The New Year Can Only Get Better From Here!

If it is not one thing with me, it is certainly another!  We had such a wonderful time in Michigan with my family and left there early early in the morning on Thursday the 28th.  We flew from Detroit to Rapid City, South Dakota to get some more family time yet with Mr. Fantastic's side.  I should have known that things were not going to be perfect.  As soon as we got in, my allergies to cats started showing their ugly face!  My breathing was slow ans labored and I could not stop coughing or bowing my nose.  Within the first evening, I had already gone through an entire box of kleenix!   The allergy medication, the cold medicine, the warm tea....nothing was helping.  Friday morning we decided to get out of the house.  We went wine tasting and then eagle watching.  It was really nice to be outside, but the cold just set in on my hurting lungs even more, and before I knew it, I was hurting everywhere.  That night it got so miserable, and my innhaler wasn't giving me any relief.  We packed up a small bag and headed over to his cousin's house in hope that I could find some relief. Through the night I continued to get worse.  On top of the breathing problems, and the congestion, I started having panic attacks.  I was up and down all night struggling to breath and maintainn some sort of calmness in order to not perpetuate the anxiety cycles.  By morning, it was clear that we had no other choise but to travel into town to the hospital.  We hoped for a qucik visit - maybe they could just give me a breathing treatment and send us on our way so we would still make it to the family bowling outing we had planned.
When we got to the hospital, my oxygen saturation levels were at 88%  - pretty bad!  They got me in a room and started checking me out.  The anxiety continued which didnt help the breathing at all.  Before I knew it, I was drugged up on several different drugs, had a few breathing treatments, holes in my veins and still wasn't getting any better.  They admitted me. 
So the final diagnoses was pneumonia, with severe asthma and allergy symptoms.  My hospital stay lasted 7 days!  Yes, that is insane!  Throughout the experience, Mr Fantastic was right there with me holding me hand.  When they blew out all of my viens and had to put a central line through my jugular and into my heart, we was there.  When I had to walk from the bed to the bathroom, he steadied my walk.  When I tried to walk down the hall for the very first time, he was there to push my oxygen tank.  And when all my tubes and monitors got in my way, he helped me to brush my hair.  What a wonderful man he is! 
So, that explains where I have been for a bit.  Now that I am finally home, I am still unable to do much because my oxygen levels are still so low, but it is better than being in the hospital.  I'm slowly working towards posting my goals for the new year, starting my new classes for the quarter, trying to eat a little healthier, and praying that the mess in this house will somehow clean itself so that I can continue to rest up before returning to work tomorrow.   
Here are some pictures but I must warn you, they are not for the weak!

I hope you all have a lovely week. 
Loves!!!

52 Lists. 52 Weeks. Things/Thoughts That Keep Me Up At Night

Do I have clean pants for tomorrow?  What's the weather going to be like this week?  Are we going to fly at work tomorrow?  Why did I wait so late to go to bed?  Why did I forget yet again to make a doctor's appointment?  My back still hurts really bad.  I have a million things to do.  I need to stop smoking!!!  How could I decorate this room or that room.  The wind is really loud.  I should check my bank account.  Did I make sure to tell Mr. Fantastic how much I love him?  Is he ever going to officially ask me to marry him?  I need to loose weight.  What could I do and not realize that I am doing to make sure that I loose weight?  Stop grinding my teeth!  Where is my nigthguard anyways?  Where is all my lost artwork?  I need to scrapbook.  I need to paint.  I need to sew.  I need to clean.  I can't wait to use my mixer.  Sid I set the alarm?  What about the security system?  It's too hot or it's too cold.  Why can't I sleep?
Loves!!!

Moving is busy!

