Today is an exciting day for my husband, Sean. He's been working with a team on a book fansite for the past year and a half, and they've had tremendous success with it. Their success was given a boost today when Random House named them the OFFICIAL fansite for The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series by Michael Scott! God only knows where they will go from here, but with a movie in the works, this series has Harry Potter potential for blowing up.

I've had the pleasure of observing some of the inner workings behind this team, and it's taught me some things about making a blog or website successful.

1. Find a need and fill it - The concept for this fansite came about when there was no fansite for the series. They approached the author and asked his permission, and with his blessing, a forum was born.


2. Have a solid team - In this instance, a team was needed to build something to accommodate potential size and magnitude. The team started small, but as the site grew, so did their team and their skill set. When it came to forum moderators, they recruited from within with existing forum members who were active and reliable. And what is most important is the constant communication that happens between team members.


3. Create community - The original idea behind the site was a forum, a place where fans could discuss the book series. As the site grew, a podcast was born that included poll questions and emails from fans. The fans became a part of the show.


4. Run a tight ship - The series is geared towards Young Adults, so a no tolerance policy was created and enforced to keep the forums age appropriate. Moderators were always present and active on the boards. This was huge when they were reviewed by Random House. They were flame-free and a safe haven for young fans.

So congratulations to the entire Flamel's Immortal Portal team! Your hard work and diligence has paid off and I cannot wait to see where you guys go from here.

I joined Weight Watchers and attended my first meeting 5 weeks ago. Part of me feels like I should keep this a secret, because part of me feels like I shouldn't need a program to eat sensibly and keep the weight off, or worse, what if I fail at this like I have with other programs. But before my brain thinks, the big mouth part of me spills it. And I think this is best. Spilling the beans creates accountability, and it makes friends and family aware, which will hopefully lead to support in social situations.

Sadly, I have to admit that I already stumbled a bit. The first few days I tracked and did very well. Then the weekend showed up, tech week for Romeo and Juliet came, and I slacked. It was still in the back of my mind, so I was more concious about what and how much I ate, but I was not diligent. The next four weeks I weighed in every other week, managing to eek out a .8 lb loss each time.

Last week I headed to a new location, one just up the street from me, with renewed sense of determination. I am sick of this cycle I'm on which does nothing but leave me depressed and loathing myself. I'm paying for this program, I'm going to make it work for me. So I got very friendly with my tracker over the past week, successfully tracking most of my intake for 6 out of 7 days. I felt the hunger pains, but I was determined to succeed.

Yesterday I stepped on the scale, praying I didn't gain. Praying that my focus and diligence would pay off.

"You're down 1.8 pounds. Good job," the receptionist said, sticking the printout to my book and handing it back to me with a smile. "Have a good week."

1.8 lbs...in one week. 3.4 lbs so far!

"Thank you," I said back, and added a silent 'I will' in my head.

It's nearly tech week for my latest show, Romeo & Juliet. You know how I know?

I had The Dream last night.

What is The Dream you ask? It is otherwise known as the "Oh Sh*t" dream. You're putting on a performance and suddenly you're coming up on a scene that you don't know. You've never rehearsed it, you didn't even know it existed. But suddenly everyone else knows about it and you're a deer in the headlights.

At least my dream offered up some variety for this show. We were having an "open" dress rehearsal (still a rehearsal, but some people are invited in as audience members), and we get to the end and I realize we missed an entire scene. Then we start to see a second audience start to fill in, and I'm talking about numbers that would fill a house! None of us realized there was to be a second run through, but we shrug and go along with it. Until Sean comes up to me and says "I can't stay, I have to go to bowling" and walks out - leaving us without a Romeo.

Luckily none of these dreams have yet to manifest themselves in a real performance.

So on its way to our door is a refurbished Project Runway edition Brother CE5000 (I swear the Project Runway aspect meant nothing to me). It was a good price and it had good reviews on Overstock.com.

It will be such an upgrade from what we've got now.

Old machine: 1 stitch (straight)
New machine: 50 built in stitches and 87 stitch functions

Old machine: heavy as a boulder
New machine: supposedly lightweight with a handle

Old machine: buttonholes were done by hand by moi, who sucks eggs at it
New machine: 5 styles of one-step auto-size buttonholes (now I won't dread Sean's doublets!)

Old machine: free at a yardsale, no manual
New machine: Instruction booklet in English and Spanish (you know, in case I want to put my minor to good use)

So yippee skippy! I will be doing a happy dance when it arrives, and perhaps I will no longer avoid sewing.

Oh goodness me, how quickly time flies...

It seems like yesterday I got the call to play Juliet, and today we're a mere 2 1/2 weeks from opening night.

*gulp*

People are starting to make reservations - Sean's mom is calling to reserve 12 tickets for a show!

I really shouldn't worry, things are looking good, and shows always come together remarkably fast in the last few weeks. Everyone seems to suddenly realize that we have a deadline to get our act together. But butterflies come with the acting territory. Especially when I'm spewing out the balcony scene like no one's business one minute, then Act 4's lines somehow get misplaced in the deep caverns of my mind. It'll be my new marketing strategy - Come see whether Juliet can remember her lines! Everyone loves a trainwreck.

In truth, I jest. My nerves were typing just then.

Our director isn't helping. Monday evening he brings up the subject of Mr. James Earl Jones, who he had the pleasure to have drinks with while over in London a couple months back. Apparently he's been chatting with Mr. Voice-of-Darth-Vader's son, who set up the interview, and it was mentioned that they would come to Stageloft. And they'll be "at home" (not too far away) during R&J's run.

How cool would it be if he did come to see the show? Highly unlikely, but freaking awesome if he did.

I could totally be discovered...

But now back to my regularly scheduled reality.

Theater is a very big part of my life, and I love everything about it.  Ok, I don't really love drilling lines into my brain, I wish they would stick without much effort. But it's a small sacrifice for everything else. People ask me why I do theater, why I love it so much. And my answer is "It's a chance to escape your own problems for a couple hours and just be someone else". There are many many more reasons. But where else can you become someone else?

Ok, I suppose identity theft and double lives could fall under that category.

Where can you LEGALLY become someone else?

Well, I suppose if you change your name...

Anywho.

The part I hate the most about theater is the very first step: the Audition.

Auditions are terrifying. At least to me. There are those out there who really enjoy auditioning.

Sickos.

I'll take my most recent case. Stageloft Repertory Theater is putting on William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet. Who has two thumbs and wanted the part of Juliet really really (almost too) badly? This girl. It's one of the few great female roles in Shakespeare. Men have Hamlet, Macbeth, Richard III, the list goes on. Women? Not so much. There are a few, but with men filling all the roles on stage back in Shakespeare's day, the demand for great female roles wasn't as important.

My biggest worry going into this audition is that Juliet's age is called out in the play. She's a mere 13 years old. My time was running out to play her. I have confidence in my acting abilities, especially with Shakespeare, but age and casting I have no control over. I could give a great audition, but if there isn't a "Romeo" in his 20s to match me, I'm sunk.

So what do I do?

Convince my handsome and talented 20-something husband to audition with me. He was wavering about the idea, I just used my womanly wiles to tip the scales in my favor.

Audition day came and we headed to the theater. We saw friends and past castmates who were also auditioning, which lightened the mood. I flashed back to a year before, when I was stepping into this theater for the first time to audition. I knew no one, and it was scary! It's no longer scary, but I still eye all the strangers (particularly the competition), and wonder how good they are. How good will their readings be? Auditions make me paranoid and extremely self concious. I'm not proud.

I was pleased with how my readings went, so I left feeling quite confident. We went out to dinner with friends and discussed and overanalyzed what we thought would happen. The director told us we'd hear the next day, or the day after. Thus began the worst part of the whole audition process. The Wait. The Wait is why I always try to go the last day of auditions, and if appointments are scheduled, at one of the last times. I can't stand the Wait. My brain goes into overdrive, analyzing my performance, the comments made by the director, the competition, and convinces myself one minute I have the role and the next that I'll be devastated.

I was on the edge of my seat the whole day at work. Every time the phone rang my heart raced. But the call didn't come. The Wait was killing me. I'll admit, I became a little obsessed. That night I went to a cafe with friends, and my phone sat front and center on the table all night. I may have poked it several times, saying "Ring darn you!"

Again, I'm not proud.

Midafternoon on Day 2 of the Wait my work phone rang and I see the director's name on the caller ID. My heart is racing as I take a deep breath and pick up, chirping "This is Briana" in my most nonchalant, not-freaking-out-over-casting voice.

"But soft! What light through yonder window breaks, it is the east, and Juliet must be who I'm speaking to!"

All air escaped from my body and I started smiling like a goon. I may have worried a few passersby.

The Wait was over, and the role is mine. 

Who is my Romeo? Let's just say it won't be too hard to be in love with him.

I don't know what it is, but I find the constant need to be busy or multitask. Sitting on the couch watching TV isn't enough for me. I must be surfing the internet, knitting, embroidering, doing something else at the same time. Sean yells at me all the time about it, but I can't help it. I guess it's just a need to have a purpose. If I'm going to be a couch potato, I might as well be a couch potato who writes a blog post, edits some shots, or makes headway on a project.

My personal calendar is a mess of rehearsals, lessons, meetings, etc. I love to be on the go. There's so much I want to do in life, and I want to do them right now. Yes I do get the occasional burn out and need to take a month or so off and be "lazy", but it's only so long before I'm itching to be in a play or learn some new hobby.

Is there anyone else like this? Too many interests, not enough time? Hands must be busy? Brain must go a few different directions?

I started this post as a "10 Things you Didn't Know About Me" type thing, but then I started going way too in-depth with some of my items. And I felt they all deserved their own posts.

#2 I have extra ear holes

Be prepared to ship me off to the circus. I am an abnormal freak.

Ok, not really, but what I'm about to show you is my "parlor trick" - you know, what I pull out when a good time with friends turns to a show and tell of your double joints, tongue rolls and ear wiggles. I can roll my tongue, but so can others.

Not everyone has extra ear holes.

And I'm not talking about holes made by ear piercing guns. I'm talking about something that was always there, and I don't know why.

Presenting: My extra ear hole.

Told you I was a freak.

Ok now that I've shown you mine, tell me about yours! What do you pull out as your parlor trick?



P.S.: If you missed the first post of this series, check out #1: I was a zookeeper

I started this post as a "10 Things you Didn't Know About Me" type thing, but then I started going way too in-depth with some of my items. And I felt they all deserved their own posts.

