Back2School4Me

Classes started today. I'm super excited to go back (yes, I like college!) but I don't so much like that it eats all of my free time and gas money.

I'll be in school full time, as well as working and all so that probably means you will be seeing a bit less of me. But fear not, I'm just off gettin' me some education.

*those are not my glasses, just heads up. They are just those trendy fake no lens type things, useful only for photos where I want to look fabulously geeky.

Camping at the beach.

Last weekend I joined my aunt, uncle and my two cousins in a tent for some camping. Also along for the adventure were my "other family" (long story short: my mom's best friend married my mom's brother and we've "adopted" all of my aunts family as our own. And I love them). We camped on a site just off of a nearby beach. Good times ensued, including campfires, hammock swings, midnight bike rides on the beach (and being kicked off said beach by authorities), Starbucks trips, ocean kayaking, jumping off of rocky islands, dropping my purple aviators into the briny depths, and creepy old men in speedos.

I didn't take many pictures at the actual beach, as hauling around a D-SLR isn't really beach friendly, but here are some..

Jeep with kayak all ready to go.

My face distorted in jeep window. Interesting.

Literally no words for my love of this wee child.

Hammocks. What pirate doesn't love 'em.

 

The smaller Isabella. So cute.

My cousin let me use his bike for the midnight escapade.

He is younger than me by about nine years, but I had to lower the seat to reach the pedals.

 Sand and sun.

Mmmm. I love the beach. And there is nothing quite like waking up in a tent.
Great way to end my summer. School starts Monday, people.

I'm a granny again...

This is what my bedroom floor looks like at this time.

I'm at it again.

Because I am an afghan making addict. I am a granny square hoarder. Yes, I have a problem. But the first step in getting better is admitting there is something wrong...addiction is the only disease people don't admit to having...all of that stuff.

Actually, I like making stuff and granny wee squares are no exception.

And look! THEY ARE IN RAINBOW ORDER! Every single one of them. Totally RoyGBiv. We all know how I love that. Seriously people, what is not to love.

Now comes the fun part of sewing them together and making all the little bits of yarn tails disappear. I am determined to finish before school starts up again in...oh...12 days. (Wow. What an ugly number.)

In other news, check out the other afghans. THIS one I made.

This one (on my sisters bed) I bought at Goodwill last week for only $2. I kind of love it.

Yup. Definitely an addiction in the making. I'm sorry, I just love colors, yarns, and cozy blankets. Fall is coming. I will be ready!

Now, this is a story all about how my life got flipped-turned upside down...by an Airman.

Yes. This is such a story.  But not one that relates to any guys in Bel Air. This is a story about an Airman.

This a a story about the most intense, adventurous and amazing year of my life.

Approximately one year ago we did this.

JoJo's going away party, August 7th, 2010. (I would be the chick with the rebellious head of hair. JoJo would be the one burning all documentation of his past, pre-military life)

August 8th I hugged him goodbye for the last time.

August 9th I cried my eyes out (...continuously...) as he called to say one last goodbye before weeks and weeks of silence.

August 10th he started earthly hell Basic Military Training in Lackland, Texas.
While I was here, still crying my eyes out. Totally confused and terrified that I had just lost my greatest friend and the most amazing person I had ever met. Just trusting God and crying my eyes out like everyday (ps: I am not a crier. Really. I just care about him THAT much.) One year sounded agonizingly long. 4 years sounded impossible. BMT alone sounded longer than I could ever manage. But I did. We both did.We made it through basic and several months of tech school, until he was able to come home at Christmas for 10 days.

Though, of course, that ended too. Commence with more crying.

But one magical day in February my amazing friend JoJo made a phone call to my dad and became my incredible boyfriend JoJo. Best thing ever, I tell you what.

Then, two months later, that crazy boyfriend of mine lied to me for three weeks and surprised me by coming home for Easter. See video here! 7 Days of absolute incredibleness. Obviously he had to return to his military life, but this I knew he would come back. For me. I would never lose him again. Ever.

Just as some background, I, Isabella Kiss, never really planned on winding up in a long distance relationship with an Airman in the United States Air Force. Of all the hoping and praying I did for my teenage years, that was never really what I was imagining. I had incredibly (almost impossibly) high standards. Compromise of any kind wasn't an option. From 14 years old on I was regularly praying for the right guy and I stubbornly stuck to my standards to the point of other people thinking I was crazy.  I've always been interested in the military and I've always been strong and able to handle a lot, but now all of that makes sense. When, at 17, I became friend with JoJo my life from that point on changed. But I never would have imagined that all of that would bring me HERE.

(Also, as background, JoJo never really planned on being in the Air Force. Just out of the blue he felt like that was what God wanted him to do, and though it scared us both, he did it. And as strong and stubborn as I can be, JoJo is even more so. By far.)

Let me just tell you, a long distance military relationship is hard. It is without a doubt by far the most difficult thing I have ever done. But God is faithful and I know this is all His doing. He answered both of our prayers in really surprising ways and now here we are, one year into this adventure, with something like 3-5 (or...more) to go. It is unbelievably hard, and statistics like to tell us we are going to fail. But the will of God isn't defined by stats, and people as hardcore stubborn as us don't quit.

Yes, this has been the craziest year of my life, but it has also been the best. Any relationship done right and to Godly standards is hard. A relationship done right, with the Air Force and distance thrown in there isn't for the faint of heart, as it is more than enough to totally break you down and ruin you. Sharing he whom I love with the US Military isn't always a lot of fun. I do not recommend such craziness, UNLESS you have a lot of faith and trust in God and unconditional love for the person on the other end of the distance. If you have those things, then it is completely worth it.