Hello all!  I know I have been totally missing lately.  Here is a brief explanation:  My car died completely, we finally got into our new home, we've been painting and shopping and unpacking and trying to get internet! Yeah, so far all I have is internet on my phone.  I owe you about three weeks worth of 52 Lists. 52 Weeks.  I owe you three book reviews.  I owe you a new car post.  I owe you a moving in post.  I owe you a loving my new job post.  I owe you a couple fashion posts.  I owe you a pinterest post.  I owe you a paint picking post. I owe you a raw diet and gluten free diet post.  Most of all I owe you a giveaway post!!!!  So please please please be patient with me, don't give up on me, don't walk away thinking I've stopped blogging.  I will return soon.  I will give you all of these posts and more!  I PROMISE!!!!  If you would, please just give me a couple weeks and by then I should at least have internet fully functioning and hopefully a lot of the house stuff done so that I have lots more time to blog.  Miss you guys!
Loves!!!

Moving to Utah?!!! - A New Update!

I suppose that I should start off by saying that I have been super busy moving across the country, buying a house, getting enrolled in a new school, and starting a new job, so pardon me if I haven't been around much!  I have caught up on my "52 Lists.  52 Weeks." Posts.  All in time for the new prompt to come out tomorrow.  I'm excited!  So, I believe I have told you already that we are buying a new build home.  That basically means three things: 1) The house is brand spanking new and we won't have to deal with any nasty things left over from a previous owner.  2) We got to pick out a lot of the finishing touches and were also able to change some details along the way.  3) The process is a little more time consuming.  However, we have made it over to the house a few times and each time the small changes make me so happy.

We only have about 2 weeks before we close!  It's getting exciting!  Next week they will be fixing some of the small details that I had issues with such as the placement of the island in the kitchen and a flooring issue.  They will also be putting in the granite counter-tops, putting in the faucets, and finishing some small things.  We have a walk-through inspection as well where we will look at every little paint spot and every little mark, put a piece of blue tape on it, and have it fixed before we close.  I am going to try to go over to the house tomorrow and take a walk-though video to post.  We shall see! 
Have a pleasant Sunday!
Loves!!!

Hard Things.

Sometimes in the middle of wonderful, I feel pretty lousy.  When I feel this way, I get so mad at myself and that makes me feel even lousier.  Sometimes everything in life is working out just wonderfully.  I get so excited and anxious though.  Then all of a sudden, I crash.  I feel like doing nothing but sleeping away the day and the night.  I look at all the things I need to do, and I just sit down instead....or lay down and fall asleep.  Right now I have about a thousand projects saved in my to do files, I've got art supplies out the wazzoo, and I have nothing but time on my hands.  Yet, I can't do anything.  I feel bored, anxious, lonely, sad, lazy, and dull.  I have sat around most of the day trying to come up with ways to keep myself occupied...well, keep my mind occupied, just so that I won't have time to sleep or to cry.  Why can't I get out my supplies instead and start crafting?  Why can't I get out my nail polish and paint my nails happy colors?  Why can't I clean the house?  Why can't I read a book?  Why can't I bake some bread?  Why why why?  I don't know.  I really wish I did.  Instead I just sit here and watch the clock move backwards.  Yuck! 
Mr. Fantastic is on his way home from Utah right now.  He has had nothing but delay after delay this whole trip and it is frustrating.  I wish he would just hurry up and get here so that I can curl up next to him and feel better.  Here's to a better tomorrow!
Loves!!!