#1 - I was a zookeeper

For 2 summers in high school I worked at our local zoo. The first year I was a gift shop girl, ringing in admissions, stocking the shelves full of plushies, prepping and wrangling school groups, and running the cash register, which included counting the change that aforementioned school kiddies would pay in. Thanks to my training in Outdoor Emergency Care (for ski patrolling), I also became a medical assistant for our manager. So occasionally I got the call to grab the bag and head to a scene. Typically a scrape or a cut, the occasional heat sickness, but my favorite was a snake bite. I know, I sound sadistic, but this particular kid just wouldn't give us the whole truth. According to him, he was walking by the pond when the snake jumped out and bit him. After pressing him a bit further (sadly we couldn't pull out the interrogation lamp and water torture) he owned up that he was reaching into the pond to try to grab the snake when it snapped.

But the best year was the second. I got a job as birdkeeper, and while it had it's grunt job moments (cleaning cages and washing out food and water dishes which had been terded in) it had some really cool moments as well. The day started early, feeding, watering and cleaning the cages of our outdoor residents. That meant I got to crawl in with the toucans daily. How many people get to hand feed sliced bananas to a real live toucan? As their job? Granted I was always on my toes, because birds are sneaky buggers and one little slip up may have left me explaining to the zoo owners why there are only 3 birds in that cage when there used to be 4.

Next step would be to bring our "commuters" out to their open air perches. Our two commuters were a bratty cockatoo and a blue hyacinth macaw with a beak that could break a broomstick in half and a record to go along with it. In one snap he had broken his owner's (our head birdkeeper's) wrist. I had to wrestle, trick, and bribe them out of their cages every day. Some days they'd go quietly, and other days...well, I still have scars from those other days. And I'd repeat this game at the end of the day when I had to bring them back in.

The rest of the morning was spent cleaning cages and feeding and exercising our other residents, who would get their moment in the sun at our noon time show. This was my favorite part of the day.

For two hours every day the head birdkeeper and I would have a slew of exotic birds out on our open air stage. We'd talk about each one of them, demonstrate tricks, and answer questions from the crowd, mostly children. Each bird had a personality, and each bird had a special trick we would try to have them show. Some days they would perform like a star, and other days they were grumpy and took pleasure in making us look ridiculous.

One day in particular, we had the bratty cockatoo's pal out with us. His name was Fred and he was always a gamble thanks to his salty language. He used to grace the open air perch with his friend until he insulted a customer. From that point forward he was restricted to the barn unless he was having a "good" day, in which we would bring him to the show and let the audience pet him. On this fateful day we thought Fred was having a good day. I had bent down to show off these adorable little sun conures when I felt a very deliberate, and very sharp, pinch on my butt. I turned around to witness Fred booking it back to his perch, wings spread, CACKLING!

You can't make that up.

You also can't stay mad. Bruised butt and ego aside, it was funny. And the audience found it hilarious, including Sean, who had just happened to visit me that day. But you better believe I kept one eye on Fred the rest of that summer.

That summer I was exposed to some many other cool animals beyond my aviary realm.

I witnessed the Running of the Kangaroos - the day at the beginning of the warm season when the kangaroos are herded out to their summer enclosure from the barn by the zoo keepers. Did you know that to steer the kangaroo, you merely turn his tail? It's like a rudder. Which of course is easier said than done when they're hopping at full speed. I witnessed one of the six foot tall male keepers take an awful dive trying to steer a bitty baby roo.

A baby giraffe was born that summer, much to everyone's excitement and delight. My friend took me into the barn to see it, which meant climbing up a ladder to the platform with the feeding trough. Momma Giraffe decided she was hungry and she wanted the food that I was leaning over. Do you know how BIG a giraffe head is? Neither did I til it firmly nudged me out of it's way. It was as big as my torso.

And to cap off the summer of babies, a brand new leopard cub joined our crew. Once afternoon my sister (who had started working in the gift shop) and I went to walk and play with it after hours. There's nothing like having someone thrust a large, wiggly, powerful baby jungle cat into your arms. You realize quickly that those are big paws with big claws on the ends and he's batting at your ponytail. You also think for the first time that your hair is really close to your face.  We watched as the cub played with the resident tortoise, jumping on its back and riding it around the room pawing at the shell's holes. We watched as the tortoise drew in its head and walked straight into the wall, bumping the unsuspecting cub in the head.

It was an incredible summer, and an amazing opportunity to witness so many amazing creatures up close. You can't get that kind of experience out of a book.

I'm ready to pinch myself. That's how good this week has been. And it's only Thursday.

I hope I don't post this and then bite my tongue when a million bad things bombard me over the second half of the week.

Good thing #1: I was a guest fan judge over at I Heart Faces! I was flattered, humbled, and overjoyed at the request and the flood of comments you all left me. I hope you'll stick around :) Can I say one thing? Being a judge is HARD! I wish everyone could win. I do not envy Angie and Amy their job in narrowing down the finalists, and the weekly judges who have to decide all on their own. And the hardest part? Refraining from commenting on other blogs. I tried to remain as anonymous and mysterious as possible, even though my fingers itched to type in the comment window.  Next week I'll go back to being a regular old contestant, but the comments and encouragement will live with me forever.

Good thing #2: We booked the rest of our Scotland trip! Yes, this meant plopping down a grand for a deposit, but it means our trip is pretty much planned out. We have been planning this trip for 2 years, since we first gave my parents the Christmas gift with a picture of Scotland, promising to take them. We're book ending the trip with 3 night stays in Edinburgh, and for the middle week we'll be on a whirlwind cross country adventure, plotted out with help from Paul and Pauline at Homemade Holidays. The trip even includes a stay in a castle with a resident ghost!

Good thing #3: My hubby and I have been cast in Romeo and Juliet....as Romeo and Juliet! I know, Sean will have to shave, we can't have a hairy faced Juliet but it's a sacrifice we'll have to make. (Um...Kidding. Just making sure you're paying attention) Rehearsals begin Monday and the show goes up between April 30 and May 16. Fancy a trip? Sean and I working this closely could be dangerous. Last night we decided that a lolcat version of Romeo and Juliet was in order.

It hasn't ALL been good. My poor little kitten Malcolm had to have "the procedure" today. Sean is grieving. London enjoyed his day alone in the house.

Have you had a good week? I'd love to hear about it.

 

Procrastination is a shared flaw between Sean and me. If it isn't pressing, we won't worry too much just yet. We are trying our darndest to break this habit.

To bad it didn't happen before one of us got hurt.

Ok, that's a tad dramatic...no one was physically harmed, but my dignity was lost, and the oil man may be emotionally scarred.

It all started about a year ago, when our oil man noted that we didn't use as much oil as other homes. He suggested that we move to a "call as you need it" basis, rather than auto delivery. We were all for it. And it worked, the first time, but not the times after that.

So instead of fussing with a company we paid too much, too often,  for, we spoke with a new company at the end of the summer. When we weren't going to need oil for a while. Which means there wasn't any rush to call the old company right?

Suddenly no rush became too late. We arrived home to a yellow receipt from the old company. Nuts.

I guess that's ok. We'll call before the next delivery, we've got some time. And the new company will wait until we call them.

Another yellow receipt. Ok, for real now, we HAVE to call them.

...and another. Ok, this is ridiculous, we need to call them.

Flash forward to me last week, home from work sick, cozied up in my pjs and robe watching TV. And I hear these back up beeps...coming from my driveway.

Oh no.

So out I run in my pajamas, pink fuzzy robe, glasses, and uncombed hair. I forget what shoes I threw on, but they didn't add to the outfit. I dash around the corner of the house and catch him right before he hooks up the line. I explain in my stuffy, nasal sick voice that we don't need oil, that we're supposed to be on the other plan...etc, etc.

He gives me this disapproving scan with his eyes, and grumbles something about paying for his trip, then stalks back to his truck. I slink back into the house, trying not to picture the crazy bathrobe lady he had just witnessed.

I called up the old company right away and cancelled our account. The phone call took less than 5 minutes. Maybe next time I'll learn my lesson before I make a complete and utter spectacle of myself.

I'm not dead. I'm just quiet. I've been trying to readjust some of my priorities and have been nursing some disappointment. I'll be working my way to a happy balance soon I hope.

What have I been doing since I dropped off the face of the blogging earth?

Reading - I've polished off 2 books and am closing in on the end of #3. This is more books than I read in all of 2009...how sad is that? I was a bookworm growing up, and I realized that the internet and television have robbed me of that passion. So I've taken some time to rediscover my thirst for the written word.

Socializing - I've gone to some SCA events, spent time with my family and friends.

Planning - Sean, my parents and I have made some serious headway in our plans for Scotland in July. Flights and Edinburgh hotels are booked, and we're working with a travel agency on the rest of the trip.

Trying out a new skill - I've finished my first piece of blackwork! Small though it may be, and with a slight mistake, I'm rather pleased with how it turned out.

And I've been facing trials, some of which I'll touch upon, and some of which are too personal.

There have been some health issues going on, but everyone is hopefully on the mend at this point. I, myself, am getting over a nasty cold that sidelined me last week.

This past weekend I had scheduled my Mini Sessions for Haiti. I had great expectations working for such a great cause and had been thinking of this as a coming out party of sorts for my new photography business. Well, Saturday night found me, the "birthday girl", all alone...no one had come to my party. It was embarrassing, and felt like a kick in the gut. But I'm getting over it, as I will get over any other bumps or dips that come in the road to success. Thanks to my amazing family Compassion will be receiving some donations, but it did little to soothe my confidence.

That was my biggest downer. Sadly, I'm the type that tends to get their hopes up high only to be disappointed. I've developed a time line in my head of how I'd like things to work out, and my first reaction to this disappointment was that the entire time line is doomed. My path to happiness is ruined, I'll never make it.

Just a tad bit dramatic, huh?

I'm getting over it. It's time to focus on the next thing, and that is getting bookings for the spring and summer! I'm very excited for a maternity session next month with a friend, and probably a senior session in the near future.

I have a love/hate relationship with the treadmill. If it was on Facebook, our status would read 'it's complicated'. And as I take on the Couch to 5k again, our relationship is tested once more.

One pro in the argument for the treadmill is that it is consistent. Whether raining, sleeting, snowing or hailing, it sits in the gym, waiting for me. One bad thing is that it eliminates any excuse I can come up with not to run. And I can get creative.

Another nice thing is that I can exercise AND watch TV! The bad thing is that the TVs in the gym are on mute and on the sports channels. So if I want to know what they're talking about, I have to read the captions. And that opens a whole new can of worms.

I am an arguably graceful person. I grew up dancing, and dabbled in figure skating with some success. One would think I could run in a straight line, right?

Ha! WRONG!

I am incredibly awkward on the treadmill. I press that 'Quick Start' button and I suddenly find myself pitching to the sides. I'm so scared that I'm going to put my foot down half on the tread and half on the side and find myself twisted and mangled into the beast. I'm also afraid I'll hit the back end, so I run so far to the front that I'm banging my knuckles on the grab bar or feeling the static shocks that come from the dry air.

