SOTM

Hello Sisters, 

This time of year always brings upon many reflections. The holidays bring about this nostalgic feeling of family and life and all crazy, sad, happy in between. Right now, in particular, my grandmother (my mom's mom) is on my mind. I had a special connection with her and for me, around the holidays, her physical passing and the void left feels much greater. I wish so badly she could hold Thomas.

For whatever reason, this song resonates with the feeling of right now. The lyrics are sad and yet the music feels happy. Well it progresses as though things are getting better. It's as though he remembers a time passed but knows there are happier times now and to be had. 

Blood, by The Middle East

Sister Love, 

Lindsay

SOTM

Hello Sisters!


It's Wednesday so it's time for a SOTM. This week is brought to you by The Staves and Serena Ryder.

The Staves are a sister trio who make some incredible harmonies and their voices give me the chills. The good kind where you know you're listening to greatness.

Stompa by Serena Ryder pumps me up. Just what you need to get over that mid-week "slumpa."

Check it. Love it.








Sister Love,

Lindsay

Its just one of those days

hi sisters,

Today i woke up agitated. Im not sure why but i'm just having a Columna bad attitude day. You know what i'm talking about right?

Everyone and everything is making me angry.

its one of those days where people walking in the hallways have never been so annoying (why do they insist on clumping up in circles in the middle of a small hallway anyway?!!?!?)
its one of those days where people talking to me are annoying.
its one of those days where people who do not talk to me are annoying.
its one of those days where i just feel like screaming. Or maybe i want to cry. Or maybe i need a good laugh.
i guess its one of those days where i'm confused.

All day i have avoided talking to people cause i know i will pick a fight. The two times i did talk to someone was when i 1) picked a fight with my friend and 2) lied for absolutely no reason at all. It wasn't even something that was important (honestly, i'm embarrassed about it). after that i tried to keep my mouth shut tight

and then i decided to go to the gym and

it didnt work.

Soo thats my day today and tomorrow is a new day and i WILL wake up happy.

right?

<3 indigo="" p="">

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This made me laugh out loud.

So i was scrolling on facebook and i saw this link and i thought it was super funny and nasty.

Be prepared.

EACH ONE OF YOU BETTER READ IT!  I know you can all relate..

CLICK ON THIS TO GET YOUR LAUGH ON!!!
love you lots, indigo

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Homemade: Almond Butter

Hello Sisters!

Matt has become the cook in the house. This all started when I became pregnant with Thomas and the smell of food cooking made me nauseous and unable to be in the kitchen. It got so bad the very thought of food cooking did the same thing. This lasted the whole pregnancy and so while I was "cooking" us a baby, Matt honed his skills in the kitchen. His new favorite thing to make is almond butter. 

We've been buying almonds in the bulk section of the grocery store in addition to buying almond butter. He had a "duh" moment and decided to make it himself. It was super easy. Just takes patience.

^^^ Take 3 cups of almonds and roast them in the oven for 30 min at 170 degrees. Then place them in a food processor or a high powered blender. ^^^

^^^ Process that ish for a long ass time. When you think it's not working, it is. Just keep going. This may take 15-20 minutes. Finally, you'll see it start to ball up. The oils from the almonds will continue to release making the mixture more liquified. Keep going. ^^^

^^^ Then all of a sudden, it's gooey goodness will be ready for tasting.  You can add a teaspoon of sea salt if you like. Matt did, and it tastes delicious. Since we had a huge bag of almonds in the pantry, this cost us $0 and saved us the $8 it would have cost at the store. Victory. ^^^

Sister Love, 

Lindsay

Introverted Mom Stuff

Hello Sisters!

So later today I'm going to a happy hour. I've been invited by my doula. She and I hit it off right away and even though she's seen allllllll of me, we're still cool- and that's cool so I'd thought I'd meet her friends.

