It really is Okay

 

Today, I’m linking up with Amber and Neely.

It’s Okay

… to buy cute shoes even though you don’t really have anywhere to wear them to

… to try and figure out a way to wear a pair of shoes that are half a size too big, just because you are too lazy to take them to the store and exchange them for the right size

… to plan and go on a vacation, when you should really be saving up your money to buy a house

… to want to desperately go on a trip for our anniversary, but admit that we shouldn’t spend the money

… to want to get the whole house and moving nightmare over with, and to take the hub’s employer for not giving us a date as to when we can move

… to want to sit around and read blogs all day

… to hate Facebook, and contemplate deleting it

… to read a book in one day

… to miss having long hair that you could just throw up in a bun, then realize you hated throwing your hair up in a bun

… to then go through pictures of beautiful short hair and realize how much easier it is to fix then long hair

… to feel angry at an unfair grade, when the grade isn’t even for myself

… to love grad school, because you ended up with one of the coolest professors who understands that life goes on outside of school

… to want to win the lottery so that you can stop stressing over money issues

… to be disgusted with yourself for not getting off your butt and heading to the gym.

… and to be proud of getting your butt off the couch and working out

It’s Wednesday Love

It’s been a while since I’ve joined in and done What I’m Loving Wednesday with Jamie, so here I am today.

I’m loving that it’s dusting snow outside, the beautiful grey skies and the fact that I can work from home on this beautiful wintery day. I’m also loving that we are officially in the “almost winter” season here in CO. You know they say that our seasons consist of almost winter, winter, still winter and construction. I personally love this, because there is nothing better then a cold day where you can huddle under a blanket with a hot cup of tea.

I’m loving that in  15 days we get to go on a 2.5 week long vacation. It will consist of a wedding, a road trip. A little time in New York or Boston for our anniversary, and Thanksgiving week in DC with one of my favorite cousins and his family.

First stop in Lubbock for the wedding

Next a drive to Tucson, to make sure we actually like the house, and the area.

We’re still deciding on New York or Boston for our anniversary

Then to DC for some family time

I’m loving that I narrowed down a dress choice to two, and I think one will be for the wedding and the other for our anniversary.

 

via

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Now to only figure out which one to wear to which event.

I’m loving these shoes that should be arriving at my doorstep any minute now.

Nine West Aroundtown

Levity Nicolo Pump

Badolino Varnissa Bootie

I’m also loving that between discounts, rewards and online offers, I was able to get all three of these for about a $150.00 total. I’m thinking I win.

I’m loving the Hunger Games… I know I’m a little late to the party with this one. BUT I read the first book in a day, and cannot wait until the hardcover set arrives at my door so I can read the next two.

And as always, I’m loving my amazing and wonderful Hubs.

A Day of Chimping

I once again, fell of the face of earth. This time was due to being sick. All I wanted to do was crawl under a rock and sleep for a decade or so. In fact, I still want to crawl under a rock and sleep for a few weeks, but I’m definitely on the mend.

If you’ve been a long time reader of this little bloggy of mine, you’ll know that I’ve been working for a company called Chimpsy, we teach people how to better utilize their cameras, as well as offer a ton of other services that will be announced by the end of the year.

One of the new and exciting things we are working on is an Aspiring Pro Workshop. Our first 6 hour class took place last weekend, on Sunday, and it was a blast. We had a great group of students, a fantastic day and an awesome instructor. I got to tag along and took the opportunity to learn a thing or two… or three.

I wanted to share a few of the shots I took from Sunday, that really make me admire the field of photography, and really reaffirm my desire to create more with my camera. NOT to mention that these photos are definitely going into the file “proof that Zara needs a new DSLR.”

This is Mark Cafiero, he’s one of the founders of Chimpsy, as well as the lead instructor. 

This may be my favorite shot of the day. A bridge in Downtown Denver crossing over Cherry Creek river. I also love how the black and white turned out.

I love old brick buildings. I love anything brick really. This is a small piece of the brick building that houses the Chimpsy Market Street studio, and where most of the Denver classes meet. The colors are beautiful, the lighting was perfect (no flash) and the bricks have a story to tell.

Every single one of these shots was taken with a Canon 50mm f/1.4 lens on a Canon Rebel XS (not a full frame camera). NO flash, all natural light. Also, all photos have been photoshoped and adjusted for contrast, saturation, and a few other tweeks here and there.

Which one’s your favorite? I need to go on more outings with my DSLR.

Tuesday Travels: Tucson, AZ

Our trip to Tucson was mainly for one reason… to find a house. BUT I was hoping that we’d get some sight seeing done, and get familiar with the city. We were successful in the first goal, but failed miserably in the second.

We spent all of Friday, Saturday and Sunday looking at houses (a post about this later this week) and only got Thursday evening to explore. So here is our Thursday in pictures:

We got to Tucson around 2:00 PM local time, and were greeted by the first of many “man cactuses” we would encounter. We figured a picture in the airport was appropriate, as this is our first time in Tucson.

We got our rental, and I decided to take pictures even though I should have been navigating. The Hubs GPS decided to poop out and we were a little lost, until the stupid thing found the signal again.

The drive was pretty. We have mountains in CO, but it always seems like they are so far away AND they are only to the West. In Tucson, the mountains were everywhere.

This is a portion of Downtown Tucson that we only drove by, and did not have time to actually visit.

After finding our hotel and checking in, we decided to head out to explore and have dinner at a restaurant that was recommended to us by a friend. Blanco. The food was decent, but more California Mexican which we are not huge fans of. However, the Blood Orange Margarita more than made up for the okay food. HOLY YUM!!!!

We had spotted a gelato shop in the outdoor mall where we had dinner, but were so stuffed that we had to walk around to digest before stuffing our faces again. The Hubs decided he was going to “pose” for my picture and did a little James Bond look. He’s hot. I know. I tried to copy him, but failed.

We also ran into a little cactus palm tree. This guy was little, but cute. 

This is the only sunset we got to witness, since we were looking at houses the other three days. I was hoping for better pictures, but these will do until November.

We enjoyed some Italian Ice cream with this view.

I was slightly annoyed, since I was hoping to do a lot more than this little sightseeing, but what can ya do?!

I was also a little annoyed, because I dragged my DSLR all the way out to Tucson, and forgot to bring the charger or the spare battery. #epicfail

The haircut that the hubs hates

 

On the 26th of September I decided that I needed a haircut. I was contemplating dying my hair bright pink… or red… or a combination of pink and blue… but in the end I decided on a cut.

This was my hair on the morning of September 27th. Long, dark, straight, with long bangs.

We cut off the pile of hair pictured above.

This is what my hair looked like after.

I am personally in love with it. Short hair is my favorite, especially in the age of clip in extensions. I love how easy it is to fix it, and leave. I don’t have to spend an hour actually styling my hair.

Husband had a very different idea of my hair thought.

Hubs was upset to say the least. This is his “annoyed/glaring/what the heck is my wife taking pictures of” face.. which is very appropriate to how he felt about my hair.

He’s gotten a little better about it, and hasn’t mentioned the emotional damage I’ve caused him by cutting off my hair.

Sorry Husband. It’s just hair. It’ll grow back. For now, I’ll enjoy my short, easy cut!

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