Apartment in the City

Apartment Living/ Single Mom status/ My new life:

My new apartment:

1 Bedroom

Downtown Tacoma

4plex

MINE.

So the apartment is a ONE bedroom. LEGALLY and because I'm like an awesome Mom, the kids have the bedroom and I have...well, the living room. It's pretty awesome actually. I can lay in bed and see the kids while they're playing without having to move a muscle, I can watch a movie from in bed, I can bark orders loud enough to be heard throughout the entire apartment... why would anyone need a bedroom?

Oh yeah, privacy? Clearly, I don't have any of that...I have a blog.

The Pros & Cons of apartment living? 

No yard = No yard work. Also equals no yard to play in. However, I do have a side yard the kids can play in, but my landlord doesn't believe in lawnmowers apparently.

Neighbors... Oh neighbors. I feel like it's a love/hate relationship. It's kinda nice to know that I know all my neighbors and if I scream loudly they will probably be concerned and come to my rescue. With that being said, if you've ever heard my little girls boys scream...I'm pretty sure my neighbors hate me. 

Stairs. Enough said.

It's called "My apartment is hella old"

Things I'm lacking:

Laundry services available IN my apartment (there are shared machines downstairs though...and they're free, so I can't complain too much about this)

Food Disposal; You honestly never realize how much you use one of these things until you don't have one. And I'm like a super anal freak about smells and what goes in my garbage so this is a huge deal to me. During both pregnancies, we kept our diaper pail and garbage in the garage because I couldn't handle it. And if you ever put a banana peel in my garbage... I will find you. 

Dishwasher. I hate doing dishes.

Oh the best part? I wake up Saturday morning (while Eric has the kids I have what is called FREEDOM) and I text my dear friend, "Yo... I'm out of coffee creamer" and she says, "Come over...BYOB" (Bring your own breakfast). 

I love having friends for neighbors! It's been a LONG time since I've lived within 20 minutes of any of my best friends. 

I also live within walking distance to 6th ave which just so happens to be a strip full of fun things to do (like shop and drink coffee and have Mimosa's and brunch) and my place of employment (which is a restaurant/bar/club)...

So that's it. My new life.

It was the worst of times, it was the best of times.

COUCH SURFING ADVENTURES

PT. 1

Sometimes you find yourself homeless. Wait, no...not really. It's actually pretty rare and I suppose it would take a lot to get to that point. But nonetheless, I found myself in an interesting position this summer. 

I found myself being forced to make a decision I had long since delayed... and hence, found myself among the pillows of my nearest and dearest friends couches. 

Actually, in all reality I only slept on a couch a few times. Some of my friends homes felt like being in hotels (you know who you are, pepita) and for the first time in months, I had finally felt home. My friends were amazing to me this summer. They took me in, gave me beds to sleep in, often fed me, provided lots of entertainment (aka distraction from my so called "real life") and well, I suppose I owe them some money for the therapy sessions as well. 

So to those friends, thank you. a million times :)

Maui Wowie!

So yeah, we don't even need to talk about the serious neglect this blog has been experiencing.

I'm going through a drastic life change and still trying to figure out how to be normal again has been a little challenging. But eh, I was never normal to begin with...so add that to the chaos and there's my life these days.

Some day soon, I'll be back on my blogging, and hopefully my gym going too because that's a whole nother world of neglect.

Anywho-- Some people might remember my bestest/greatest/favoritest friend. This girl has been a rock for me through a lot of my life's ups and downs and changes and challenges. She's always stood by me, even when my decisions have clearly been a little questionable. I thought I could not love her more...and then she told me she planned a trip for us to Hawaii. Sealed the deal, she's stuck with me for life. We'll be old cat ladies together forever ;)

Started our trip off with a glass of champagne... almost missed our flight because of it, but oh so worth it!

Some things we did:

• Laid by the pool for an entire day. Took a 4 hour nap, ended up sunburnt...oh and all on the first day.
• Had dinner at amazing restaurants = Roys, Hula Grill, Sansei, Cool Cat
• Went on a hike in the Bamboo Forrest + a lot of driving, but great scenery and of course, conversation.
• Played at the beach; went tourist crazy with our camera. Had a few people staring at us.
• Made a couple friends with some "locals"
• Went searching for the giant Sea Turtles. Ended up laying on the beach for a few hours.
• Explored a few bar scenes, tried to stay awake past 10pm. 
• Went to a Hawaiian Starbucks, got a couple fun souveniers.
• Of course, a little shopping happened.
• Kristen, of course had to feed the birds a lot. And spot every gecko. Also rescued a baby gecko from our shower.

The rest is for us to know....

What happens in Maui, stays in Maui...

HA, just kidding. We took a lot of naps. 

ALOHA