Everything Happens for a Reason

I am notorious for getting super excited about things that MIGHT happen and then being super sad and disappointed when they don't pan out.  My most recent excitement came when we wanted to buy a house.  I was heartbroken when we discovered that all income is not considered - only wages - and therefore we could not qualify to buy a house.  Instead, we are stuck in a rental that costs us 250 MORE than our mortgage would have.  Yucky! 
However, there may be a good side to all of that.  When Mr. Fantastic was trying to decide what he wanted to do with his life after getting out of the military, we knew one thing that he did not want to do was have to deploy again over-seas without me.  Knowing that, he decided not to continue his military work as a civilian.  Just recently though, the possibility of continuing that work as a civilian and not having to go overseas, has come up.  Of course, it is one of those things that I have gotten SUPER excited about!
Basically, it would include us moving to another state, having financial stability to the point that we can finally get this wedding thing underway and start a family.  The details are still being thrown around and thought about.  We have some good friends within the company and some great connections, so we want to believe that he can get the position.
So, now you see why I believe that everything happens for a reason.  I can't imagine considering this opportunity if we had actrually purchased a home here!  The good news is that a full-time job means everything when trying to purchase a home.  Besides that, my credit score just shot up because some stupid mistakes I made while I was young finally fell off of my report.  Not only can his income and credit be considered, but now mine can too, which means that again, things happen for a reason!
Please, please, please, cross your fingers and toes with us, that everything pans out the way that we are hoping and believing that it could.  This would be a tremendous opportunity for him as well as for us as a couple...as a soon to be family!  I think that is one of the most important pros for us in all of this - we can finally be financially comfortable, and have the stability that we believe is important to have before beginning a family.  We would finally be able to begin our family without the concern that we would end up unable to provide a good life for our future children.
Sure, we would still have stress - everyone does - but we would feel a lot more comfortable about it.  Again, everything happens for a reason, and I just hope that the reason we couldn't get that house when we wanted it, was because we were not supposed to have it.  Instead, I hope that we are supposed to find happiness in another place.  If not, I will again remind myself that everything happens for a reason and that we will eventually see that reason and be content with our purpose!
Have a lovely weekend
Loves!!!

[Working On] Wednesday:Self- Portrait

I Know Nothing About Anything

Big day today.  I got my midterm process book back and was absolutely shocked by the response it received.  I got an A-!  It wasn't the horrible grade I was expecting.  Of course, that could be due to the fact that it's just the midterm and what we have done so far.  It isn't the final.  I hope that isn't the case though.  The instructor's comments made me feel really good about my work.  She said it was impressive.  IMPRESSIVE!!!  And here I thought that she overlooked me as a student and found interest in other students instead.  She thought my photography was great too!  The best part is that she overlooked the fact that I was missing a few parts that should have been included.  Maybe that is because I was so specific and detailed in what I did have in there.  Apparently my connections between my inspiration, the work of other designers, and my work is wonderful.  I was ecstatic about my grade!!
During that same class today, we watched a film about Milton Glaisure.  It was a pretty inspiring documentary-style film and I really enjoyed it.  I wrote down a few ideas that really stuck out for me while watching it.  I am considering using one of them as the title for my Process Book when I turn in the final draft at the end of the semester....at the end of this month.  
Tell me what you think of the following titles:
Do Good Work
I Know Nothing About Anything
The Silent Responsibility [or A Designer's Responsibility]
Also today, I did a lot of filming for my self-portrait video.  The main thing I filmed was releasing red balloons into the sky.  I took pictures and did actual film shots.  It did not turn out like I had imagined though because the wind was blowing hard.  The balloons kept getting stuck in my neighbor's tree.  I hope that I at least got some footage I can work with though.  
How was your day?  Did you do anything fun or exciting?  Tell me about it in a comment.
Enjoy the rest of your week.
Loves!!

