new home. new things.

As Sam and I are starting to settle into our new apartment, I'm trying to find ways to make it our own.  This is the first time that we've had a place that we can somewhat customize - okay, we can't paint or do anything too crazy, but we can at least hang pictures and make things to keep it pretty around here.

My first project for the apartment was a wreath for the front door.  I saw a few on pintrest with tulle and I thought since we're going into summer that it would look perfect.  I don't have any specific inspiration pictures, but you can be rest assured that I didn't come up with this myself.  There's my disclaimer.

I went to Hobby Lobby with, of course, my 40% off coupon ready to go.  I picked up the necessary supplies and began:

Yes, I keep my craft supplies in an old diaper box from my niece.  I'll get around to getting nice things one day!

I don't have any "in the process" pictures, but here's the (almost) final product:

You noticed the "B" is missing, right?  Turns out, I've lost my glue gun.  Never fear - I just bought a new one, and I have since added the découpaged "B" to the wreath.  I can post a picture of it later; I'm just lazy right now.

So, there it is!  A little something to brighten up the door and make this feel like home a little bit more.

on being an introvert.

Most of you that know me personally know that I am definitely an introvert.  Sure, I can have a good time and I think I'm a pretty honest person, but I'm definitely an introverted person.

This graphic has been going around on pintrest and I think it really describes my personality:

This really says it all.  Many people that are not introverts or do not have close family members or friends who are introverts do not understand the importance of respecting other people's ways of dealing with life events.  

The biggest problem as of late is how to handle being an introvert in the age of social media - especially when you're on various forms of social media.  How do you handle privacy issues for you and your family?  Who has the right to say when and what you post on social media?  How do you handle your information being on the internet when you don't want it there?  

I don't even have the answers to these questions right now, but these are genuine reflections of life at the moment.  Introverts need time to comprehend changes in their lives, therefore, certain info may not be posted on social media for quite some time.  Just let us absorb what is happening in our life.  Respect those who need time.  

The most important thing for me as an introvert is not to be pushed and for my need for privacy to be respected.  I believe these are also concepts for dealing with people in general.

back to crafting.

I know I have been extremely MIA, and I apologize!  Still not feeling my best and life has been more than crazy lately.  But....in all the craziness, I have found some time to be productive and get some post-wedding crafts together.

One of the neatly organized ideas that I've seen on pintrest is a wedding card holder.  It's an extremely simple way to keep track of something you might otherwise throw in a pile or maybe even throw away if you're not a card person.

This blogger's holder ended up looking like this:

It seemed simple enough and the steps on her site were easy to follow.  I won't go through all the steps since there's so many tutorials for it on the internet, and it's easy to find a way to put your own spin on it. I've linked this blogger's tutorial above.

I changed a few things from her tutorial, of course, and I pulled out the mod podge.  I can't imagine crafting without it!  All of the supplies were from Hobby Lobby with 50% off and I had my coupon for 40% a full price item.  

Here's the final product:

The color quality of the photo isn't the greatest, but I can assure you that this paper is super pretty!  I've been stashing it for the perfect project and I'm really glad I saved it for this.

Here's the back:

Aren't those brads the cutest?  They were worth the splurge, plus they were also 50% off, so they were a bargain splurge!  (the best kind, right?)

I hope you enjoy it!  I'm so happy I have a cute way to display all the thoughtful and beautiful cards friends and family sent to us.

black mold.

This is seriously not okay by any means.

A few months ago we spotted black mold in our room.  We alerted the femme de ménage who told us to open our window (when it was below freezing outside) and turn on our heater that smelled like death to stop the mold growth.  We got rid of the molded curtains and Sam cleaned up the mold since I am sick/immunocompromised and can't really be around it.

Knowing that I've lived with this for months is now completely unsettling.  I'm freaking out that there maybe unseen effects on my health and Sam's.  While cleaning today we came upon a lot more black mold than we previously knew existed.  

I'm really freaking out so somebody please tell me that black mold is just really ugly decoration and that I'm not going to die.

In other news, Sam and I are moving out of here TOMORROW.  We were planning to anyways, but now I'm really getting out.  Seriously, France, would it kill you to invest in A/C?!  Or any form of circulated air?  It's times like these where I really miss the United States and all the luxuries I had there.

french hooligans.

Let me start off this story with another story.  When I was in middle school, my dad came to visit us and took us out of town to go shopping.  While we were gone, someone broke into our townhouse and stole the Christmas gifts from under our tree only leaving a Creed CD.  Most recently, someone also tried to break into my family's house in Edmond kicking out a window in our dinning room.

Thanks a lot, robbers!  Now I'm stuck with this shitty CD for all of eternity!  

