This week has been a bit overwhelming adjusting to two rambunctious dogs tearing all over the house, but I’m feelings a little more settled today. Stella is a handful, but she’s also learning really fast. On Sunday ‘go lay down’ was returned with a blank stare, but last night I got a happy surprised when she followed my instruction, laid on her bed and promptly fell asleep. Then of course Slayer decided to whine and fuss with his bed all night >_<

So I figure today is probably a good day for a love list…

The weather being warm enough to walk the pups at night AND without a coat + learning to juggle (I’m terrible!) + hanging with my favorite stylist and getting my hair done – he loves sending me home with giant supermodel hair + making plans to set up our freestanding rig outside + mini shopping spree at GoJane.com + my mom ending text messages with ‘you look nice today’ + wearing shoes other than combat boots for the first time in months + mint chocolate donuts delivered to work + finishing The Help (it’s as good as everyone says) + blog brainstorms & creating multiple posts in one day

What’s filling your life with sunshine and unicorns today?

Treating myself to a baby banana cream pie // my ever-growing collection of skullies // candles that smell like buttercream frosting and frootloops!

This is my favorite time of day, when the whole house and whole neighborhood is quiet, light filtering through the front window. My sister is still upstairs sleeping. The only sound is the refrigerator running and the furnace warming the house. Slayer sits near me, not moving a muscle, eyes trained on my fried egg and veggie sausage. When I’m finished eating he crawls under my arm and leans against me or hops up onto the one couch cushion I allow him to crush so he can look out the window. There are no emails, no designs, no errands crossing my mind yet. I just sink into the couch for 30 minutes and slowly sift through my reader.

[ Feelin' a little 90s goth ]

[ Fave Chinese restaurant - Red Star ]

On Monday I took Pants on a surprise date to my favorite Chinese spot called Red Star. He tried to guess where we were going all the way there. See that delicious almond boneless chicken up there??? Yeah, it’s vegan :) You can get anything on the menu made with seitan and it tastes exactly like the real thing. (At least what I remember real meat tasting like. It’s only been 11 years)

Other things lighting up my life…

+ watching Pants play soccer + orange/banana/pineapple smoothies + reading this and becoming ENRAGED and finally putting in my application to move my millions to a credit union  + doc offices that are so sweet and send scrips fast + walking the piglet during the day even if it is really cold + making plans to go visit my brother in San Diego + brain storms that are so exciting an intense they can only be called brain hurricanes + hiring my friends because they are so very talented + my bro sending photos of his attempt at a Movember mustache + crafting which results in my coffee table, floor, couch and me being covered in glitter + chocolate-dipped caramel corn + blue sparkle nails + trying to figure out weight lifting machines with Mandy…”I wonder how we use this one. It looks like a sex machine.” + client meetings at the bar + enthusiastic karaoke +

P.S. Look at all my sweet new sponsors over in the sidebar >>>

Prezzies from blog friends! Elise was so sweet to send me these mini stroopwafels after reading my post on how delicious they are. They were almost exactly the same and tiny so I can eat a lot more :)

+ walking the Piglet in the middle of the day through crunchy leaves + soup and spring rolls from the Chinese restaurant near my house & the fact that the woman just rattles off an order number before slamming down the phone + random texts from my brother + working from home with the Piglet as my only coworker + collaborating with people whose minds generate great big ideas too + the fact that I spend all day at work talking to Pants on GChat + vegan strawberry rhubarb ice cream & blueberry almond cupcakes + drunken Friday messages (not from or to me, but still hilarious) + working on site designs for circus peeps + creating a really fun syllabus for aerial class + flipping through stations on Pandora to find performance songs + somehow being a little excited for the first snow +

Rigging for a show // Purple eyeshadow // Pants & Piglet passed out on either side of me // Pixie Power Pack

