Tattoo O'Clock

I got on here intending to blog about our super amazing road trip we did at the beginning of this month but I started to look through my trillion pictures, decide which ones I wanted to post and then my brain started to hurt so I stopped. We'll see if I ever develop ambition for that post of way too many pictures.

I will on the other hand, share some pictures from this past week. 

Last Tuesday we saw Lana Del Rey at Red Rocks, which made my day take a complete 180. I was a little bummed that the weather wasn't as nice as I had wanted it to be and the crop top and high waisted shorts were a 'no-go' but a little chilliness didn't stop me from crying tears of complete and utter contentment. She looked amazing, sounded amazing and I swear, her and I had a moment during "Blue Jeans." Joel and I were both shocked at how young the crowd was. We joked with the couple next to us, who were our age, about the fact that most of the people there probably had no idea who Courtney Love is. Yes, that's right, Courtney Love opened up for Lana Del Rey and it was fantastic. I especially loved her entry into her set, "I'm going to take it back to the 80's, long before you little f***ers were born." She clearly noticed the crowd too. 

My music tastes have calmed, extremely, since we've lived in Colorado, like I've said before. I'm not constantly fist pumping to EDM anymore. Don't get me wrong, I love a good dance party but I spend a lot of time listening to Ben Howard and Lana Del Rey. I'm so happy we were able to see both of them during our Colorado chapter. 

After months of counting down, even via Snapchat (see below) I was reunited in Colorado one last time with one of my best friends. 

This best friend and I date back to Sunday School in our Elementary years. We started out going to church together and bible camp and our friendship has come a long way since. We are similar in ways but also very different and I love her just the same. It was time for her to get one more visit in before we move back to the Midwest. IN 12 DAYS. This is an insane realization, by the way.

Punch Bowl Social Club.

After a little run in with urgent care, too much money put towards medications, an inhaler, rest and some movies, all on her first day here, she was a bit more in "vacation mode." We headed down to Denver for Joel's show and my life was seriously made, sitting next to her and having one of the little boys in my previous class and his parents be there as well. 

Sunday we hiked Greyrock in Fort Collins. I read about it forever ago and needed to do it at least once before we moved. We got on the trail at 11:50AM and got off shortly after 6PM. We literally spent the day hiking. 

Not going to lie, it looks tiny in this picture. But, we were at the top. 

This explains my bad knees. pc: Joel Kachel

Heart rocks, everywhere.

Greyrock is on the right. After getting to the top, we wound around down and through the meadows loop next.

We found perfect walking sticks during our hike and decided to leave them for the next person or group. A little more than six hours later, we finished and felt accomplished, both having trouble blocking out our sore knees. Bad knees at twenty seven, I've accepted it. 

And then yesterday, we got tattoos. 

I have been contemplating getting another tattoo for awhile now and I think the only reason that was, was because I had forgotten what it felt like to get one. I didn't remember it hurting, but being terribly annoying, aggravating. Han went first, first timer, and then it was my turn. I sat down and straight up told the guy not to listen to me if I told him to stop. 

Inked, finally.

pc: Hanna Schulberg

I remember now why I walked out of the tattoo shop the first time and told myself I would never get another one. Who knows, maybe seven years down the road, I'll change my mind again and go get another.

My shoulder now says, "Property of JK Music." 

Just kidding. 

Friday For The Win

Whoever invented the "delay brew" button on coffee makers is a genius. 

There is just something amazing about waking up to the smell of fresh coffee. 

Also, look how great I'm doing, keeping up with my blog, you guys. I don't know what it is, I blog and then don't for months on end and here I am now, blogging a couple days in a row. Funny, this is one thing that my Taurus, routine stricken self cannot hold on to. Well, this and working out. I'm reminding myself that it's all in my control and I'm rootin for you, Parr! 

Yesterday, was absolutely a win, in my book. I woke up at 6:10AM slept in and drank my coffee, poured my thoughts out into the blog world and felt total, and complete ease. It felt like a Saturday. I find it hilarious how just having one more day during your weekend, can make you so freaking happy. 

I went for a hike. By myself. Have you ever done this? Can I compare it to eating in a restaurant by yourself? I still haven't done that one. Well, sit down. I ate by myself at the Subway in a food court when I worked part time at Rosedale Mall in high school. That doesn't count. There was just something amazing about blaring my music, turning it off occasionally and being alone with my thoughts. Joel and I had spontaneously started the hike once on a whim, and didn't go the entire way. I needed to finish it. You know, the Taurus in me was eaten up by the fact of starting it and not finishing it.

I was almost to the top, power walking, like I do normally, when I almost stepped on a rattlesnake. He was half way on the trail, blended in completely by the rock and sand around him. You can imagine how high I jumped. Picture a cat, with a banana peal. He slithered away and gave me quite the aggressive rattle. Nothing more surprising and shocking than snakes in nature. I can hold and be in the company of Joel's snakes at his parent's house back home in Minnesota, but snakes in the wild? No thanks.