There is so much I could write in this post about the last year, but I wouldn't know where to start or end. For the last 365 days I have seen JoJo for 17 of them, but those 17 of 365 have been THE BEST. In one years time, and about 6 months of this long distance courtship we have been through so much and still have so much to go through. It's certainly an adventure and be are both quite possibly insane for being on it together. But I love it. WE love it. Needless to say, we are in it for the long run and we are ever so happy about it.

*also, on the topic of love and anniversaries, today is my amazing parent's 25th wedding anniversary. Pretty awesome, eh? They are incredible and I love them!

Remember that scene with the elephant graveyard?

You know, the one where Simba says "danger? I laugh in the face of danger! hahahah".

Well, I remember it. It's the very best part of the movie. ( I'm quoting the Disney classic The Lion King, for those of you who are lost. And I can quote it like a pro as my sister watched it like everyday of her childhood.)

You see this? This is what I would call my personal elephant graveyard. I love this stuff. This is the aforementioned laughable danger. This is one of those moments where forbidden looks all too inviting. The very fact that is tree is eating the sign and ensnaring it with vines is a sign of adventure and a good time.

But really. Can you read what that says? Yeah, me neither. I think it says something about trespassers will get to take really awesome photos and will be rewarded with delicious canollis. Or at least that is what I THINK it says.

What's that saying about being ignorant? Something about bliss, I believe it is?

This location is an abandoned factory about 15 minutes from my house. I have been DYING to do a photoshoot there, but I am smart enough to not go too close alone. But unfortunately no one wants to go with me. Bummer.

But I couldn't resist taking some roadside pictures as I drove by it a few days ago. Innocently parked on the main road, in clear view of the world, snapping pictures of a broken down building and a no trespassing sign. Please, oh please, someone be brave and volunteer themselves to come closer with me! OH PLEASE! I had to use all the common sense and self control within myself to keep from jumping over a fence and peering in windows.

Guys, don't even tell me that doesn't look fun. Do you even see what I see here?! This is ...perfect.

ALL I want to do is take pictures. No shenanigans. No trouble. Just artsy photos. And this is the perfect location. Old. Brick. Broken down. Abandoned. Graffitted. Rusted. Destroyed. This is the stuff I dream about! This is me is a beautiful adventure!

...And I am not even going to mention what great aerial shots I could get if I climbed that water tower. No, I am not going to mention that at all. Not like that thought is consuming my mind or anything right now. Nope. Not at all.

On philosophy and throw pillows...

"The success and happiness of a person can be measured by the amount of throw pillows they possess."

I'm pretty sure some philosopher type dude said that. Or then again, maybe I just made it up. I can't seem to remember...

But regardless, I have have lots of throw pillows in my life. And I love them. A couch and a bed are not a couch or a bed unless they have like 40 pillows to squish yourself into, and about 19 blankets to snuggle yourself under. Yes. I have an addiction. To pillows and blankets.

And this week in my sewing fury I made more. Yup, I have issues. I know.

 This is my couch. With five really comfy pillows. The striped one was an extra from my bed that fit the color scheme. The two geometric ones are from Ikea. The two in the front I made. The swirly New Grange-looking one (the back is big polka dots!) was a creation for this last week. It is my new favorite!

My bed. 3 regular pillows.Throw pillows: 2 red ones made by me, also the fuzzy 70s looking one. Brown one in back was a vintage purchase, as was the embroidered one in front. That's 5 in total.
And my bed is only a twin size.

But it is a very, very comfy twin.  Thanks to my philosophy on pillows. And yes, I am very happy about it.



ps: LOOK! I used an iron to make sure the fabric for the pillows was all flat. My sister (an iron addict) saw this as a sign of Christs second coming.
For anyone who knows me, you are celebrating this miracle right along with me. For those of you who don't know me: I don't iron. Ever. My wardrobe is iron free, and perhaps wrinkly, but I am happy about that too!

Quest for Cowboy Boots? Complete.

My quest: Cowboy boots, brown, plain, comfortable, size seven and a half, that look good with dresses?

Mission. Accomplished.

Vintage Dress Restyle

So as you know I am in a sewing mood as of late. In the boxes and boxes of fabric in my house I found a handmade, vintage, crazygreenpattern dress. A big one. I think my mom bought it a looonnng time ago, probably at some thrift shop, in hopes of bringing it down to size, but she never got around to it.

So...I did.

Oh hey there, mama, yes, I did jack your dress and am now shamelessly posting about it. Don't worry. You can borrow it! I just did the dirty work for you.

Dress as I found it:

(hard to gauge what size it was, but clearly too big for me. Too long, too wide, and had ginormous amounts of room for my armpits.)

 *check out my awful tan. It is like some variant of a farmers tan, only my arms and shoulders are like four colors instead of two. Can you tell I haven't been to the beach all summer? Yes. Also I look abnormally SnookiOrange in these shots. Bad camera settings, I promise.




RESTYLED DRESS, after taking in the seams a couple inches, shortening the straps, putting in some darts and shorting the hem about 4 inches.

Awful photos, but the dress does look better, no? I have a friend's wedding to attend this weekend...this dress is now on the "possible things to wear" list.

Oh hey, I have free time...

This week is my first real week of my 3 week summer.
What does one do on the first day of their first week of summer, in their first moments of true free time?

Step one: Paint nails in ROYGBIV order, to show you and everyone you glances upon your fingers that you have time to spare.
Step two: webcam it. then post about it.
Step three: get off computer and do something productive, else people think you are a summer bum.

hmmm. yes.