Since these incidents, I've always feared another break-in.  I have a lot of trouble sleeping in general and lately my insomnia has been horrible. Last night was no exception.  I was awake around 3:30 AM and suddenly heard pounding on our front door which, given the time, really freaked me out.  I heard a lot of banging outside.  It did occur to me that maybe our neighbors got locked out, but I had heard them not an hour before shut their doors.  One thought suddenly occurred to me: "This is it.  This is how I'm going to die.  In France and at the hands of some crazy, drunk people outside."

Not long after the sounds outside I heard lots of noises outside our window which faces the parking lot.  Then someone banged on the window.  That was it for me.  I flipped the f(*&# out and started waking up Sam.  Sam went to the window and all the people were gone, but they left some souvenirs:  bike tires.

Bike theft in Clermont-Ferrand is actually pretty bad.  Most people I know that have had bikes here have had them stolen.  Maybe because they're parking them by the school and people get drunk on the weekends and think it's okay to take them apart leaving just the wheels.  Seriously, why are bikes so valuable here?  I don't get it.  And why when you get drunk do you immediately think to go steal bikes? I'd rather enjoy my buzz at home while singing to Rebecca Black's "Friday" but to each their own.

Now, I do feel lucky that this was a mostly innocent event.  No one was harmed, there was no attempt to break in, and all they really did was destroy someone's bicycle and dump it in our place like the mafia dumps horse heads.  Hopefully this isn't some kind of omen or warning.  If it is, it was great knowing all of you!!

goodbye, davy.

Usually, when a celebrity passes away I get pretty sad, but the death of Davy Jones yesterday really got to me.  He was such a big part of my life and the music that I've listened to my whole life.

Isn't he dreamy?  oh to be a teen during the 60s!

My mom is a big fan of The Monkees even though they were a bit before her time.  She had older sisters that helped influence her taste in music and therefore mine.  On car trips, cleaning the house, and just for fun we listened to The Monkees.  I've always connected to the music of the 60s and 70s and The Monkees were no exception.

They may have been a silly pop group with an even cheesier TV show, but some songs are actually pretty relevant.  One of my favorites is Pleasant Valley Sunday.  When I moved to my suburban neighborhood in Oklahoma I found this song resonated pretty well with my environment.

Just listen to the lyrics.  Anyone who's ever lived in suburbia and didn't fit the mold can really see the truth in this song.  "Rows of houses that are all the same and no one seems to care" The social commentary is great.

And who could forget Davy's appearance on The Brady Bunch?  It's still one of my all-time favorite episodes.  I've never envied Marcia so much! (She gets to kiss him on the cheek in this episode.)  He also sings Girl which is one of my favorite songs ever.

Also, please notice the creepy noddy guy behind the booth that can't act.

Also, a few of The Monkees appeared on Boy Meets World which I always thought was so fun!  

But no one will ever forget Davy's beautiful voice on Daydream Believer which was released in 1967, the year after my mom was born!  Now my mom is going to kill me for revealing her age, but it's amazing how lasting his voice is.  

I'll also never forget the horrible singer on the first season of American Idol who absolutely butchered this song.  I cringed when I watched it on TV and continue to cringe to this day.  Thanks to youtube, I have a video for you:

Cover your ears, Davy.  That one was rough.  Thank you, Simon, for actually telling her the truth.

With all of this, I give Davy a heartfelt goodbye.  I appreciate all the happiness that he and The Monkees brought into my life through their music.  I'll leave you with my favorite Monkees song: I Wanna Be Free.  You're free now, Davy.

 

falling off the face of the earth.

Okay I know it probably seems like I've fallen off the face of the earth.  I actually haven't, but I kind of feel like I have.

I've been really sick, had my first experiences with French doctors, and now I'm home for the next two weeks in an attempt to feel better.  Next week was supposed to be my vacation week and I wanted so badly to visit Rome, but that's no longer in the cards.  It's sad!  I wanted to pretend like I was in The Lizzie McGuire Movie!!!

I must say that as far as doctors go here, I've had a really pleasant experience for feeling less than pleasant myself.  My doctor has been very attentive to my needs and talking everything through with me.  It makes me happy to know that I'm well taken care of in the French system.

I'll try to update more soon, but I haven't been doing a lot and I'm on an official leave from work (thank goodness) so don't expect too much.

I'm really glad to have the break from work.  I was just transferred to a new group of Masters students who were geared up to give me all kind of aneurisms.  One student flat out refuses to speak English and I've had enough of it.  If you are in a Masters program you are no longer allowed to act like a Kindergartener.  Actually, I'm pretty sure Kindergarteners behave better.  Sad.