A Tale of Two Cities

(or, maybe, one city and one teeny tiny town)

In two weeks, I'm going to NYC with my sister, my nieces and my older nieces BFF (I suspect this was the bribe necessary to get older niece to NYC). I am out of my mind excited. I'm excited to spend some time shopping with my sister, goofing of with my nieces and of course, seeing my baby niece (16 years old!) high kick it with The Rockettes--the whole reason we're going.


Cannot.Contain.Excitment. I've purchased a whole new wardrobe for the damn trip.

However, the fun doesn't stop there, oh no. Instead of coming back to Dallas, my dad thought it would be genius (genius, I say!) to have me fly from New York, to the family ranch.

So, I'll be going from glittering lights and sky scrapers, to this:

And, I'm actually excited about it! It'll be a total change of scenery considering I don't think they even have Internet at the ranch (and no cable, fyi), but, a few days hanging out with my family, relaxing by the river and begging someone to please, please find me a horse to ride will be just what the doctor ordered.

Summer Vacation 2011: NYC and Montana. Sure.

(images from here and here)

Sun Baby

First of all, thank you for all the sweet comments about my soldier baby brother, means a lot!

Also, I may have spoken too soon about him being single. I got an email from him mom yesterday because I was trying to track him down and she goes "Yeahhhh, you haven't heard from him because he met a girl. He's been home a week! They're been texting back and forth non stop. I can't get anything other than one word answers out of him!".

And I haven't stopped laughing since. Only he would meet a girl on his way back for R&R. And yes, I will turn into crazy big sister and semi stalk this chick.

MOVING ON.

What I really want to talk about is this: Mystic Tan Sunless Spray. I picked this up when I went in for my first spray tan of the season and of course, I was semi skeptical, but, because I am a sales persons dream, I bought it.

O.M.G.

Love at first spray.

Y'all, it's awesome. It does not turn you orange, it makes you actually TAN and is supah easy to use. I just spray it on in an hour or so before bed and then shower off in the morning. The only thing I've found is it can get a little blotchy, so, be sure to wipe off the spot where the color pools when you're spraying it on.

As a reformed sun baby, I love this. Gets you tan without the risk of skin cancer! Win win!

What are you favorite sunless products?

(I was not compensated for this post, blah, blah, I just seriously love this product! And a good tan!)

The Baby Brother

If y’all know me, you know I have an interesting family dynamic (but, honestly, don’t we all?). My folks divorced when I was a kid, and, to be honest, I still have some hostility about it (why yes, I do hold grudges, why do you ask?).

Because of this, I basically started adopting family members. I had a second “mom”, several “sisters”, a “big brother”, and, at some point, I gained a “baby brother”.

His mom worked with my dad and our families became really close. He was a total pain in the ass, but, I loved him like a brother. We were really close for years. He got to high school when I was a senior and I remember taking him home from school all the time, picking him up for basketball games and getting a fountain Coke and Hot Tamales at the market. And I’m pretty sure he duped me into getting him lunch on my off campus period.

He made me laugh, he picked on me, he hit on my friends, but, most importantly, he was there when it mattered. He was my little brother, after all.

And then, suddenly, he wasn’t so little anymore. He’s a grown up. And now, he’s a soldier.

I had the opportunity to see him a few weeks ago when he was on his way back to the West Coast for R&R. Things in the Army are always changing and it wasn’t until the night before when he emailed me from Germany that I knew it was a go.

I got to the airport bright and early, joined by military families and waited. And waited. And waited. And finally, my baby brother—who’s no longer a baby, was there. Standing in front of me, in his uniform and looking like a regular soldier.
I gave him the biggest hug I think I’ve ever given anyone and tried my damndest not to cry.

I was too flustered to get out my camera, but, these are a few pictures captured by the volunteers at the airport.


We had a few minutes together and I took him to his next gate, and we had a few minutes to laugh and just be. He made fun of my height. I tried to talk him out of moving to Florida when he gets out of the Army. He refused to let me help him carry his bags. He picked on my hair (it was humid, ok!), and I stood in awe of the man he’s become.

A final hug goodbye and “I’ll see you in two weeks” and he was off--headed home.

And I was fine. Until the little bastard wrote on my Facebook status. And then I lost it.

I’m so grateful to all the military families and friends. To those who sacrifice for us. I’m so blessed to have the freedoms I do, because of their service.

Thank you.

PS. Ladies, he’s single.