[Working On] Wednesday: Postcard Project

I feel as though I really need to preface this project with an explanation before I end up bombarded with ugly comments.  A few weeks ago I was on campus late at night.  I couldn't park near the art building because of an event that was going on, so I had to walk a good distance back to my car.  My walk took me through the "social square" of campus on a pedestrian only road.  Apparently this is where all the students that live on campus hang out at night because there were a ton of people all over the place.  Some were playing football, some were skateboarding, and others were sitting in groups doing whatever.  The whatever part is what I want to address.  As I walked, I noticed a very large group sitting around and right out in the open, they were smoking weed!!!!  WOW!  I was shocked.  I mean I could smell it and I could see the pipe being passed around.  I can't say that I have issues with people that do that, but I can say that I was surprised to see them out in the open in a very busy area just doing it like it was no big deal!  I wanted to ask them if they were not afraid of getting caught.  What happens if I wasn't just a casual passerby?  What if I had had been an officer?  Did they not care?
Out of curiosity, I decided to check into the school's drug policy.  Would you believe that it was very hard to find?  Although I did find the policy, it took some searching.  One would think that a policy regarding drugs on the campus of such an important and huge school, would be out in the open and easy for everyone to see or find.  It started me thinking about how effective (or ineffective) the policy can be or is.  Apparently it isn't all that effective because not only are students using drugs, but they are using them right out in the open with no concern for their surroundings!
Obviously there are so many different types of drugs:  some legal, and some not so legal.I'd be willing to bet that a good percentage of the students at UT, use at least some form of drug on a weekly, if not daily basis.  Drugs to consider are caffeine, tobacco, weight-loss medications, anti-depressants (both prescribed and otherwise acquired), painkillers, energy supplements, alcohol, steroids, and of course they obvious ones like weed, cocaine, heroine, and mushrooms.  So if we consider this, than why is it that doing drugs is so easy for students to get away with?
Fast-forward a few weeks.  We are assigned to create a postcard and send it to the school addressing a human issue that we previously brainstormed.  Well, I had previously brainstormed Prescription Abuse and branched that off in many directions until it came down to drugs in general.  I thought this would be the perfect time to question drugs on campus and the lack of action taking place over the issue.  A word that really stuck out to me was the word "AWARE."  Maybe the faculty and staff are simple unaware that this is going on.  Maybe they assume that the students wouldn't do drugs on campus, and therefor they leave the issue alone or covered.  I thought, perhaps all it takes is some action to make them aware of the drug behaviors on campus and to uncover the reality - to point it out and put it up in their faces to take a look at.
There was one other requirement for this project.  We had to channel one designer that we had previously researched.  We each had three designers to choose from for our channeling exercise.  I picked the one that I loved the most:  Gail Anderson.  She has an amazing talent with typography and I really wanted to use her work as a means for my own.  So, I will stop boring you with the back story now and present my project.  First is a picture of the Gail Anderson work that I considered:

And now here is my postcard:

What do you think?  Do you like it?  Do you think it is effective in portraying the idea I am trying to get across?  Is it a good communication method?
Loves!!

4 Years Ago ( A Heavy Burden)

4 years ago today I was in an "it's complicated" relationships.  Of course neither of us were good for the other.  We had a way of loving to fight.  We both had our baggage, and it was really heavy.  The setting was Iraq....we were there.  The rules kept a divide between us.  Many days and sometimes weeks would pass and our schedules never met up.
4 days later I saw his friend in the chow hall and asked how he was doing.  the answer I got was, "Ryan is dead."  I told him, "Don't fu*k with me." and walked away.  But it was true.  He had been killed.

March 5, will always be stuck in my head.  We can ask what if as many times as we want to, or think If only....
but that doesn't change anything in our lives.  We can choose to remember all the good times and remember what made us happy, or we can choose to regret every moment that we held a grudge and every moment that we didn't give someone a chance.  The past is just that - the past.  However, we can make the choice, to forget about it or learn from it.  When someone we care about is suddenly gone, there is nothing that can be done to change that.  We can though, remember all the times that we could have said something or done something differently, and apply that to the future.
when you love someone, you have to let them know.  When someone makes you smile, smile as big as you can.  When you can choose to fight, choose to hug and laugh instead.  Life is too short.  In an instant it can all come crashing down on you and you may never have the chance to say, "I'm sorry....I love you....you are right....you matter to me."
4 years ago, I lost someone special, and although I could never imagine not having Mr. Fantastic in my life now, sometimes I still wonder what if, and that is an awfully heavy burden to carry.
My wish for you is that you never carry that burden.  My wish for you is that you always take the time to make up before you go to sleep, to forgive before you walk out the door, to remember that the little things that upset you are only little things compared to all the good that there is.
Loves!!

