Tag Archives: pnw

Like The Pilots Say, Standby

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Standby for Day 30 of Day 30 of my writing challenge. One of my favorite responses is “standby” via text or face to face. If you know me, then you know where “standby” comes from but other people look confused when I toss the “standby” their way.

Here’s how the standby conversation goes:

On the airplane, the A flight attendant takes care of first class AND feeds the pilots. So, I’ve always loved the initial briefing at the start of any trip. Hi, my name is Dave. Hi Dave, my name is Brandy. Small chit chat ensues similar or exactly like the following; “have we flown together? Maybe? You look really familiar, so do you! Do you live in Portland? No, across the bridge in Vancouver. Cool! Then the pilots head into their office to start their checklist. It never fails, Hey Dave, do you want coffee or something besides water. “STANDBY” is his response. Then I literally standby and wait for the yes or no  response. I don’t know why this was so funny to me when I started flying. It’s so normal to me now but I love to use it outside of the airplane, in the real world. It’s funny using the “STANDBY” as your complete response with people. Give it a try. When someone asks you a question, respond via text with “Standby.” And wait for their response. 😂😎59F4103C-F831-4286-A6C0-584FE35DCA58.jpegSelf Care With A High Noon Hot Tub

Improvise Is A Staple Attitude At Our House

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We celebrate life LOUD and PROUD at our house. The good times roll and roll quickly every.single.day. We have so much fun and get after the good times! No, I’m not supermom-I just like to have fun. And lucky for me I have 3 small kids who LOVE the fun with me. So we get out in the city a lot. We talk a lot, laugh a lot, eat a lot, adventure a lot and improvise a lot.

Yesterday, in the elevator we told one of our best little friends who’s 8 years old about improvising. She was confused because the game plan changed from the park to a hike. I asked Pepper what we do when we don’t get our first choice in life? Pepper said with a straight face and a 5 year old voice (that only a mom and speech therapist can love and understand) “we IMPOOOvise when we don’t get our furst choice. We say, it’s ok because maybeee next time we wheel get our furst choice. And if we don’t, it’s ok we let it go.  We still have fun, she said with a barbie doll smile!”

YES! That’s my girl! That’s my 5 year old miracle baby that I prayed for since I was 12 weeks pregnant.

So, now that I’m a single mom with three little kids in tow I subscribe hard to the “improvise dance.” Sometimes, it happens on a layover at work where I have 8 pairs of underwear for a 2 day trip and NO SOCKS. Oy! Or it happens a lot at the gym when the four of us hustle down the street to LA Fitness. It’s only a few blocks away so we walk. And it’s a chance for me to get my workout and shower in for the day. I pack my shower bag in a frenzy and always forget something. Today, I forgot my shower towel which has happened before. It’s not the first time people, but it’s the first time I’m talking about it. At least I have my razor and shower flip flops I tell myself. I’ve even dried off with paper towels before. #truth

It’s definitely not my choice to dry off with a hand towel at the gym but by golly I’m going to workout and shower any chance I get. Screw the shower towel, the show must go on! I just avoid eye contact hard! Haha!D3C6DC80-7E23-4997-A691-62EEE5BF80F1.pngIt’s so amazing when I hear one of my little peanuts rattle off some good grown up advice about “improvising” in the real world.

It’s a magical mom moment where I breathe in all the goodness that this little person is sharing with the world.

Big Family, Small Herd

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Days are long. Years are short. Days are long. Years are short. IMG_3974.jpgKai, getting it at the playground!IMG_0494Pre bedtime snuggle with my girl band! 

Our days are bat shit crazy busy with kids stuff so I keep our afternoons/evenings very low key with a hard emphasis on the bedtime routine. Yes, Blaize and Pepper are 5 years old but they need their sleep. And so do I!

They are not the kind of kids that can stay up til 10pm and be “cool” the next day. I still plan my life around playing and chasing the fun with my kids during the day while honoring our “family sleep schedule.”

More music, more singing, more adventures and sleep, lots of beautiful sleep.

Happy sleeping my friends!

Instagram Why Are You So Weird

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I have to talk about it because it’s happening all the time and really weird. And people that do instagram don’t know what I’m talking about until I show them. Why, oh why? Haha! I like the instagram, feels like how facebook was 10 years ago. Pictures without all the political bs. Surprisingly, you can write a lot under your instagram pictures. #justsayin

And when I publish my book, Instagram will be a great place to spread the love.IMG_3175Taking a break from the instagram weird and working out in the hotel gym. Always me in the gym and one bald pilot. Haha!

Instagram has a texting or DM component (direct message) for all my non-instagram people. However, there’s a second tier of direct messages under Direct and titled REQUESTS. These messages under REQUESTS requests are creepy. I have a revolving list of 20-30 different randoms wanting to “chat.” I don’t follow these jokers so they can’t direct message me-they can only “request” the DM. Some guys are basic with opening lines of “Hi and Hey.” Then it goes downhill from there really fast. Pictures are offered. No, I’ve never accepted one-a message or a picture.