Friday Confessions

I'm bored, it's Friday, why not, right?

1. I seriously debated going to In N Out last night at like 9:30. After I'd already eaten dinner. I figured the line would be shorter. But, I didn't. I now regret that decision.

2. I'm beach-sick like whoa (it's like homesick, only, I don't really miss my backwards hometown or annoying people who never left, I just miss the beach aspect of my hometown).

3. I spent a pretty penny on a bag that I totally didn't need yesterday. It's two words, one starts with L the other with V. I mean, I'm 26, what do I need a savings account for anyway (name that episode, Ren)?

4. My dog ate my favorite pair of pumps a few weeks ago, so, naturally, they are no longer sold (of course!) so, I ordered a similar pair, and guess what, too small. But, being the lazy gal I am, I have shoved my clod hoppers into them and damn it they will fit!

5. I have put together an entire wardrobe for my NYC trip with my sis and nieces in two weeks. Too bad I'm only taking a carry on. This will be a problem.

6. I'm seriously considering ice cream/frozen yogurt for dinner tonight (Ren, you in for some Yogurtland?). Don't judge, it's 500 degrees here. And, I had a stupid healthy lunch.

7. I only use my iPad to watch TV shows lately. This probably isn't what the husband intended when he got it for me.

8. I found an old Kathy Reichs book the other day that I had from my forensic anthro class in college. Obviously, this only intensifies my Bones obsession. Not good.

9. I haven't gone grocery shopping for anything other than Diet Coke and chips in ages, and I'm mildly ok with that.

10. Debating pulling a Costanza and sleeping under my desk. You know you've thought about it too.

What about you, any Friday confessions?

California Dreamin'

In honor of this blessed restaurant opening in DALLAS, TEXAS (!), I have been feeling nostalgic for my home state.

It's a well known fact that I absolutely adore Texas and can't imagine living anywhere else, but, I am a beach bum at heart and miss the sand, the sun and the salt.

I seem to get especially melancholy in the summer months--months that were once spent planted in the sand, searching my bag for wax, late night dinners of milkshakes and fries and cool, salty air.

Source: flickr.com via Shabby on Pinterest

Finding the perfect hidden spot.

Source: soul-surfer.tumblr.com via Shabby on Pinterest

Or, enjoying the city life.

No matter how you slice it, California is home.

Source: soul-surfer.tumblr.com via Shabby on Pinterest

Where there's nothing like an early morning wave.

It's just California Dreamin' y'all.

And the livin's easy....

It's summer time!

Well, it's been summer for weeks here in Texas, but, today, for my niece at least, it is officially summer--the girl graduates from high school today. Which, I am not ok with and there might be tears because I'm not there and also, she's seven years old, this isn't possible.

Summer is my absolute favorite time of the year--even with the heat, the bugs and the humidity. Summer will always remind me of freedom--of that final bell on the last day of school and running outside into three months of freedom! Three months of cook outs, sandy feet, ice cold lemonade and fun!

There is nothing I love more than a lazy day at the pool, the beach, or the lake. Summer means concerts, rodeos and water--of which I will be getting my fill of for sure this summer, don't you worry!

Sadly, I no longer live at the beach, but, I can still get my summer fix thanks to pool lounging and book reading.

Oh, and umbrella drinks, of course.

This weekend will be the unofficial summer kick off at casa de SP--please expect to find me planted by the pool and reading some trashy magazines--I might be a grown up, but, clearly not much has changed since I was a teenager.

What are your summer loves?

What's in a name?

We all have names. Our given names, nicknames, names we wish our parents had named us, names we're holding onto for our future children--everything has a name.

My given name, I haven't gone by since I was probably six years old--no one calls me that, not even my parents--my grandpa will occasionally, but, it's rare--it's just not "me". I go by a nickname and it fits me perfectly, well, I think anyways.

It's short, it's simple. Or so I thought.

I have worked at my current company for over a year now, and honestly, people still spell it wrong! It cracks me up. The funniest to me, is when letters get added and then another is subtracted--cracks me up. Although, admittedly, the bane of my existence is the intern who set up my email address using my full name and it bugs the hell out of me. Our email server is weird, so, no one can tell me how to change it. Awesome.

What about you, do you go by your full/given name, or, a nickname? Do you like your name? Would you change it if you could? I used to want to when I was little, but, even then it wasn't much of a stretch from my actual name--obviously, I was a super creative kid, ha!

So, tell me, what's in a name?