+ green mangosteen, peach tea with lemon + Halloween themed prezzies waiting on my doorstep, including donuts from my favorite cider mill + designing for local circus peeps + using Krylon gold face paint as eye shadow + emails from my mom + rehearsing so much that I’m not sore at all + pants making dinner & hot toddies when I don’t feel well + getting my hair did for a show + my Motown Pandora station (playlist coming soon!) + piglet snuggles in the morning + Mandy living WAAAY closer + cleaning out the spare bedrom so my sis can move in + solo morning dance parties + going from a full month of rehearsing to a full month of designing + the perfect black tees and tanks from Target + working from home even if I’m sick +

Having my hair done by the fantastic Mike Herty (DYE Salon in Ferndale). This guy has magic I tell you, MAGIC. He added some dark brown low lights and cut it in some way that my hair is perfectly messy after a good nights sleep. I don’t even have to brush it – just pin back my bangs and I’m good to go.

My new favorite tee from Tashmoo – so soft and comfy

I wanted to take advantage of the warm weather and wear shorts, but my legs are far too bruised from all the aerial rehearsals lately, so I opted for lace tights instead

A certain pup was very snuggly the other night. For as spazzy as Slayer can be, if I curl up on the couch to watch TV he’s right next to me and passed out in seconds. And it’s so damn adorable.

My sister has a new job right by my house, so Pants and I picked up tacos and a botana from my favorite Mexican restaurant and ate dinner on the deck. They make these puffy fried corn taco shells with queso fresco and green olives. We’ve been going there since I was a kid and the tacos are a little strange, but I love them!

Also loving…

vegan pumpkin ice cream + going on a cleaning rampage + L’Oreal Studio Secrets primer + homemade potato leek soup + listening to dance music at work (Justice, Deadmaus, Electrixx) + dreaming of a video game-themed aerial routine + learning new acro tricks & working with awesome circus people + Hana hair products – they smell so good! + quiet mornings + Pants making dinner + POPbooth app + searching for performance outfits & inspiration + dates with my sis + waking up to a loud rain storm + Pants getting really excited and singing along to Turbo Negro + finally trying french macarons – now I know what all the fuss is about! + rehearsing in our new practice space + skinned knees from a fun, but rough acro session + the possibility of my sis moving in with me + finding a costumer to work with = new leotards/unitards + getting great, honest feedback on our duo routine + an Indian summer (thank you Michigan!!) + long puppy walks on sunny mornings + my whole neighborhood smelling like barbecue and campfires +

October is going to be BANANAS. Everything I’ve been brewing since the beginning of the year is about to overflow and flood my life with work and play and joy.

I’ve got two huge circus shows in the last couple weeks of October, so the next two months will be spent building two brand new routines. I’ll be at the Flyhouse two or three days a week preparing for one show and then spending another day or two with the Weird Sisters working on our performance for the second show. And somewhere in there I’m hoping a huge branding project will come to fruition, challenging me as a designer while pushing me into the work I need to be doing to turn my freelance gig into a full-time job.

I’m exhausted and excited just thinking about October!

Post-aerial rehearsal, hair appointment, errand running in rush hour traffic and torrential downpour I was parked on the couch with Slayer, going through email when Pants showed up, groceries in hand. He made sauce from scratch and summer shandies while I took the Slayer for a walk. Nick and Nicole biked over to join us and I was happy to eat dinner in the dining room like actual adults instead of in front of the TV. After dinner we walked to the ice cream shop for dessert. Slayer was so well behaved we took him along and I helped Pants eat his avocado/coconut ice cream. Dropped the piglet off and ran across the street to be bar where I repeatedly made Pants laugh/annoyed him by saying “Ooohyeah” over and over like the Kool-Aid man.

Other things lighting up my life…

+ filling in my spreadsheets + sleepy Piglet in the morning + waking up without an alarm promptly at 8:30 a.m. + barbecue with friends + Louie on FX + pizza for lunch and dinner…and lunch…and dinner again + bike rides (with super flat tires >_< ) + finishing templates + testing hair and make-up for an upcoming circus shoot + scrubbing out the bath tub while still wearing circus makeup + mornings on the couch reading blogs with Slayer + breakfast with Pants before work + Ooohyeaaaah + 8mm video camera app + receiving a rose made from a wrapper with our Taco Bell order + rigging on a 25 ft ceiling = two drops in a row +