www.ourgreatestfear.org

This is something that I truly fear and am SO relieved that Danny has put a voice to it! I am doing my part to share this with the world and I hope that if you feel the same, you will to!

www.ourgreatestfear.org

I'm going back to Cali!

I'm heading home to LA for the next two weeks! Of course, I will miss my husband desperately but did you read what I just wrote??!! I'm coming home for two weeks!!!

A typical Sunday...

This is how our day went...

B- Morning, ready for a ride today?

C- Oh I don't know, hon. It's kinda overcast and have you checked the weather? Might rain.

B- Come on. We'll ride to breakfast and then head for the coast. I've got gloves and a face mask for you if it gets cold. And we can stop at any antique shop you want along the way.

C- (Yeah, right) Okay then.

We had bfast, I actually did antique shop for almost 2hrs (Bryan brought a book) and then we did head for water, although it was a bank off the Rappahannock River in a little town called Tappahannock, VA. I'm so happy to be back on the bike with Bryan after a 2yr hiatus. It was a very difficult decision to make but now that we are back at it, it was the right one and it feels good. I can overlook the sore muscles, the slapped face sting of the wind, the ringing ears and the risk we take because in the end it's amazing quality time between just the two of us and we feel connected to this amazing country one ride at a time. I'll only start complaining when Bryan STOPS asking me to join him on rides. Love you, dolly.

Washington Post

To my surprise I was caught in a very candid moment by a Washington Post journalist at my subway stop on Friday afternoon. When I picked up the paper this morning out of mild curiosity, I was shocked to see that my image was actually published twice! Alas, my frumpy nanny days are not behind me!

Hope this serves as a reminder to all....get out there and vote on the 4th of Nov.!!!

The BIG 3-0.

I turned 30 on Saturday. Bryan did his very best, but I still felt like I'd been punched in the gut all weekend. So, I made myself a little something sweet and all will be fine in the morning.

Missing family & friends,
C

Check out my box!

One of my very favorite things about collecting craft supplies is the paper. I just LOVE finding these gorgeous little works of art. Recently I started wondering how else I could display pretty paper designs other than another album or frame. So I started doing the research and between stuff online and craft magazines, I started perusing more than just the scrapbook aisles at Michael's. This is my first creation. It is beyond simple, but it's a start. I love spotting these cute little prints on my tabletop throughout the day.

Paper is Heidi Grace, Daydream Believer Collection.
Ribbon is Amy Butler, Sola Collection.
Unfinished Wood Box w/Lid from Michael's.

xoxo
C

So okay...

For the month of August I was working with a family in Fairfax, VA. The hours were long, but the opportunity was worth it. The family was very accommodating, providing a private bedroom/bath and laptop for personal use which I used to facilitate at least 1 daily activity outing with their toddler. Best of all, I became familiar with some of the greater DC area. That is VERY important in my line of work. In Los Angeles, I know what resources are available. I can be anywhere in LA and know all the park playgrounds, museums, libraries and baby activities AND gauge driving distances at ANY given time of day. I can have my agency call with a new position and know the fastest route and shortcuts during rush hour.

Here, I am lost.

I know it's going to take time to get my bearings in this new area and some of that can be very exciting, but let me just tell you...that was NOT the case this week!! I just started a new position with a baby girl in Washington D.C. on Tuesday and because it's in mid-city, I decided I would try public transportation. Now let me just say honestly, that I LOVE the freedom of movement that my car provides. Sitting in traffic is just a part of life for me, but I've long considered the idea of the train and subway because of greenhouse gas emmisions and because it is now an option whereas in LA it's virtually impossible. So I did all the research online and mapped out the stations and subway stops and bus schedules and set out before the crack of dawn on Wednesday morning. This is how it went:

5:30am-Drive 55 miles to the closest commuter rail station. Park 6 blocks away and run (walk fast) to station only to have the freakin' train be late!

7:15am- Sit on the train reading my kindle. Sweet!

8:48am- Train pulls into Union Station late, yikes!! No time for the subway and bus, I have to hail a cab.

9:05am- LATE TO WORK!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
4:00pm- Walk 2 blocks to hop onto the bus. Squished next to someone else, but hey, at least I'm sitting down.

4:30ish- Get off bus and walk 2 blocks to Union Station. Board train and read my kindle. NICE.

6:00pm- Walk 6 blocks to my car and drive 50miles home.

"Not bad, but not great", I tell myself. "Suck it up and keep trying. It must get better than this once you're used to it!"

That night I find another station where parking isn't 6 blocks away (seriously, that's just BS!) and the next morning I set out before the crack of dawn again.

5:30am- Arrive just 3 min. before train scheduled to depart. Park car and run (really run this time) to station just to have the FREAKIN' train be late again!

7:10am- Get off at different stop to allow time for subway and bus travel. Go underground to subway station and buy 3 different tickets before I finally figure out the right one and board subway.

8:30ish- Emerge from underground in a rush because I need to catch my bus and luckily enough I spot my bus the moment I emerge and I run to it screaming "STOP!" and the driver stops and I hop on figuring that 1 of those 3 different tickets I bought earlier would take care of my fare, but no.....I need another kind of card for the bus! The driver took pity on me and just took all the change I had in my wallet instead so I sit down and breath a sigh of relief and as I'm looking out the window I realize the bus is going in the wrong direction!!

Me- "Isn't this the G8 route, Mr. Bus Driver?"

Driver- "No ma'am, it's the 68 route."

Me- "WHAT??!! MOTHERF***ER!!!"

8:50- Driver pulls over and I get off totally disheartened. I hail a cab and head to work.

9:05am- LATE TO WORK AGAIN!!!

I don't know yet what I will do next week. I'd like to think that I won't give up on public transportation so quickly, but it's tempting when commuting in my car goes like this:

6am- Get in car and merge onto freeway. Drive 90 miles in a straight line while listening to CNN on XM and flipping over to CD playlists or an audiobook whenever news becomes repetitive.

8:30am- Park in front of client's home!! I'm early, am I? Maybe I'll walk to the corner coffee shop? Or update my calendar. Or maybe just pick at my cuticles while daydreaming about my next vacation.

There has GOT to be a better way. And there is. It's called moving to DC, goddammit!!