The only way I can forget about the fact that I'm on a thin ribbon of doom is to stare at something straight ahead. If I deviate from center, by entire body does as well. And looking straight ahead can be a pleasant or um...unpleasant experience. It all depends on what (or who) in front of me. Tonight it was the windows to the pool area. It wasn't the most *ahem* pleasant of pool sessions so I was forced to focus on my own reflection.

Oh joy. For the remainder of my 30 minutes I fixated on my ponytail swishing back and forth like a metronome so my gaze didn't shift to my less than svelte thighs.

But I finished, checked day 1 of week 2 off successfully. And come Wednesday the treadmill and I will be on again.

Everything is so quick, easy and instant these days. Emails, texts, tweets and status updates can be fired off in seconds with little thought. I get excited when I get a personal email in my inbox as opposed to junk mail. But I get even more excited when I receive a letter or card in the mail.

My grandmother doesn't have a computer. She would look for birds if she heard someone say tweet. Her facebook is her photoalbums and her address book. She is diligent about thank you notes, even for the littlest thing (a trait I wish I could say I picked up). I got one of those notes in the mail tonight and I smiled.

I smiled because she thought enough of my husband and me to take the time to write and thank us for our Christmas gifts and to update us on the seal we saw while visiting.

And then I was mad. At myself. For not writing back. She doesn't see my tweets, blog posts, facebook status that I use to update people who don't care nearly as much about me. And I know she loves to hear about our lives.

So what I did, and what I want to challenge all of you to do, is to take a few minutes to think of someone who matters to you. It can be someone close (your husband or child) or someone across the country. Grab a piece of paper, fun stationary, a card, or even a post-it, and write a meaningful note to them. Update your friends or family on recent happenings or how much you miss them. Express how proud you are of your child, or how much you love your spouse. Just take the time to think about them and let them know.

They will smile.

Week 2 over at 52 to Fabulous and this week is all about needs. So we'll revisit the list of months and topics and examine what needs to happen in my life. Complete and total honesty.

(I hope you won't think less of me)

January - Fabulous Beginnings - I need a plan for my goals. I need to break them down to make them more attainable
February - Fabulous Organization - I need to keep the house clean. I can't wait for Sean to initiate.
March - Fabulous Fitness - I need to stop the excuses.
April - Fabulous Food - I need to be less lazy after work and cook a healthy dinner for Sean and I.
May - Fabulous Style - I need to care more about my appearance. I always feel so good when I like what I'm in.
June - Fabulous Fun - I need to unplug more. Turn off the TV and computer.
July - Fabulous Hobbies - I need to unplug from the TV and computer and work on some projects.
August - Fabulous Finances - I need to stay on budget and save wherever I can.
September - Fabulous Family - I need to keep in better touch with those far away.
October - Fabulous Health - I need to get over my fear of the doctor, and make and keep yearly appointments.
November - Fabulous Home - I need to pick up a little as I go, and not binge clean.
December - Fabulous Blogging - I need to focus my blog to where my passions lie, and the quality will follow.

We were also instructed to take action on one of our wants from week one. This week I've:

• Gone shopping with a healthy meal plan, and plan to stick with it all week.


• Begun making my vitamins a part of my nightly routine.


• Created a guest post over on Skimbac0 Lifestyle that will hopefully get me to the Blissdom 2010 conference. At the very least I hope it drives some traffic back to my site.

I almost forgot to weigh-in this morning. I had already eaten and dressed, but I hopped on anyway to keep time consistency.

150.5 lbs

I was shocked to see the 2 pound loss. While I did manage 2 hours on the Wii Fit and parts of 2 dvds last week, my eating was less than desirable. Let's just say there were cookies involved.

While I'll take it, I do think the fact that Aunt Flo was in residence last week may have played a role.

But this week I'm starting fresh with my eating. All the junky snacks are now gone (because we ate them) so this week's shopping trip will feature more fruits and veggies and healthier fare all around.

I would like to improve many aspects of my life. Including procrastination. I wrote this post as soon as I received the week 1 email and held off posting because of other entries and it not being quite 'ready'. Next thing I know, I look in my inbox and week 2's email has arrived. Oops.

But anyways, back to the subject. Right now I'm not where I should be mentally, physically and sometimes emotionally. I've been blaming it on a quarter life crisis, but lets face it...that's bull.

So I'm going to take part in 52 to Fabulous - Pursuit of a Better Me. Each month has a different focus, and every week has a new task. This week is to plan. Look ahead and think of what I want to get out of this year. How I want to prepare for the next decade and phase of my life.

January – Fabulous Beginnings: Have game plans for my goals. If I plan out the steps I need to take, I'm that much closer to succeeding.

February – Fabulous Organization: Create system for Photography finances.

March – Fabulous Fitness: Lose 20 lbs

April – Fabulous Food: Cook dinner at home/Less take-out

May – Fabulous Style: Put more effort into my appearance

June – Fabulous Fun: Have date nights with my husband.

July – Fabulous Hobbies: Audition for a musical

August – Fabulous Finances: Become debt free

September – Fabulous Food: More of April?

October – Fabulous Health: Start taking daily vitamins.

November – Fabulous Home: Finish the backyard!

December – Fabulous Blogging: Grow my site

BIG THREE:

1. Lose 20 lbs


2. Grow my site


3. Start my photography business

I realize that I haven't done any updates on our newest addition, Malcolm. Or, as we sometimes refer to him: Malcolm the Monkey. That's right. He's a swinger, wrestler, chaser, thief and love bug. I guess we named him right, didn't we?

And he's grown! I didn't realize how much until I looked at the Bringing Home Furbaby post that I did back in October.

Now look at him! 

He and London have developed a true, brotherly relationship. Malcolm hero-worships London, following him around everywhere and insisting on cuddling with him. London, ever the big brother tolerates him doing so, but every so often shows signs of true affection for the little furball.

Malcolm has also become quite vocal. London's the strong, silent type, while Malcolm offers his peeps and squeaks as greetings, objections, and basically whenever he feels like it. Not to mention the too-large-for-his-body rumble purr he emits when you merely look at him. There is one noise that comes out of London that is quite new. It's a delightful chirrup that means he wants to play. And play they do! Epic wrestling matches, races, bat fights...they are either playing or reenergizing (see above photo).

There is also a new sensory experience in our home thanks to Malcolm.

Kitten farts.

Yes, kitten farts. Wafts of something less than desirable when you scoop them up to nuzzle their cuteness. We didn't quite realize what they were at first, since London is such a delicate creature. There were a couple of kitten wipe-downs with a cleaning cloth after Sean declared something by Malcolm smelled foul. No, he didn't roll in his own deposits or anything awful like that. Just the natural occurrance of kitten farts.

And with that. Happy Friday everyone!

It's Monday, my first day back to work after the holidays, and if that wasn't enough reason to stay in bed, today is the start of my weight loss journey. And for every journey, you need a beginning mark, right? Which means only one thing.

The scale.

That menacing digital monster that lives under my bed. I changed into workout clothes that felt a little too tight and manned (womanned?) up. One foot, two feet, and there go the numbers.

152.5 lbs.

Not horrific, I feel heavier than that, but definitely not great. I'm 24 years old, no kids, no excuses. I shouldn't feel frumpy. My muffin top shouldn't exist, much less be threatening to eat my entire midsection.

I had done something unthinkable for the new year. In constructing an outfit for New Year's Eve, I bought skinny jeans. Size 10, and still tighter than necessary. But I refused to admit I needed a 12. I wore them, and while the outfit was totally cute, in the back of my mind I was still self conscious, dreading the thought of someone snapping my picture and seeing myself in my skinny fatty jeans on Facebook.

So here we go. Time to get my butt in gear. Do I have a plan? Kinda.

Sean and I will be cancelling our gym membership. Backwards I know, but since working with a trainer this past summer we've gone on our own a grand total of 2 times. I personally get lost walking in there, and it's far from an effective workout in the best situations. Plus it takes a LOT of motivation to get me up and out the door to the physical gym, especially in the winter.

We bought a Wii Fit. And thanks to my inlaws gifting us a blu-ray system at Christmas, we have Netflix on our TV. This morning I gave Crunch: Fat Blasting Dance Party a shot thanks to instant queue. It seems like it'll be the perfect plan for me as long as I do it. A class in my own living room, and fitness games in my basement.

But I am lazy. I need motivation and all of you to hold me accountable.

Starting Stats

Date: Monday January 4, 2010

Weight: 152.5 lbs

Pounds to go: 20

How about you? Do you have a plan to lose weight this year? I love having workout buddies, so share your goals in the comments section, and if you have a weight loss blog please share!

2009 was quite the year in retrospect. Many people, including my husband, are ready to get it over with and move on. Sometimes I feel the same.

Many discouraging things happened this year:

• We lost Doug, our director, friend, and inspiration on how to love, to a heart attack.


• We lost Sean's cousin, Susan,  just before Christmas to a surprise relapse of her cancer. We'll be saying goodbye to her next week.


• My aunt was diagnosed with lymphoma and, after a stroke, is now in very precarious health.


• Good friends of ours moved to South Carolina. And while it turned out to be a beneficial move, with new opportunities for them close to family, we miss them terribly.


• The new house threw obstacles at us, particularly the yard. We had to clean out after the December 2008 ice storm, lost trees to Asian Long Horn Beetles, and battled poison ivy...*shudder*

All of that can be incredibly overwhelming and very hard to look past.

But I'm going to. I'm tired of feeling depressed. As awful as these things are, more good things happened this year:

• We worked with a new theater company, expanding our group of talented friends and growing ourselves. And through this group, we were in one of the best shows of our careers.


• I discovered a new passion: photography! I have now had my baby (Nikon D40) just over a year and am starting a side business with it. I never would have believed it a year ago.


• That passion took me down to Dallas, somewhere I've never been, where I met some wonderful women and learned loads.


• Sean and I joined the SCA. We are now officers. Go figure! He was able to pursue his newly rediscovered fencing hobby, and he's quite good. And, more importantly, we've met some wonderful new friends.


• Sean and his graphics partner, Jeff, launched an impressive and very successful flash game to augment their work on Flamel's Immortal Portal.


• Sean and I celebrated our two year anniversary. I guess that ends the newlywed period, huh?


• My sister got engaged!


• My doublemint twin, Diana, got married!


• We added a new furbaby to our family.


• We welcomed my cousin's daughter, Tristyn, into the world.


• And last, but certainly not least, I started this site.

So when all is said and done, 2009 wasn't too shabby. And tomorrow we'll be showing it out in style. We're headed into Northampton, MA for First Night festivities and 2 Enter the Haggis shows that are guaranteed to be more rockin' than anything Dick Clark's put on TV!

How are you sending the old year out?

