7/30

Day 07: A Photo of an animal you'd love to keep as a pet.

I can't see myself ever being an exotic pet owner ---- which is what I think this question was probably referring to. I am a pug lover ten times over & that's how I'll likely stay for life.

We are ucrrently pug-less. But once the cats die off (we have two! ugh! ) that is what I will buy myself. A sweet little pug to call my own again. :) 

6/30

Day 07: A picture of your most treasured item.

Assuming 'treasured item' refers to an object & not a person or animal I have to say, hands down, my dad's guitar.

This guitar epitomizes everything that was important to my pa. Music was his life & when that life came to an end all-too-soon, I was left with three things: His 1500+ piece vinyl collection (including but not limited to the complete autographed Beatles collection), his Elk's Lodge tie, and this guitar.

The record collection is phenomonal & I'm incredibly proud to have it. And the Elk's Lodge tie is special to me for a reason that I won't go into now ... it's a story for another time.

But that guitar ... it's more than just something I inherited. It makes me feel close to both of my parents still. Music was something that connected them to eachother ... a passion they shared.

They met when they were assigned to do a morning show together on a radio station in Miles City. From there they worked at several radio stations together, produced & promoted concerts, and taught me everything there was to know about classic rock & classic  country. I don't think I have any memories of them that don't include music in some way, shape, or form.

My dad started having this guitar autographed YEARS before he met my mom & continued taking it to every concert they went to once they met & were married. After they died, I was lucky enough to add a few autographs to it as well.

The Judds, Garth, Martina McBride, Highway 101, Willie, Waylon, Kris Kristofferson, Clay Walker, The Charlie Daniels Band, Reba, Tanya Tucker, George Strait, Colin Ray, Pirates of the Mississippi, The Bellamy Brothers ... the list goes on and on and on.

There really isn't anything else to say. This is a photo of my most treasured item. :)

5/30

Day 5: A photo of yourself two years ago.

A picture of me in February 2009, eh?

Looking through my pictures I have only ONE folder marked February 2009. And it appears that the pictures in it range from November 2008-February 2009. But it was kind of a fun folder to go through. Instead of posting a picture of just myself, I think I will post some of the highlights of the whole folder --- looks like it was a fun couple of months!

This is when I was still working for the radio stations so there are alot of station events (Buckcherry, MoVember, Fusion Fight Night...) & a couple of night's with family & friends. I had a blast going through these pictures & videos ... I hope you do too. :)

4/30

Day 4: Your favorite photograph of your best friend.

To the un-trained eye there is nothing special about this picture. But I know differently. Let me tell you why this is my favorite picture of my best friend.

On a random April night I was out & about with a girlfriend of mine in Billings. Her name was Jessie. I don't remember the night being anything special. But I remember we went to Denny's for 'breakfast' when the night ended.

Walking in the door, we ran into Josh & Tobin. At this point, I knew of Josh but I honestly don't know if we had ever spoken a word to eachother. I had my eye on Tobin. (Yea ... true story.) So, the 4 of us had breakfast together & a pretty decent time ta-boot. After breakfast we drove the boys to their hotel. (They had walked from the convention center --- how responsible of them! ;] )

Jessie had spent the entire meal making googly eyes at Josh & I ended the evening by kissing Tobin good night. Then the girls & boys parted ways. On the way home, I kept thinking about how adorable I thought Josh was. I don't know what it was about him ... but I suddenly couldn't get his handsome face out of my head.

The next morning I woke up and told Jessie, "I'm sorry about your luck --- but that O'Shea boy is going to be mine."  And, later that day, I told my friend Kris, "I met the man I'm going to marry last night."

It seems extreme, I'm sure. But it was more than attraction. I had never spoken to someone as genuine, kind, and funny as Josh. There was something very honest in his eyes & I knew right away there was something special about him. He made a hell of an impression.

The next few weeks were busy for me with work & Isaac. I didn't do a whole lot of socializing. But I did, on occassion, let myself wonder how I was going to 'bump into' Josh again.

The morning of May 12th I called my friend, Kelli. "I'm on a mission to find this man. Wanna make a trip to Red Lodge with me tonight? Dinner @ The Griz & then a night on the town ... my treat?"

Thankfully she said yes.

I was bummed when we got to The Griz and didn't run into Josh. I thought for sure fate would have him behind the bar ... or -  hell, at least bellied up to the bar. But no such luck. Kelli actually told me at one point, "The bartender is cute ... we should just stay here and hit on him tonight." The thought crossed my mind briefly --- but I was determined.

So, to Red Lodge we went.

After 3 hours of visiting with people I wasn't interested in visiting with ... I told Kelli, "This sucks. Lets go home."

We walked out of The Blue & ran directly into Josh & Billy. I couldn't stop smiling. And I was way past the point of willing to be subtle. I told him I had been waiting for him all night long & it was RUDE to keep a girl waiting. Since he had no idea what I was talking about he just laughed and bought me a beer.

We sat on the bench out front for 2 hours while he tried to convince me that nothing could EVER happen between us.

"I work for your uncle. You're Bub's little cousin. I'm just coming out of a serious relationship. No way. This is never going to happen." Blah, blah, blah.

... & then there was this moment. We were alone on the bench & neither of us said a word. Something happened. Something that happens everyday to every person I know. A 'something' that is usually mundane & un-important. I'm not going to tell you what it was --- because as ordinary of an event as it usually is, in that particular instant it was personal. The second it happened I watched the look on his face & I knew he changed his mind.

