i do have a heart... i bought it at the thrift store! ;)

ummm. do you mind?

bordering on tmi land.

i'm just wondering, when did the world start wearing its heart on its sleeve?
i know that we are living in the age of "enlightenment" but really there is such a thing as TMI. maybe that's why i'm so vague in my blogs. i like to work things out in my own mind and sometimes writing is therapeutic, but i can't wear my feelings on the front of my shirt.

some things.

the best part about being young and ridiculous is...?

a sneak peak at our new thrift store:

this is the view from the front door:

this is the area to the left when you walk in:

this is the future ICSC storage area:

this is the baby changing/nursing nook:

"the back room" (use your imagination people!)

where the counter is going (against that wall):

this is the front door:

so now i'm consumed with ideas of painting, placement and signs. i LOVE the new space! if you have any tips or decorating ideas, please please share them!!

dear zia christie...

olivia would like to thank you for her new baby. she loves her so much that she has named her after herself; so without further ado, i present olivia and EEEYa:

sometimes... i wish i was brave.

"sometimes
i wish i was brave.
i wish i was stronger.
i wish i could feel no pain.
i wish i was young.
i wish i was shy.
i wish i was honest.
i wish i was you not i.
'cause i feel so mad.
i feel so angry.
i feel so callous.
so lost, confused again."
box car racer, "i feel so"

i picked up a book from the library today called "portraits of 9/11/01."
flipping to a random page, this is what i read:

"Stephanie Irby would have fit right in on the Starship Enterprise. Her collection of Star Trek video-tapes just blew my mind," said Addison Irby, an older brother."

and i stop and think. this is a book about people who have died. a sad and tragic book... and this is someone's legacy.

if i were to die tomorrow, an honest review of this past month or so would be, "lisa was angry."

i can't go into details, because i think this would be a very inappropriate place for them, but i realize that i have let someone get the best of me. i have let situations take root and just overtake my feelings. i have let someone take something from me. i have let someone make me feel badly about myself. and i have let myself get angry.

one thing i have learned is that i am who i am.
i can't, and don't make apologies for being myself; even when sometimes i admitedly should.
i have my flaws, but in general i would like to think that i can admit that i don't mind the person i am.
i like myself.
this may be a shocking revelation to some of you. but it is possible to go through life being content. it is okay to go through life counting your blessings and being grateful.

a friend once told me, "you past doesn't determine who you become." tomorrow is a new day. and while there are things that need to be done that might not be so pleasant, i am thankful for new days. i am thankful that even when some things come to an end, it might really just be giving way to a brand new begining.

two? really?

olivia turns two tomorrow. my kids are all growing up too quickly. *sigh*

*funny story behind the dress she's wearing*
she got invited to a birthday party for her friend madeleine; so when i asked her daddy to dress her, he let her pick out her outfit; and this is what she picked. when i saw it, i immediatley picked out another (very cute and frilly dress) and said, "olivia, let's wear this pretty dress to your party." she shook her head and said, "no wear that dress. i wear this dress." so there you have it... she went to a party dressed as the princess that she is (minus the wings) *lol*

a deleting kind of day.

i blog carefully.
thoughtfully.
and with the delete button at my full disposal.
that being said,
sometimes i wish life had a backspace button.

k-town and mt. nemrut in pictures.

just a few pictures from our trip. overall i'm glad i went; it was one of the places on my list to visit. however, the drive up there and back is a killer. 5 1/2 hours each way. plus, getting up at 2 am to see the sunrise was a bit much. (which explains why i look so pretty in all my pictures) *lol* anyways, if you want to see the pictures bigger, then just click on them. i have way more pictures for anyone else who wants to see them :)