Hooray! A new year! Time to start in on those resolutions, right?

Wrong.

I don't make "resolutions" because they have never worked for me. They are usually vague and negatively focused, therefore I have no desire to see them through. Case in point: Sean and I resolved to eat healthier this year. Um...yeah, that went out the window my first lazy night. We've developed a take out routine for any night I forget to take the meat out to defrost, we're too busy, or I'm just tired.

So this year, in honor of 2010, I've decided to set 10 definitive goals for myself, in hopes that I'll be able to celebrate each and every one with you.

Briana's 2010 Goals:

1. 365 day photo challenge - I want to join in on the phenomenon of taking one picture every day for a year. My plan is to post the photos once a week so I don't allow myself to be overwhelmed with everyday uploading/posting. It's a daunting project, but if I succeed, the practice I will have had will be incredible.


2. Open my photography business - This requires several steps, but my plan is to check them off one by one and become official in early 2010. I'll be sharing each and every step with you.


3. Revamp this site - For 2 reasons: 1) I've learned and grown since I started this journey 5 months ago and some areas need to be expanded and others cut/combined, and 2) with the new business, I'll need this site to mesh with the new photography website


4. Audition for a musical - This one frightens me, but the pay off could be so much fun. I'd like to add "and get the role" but that's not fully in my hands, now is it?


5. Lose 20 pounds - The perennial favorite. But I have a few reasons why I want to make this a reality, so time for a fresh attempt.


6. Volunteer for Habitat for Humanity - and not fall down a hill this time. Sean and I volunteered with them once a while ago, and we've wanted to do it again since.


7. Handmade Christmas 2010 - I wanted this to happen this year, but you read about that. I want to develop and execute a plan for this year so that I'm working on gifts all through the year. My hopes is that I'll save the time and money that caused stress this year.


8. Read 20 books - I used to be the biggest bookworm, and then I met TV and the internet. I don't think I completed a book this year, how sad is that? For the purpose of being efficient and the fact that hearing the same songs over and over on the radio annoys me to no end, audio books count. And to properly document this goal, I will review them here and on GoodReads.com


9. Complete 3 garb outfits for Sean - One must be new fencing gear, his current set isn't holding up well. But since I have been the recipient of wonderful hand-me-downs from other ladies in the shire, I must outfit my husband as well.


10. Experiment with a Vlog - These mini videos have always intrigued me, and they appeal to the actress in me. Though maybe I'll try to complete goal #5 before I attempt this one ;)

Have you had success in the past with New Year Resolutions/Goals? Do you have any for 2010? Are you boycotting resolutions altogether?

After experiencing how wonderful the Dallas I Heart Faces Workshop was, the next one I have my eye on is Blissdom, a blogging conference where my newly made friends Angie and Amy will be speaking! Sadly with finances as they are and a trip to Scotland in the very near future, it's just not in the budget this year. However, when I saw a chance to win a pass to the conference from SteaZ, I couldn't not throw my hat in the ring. If it's in God's plan for me to go this year, then perhaps this is my chance.

They asked what we value as bloggers, what success means to us. Simple question, right?

Ha.

After some brain wrinkling and Google Reader analysis, I've assembled this list of what I value when blogging or reading blogs:

• Honesty - I'd much rather hear how someone lost their temper, or burned the cookies, or second guessed their actions, because guess what? Everyone has. No one is perfect, and if we wanted to hear about people who were we'd head to the self help aisle or flip open the latest Martha Stewart mag (and even she had troubles). I'd rather find humor and celebrate flaws with others who are just as flawed as I am. Be YOU, because there already is a someone else.


• Writing Skills - You could be the funniest person on the face of the earth, but if you can't take the time to proof, edit and find your dictionary, then I can't take the time to read you. Although, I do fall guilty to blurting and posting without a second read sometimes. But beyond basic grammar, I enjoy reading posts that draw me in. I can get very ADD online, so a great writer holds my attention and respect.


• Sense of Humor - I wish I was funnier. Sometimes I'm reading one of my favorite blogs and I can't help but snort (which usually leads to quizzical looks from Sean or the cats). I wonder if anyone has had the same reaction to anything I've written.


• Beautiful Photos - Something I'm constantly working to improve myself. Blogs are essentially online magazines, and great prose is only improved by great images. I'm not someone who thinks an image should be thrown in just because "an entry needs  a picture". Sometimes you don't have an image that fits and sometimes an entry just doesn't need anything else.

As for success? I've got a ways to go before I become a true blogging success like The Pioneer Woman or Young House Love (two of my personal favorites), and who's to say I ever will? But in the meantime I'm working towards my own little successes. Every comment is a little success, and when someone mentions my blog and how much they enjoy it, that's a bigger success. It's still mostly within the constraints of my family and friends, but maybe someday it will reach beyond.

I'm still a baby in this blogosphere, and right now I'm actually scrutinizing what I've done so far in preparation for an overhaul in the coming months. A trip to Blissdom? Talk about a launching pad! Just browsing the sessions has me drooling (hold on, let me grab a napkin). I need help and wisdom in all those areas.

So Steaz, if you choose me, you will have a friend forever. But no matter what blogger you choose, Blissdom will be an amazing adventure. So if any of you bloggers (anyone out there?) is interested in throwing your hat in as well, check out their Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/officialsteaz.

My little sister is home from Scotland! And we wasted no time getting her into a store and into a wedding gown. It was strange, seeing my baby sister (ok, so she's barely 2 years younger than me) dressed all in white, and even stranger to think that I was actually married at her age!

But enough chit chat and reminiscing, on to the pictures!

She tried on 4 dresses, but one was such a no that I didn't even lift the camera. But the first dress she tried on was the reason for the trip. She'd had her eye on this Jasmine Couture gown since she saw it in the magazine.





It had some very beautiful details:





But sadly it just wasn't right on her petite little frame. With a drop, angled waist, once it was hemmed, it would shrink her legs, and she was already tiny enough!

But the second dress she tried was beautiful:









That was our favorite coming out of last night. But she tried on another that had similar details to my own wedding dress.





It was pretty, but it seemed like too many dresses put together.

Overall it was a successful beginning step for her. She tried on a few styles, and we found out what worked for her. Beaded bodices flatter her well, as well as an off white/ivory color. But what surprised me most was Sean's involvement! I had a panic attack when I couldn't find my camera, and it turned out I had left it in Sean's car. So being the wonderful man that he is, he dropped it off at the store.

And stayed.

And gave his opinion. His very helpful, very honest opinion. Even offered his preference to a girl who was having difficulty choosing between prom gowns.  Sean and Caitie acted like real brother and sister from day one, and it was wonderful that he stepped in as brother in this matter.

*Sigh* Our little sis is growing up.

As the year draws to the close, I look forward to some changes in 2010. Wake Up, Juliet has been around for about 5 months now, and I've learned some lessons. Mostly that I bit off more than I could chew. But I knew this would be a learning process, and that I'd quickly figure out what worked and what didn't. And I learned that I can't be everything.

So changes will be coming in the new year. As soon as my technologically savvy husband finishes launching our Shire's website, he'll be focusing on my little baby. I'll be culling what hasn't worked and be focusing on what seems to be and what I and you all most enjoy. For instance, photography will be heavily featured (duh!).

But I'd like to hear what you enjoy reading. I know there are some of you that keep coming back for more (though I'm not quite sure why ;-p), and I want to thank you by making sure you keep seeing what you like.

So please, give me feedback and suggestions. If you need a guide, here's a quick questionnaire that will guide you:

1) What type/topic post do you like the most?

2) Which would you like to see go by the wayside?

3) What would make the site overall easier for you to navigate?

4) What unexplored topics would you like to see? This can include branches off of old posts.

I'm looking for critiques, so let me know my faults! But, in the spirit of Christmas, be kind :)

I feel like Charlie Brown this year. I know I should be excited, Christmas is a mere 4 days away, but I'm feeling a bit depressed.

Illnesses in the family seem to be part of it. My aunt on my dad's side is fighting lymphoma and not faring too well. If that wasn't bad enough, we suddenly lost Sean's first cousin this weekend. She was in remission after beating breast cancer, and when we saw her at Thanksgiving, she was her usual self. Then Friday we get the call that she's relapsed and in the ICU with failing liver and kidneys. Yesterday she passed away.

I had the best intentions of having a handmade Christmas this year, making presents and really putting time and thought into them. Thing after thing came up and last Thursday found Sean and me at the mall trying to get through our list as quickly as possible. My idealized Christmas card and newsletter turned into a rushed picture and a Walgreens template.

I have no kids, therefore I should have no excuse not to be Martha Stewart, right? Yet I stamp this year as a fail.

Is it the stage of life I'm at right now? I'm no longer a child, there is no longer the magic that the season brought to me every year. When I was young it seemed like there was snow and beautiful skies every time we went to get our Christmas tree. I wasn't responsible for getting gifts for everyone, I just made my wish list to Santa from the American Girl catalog and dreamed of what I'd get. There seemed to be so much time. Now I'm balancing a full time job, a fledgling part time business, a home, two cats, and a husband who still needs to know that I love and cherish him. Where is the time? Where is the magic? Suddenly I'm responsible for making both.

Recently I've had one time of really feeling the Christmas season. It was at the company Christmas party on Friday. All of my coworkers brought their families, Santa made an appearance (and this year we had an awesome Santa), and all the kids got a present. Seeing their faces light up as Santa made his entrance and called out their names one by one, it was all joy and happiness. No stresses, no deadlines, just celebrating the holidays with families and our 9-5:30 family. It made me want to have a child, someone to remind me of the magic and for me to create that season for.

Is that what it takes to bring back the magic? Is there the lull in between becoming an adult and becoming a parent where Christmas seems to fade?

Sadly, I'm letting the depression affect my spirituality at the same time. I've been to church once this month. In my defense it would have been twice if 10 inches of snow hadn't canceled it yesterday. I've let life and stress overshadow my childlike faith. I need a Linus on my shoulder to remind me about the true meaning of Christmas.

"And there were shepherds, in this same country, abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And the angel of the Lord came upon them and said, ‘Fear not: for behold, I bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly hosts, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, goodwill toward men.’

That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown."

My apologies, this will be a very brief post, since I have a million things to do before my trip to Dallas tomorrow. There's a new website that will be launching soon that will help link brides with vendors all over the country! It's called Groom Sold Seperately.



Cute name, huh?

The site is just as adorable and sassy. Not much is up at the moment, but you can sign up for their mailing list, become a sponsor, or contact them about being a vendor. It's a chance to get in on the ground floor.

While you're at it, check out their facebook and twitter pages as well!

I've noticed something interesting about Sean and my habits when it comes to taking sides. And no, I don't mean sides of a fight or debate, but sides of the bed, couch, table, etc. Is it a phenomenon that occurs in other committed relationships as well? I'm curious.