Shortly after that I snapped this picture of us. Our first picture & the first time my lips ever kissed those cheeks.

The rest, as they say,  went down in history. I love this picture because it is the first picture of us together & it reminds me of the night my life changed forever.

A funny little side note ... the "cute bartneder" from The Griz ... turned out to be Josh's roommate, Steve. He's now married to Josh's cousin. Small world, I tell ya. :)

I used to roll my eyes when people would refer to their significant other as "their best friend". It seemed so cliche and lame to me. But the truth is, I get it now. I won't bore you with all the sappy sentiments I feel when I contemplate this reality. But, I will say that without him standing by my side, my life would feel incomplete. If I had a glass in my hand right now, I would raise it to the comfort & joy that comes from living life with your bestie right next to you.

Happy Saturday, ya'll.

3/30

Too tired to articulate proper sentences. Lucky for me day 3's blog topic is totally mindless.

Day 3: A picture of the cast from your favorite show,

Thank goodness for re-runs.

& now.... bed. 

Day 2/30

Day 2: A picture of you and the person you have been closest with the longest.

We moved so often between ages 6-11 that I was never in one place long enough to really make a close friend. However, in November of 1992 I moved back to Red Lodge & found lifetime friends in these two girls.

There have been periods of time when life has taken us far away from eachother ... but at the end of the day I know I could call either of them & we'd be able to pick up right where we left off.

Two of the classiest women I know. <3

Day 1/30

Ok ... I wasn't sure if I was going to hop on the 30 Day Blogging bandwagon or not. But after seeing this post I decided I was definitely going to give it a whirl. There's something about Sara's lipgloss collection that makes ,my heart go pitter-patter. Now, the only problem is that I need to make sure my lip gloss collection is up to par by the time I get to that post! ;]

Anyhow. Here we go.

Day 1: A picture of yourself with 15 facts.

1. I'm hopelessly addicted to making mixed tapes ... errrr, I mean CD's. I really like making them for other people too, but I'm too embarrassed to do it anymore because I think most people are into things like iPod playlists. (I'm too far behind the times --- I don't even know if that's the right terminology for it!) Ha.

2. I have purchased tickets to see Bob Schneider in concert FOUR times. Each of those times I have traveled across several states to get to the show. And every time the show was cancelled. I refuse to give into fate. Seeing Bob in concert is still a bucket list item.

3. I ease myself into waking up. Before I met Josh I kept 4 alarms ... that went off in 30 minute intervals; thus taking me 2 hours to actually get out of bed. By the last alarm, it actually WAS easier for me to get out of bed. Josh hated this about me so I don't set any alarms anymore. It's now his job to get me out of bed in the moring. It's fair to say that we rubbed off on eachother. Because although we don't set several alarms anymore, we do set the alarm a half an hour early so we can listen to The Flakes for 30 minutes before we get out of bed. :)

4. Once I make it out of bed, I love to be awake and alone in the mornings. After the boys leave at 8 a.m. I spend a solid hour --- sometimes two --- just soaking up the day. Sometimes it's the internet, sometimes it's the hot tub, sometimes its TV, or aq book, or a walk. Sometimes I take a drive and/or take pictures. Whatever it is I do with my time, it's fair to say that I cash in on ME TIME before anything productive happens around the house.  This is especially true on the weekends when the boys sleep in.

5. I have a really hard time keeping in touch with people who don't use the internet or, at the bare minimum, use text messaging. I rarely check my voicemail and there are very few people I enjoy talking on the phone with.

6. My worst/ugliest/most hideous character flaw is my jealous streak. I'm jealous of everything and everyone. I'm probably jealous of you for something. I have a hard time hiding it & I've probably made more than a handful of people uncomfortable because of it.

7. My best character trait is that I love deeply. Usually I love people too soon --- and I often get burned by this --- but it's worth it when I wake up one morning and realize that someone I love, loves me back. Often people probably think that love is fake. It's not.

8. I love quotes & use them whenever I can. I'm particularly fond of Winnie-The-Pooh quotes. I think they are the sweetest things ever. Like, EVER ever.

9. I lose countless hours of sleep "building" my dream home. Everything from the architecture to the decor in every room. I have a sketch pad that I've had for over 10 years where I draw ideas and paste pictures in I find in magazines. Someday ... someday. :)

10. I kept a similar sketchpad from ages 12-18 of my dream wedding. It wasn't until I met the man I was going to marry that I realized a big wedding scared the hell out of me. I HATE being the center of attention & the thought of a room full of people staring at me makes me pee my pants a little. I don't even cross busy streets as a pedestrian for the fear of people in the cars staring at me. I'm definitely a courthouse wedding type of gal. On a Wednesday. With no witnesses. And no big announcement. Luckily, Josh is made from the same cloth as me when it comes to that. ;]

11. It took me 29 years to feel comfortable saying, "I'm sorry."

12. I force myself to buy locally whenever it's possible --- even when I'd rather not do business with a particular person. I figure, supporting the local economy is more important than being bitchy to someone I don't really like.

13. I love, love, LOVE fruit and vegetables. My favorite meal is white bean soup and a veggie sandwich with provolone on some sort of multi-grain or wheat bread. My favorite dessert is orange slices dipped in caramel.

14. I wake up every morning and go to bed every night feeling like the most loved woman on the planet. I pray daily that I am able to make my boys feel as loved as they make me feel.

15. I feel lucky & make wishes when the clock says 12:34 or 11:11. I feel unlucky & hold my breath when the clock says 10:31.