Yesterday, I also did a little shopping. I'm rationalizing my few purchases by reminding myself that I haven't shopped since before the first of the year (can you believe it?) and it's my Birthday month. I usually make a way bigger deal about my Birthday month than I'm doing this year. I honestly don't know why because I love Birthdays and I love growing up. I live for it. Literally. I haven't shopped since the first of the year because, well, I'm trying hard to limit myself, as well as save money for our move back to the Midwest in a couple months. My parents aren't paying for the moving truck this time around and I don't blame them. They have helped us out tremendously in the past and continue to. It's time to be adults and buy the moving truck on our own. We can do it!

I babysat for one of the boys in my class last night, him and his Brother, who is four. Kids are hilarious and I find so much joy in spending a Friday or Saturday here and there for a few hours, flying airplanes around the house, reading too many books and having silly conversations about fire truck beds. Especially, with kids that are too smart for their own good. Kids that use words like, "Similar" and say, "Well" instead of good. Early childhood centers, you make children so smart. You are a great thing.

You bet your bottom he put all those books away.

 As for today, I'll be cleaning the house in preparation for Joel's return home tomorrow morning, listening to Vance Joy on repeat. I'll be having a serious movie date with myself, because Divergent came in the mail yesterday. I'll probably spend some time outside, starring at the recently bloomed tulips. Odds of a solo dance party to Kiesza's "Hideaway" are good because I seriously cannot stop watching that video and wishing I were in it. A solo dance party, that's self-love, isn't it?  I'm going to dream about kissing my boyfriend and then tomorrow, I get to do so, for the first time in a little over a week. Yay!

Guys, this weekend is way cooler than the other side of the pillow.

It's getting more and more real.

The beard beanie I just couldn't resist.

Happy Birthday, E!

A lumberjack themed Birthday party helped us celebrate this guy turning 1. 

It's slowly getting more and more real, the fact that Joel and I are moving 15 hours away from this family, my best friend here. Alyssa and I both transferred to the same center, from centers we loved dearly but moved too far away from to continue to work at. I started a week before her and felt totally understanding to the tears she shed after her first day, when we closed the school and walked to our cars together. "I cried after my first day too," I told her. Bonding over the fact that this center, by no means compared to the ones we started at, I had a feeling about her and a great friendship. Eventually, we both moved on to other centers, where we were happier, the same company in different towns and we stayed close. I was thankful for my time at the first school, because I developed such a great friendship, as well as another with my co-teacher at the time. As we've gotten to know each other well these past few years, she is who I will miss the most, when I think about the people we've met during this chapter in our lives, the people we are leaving behind in this beautiful state. Getting to be apart of your life, getting to know you and yours, seeing your little man grow so much and develop such a fun personality, is something I will miss and treasure dearly. You have my permission to call me and make me become a phone person once and awhile, and I hope you do. I'll do my best to do the same. Being younger than me means nothing, you have taught me so much. You are my own personal Google and I will miss you like crazy. 

Everyday, I take in the sunshine in our living room, the comfort of our backyard, the trees, the outdoor couches, the fact that we have a backyard, the feeling like we're in the country when we're really in town and I feel so grateful that we found this place and so sad to be leaving it in two months. Saying goodbye to our first place together is not going to be easy.

Joel recently returned from back home, where he put in the new flooring in the basement of our future home, the house I grew up in. Frequently, as my end date at work draws near, I have been asked "So, you don't love Colorado as much as you thought you would? Why are you moving back home?" The truth is, with me being a teacher and Joel being a full time musician, us having jobs that we absolutely love and are passionate about but don't make much money for, we would spend the rest of our lives saving money to buy a house. The fact that my parents are allowing us to buy the house that I grew up in, for a great deal, well, we will be thanking them for the rest of our lives. I didn't always know that Hudson, Wisconsin was where I wanted to raise my family. Before I moved away, I knew that I hadn't been enough places around this amazing world to know where we wanted to set up shop, do the family thing. In our case, it took us moving 15 hours away, into another time zone, to realize that nothing compares to your roots. I know this isn't the case for everyone and that makes us feel even more lucky. Some people go away and have no desire to ever go back to where they grew up. There are people and things and mountains we will miss greatly, but we are ready to no longer watch all the babies in our lives grow up through Facebook and Instagram. We are ready to be involved in every single family event and never miss a wedding, anniversary dinner, reunion or graduation party again.

One more note, before I get on with this obligation free Saturday; my wonderful, caring, loving, encouraging, understanding, (I could go on but do I really need to?) other half turned 28 on the 31st of March. Twenty eight! We always talk about how fun growing up is and how old we thought, even a 20 year old was when we were still in high school. That just seemed so ancient. The fact that we are both now, closer to 30, well, we love it. And I'm convinced we are the only ones. 

Here's to you and how much more fun you make my life, just being in it.

Doing life with you is so wonderful.