When I moved in with Sean, right before we got married, he had already planted his flag on the right side of the bed (sleeper's right, not looking at the bed right...anyways). I was fine with this, and my side of the bed became the left. But this configuration seems to have spread to other areas of the house. In the bathroom, we have two sinks...he's on my right, and I'm on his left. Dining room table... he's on my right, I'm on his left. When we sit on the couch to watch TV, he's on the right, and I'm on the left. I've tried sitting on the right...it felt really strange. 

The only place I consciously sit to his right is at the movies. When we went to our first movie together, that's how we sat and for some reason it's been that way every since.

Are we weird?

Am I the only one who's witnessed this in their relationship? I'd love to hear how you and your significant other take sides. Also, are there other unconcious habits that you've fallen into?

Everywhere we look the news seems so bad. Whether it's the economy, job situations, the war, or health scares, it doesn't seem to turn off. It's so easy to slip into defensive mode and focus on yourself and your family. But what can follow that is a feeling of helplessness. Where is the hope? The answer could be in you.

You are blessed. Things may be tough, but put your faith in God and focus on what you do have. What comes next is the tough part. Let go for a moment and look beyond yourself to those around you. Others are feeling the weight of the world as well. Look for ways in which you can shine a light in someone else's life. It doesn't take much effort or money, a simple act can change someone's attitude for the better. It's not a new concept, it's as old as time. Serve God by serving others.

• Bring dinner to a struggling family or invite them over for dinner


• Offer to babysit for a mother who is overwhelmed


• Write a note to someone who is having a down day


• Tell someone you appreciate them


• Make a mixed CD with uplifting songs


• Use your talent to make a small present for someone, whether it's a knit blanket, a framed photo or scrapbook, a pretty piece of jewelry, etc.


• Put together a food basket or pick up an extra toy for a local drive


• Volunteer at a local shelter or give your time to a worthy cause

I know it's easy to say these things, but this post was actually inspired by my own life in recent months. I'd allowed myself to be depressed and self-pitying when I have no reason. I have so many blessings in my life! Sure my life is far from perfect, but my family is wonderful, I have a loving husband, a roof over my head, food on our table, and we both have steady jobs. We are witnessing others who aren't as stable as we are, and lately I've been looking for ways to spread the light and help however I can. The gratification I've felt has lifted my spirits immensely.

Opportunities surface all around you. Shift your focus, look for those chances, and your own problems won't seem so insurmountable. You may even find the blessings being returned to you. If you want to take this to the next level, Alyssa Francis over at Keeping the Kingdom First is hosting a 30-Day Giving Challenge.

God knows our needs and will provide. Do your part by leaving yourself open to being God's blessing in someone else's life.

When you go to see a play, you go with the expectations of being entertained. Little did you know that you have a role in the show, especially in a comedy. Throughout our run of Moon, we would judge a show by the audience. As a cast, we can give our all, but it is infinitely better when the audience is receptive.

The perfect example is one of my bits as Eileen. I had to imitate a pregnant duck, and every night I put myself out there, praying for a laugh. Sometimes I got a snicker or a laugh here and here, but sometimes I got nothing. You throw all of your energy out to the audience, and when they don't throw it back to you by reacting, you feel a little drained.

We would classify some of our audiences. There was the 'Friday audience', everyone's tired from work all day, and the energy is subdued.

We had the 'Snicker Audience', where they were laughing if you listened closely. They're having a good time, but they aren't boisterous. Most of the time you'll hear them on the really funny stuff, but the rest of the time you want to have a doctor check their pulses.

Then our favorite audience: 'This will be a Long Show Audience'. Long show in  a good way. This audience is loud, appreciative, and rolling in the aisles. The show will be at least 10 minutes longer because we have to pause for the laughter. These are the shows we feel the adrenaline high after.

So next time you go to the theater, be prepared to be entertained, and be appreciative. Don't be afraid to laugh out loud, even if no one does. The cast will love it, and you'll encourage others to show their appreciation. Everyone will have a better time, and you will have done your part in making it a better show.

I've been married over two years now, yet a bridal magazine is residing on my bedside table, corners folded on pages I like. Why do you ask? Do you remember when I posted a little while back with teasers from the couples session with my sister, Caitie, and her boyfriend, Jon?

Well last week, Jon gave her this:

Yes! My baby sister (ok, I've only got 2 years on her, but she's still my little chica) is engaged!

She asked me to be her... *gulp*... matron of honor. Bless her heart she didn't use that word, but technically that is what I am. Since she's in Scotland and inexperienced in the art of wedding planning, she's letting me help her along the way.

Oh the blog fodder!

Sean and I were married 2 years ago, and had a wonderful wedding. But now that I look back I see little things I would have done differently or something else I would have added. I loved planning my wedding, so I think I am more excited about planning hers than she is!

So to start, I gave her the following tips:

1. 
   
   Relax - Unless you are under a fast approaching deadline to get hitched, take a breather. You just got engaged! Spread the word, scrapbook mementos from the proposal, blog about it, buy a couple bridal magazines or books, get used to the feel of fiance/fiancee on your tongue. Too many people rush ahead and quickly become stressed about the details of planning. Savor the honeymoon period of being engaged.


2. 
   
   Daydream - Imagine your perfect wedding. Is it on a beach? In a museum? In a garden? On a mountaintop? Do you imagine 1,001 friends and family members or just those closest to you? Are there roses and hydrangeas spilling from every direction, clean, modern lined orchids, or is it a sea of candles? By allowing yourself to fantasize, you get an overall image of your wedding, your style, and what's most important to you. If you want to do more than dream, this is the time to create a planning folder or inspiration binder. Pull pictures from magazines and the web to inspire you and help you visualize.


3. 
   
   Preliminary Date and Location - Have an idea of when you would like to have your wedding. Don't be too specific. Unless a particular date is very important to you, you may limit your vendor choices if they've already been booked. Decide as a couple what location is best for your wedding, whether it be where you went to school, around where you live, or around where your family is.


4. 
   
   Figure out the Budget - Up until this point it's all been in your imagination. But this is the grounder. There is no reason to go into debt for a party. Figure out what you or your parents can afford and work from there. If you can afford the Newport Mansion extravaganza then great! But weddings have made just as wonderful a statement on shoestring budgets.


5. 
   
   Prioritize - Now that you know what you can spend, figure out how you want to spend it. Go back to that perfect wedding in your mind. What details were most important? The dress? The venue? The food? The cake? Now think about what details that aren't so important to you. Create a list to visualize it. Now you know what you should spend the money on and what you can get with the left overs or even leave out. Not every wedding needs a cake, or a DJ, or a 4 course seated meal.

And as a Bonus Tip and final thought: Enjoy it! Planning your wedding should not lead you to a nervous breakdown or turn you into the dreaded Bridezilla. People remember the weddings they had the best times at. And as long as you go along for the ride, you'll remember nothing but joy, happiness, and love on your special day.

I sit on the couch and watch a little TV after Sean leaves for work every morning. It's the routine. So when I heard the door open again a few minutes ago, my mind started racing at what he could have left behind. As he made it to the top of the stairs, he lifted his two arms, and in his hands were a small coffee cup and a bag from the donut place up the street. He had stopped for some breakfast and decided to pick up a hot cocoa (with Kahlua Cream) and a pumpkin muffin to drop by as he passed the house again.

My heart melted. Sean is not a romantic, and a little while ago we discovered that we spoke different languages when it came to showing that we love the other. I feed off of the verbal affirmations, while he shows it through action, doing something for me. This was one of those actions, and it was so touching that it made me tear up.

So for all the times when I'm frustrated because he doesn't compose sonnets or spout declarations of love to rival Shakespeare, I have to realize that he does a million little things to express himself. He takes wonderful care of me, our house, and our family. These actions that make me tear are his declarations.

The biggest action came before we were engaged. My grandfather was on life support, and we were at the hospital to say our goodbyes. Sean hates hospitals, but at my request, he was there with me. We had decided that we would eventually be getting married, but nothing had been made official.

I was in the room alone with my grandfather, and I started telling him how he had met the man I was going to marry. An arm slipped around me and Sean was there, he had come in without my knowing. He told my grandfather that he was going to take very good care of me. That moment solidified everything in my mind. Sean had faced a fear, in a very uncomfortable situation, all to comfort and care for me. I'm crying now just thinking about it.

My way of showing him my love is usually through spontaneous massages. He has very tight muscles and his back or legs are usually bothering him. It's the only way I know to care for him and make it better. But I always feel like it's not enough.

Do you and your significant other speak different love languages? Are you a verbal and he's an action? How do you bridge the gap?

Happy November! Yesterday we said goodbye to October by watching the tournament to decide who will be heir to these thrones.



In the SCA, a couple serves as King and Queen for 6 months. They are chosen through a heavy list tournament, in which the winner and his consort (aka, lady of choice) become the Prince and Princess until the end of the current king and queen's reign. At that point they are crowned, and another crown tournament will be held to determine their successors.

This is heavy list:



Men (and women in other battles) dress in armor, and fight with rattan weapons. There are certain kill zones, but that's about all I know.

This crown tournament was special for 4 reasons: 1) our shire (the shire of Quintavia) hosted,



2) the champion and his consort will reign during Pennsic, the ginormous 2 week camping war event in August,



3) the champion was one of our own, and



4) it was our first crown tournament experience!



I also got a chance to debut the beautiful Tudor ensemble that Eleanor gave me! It fits like a dream :) So congratulations to our new prince and princess of the East Kingdom: Sir Edward the Grey of Lochleven and Lady Marguerite Ingen Lochlainn!

Alright, time to kick this baby into high gear. I've been letting things slip with all the craziness going on about me, but that ends tomorrow! I will be participating in the original NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month to those of you who thought I was speaking some alien language). The goal is to post every day for a month, and while you can now start it any time you like, the original month was November, to coincide with National Novel Writing Month (or NaNoWriMo). Plus they have a bunch of prizes that winners can recieve. What's not to like?

I also plan on incorporating suggestions from Darren Rowse's 31 Days to Build a Better Blog. It's all about growing and experimenting and finding out what Wake Up, Juliet is and what it isn't. So hang on, this should be fun!

What can you look forward to this month?

• Teasers from some recent photo sessions


• Travel and packing tips for the holidays


• We'll hear from my sister in Bonnie Scotland


• A new series that will feature fave finds from Etsy.com


• Handmade Christmas and how you can have one


• I head to Dallas for a photography workshop with the lovely ladies from I Heart Faces


• And of course, updates on our troublemaking furballs

There's lots more, but that should get you salivating. You'll also see some tweaks happening on the site to improve it, starting with my lovely new signature below.

