for you! They were also about to go on break so they stopped the line where it was, but I managed to get a shot of these two goofballs for you :)

Pineapple Dole Whip! Something I insisted on so that I could get a taste of home :) I miss my Han D Dip family!

The most exciting part of my day... Meeting Tim! Tim runs a blog on Tumblr (thedisneydifference.tumblr.com) and we knew that he was in the park because of his recent posts, so Patrick and I were keeping an eye out for him. We didn't see him the entire day, but as we were leaving the park, we both spotted him and shouted "IT'S THE DISNEY DIFFERENCE!" in unison. A little embarrassing, but not as embarrassing as the fact that the only reason I knew it was him was because I recognized the messenger bag he was carrying that he posted on Tumblr a few weeks ago. I have this weird habit where I only look at the ground when I walk (which is apparently a European habit, because Patrick does the same thing, but I caught on to it because of my Polish great grandmother and he caught on to it because of his Italian grandmother). Patrick, however, recognized him by his shorts, which I didn't realize until later when I remembered that Patrick announced to me that morning "The Disney Difference is in the park today, he just posted a picture. Look for a pair of red shorts." He may not be a super celebrity, but it was still really awesome to meet him! He's Tumblr-famous, to me, and Patrick and I love his blog! Tim, if you're reading this, thanks for being so sweet! 

When we got home, I spent the day cleaning the kitchen, which I've been wanting to do for a week or so now, and then we relaxed. Starting today, Patrick and I are going to be eating pescatarian (which is vegetarian, except you still allow yourself to eat fish) for a short time. We both agree that we could use a good cleansing and that we've been eating a lot of junk lately. Now that all of the big events have calmed down, I can finally start settling into a routine! Thank goodness! Hopefully that will help with my memory. I miss you all and remember that I'm thinking of you! Just because I don't remember to text 30 different people each day doesn't mean that you aren't on my mind :)

Patrick, I'm so glad to have spent your birthday weekend with you and I hope you enjoyed it, I know I sure did! And thank you so much for everything you've been doing for me, from cooking, to making sure I'm doing alright, to doing everything in your power to ensure that I feel comfortable and at home here. You are the best and I couldn't ask for a better partner in life. Happy birthday, hunny!

P.S. Props to me for smashing an entire week into one short post with a lot of cool pictures, eh? I tried!