Coping with Stress

I am realizing as of late, that stress is a big component of life!  Of course, there is good stress and bad stress.  The bad stress is what makes me crazy.  It wears me down, makes me sad, and doesn't help the winter blues.  It is the stress that I need to fight off!  So, if you are like me and need some good ways to fight off the bad stress that tends to attack, here is a list of things you might enjoy doing.  By doing these things ) especially for the next couple months we have left of winter, hopefully we can fight off some bad stress, build up our happy selves, and maintain a more balanced life.
Here is my list:

Get enough sleep. This one is huge for me!  I might get into bed at 1030, but then I play a game on my phone until I finally force myself to shut my eyes at nearly midnight.  During the day I am always tired and long for a good nap.  I love me a great nap.  So much so that I tend to take 2 hour naps.  Now if I could just get myself to go to bed at a good time and wake up rested, I might be able to feel refreshed after a night of sleep and only take a quick poser nap if needed.


Say "no" to things I don't want to or don't have time to do.  It's in my nature to try to make everyone happy.  This means that a lot of times, I stretch myself too thin.  I end up doing all kinds of things for others, and not having enough me time.  I am going to work on doing only the things that I actually want to do, and this should free up some time for myself.  That way, I end up doing lots of stuff that I want to do and still feeling as though I'm not missing out.

Buy myself something I can afford.  Sometimes it's nice to give ourselves a little pick-me-up present.  It puts a smile on our face.  It is important to remember though that we don't need the big fancy gifts.  Sticking to the things we can afford, gives us more financial room and less bad stress over how we are going to afford all the things in life that we "need."

Make enough time to do what I want.  This one relates well to the say no one from above.  When my time isn't filled with doing too many things I don't really want to do just so others are happy, I have more time to do things that I want.  This works in two ways, not only am I not stressed about having too much to do, but, I also am fighting away some of that bad stress by doing the things I want to do!

Buy something for my house or apartment.  I just love it when our home reflects us.  Sometimes a little something here or there can add a little touch of happiness.  It doesn't have to be elaborate, but something new here or there will break up the monotony and give us a fresh perspective.
Solve a problem that's been bothering me.  The matter of time management gets to me!  I could sit for hours and look at pretty websites and make awesome crafty stuff, but then I neglect the dishes or the laundry and it piles up.  Before I know it, I'm tuck with hours and hours of cleaning up.  If I would have just done it in the first place, it would have only taken a couple minutes, instead of all the time it takes when I put it off.

Do something fun outdoors.  Right now, we are having a little "Indian Summer."  This weekend it has been in the 60s and sunny!  I love it.  I need to get out in the sunshine and soak it up before winter returns to us.  The sun really helps to relax me, and gets my positive vibes going.  That reduces my bad stress.  I resolve to try to get out in it a little more often.

Enjoy my favorite hobby.  I get paid tomorrow!  That means that I get to pick up some more yarn and work on crocheting a sweater that I started.  I've also been working on scrapbooking again recently.  It's so much fun to remember all the things I've gotten to do.

Be active with my favorite physical activity.  Ha!!!!  This one is really a tough one for me to put into practice, but I know it is for the best!  I honestly don't care for physical activity much, but I know that it helps that bad stress melt away.  Walking is something that helps me.  I get my heart rate up a bit, I don't really have to breath too heavy and I don't have to sweat (I hate sweating).  Plus, it gives me a little bit of peaceful time to think and enjoy my own thoughts and ideas.

Go to a movie.  I love love love movies!  I especially love going to them and getting a big thing of popcorn.  Movies are stories that we can witness faster than by reading a book.  Usually, I like to watch ones that make me laugh.  Laughter is a really great way to fight off bad stress.

Spend time with my puppy.  Kaye is always happy all of the time.  When she wags her little curly tail at me, I have to smile.  She always makes me feel better.  She loves me unconditionally!

Relax with a good book or magazine.  Part of my goals for this year include reading 12 books.  Reading provides a good quiet atmosphere to be at peace.  It slows down my mind and lets me relax. 

Listen to my favorite music.  Pretty much any music is amazing!  I just love sitting in my car with the windows cracked, the wind blowing and the radio turned up!  I sing to the songs I know and pretend to lip sync to the ones I don't know.  I just know that people are looking at me - with envy of course- wishing they could just let loose and belt out a few tunes themselves!

Have a great week!  Loves!