Opening weekend can be a crapshoot. You hope for the best, expect the worst, and dread the reviews. Ours was no different for Moon Over Buffalo. We opened on a holiday weekend and were competing with the Red Sox in the playoffs. Our dress rehearsal went fantastically. We had a few slip ups, but had a couple of great laughers watching who kept our energy flowing. Unfortunately, that sent us into our shows on a very high note. When the audience didn't live up, we felt off. Sunday brought in some Red Hat Ladies who are always up for a good time, so we made sure to give it to them.

We did get reviewed, and we did well, scoring 3 out of 4 stars. Hopefully that'll mean some new interested parties will come out this weekend. Our Sunday matinee is already sold out!

Next week, tune in and I'll discuss the role an audience plays in the show.

So I'm a day late on Thespian Thursday...that's because my topic had me busy all week. It is hell tech week for Moon Over Buffalo. It was our last week to work out kinks, get all costumes together, and...for this production...work with our own set!

It's going from this:

To this:

For very technical shows, it's not a week for the cast members, it's for the crew. It's a chance for the lighting, sound, costumers, and stage managers to work out their parts of the show. Hours can be spent on cue-to-cues, where the actors will jump between lighting and sound cues, testing them out. Luckily for us it's not that bad. We spent our nights running straight out, no stopping, as if it were for real. We had to wean ourselves off of asking for lines, and the knowledge that if we flubbed, we could go back, recoup, and start over.

Everything is in preparation for tonight...opening night. When all of our hardwork (hopefully) pays off!

Tune in next week for a recap of our opening weekend.

Congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Brandon Stroup!!! This weekend I was honored to be a part of their beautiful wedding at the Gramercy Mansion in Baltimore, MD. We were blessed to have fantastic weather the whole weekend, and their outdoor evening wedding went off without a hitch.

Thanks to everyone who chimed in on the hairstyle. Without further ado, here's how it turned out (photos courtesy of Amber Larimore and Amy Capellman, respectively):

But as pretty as my hair turned out, Diana was the true beauty that day. She surprised me when I arrived. She was so calm and composed up until 10 minutes before the ceremony. As soon as we girls got ready to head down to line up, the butterflies exploded and she showed her nerves. Despite a case of the shakes she remained beautifully composed all the way down the aisle.

And yes, I cried a little.

It was a fun reunion of some of my closest friends from college. We managed to have a reunion of our senior year apartment, as well as Diana's roomates sophomore and junior year. I'd forgotten how much fun these girls are. Our other female roomate, Amber, who was another bridesmaid, caught the bouquet...much to her chagrin.

During the rehearsal, I had my camera in hand and couldn't help but snap away. One of my favorites is this "point of view" shot. This is what it's like to be a bridesmaid:

I have to take a moment and give Sean a LOT of credit for this weekend. When a groomsman couldn't make the rehearsal, he acted as a stand-in. He was wonderful with the groom's boy-crazy, 13-year old sister, who is a sweetheart, but due to many disabilities, can be very hard to handle. On the day of, I was off doing all the girly bridesmaid things, leaving him to the whim of (previous) strangers for transport. Amidst all the chaos he made sure that we filled out the breakfast order form and that Diana and Brandon's was filled out and on their door before the ceremony started. On top of all that, he was their videographer for the night. Did I mention that I love this man?

Oh, and he occasionally dances with me, which makes me very happy (thanks Amy for the pictoral proof!):

So once again, congratulations to the happy couple! You two are perfect for one another.

*drumroll* Andi Warner! She will be able to join in my extend birthday fun.

Wouldn't it be fun if our birthday could last all month?

thespian - noun a tragedian; an actor or actress

I've decided to start a weekly column that will feature all things theater, whether it be a current show I'm in or general theater related topics.

Currently I'm in a show called Moon Over Buffalo by Ken Ludwig. It's a very funny show. Sean is playing Howard and I am playing Eileen.

So why is he at rehearsals right now and I'm sitting at home catching up on my DVR? Because I'm a walking germ factory. I've got some sort of sinus thing that's making me think I should take stock in Kleenex.

And I'm a mouthbreather.

So when I got home I had to weigh the options. Suck it up (literally...ew sorry) and go to rehearsals, or stay home and quarantine my germs. When it came down to it, I realized that it'd be easier for the stage manager to read off my lines for one night rather than start the oh-too-frequent sick cycle that usually runs through a cast a mere 2 1/2 weeks before opening night.

The lesson: consider carefully how your illness affects others. In theater, you are in close quarters with your cast mates, hugging, touching, sometimes kissing each other. If you're going through tissues like they're candy and you have no choice but to breath through your mouth, you are just asking to pass it on. If you're able, stay home.

In a mere week and a half, my doublemint twin, Diana, is getting married!! And I want your help in deciding how I'll style my hair. In exchange for your help (in comment form), I'll be giving away a Beauty Insider exclusive set of 3 super shimmer lip glosses from Sephora! The 3 shades are "Precious Pink", "Rosy Glow", and "Bronzed Beauty".

Here is the dress, only picture it in a dark candy apple red color:



So with that in mind, here are the options:

Option A:



Option B:



Option C:



Option D:



So please leave your vote in a comment, you have until midnight (ET) Friday, September 25. Then I'll randomly select the winner of the lipgloss trio!

This weekend my hubby and I were at Providence Place Mall. We always have our eyes on the lookout for house items, so we strolled through a few stores (fell in love with Restoration Hardware). We found a very unique wine rack that unfortunately wasn't quite right at one store. I claimed it was Pottery Barn, Sean claimed it was Crate and Barrel.

We just resolved this debate. With my doublemint twin's wedding quickly approaching, I'm looking for a wedding gift. The following conversation ensues:

Me: "I wish i had remembered this on Saturday. They're registered at Crate and Barrel, which we totally did not go into, it was Pottery Barn."

Sean: "I disagree"

Me: *quickly pulls up Pottery Barn online and finds item we looked at* "Look familiar? Bam Said The Lady" (Follow Nathan Fillion on Twitter to get this awesome reference)

Sean: *Heavy pause* "I told you it was Pottery Barn."

Me: "I love you"

Thank you to everyone who weighed in on the bangs dilemma. It had marvelous and super fresh results! My mom almost didn't recognize me when we met up at the restaurant Saturday night. Yesterday I went to see my friends' show and had my own rehearsal afterward. I had 3 double takes, and 2 people who didn't recognize me until I took off my sunglasses/turned around. Everyone loved it!

So here we are:



The bangs are in there, they just need to be trained to be all swoopy.  Now that this is done, stay tuned for another beauty dilemma, and this time there's a giveaway for someone who chimes in!

Hair Dillemma, I'm loving the sideswept bang look, but unsure whether I should make the plunge and try it on Saturday when I go for my appointment.



I had it done before, but I think I had them cut too long. I didn't know how to style them right. See evidence here:



This is a very recent picture of me, and I feel like it's a very blah look. I'm tired of blah.



I'm in the blue dress, right of center.

So what do you think? Should I make the dive? Hair always grows, I know that. Leave a comment and let me know what you think!

I finally got to see this movie. Originally I was supposed to go last Friday, but I wound up at work until the wee hours of the morning. But Sunday night, with a house overrun by testosterone and in dire need of air conditioning, I managed to escape to see it with my mom and sister.

It was worth the wait. I loved it! And I couldn't help but relate to it.

For those of you who haven't heard of it, the story is about a woman who challenges herself to cook her way through Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" in a year and blog about it. It follows her year as well as Julia's journey through cooking school and writing the epic cookbook. It's fantastic, with Meryl Streep and Amy Adams lending their exquisite talent to the main roles.

I saw myself in Julie's shoes, creating this blog as an escape from her full-time job and as an outlet for her writing and her passion. For her, it was learning to cook. For me, it's becoming my photography and sewing projects. As I watched her melt down over a dropped stuffed chicken, I was reminded of a similar melt down I had over Sean's fencing doublet. As I watched her unjustly snap at her husband, I was shamefully reminded of times when I let my frustrations out on Sean (who really is a saint for putting up with me).

But in the end, you see her success in finally finishing something that she loves. I want that feeling. I want to be successful doing something that I love. I have ideas, I sort of have plans, but I'm scared. Scared to fail, scared that I really don't have the talent that I think I do. Scared to put myself out there.

So I've decided that I'm done being scared, done being wishy washy. Nothing comes of nothing, right? From this point forward I plan to be 100% optimistic in my plans. Wish me luck! I'll have updates soon.

Today is Sean and my 2nd anniversary. It's incredibly hard to believe how fast time flies! So in honor of our anniversary week, I thought I'd share parts of our perfectly imperfect story (with commentary by Sean)

Two and a Half Years Later...

I did eventually get the feeling back into my legs after Sean's proposal, and over two years after that night we were one sleep (or lack of sleep) away from our wedding day. We opted for a casual BBQ at Sean's parents' house as our "rehearsal dinner". Family and friends (including the boys from Enter the Haggis) joined us for games, food, and relaxed good times. When the time came, those of us in the party headed out to the rehearsal.

After we went through all the motions, Sean and I went our separate ways with our own posses in tow. Sean headed to his parents' for the night with his guy friends and did guy stuff, while I headed home with my girls for a night of painting toes and catching up (you know, girly stuff). I had a call from some college friends as we drove home. They were on their way up and didn't have a place to crash. So that night I gained three more slumber party guests!

We went back to my parents house while Brie got the apartment. We spent most of the night playing Guitar Hero.


The Big Day

Nine AM we had managed to climb over the still slumbering college buddies and make it to our hair appointment. Amid Dunkin Donuts, nail polish, curlers, pins and way too much hairspray, we managed to come out looking shiny and glamorous. Off we went to the Salem Cross Inn, where we munched and got the rest of ourselves looking just as pretty as our hair and nails. God bless Laura Beals, my photographer, who was not only our shutterbug, but our stage manager. She kept us on time, and me on my feet while the girls yanked my corset top tight.





I couldn't tell you what our timing was, but our morning was far simpler. We got to the church around one. Got dressed. Went into the church and waited. My groomsmen were in the foyer and helping get people seated. My best man, Dan, and I were in the side room. Eventually Laura, the photographer, came in and took some snaps of us waiting. I, however, needed no help getting my clothes on.




When I was finally complete in my "Belle" gown, tiara, veil, and makeup, we headed downstairs. My uncle was waiting for me in his custom Cougar convertible, known to us as the "Catvert", and they got me to the church on time.



"I'm getting married in the morning...." oh, whoops, sorry.

We lined up, the boys and girls paired up ahead of me, with my cousins at the doors, ready to open. To appease my theatrical side, I had broken down our entrances to "The Prayer" by Josh Groban and Charlotte Church so that the couples entered every 30 seconds, and I would enter on the crescendo. The music started, and I started counting. That's right, I stood there, holding onto my dad's arm, counting to 30 to cue them. I was nervous, what else was I supposed to do?