Who knows if they are real people or robots? For all I know they’re catfishing on Instagram. I can block them especially when they get cranky and send angry direct message requests from the second tier. But really, who has time to block the freaks. Ignore them and they’ll go away is how I play it. They can delete their direct message request and a new round of freaks appears in the second tier of messaging. WTF?

Tell me, do you have a line of creepers on Instagram trying to “request” direct messages with you?

“Instagram, why you so weird?”

I Love Boats

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IMG_2787Steering the catamaran in Honolulu

Yep, I love boats. That’s all.

Small Talk Is Not My Favorite Talk

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I can’t remember if I used to be good at small talk. These days, I’d rather be in uncomfortable silence than be forced to engage in small talk. Maybe, it’s the single mom thing where I have very little time to waste and zero time for bs. Maybe it’s a life thing but small talk is one of my least favorite things to do. Let’s talk about real sh*t. And if not, let’s just stand next to each other and smile…IMG_3852Real talk doesn’t have to negative and I prefer that it isn’t. There are so many juicy, positive and funny things to talk about.

Recently, after yoga I was chatting with the instructor about class. Which quickly turned into a conversation about self acceptance and self love. Which quickly turned into her sharing her recent trip to a nude beach and baring her chest. She told me how freeing it was and how good the water felt without her top on. Wow, good for you, that’s awesome! I loved you before this conversation, now I really love you. 🙂

But it get’s better… A young girl we both know came walking by and joined in on our “real talk.” She took it to the next level with all sorts of real topics and quickly. She introduced the idea that the size of his nose is likely to match the size of his…

Yep, that’s what she said. She claimed that it’s almost always true for her. I laughed and thought about it. Hmmm, maybe there is similarity?!

She also suggested that single guys carry a business card stating his “stats.’ I laughed and agreed that knowing what you’re getting into before you spend months dating would be nice. And it only seems fair. One of my favorite funny lines is, l”et’s just see what we’re working with, shall we?” I’ve actually talked about a little button that guys could wear on their tshirt or lapel that stated the info. The buttons would read SMALL, MEDIUM and LARGE. A  facebook friend recently mentioned this would be tricky because guys would be “rating” themselves. Exactly was my response to his concerned comment. That’s why there would only be three basic categories. And anyone in their right mind would understand the three categories and their “self proclaimed range.”

This is my kinda talk. The real stuff. The funny stuff. And the stuff that could eventually “make or break” a relationship. #justasyin

 

 

30 Day Challenge, Come With Me!

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So, I love a good challenge especially with self improvement stuff. Recently, I’ve been encouraging a mom friend to workout. She had all the good excuses of WHY she couldn’t workout. I listened for awhile and tossed ideas toward her for months. Finally, I said-TODAY do it today! 15minutes on your bike at home is it. Commit to a 30 day challenge where you try to workout for 15min for 30 days in a row. And if you miss a day or two, doesn’t matter. Just do it. She did it and sent me a text picture of her workout stats. She continues to send me a text picture of her workout weeks into it. Haha! IMG_9643Mom selfie

I thought about doing a yoga or gym challenge but that would be sandbagging myself. it has to be something a little scary but something interesting and doable to hold my attention. I thought about matching bra and panties for 30days. Now that would a stretch and BORING. If I match once a week I feel like I’m crushing it. #justsayin

My intention is to share, give you a giggle and maybe inspire you to challenge yourself.  Then it came to me during yoga (as many ideas do) that I would do a 30 day challenge of writing. That sounds awesome. Challenging and a little scary-my kinda goal!

Also, the last time I did this 30 day writing challenge was over 5 years ago. I was pregnant with my high risk twin babies and hospitalized. Crap, that was a tough time.

Today, my focus is different but it’s always a good idea to shake things up as the seasons change if you ask me.

I hope you come with me on my 30 day challenge and hope it will inspire something new and invigorating for you.

 

BurnCycle, I Love You

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So, I came back to spin classes after a tumultuous 10 months off. The turmoil is still going but I’m tired of waiting for a “good time” to get back on the bike. So, I hopped on that spin bike 3 weeks ago and had an awesome workout with an amazing instructor.

Then I did it again. My second spin class in 10 months was 2 weeks ago. She was also an amazing instructor. Not sure if I get more physically or mentally from these classes. The jury is still out. As the NOISE rises, so does my self care. I will always take care of myself and my people-it’s in my blood.

If you are like me and in the thick of it and don’t have time, energy or desire to workout-get yourself to a group fitness class. It will change everything. Because, life is happening and waves are coming whether we like it or not. Better to have the sparkle in our heart from a great workout when the waves come crashing in.

May fitness and health be a priority this year and always, my friends.

Kid Pedicures Rock

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IMG_9897This is Five!IMG_9872.jpgBirthday Pedi’s!

IMG_9924Pepper LOVED every part of birthday mani and pedis- especially the massage. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Haha!