For their credit, they performed flawlessly. Well, all except my sister. I look down for a mere moment and I here the crowd laugh. I looked up just in time to see my sister steadying herself after tripping on her hem. She looked back and flashed me a grin with an "I'm good!

Funny. As. Hell.


The walk down the aisle was a blur. I entered on the crescendo, and my heart swelled and my arms got goosepimples. This moment in my life had a soundtrack...it was perfect. My dad held my arm to ease my shaking. Later he admitted to me that while trying to keep me calm, he forgot to fold down his kilt hose.

No one was looking at his knees, dear.



If you look closely, you can see the socks going right up to his knees.

For the past two and a half years I had cried at the stupidest things. Commercials, songs, pictures...you name it, it caused the familiar sting in my nose and well in my eyes. But that day I didn't cry. I laughed, I shook, I counted to 30, but I didn't cry.

The ceremony was beautiful. We had my cousin read a passage from the Bible, our director (remember Taming of the Shrew and I Hate Hamlet? Yeah, him) read a sonnet from Shakespeare, we played Wild Mountain Thyme during the unity candle ceremony.

The reception had our stamps all over it. From a choreographed waltz to 'So Far Away' by Staind, to tables named after Shakespeare plays, to the swing dance jam that we had towards the end, there were little hints of our hobbies, loves, and history everywhere. We paid tribute to my grandfather and Sean's Auntie Chris through a memorial table with 2 roses in a Glenlivet bottle (reflecting my grandfather's love of Scotch and his aunt's involvement in the annual Worcester St. Patrick's Day Parade).

Oh, and remember that 30 second counting thing? Well, our friends decided to get me back for it. While we were making our rounds, they would start to clink their glasses every 30 seconds. Cute guys, real mature.

But our favorite touch during the reception was the garter. I sat in a chair, shoe off, ready, when the music started. It was the Indiana Jones theme. Sean ducked behind the sweetheart table and pulled out a hat and a scrunchie. He then reenacted the famous "idol switch" scene, complete with blowing on his fingers.





His cousin, John, caught the garter, and our friend, Allerlei, caught the bouquet. This was the set up for a hilarious scene. Allerlei sat in the chair and poised herself, skirt hitched up on one side.  John respectfully put the garter halfway up her calf, which the DJ challenged. He then asked her if this was good enough. Allerlei, with doe-like eyes, pouted "it's not even past my knee!"



John got it right the second time. We gave him the hat for courage.

At one point during the night, I retreated to the bathroom with my friend, Diana. She pointed out a smudge on the front of my dress. I grabbed a Shout wipe from the emergency kit I'd put in the bathroom and wiped at it. The smudge moved...

There was a grasshopper up my dress.

Diana, the trooper, dove in among the layers and fished it out (scot-free thanks to the Shout wipe), only to spot another one! I can only imagine the scene someone would have walked in on. The bridesmaid pulling apart the bride's skirt layers in search of Jiminy Crickets!

It was one of the best days of my life. I married my best friend, surrounded by my family, friends, and God, on a beautiful day (and Sean's father's birthday...Happy Birthday, Steve!! Thank you!). Two years later we're still best friends, still newlyweds, and even deeper in love.

At this point there's not really too much I can add. The emotions made the day pretty much a blur, but we both experienced it together, so I don't really have a "side" to the reception story.












The beautiful ladies...



The dashing men...



I think this is where I picked up the grasshoppers...sneaky hitchhikers!

Wednesday is Sean and my 2nd anniversary. It's incredibly hard to believe how fast time flies! So in honor of our anniversary week, I thought I'd share parts of our perfectly imperfect story (with commentary by Sean)

New York, New York

It was nearing the end of my spring break Sophomore year, and most of my family (my mom stayed home with the dog) was heading into New York City for an Enter the Haggis concert at the Knitting Factory. We were staying with at my uncle's in New Jersey and took the train in. This was only my second trip to NYC, and I was excited. My aunt is very familiar with the city, and was having a great time giving us a tour of some of her favorite pubs. Enjoyable for the adults, but not so interesting for us underagers and non-drinkers. Even Sean was annoyed, and he's usually very easy going. We just wanted to get to the show and out of the rain. At one point I stood outside in hopes of getting the others to move it along.

This involved a lot of pacing on my part. Along with my eventual involvement of Brie's sister, Caitie. That went something like this:

Sean: We need to get to that concert well before it starts.
Caitie: Why?
Sean: I need to see the guys before they go on stage
Caitie: Why?
Sean: ...There's more than just pills (I was on anti-inflammatories for my knee) in my pocket...
Caitie: ...wha...OHHH! :-D

So thanks Caitie.

My Suspicions are Roused

Eventually they did follow, and we managed to find the Knitting Factory. We wove our way through the gathered crowd and managed to stake out a spot right in front of the center of the stage.

After standing for a few minutes, Sean blurted out "Want to go check out the balcony?" And pointed to the second level above us.

"No, I'm ok. We've got a good spot here," I said. He fell silent a while longer.

"I'm going to go explore the second level," he finally decided, and my sister piped up with her decision to go with him. I agreed to hold our spots.

*knock knock* Is this the band room? OK Good! Hey guys, we just got here...

The discussion turned to "Ok, we're playing two sets, when we come out for the second set we'll announce you and you can propose, but we gotta go on"

As I waited for them to return, my suspicions began to peak. Sean sometimes gets antsy when he's bored, but this was unusual for him. Finally they came back and the concert started.

The first set ended, and we were talking with friends when the wife and the fiancee of two of the band members came to find us. They needed Sean's help carrying a box of merch upstairs to the green room while they brought drinks to the band members. He left with them, and my suspicions grew. They had crossed the entire crowded floor to get Sean's help, when they had passed many other guys they knew. My sister tried to keep my attention diverted, but I was quite distracted by that point.

Even I had no idea what was going on, but I figured the guys wanted to talk to me about something. So I go up stairs and Trevor, in his oh so Trevor way, suggested that I ask that girl I was with to marry me, what a good idea Trevor!

It was decided that during the second set they were going to play, per usual, Minstrel Boy followed by Martha Stuart. After Martha Stuart they would call me onstage and I could call Brie on stage, propose, then they would play "Wild Mountain Thyme" (not the most romantic of songs, but slow enough to dance to) and we could dance onstage and "milk it for all it's worth" (Brian)

The Moment

Sean returned and the second set started. A few songs in, Brian, the fiddle player, stepped up to the mic to introduce what I thought was the next song.

"The Minstrel Boy to the war has gone in the ranks of death you will find him..." - The nerves kick in
"some music that I can't onomatopoeia in..." - Throat goes dry

"We're going to do something a little different tonight," he said. "We're going to have someone come up here...you know what? I'll just let him tell you why he's here."

That's when I felt Sean's hands leave my shoulders, and as I spun around, I saw him heading towards the stage door. My sister was looking at me with a huge smile and my hands flew to my mouth, where they stayed.

"Hello, I'm Sean," he said into the mic, impossibly calm and cool.

(And I'm an alcoholic?)

"Hi Sean!" shouted the audience.

"There's a girl out there who I've gotten to know over the past few years, and I want her to come up here right now."

Yeah that's pretty much what I don't remember. That whole moment is pretty much a blur. On stage in front of that many people. It's one thing when it's theater, this was 100% different.

I looked towards the stage door that was being held open by Mark, the bassist. My mind had one target - get to that door! My sister had wrapped me in a hug, my dad was squeezing me from behind, people were turning and pointing and yelling "It's you! It's you!", and I was moving step by step towards the open door.

I made it onto the stage, where the mob I was just a part of had turned into a sea of dark heads, clapping and cheering. I looked before me, and there Sean was, on one knee. My knees began to shake uncontrollably.

Is that really what my hair looks like from the back?

See? Hands still glued to mouth. (By the way, Brian's the one with the red hair, and Mark's the curly haired one behind me...Sean's the one on his knee...just so we're up to speed!)

My knees were shaking harder than they ever had, and I launched myself at Sean and wrapped him in a big hug before he could get a word out. I couldn't stand on my own anymore. He whispered in my ear "Will you marry me?" and I said yes. Brian was lurking behind Sean's back.

Wait a second...did I just make a Harry Potter reference?

"So...uh...was that a yes?" he asked. I nodded my head as hard as I could, to the tune of 500 people cheering.

"You didn't even see the ring!" Sean laughed.

"It doesn't matter!" I managed to answer, between laughs and tears. By the way...he did good, it's perfect :)

"Alright guys, now you have to dance," Brian said.

"What?!" I gasped back. I still hadn't found my legs! Sean maneuvered me back a bit so Mark could get into position. They played Wild Mountain Thyme as we rocked and laughed and I held on to him for dear life.

It was more like Mark and I exchanged glances because he needed to get to the microphone and I had nowhere to go without risking Brie falling all over her self from shaking. So I gingerly slid back as far as I could go. It's hard enough getting 5 musicians on a stage, let alone two lovebirds too.

Spreading the News

My phone had been in my pocket the whole time (you can see it in the picture...the really old school Nokia poking out of my jeans), and the room we passed through to get to the stage just so happened to be soundproof. What luck! I immediately called my mom.

"Mom, you're never going to guess what Sean did to me!" I burst out.

"Was it bad?" she asked, concerned.

"No!"

"Did he propose to you?! Tell that boy he should have told me and I would have gotten a dog sitter!"

The rest of the night passed in a blur of phone calls, hugs, and well wishes. I called my college roommate, Erica, and burst out the news.

"Hang on! Everyone's downstairs, we just got back from camping. GUYS! GUYS! Brie just got..." THUD THUD THUD BANG!

"Erica?" I cautiously asked.

"Ouch, sorry, just fell down the stairs!" she piped up.

The moral of the story? Sean wins :) It was a perfect proposal. And even though we've thanked the guys of Enter the Haggis 100 times already, we want to extend "Thank You" #101.

#102

Wednesday is Sean and my 2nd anniversary. It's incredibly hard to believe how fast time flies! So in honor of our anniversary week, I thought I'd share parts of our perfectly imperfect story (with commentary by Sean).

We Meet, I Embarrass Myself

It was the summer before my senior year in high school, I was 16 and was in the midst of rehearsals for my first Shakespeare in the Park, Taming of the Shrew. Earlier that summer, I had auditioned with my friend for a different show, The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood (it really was as silly as it sounds), which she made but I had not. I went to see the show to support her, and was quite taken by the guy playing Robin Hood (despite the overly rouged cheeks and tacky dialogue). Afterwards, my sister and I went backstage were running around with our friend in an embarrassingly giggly and girlish manner when I bumped, quite literally, into 'Robin Hood'. I thought I would die. I managed to hide my embarrassment later on, when we ended up talking in a group before I had to head home.

I don't really remember the bumping into thing, but I was probably in my post show daze. I do remember inviting her to join us for an improv show but she couldn't because of her little sister, it was that night I met the girl I would go out with for the next 6-ish months.


The next time I saw 'Robin Hood' (who, if you haven't realized by now was Sean, you really need some caffeine) was at an audition for I Hate Hamlet, where I was helping backstage. As he signed up, I managed to talk him into volunteering for an upcoming living history at a festival that we needed bodies for.

It wasn't so much talking into involved, I was still new to theater then and wanted to do as much as I could. Plus I thought she was cute.


There were signs from the start. First, we were matched up to recite letters by John and Abigail Adams at the festival. Then, at a later planning meeting for the living history, the coordinator deemed that we would be playing a married couple, then had the brilliant idea that I should be "pregnant".  I gushed this to my friends over lunch at school, which set me up for the constant teasing of "How's the baby?" and "So when will he make you an honest woman?" Sadly, I had learned that he had started dating another girl the night we met. I met her in the midst of the living history performance.

Friends

He wasn't cast in I Hate Hamlet, but wound up working backstage on lights. It was then that we finally got a chance to really talk and hang out, and became pretty fast friends. I was a senior in high school, he was a junior in college in Worcester. I was secretly falling harder and faster for him, and he was still dating his girlfriend. We began instant messaging outside of the show, and I hoped I would see his screen name available every time I logged on.

She didn't have too much to worry about, this was my college days, AIM was always signed on, so long as I wasn't at class I was usually in front of my computer doing work. Though I did like seeing her sign on, to the point where she was on my "Alerts"


One night, everything got strange. I was online when he messaged me. Turns out it was his girlfriend, over at his dorm and on his computer. He was playing a game of 'mini frisbee dodgeball' in the hallway with his roommates. From that night on, I was friends with them both, and both seemed to confide in me regarding their relationship. Sean was backing away from it, while she was worrying and uncomfortable with his new role as Don Baker in Butterflies are Free (for those who don't know, there's a scene where the two main characters are in their skivvies, kissing).

Back when I still looked somewhat decent in my skivvies. But the girl smoked, it was gross.

The Breakup

It was 1 am, mid January. I was online doing homework and messaging with Sean when they broke up. Guiltily I felt a surge of joy, but also very torn. And in the following weeks I would feel the tear even worse.

I was online, talking with the both of them, a few days after they broke up. Sean was telling me how he was heading out to play pool with some friends, and I mentioned how I hadn't played in a long time. He suggested we play a game sometime. Meanwhile, his ex is in the other window, asking me if he's doing ok, since she knew we were talking.

The next day Sean pops up in a message window with "So when are we going to play pool?" My heart skipped a beat, he had actually meant it. I had taken it as a noncommittal "yeah maybe but not really" kind of statement. I decided to be bold.

"I'm free this weekend." I typed (maybe a bit too quickly to seem passably nonchalant).

"Greenroom? Friday night?" popped up.

Holy Crap.

I remember running to the living room and babbling madly in a roundabout way to ask permission to go out with a college boy. Luckily my sister was able to translate and vouch that Sean was not some creepy deadbeat loser.

When I was told this part of the story I could totally picture her running back and forth from the office to the living room and back again. Though if it we my daughter, no way in hell would I let her date a college guy.

I jokingly told my friends over lunch that Sean was gonna make me an "honest woman".

The First "Date"

That Friday I drove to meet Sean at the Greenroom. My mom made me promise to call her when I got there. I saw Sean waiting at the front door, and I tried to make my call as quick as possible, while trying to look cool and worthy as I walked up the parking lot. That was until I made a misguided turn and stepped knee deep into a pile of snow. I don't even know how I managed that.

Thankfully he looked past my utter lack of grace, and we had a very nice time. We ate pizza, played pool, and talked all night about everything. But in the back of my mind I couldn't quiet the battle between whether this was a date or just two friends hanging out.

He escorted me back to my car at the end of the night. It had started to snow, and we stood there, so close that I could feel the warmth radiating from him. There was a moment where I looked up at him, and he was looking back at me, and my mind was screaming "Oh my gosh he's gonna kiss you! This is gonna be like the movies!" In a torturously sweet and subtly concerned voice he whispered "Drive safe" and headed back to his car.

I came home and gushed every detail to my sister. She pointed out that I was heading to college in Delaware in seven months. I level-headedly answered that if we were together at that point that I would give him the option of staying with me long-distance or breaking it off. Little did I know how farther gone for him I would be come September.

They had good pizza at the Greenroom.


Valentine's Day

A week later and another "date" (bowling and dinner with his friends) later, Sean popped up on instant messenger.

"This is totally cheesy, but I wanted to ask you before anyone else did...Will you be my Valentine?" (If you never hear from me again, it's because he killed me for writing this.)

Anybody have a shovel I can borrow?

We arranged for him to pick me up, go out for dinner, then he had a surprise for me. Perfect in theory, but things never go as planned for us.

As I waited for him to pick me up, my dad pulled in the driveway, with Sean's red Kia right behind. I went into the kitchen to grab something as the front door slammed and my dad stormed up the stairs.

"Just go before I say something!" he yelled furiously at me. I quickly made my way to the front door where Sean was standing cautiously. Turns out Sean had tailgated my dad all the way from downtown, which is a pet peeve of his.

Or a bag of Lime?

Despite the rocky start, we headed to Brian's restaurant, only to find it packed to the gills. We settled for a Chinese place around the corner which has a reputation for food poisoning and allowing underage drinking. It was enjoyable nonetheless and we escaped salmonella-free.

I'd eaten there several times after shows and rehearsals and never had an issue, nor had I heard of any of the food poisoning, but the underage drinking thing is true.

(The salmonella thing is totally true.)

Then came my surprise. Sean drove us to the mall, and guided me to our destination. Build A Bear. I melted.

I can only imagine what she thought when we pulled into a mall parking lot for a Valentine's day date.

It was still early to end a date, but we were too afraid to return home to face my dad. So we toured around the backstreets of my town for an hour before summoning up the courage to head back. Luckily my dad had cooled off, and we had a polite introduction session before sitting awkwardly down on the couch with my parents to watch TV. Noticing our tension, my mom (bless her) suggested we could go downstairs if we wanted to watch something different.

So first they send her out with a college guy, then they send her downstairs with him? Though it was pretty awkward. I forget what we watched though, I want to say it was like CSI: Miami or something.


Our/My First Kiss, or How I Lost All Street Cred

We found a rediculous episode of NYPD Blue that involved a murderer with a foot fetish and cuddled in on the couch. I don't remember how much time had passed, but I turned to look at Sean and he was looking back at me. He whispered "Happy Valentine's Day" and leaned in to kiss me.

This is where I lose all potential for being remotely cool. My body went tense, my mind was racing, and my inexperienced lips reflected every inch of that. Sean still teases me that I kissed like a small mouth bass.

I believe I said "trout".


He helped me improve, and I think I'm a much better kisser now ;)

Much.

"I Love You"

The next few months passed happily, and one evening we were curled up on the downstairs couch (a frequent location for our dates) when his lips found my ear.

"Would it scare you if I told you I loved you?" he whispered hesitantly.

...Anyone would be nervous, we were going out for what? 3-4 months?


I responded by giving him a tight squeeze and a thoroughly un-bass (trout)-like kiss.

"I love you too"

When September and my freshman semester came, there was no question. We were were in it for the long run.

Those were a tough 4 years...But worth it in the end.

Boston Creme Donuts are my weakness. When I step back and think about what they consist of I am disgusted, there is not one healthy thing about them. But then the chocolate, pastry, and creme hit my tongue and the brain goes a bit fuzzy.

I know that if I just cut them out of my diet forever it'd be a lot easier for me to drop these vanity pounds, but did I mention the fuzzy brain experience?

But this time they've gone too far. Before today I could ignore the idea that each sugary calorie was going straight to my thighs.

Today...I watched it happen.

It is a bad habit of mine to stop at Dunkin Donuts on my way to work and savor the treat as I commute. So far I've been successful in doing it cleanly, despite the recent runny/melty consistancy of the chocolate. Today, I wore tan pants. And as I finished the donut, I looked down to see several large drops of chocolate running down the insides of my thighs.

Perfect.

So what have I learned today? First - chocolate is evil, I'm done with the donuts. Second - never wear tan pants when intending to cheat on the first promise. Third - be thankful for coworkers who keep stain stick pens in the bathroom, my faux pas is not so embarrassingly obvious now.

I thought I'd take a moment to introduce the main players here at Casa Gardell, who will be featured prominently in future Wake Up Juliet posts.

Briana Gardell: That's me. I'm in my early 20s and still getting used to the realities that come with being a wife, homeowner, and adult in general. I'm an actress on the side, amateur seamstress, knitter, crocheter, embroiderer, and, most recently, photographer. I also love to write, which you'll witness on this site.

 

Sean Gardell: My husband of 2 years (August 12). He's in his mid-20s, an engineer by day and an amateur web designer on the side (he built me this site...it's good to marry a geek). He shares my love of theater, in fact, that's how we met. Recently he's begun fencing again, and he's quite the dashing swordsman *dreamy smile*...sorry.

 

London: Our 2-year-old Siamese, Himalayan, Ragdoll mix, also the Wake Up Juliet mascot. We adopted him just before our first Christmas together, and he's proving to be the best present ever. He enjoys lounging in strange, yet adorable positions, playing with his mousie, torturing invading bugs, cuddling with mommy, and punching daddy in the face. Affectionately known as: London, Londizzle, Dizzle, Dizz, Dizz-butt (Sean's coinage), Dizzle-bean (ok, this one is my doing), and Dork.

Now I'd love to hear about you!

I am so excited about launching this site, so pull up a chair, pillow, rug, box, exercise ball (good for you!) and make yourselves at home!

Let me introduce myself:



My name is Briana, and I'll be your hostess while perusing this site. I'm 23, a wife of nearly 2 years, a homeowner of nearly 1, and a creatively passionate person. Where I work I have no outlet for my creative energy (which I have an over abundance of), so thanks to my husband I now have this site to unleash it on.

The purpose of this site is to share with you my endeavors in photography, crafting, homeownership and life in general. I plan on learning, experimenting, gleaning information from others, and sharing it all with you. Historically, I have a habit of being a bit ADHD in my interests. I want to do so much, right now! This has resulted in me being good at many many things, but not particularly excelling in any one or two. Here, I hope to change that.

I also love hearing from you, so I expect to see lots of comments, or email me with questions or suggestions for things you'd like to see!

Til next time,

Briana

Here you'll find musings, day to day hilarities, and any posts that won't really fit in the other areas.