Here's the thing. These social situations bring out the utmost introversion in me. Kianna and Kira may not get this, but Didi, you know that feeling where instead of a flower blooming it's like you're curling inside of yourself? I forget how to have an adult conversation. I forget to ask questions, I say weird things and I START TO SWEAT.

I'd say I'm moderately introverted. While around family, close friends, or small (1-4 people) groups I'm totally fine. I feel like I can be myself. I feel like I'm actually someone people might want to hang out with. Heck even when I'm on stage (only when I'm singing) I'm cool.  But once it's a crowd, I become the fly on the wall, except I don't fly around and talk to people. I become paralyzed. A paralyzed fly.

There was this one time when I first moved to CO and an acquaintance from college invited me to her Christmas party with all her girlfriends. I think it would have been so much fun if I wasn't so WEIRD. Because I got so nervous, I just sat, in one spot. The whole time. I managed to talk to one girl who was sitting next to me, but she eventually got up because WHO WOULD WANT TO TALK TO THE WEIRD NON-TALKING girl?! Ask me if I've been invited again...

BUT, I need to make some mom friends. Thomas needs to be around other little people. I need to talk about what it's like to be a mom to more people than my own mom. I want to have play dates and meet someone who will meet up with me at 11 am to go running, strollers and all. I've been told to find "mom" groups, but every time I think I've mustered up the courage to go for it, introversion takes over and I just caaaaaaan't. So lame, but it's real. So, since Jenna asked me to meet up with her peeps, I feel as though knowing her will at least get me there and if they're anything like her, there's a good chance I might hit it off with them too.

BUT THEN I HAVE TO TALK TO PEOPLE. Because I can't just be that girl that doesn't leave the host alone. The parasite girl, you know the one?  What if I start sweating? What if I get nervous poops? Funny thing is, I used to help plan Happy Hours for a past job. You'd think this would be no big deal. NOT. I used to hide behind the "planner" and use that as an escape. Now, I suppose I could go and change Thomas' diaper every time I start to freak out in my head... but then he'd be getting about 15 new diapers in an hour time period. So, that won't work. No, I just need to put my big girl pants on ( not mom jeans because, ew) and put myself out there.

Hey guys, want to be my friend?




Sister Love,

Lindsay

OOTD

Thought I would put up an OOTD (outfit of the day) because for once I'm not wearing sweats or yoga pants today. 

(sorry for the blurry picture. my camera sucks)

I'm wearing a red dress (forever 21) tucked in with a black skirt (Nordstrom rack) that gets longer in the back. Black tights (discount dance wear) and black boots with a zipper on the back of them (Just fab). Gold jewlery, gold necklace (forever 21) and white and gold earrings (my roommates).

So thats what I look like today!

XOXO Kira

SOTM

Hello Sisters!

Happy Wednesday. Let's get this party started. This week's SOTM is from The Head and the Heart's new album, "Let's Be Still."

Check it.



Sister Love,
Lindsay

Sunrise Hike!

Matt took me on a surprise adventure hike at Arthurs Park in Fort Collins this morning at 5 am!

I definitely didn't think I was going to make it all the way up the hike. I am way too out of shape and for every 1 step he took I had to take 2, and we we're walking at a very  fast pace. But, even when I was about to give up Matt motivated me to keep going and I MADE IT. It was one of the most beautiful sunrises I've ever seen. We were above the clouds and the clouds looked like the ocean and when the clouds moved along the foothill they were like waves crashing on the shore. I felt like I was back home in California on the beach watching the sunrise. It was totally worth waking up at 5 am, cracking my phone when I dropped it on the way to the hike, and feeling totally pathetic for how out of shape I am. 

Here are some pictures and I would love to take any of you (Lindsay) on this hike cause I know you would love it!

DIY: Home is...

Hello Sisters!

I woke up Sunday morning and felt crafty. Do you ever get that feeling where you need to do something with your hands or the day won't feel complete? It hits me pretty often so I decided to do something about it.

I had an extra canvas lying around that I purchased over a year ago for a project I had in mind for my wedding. Clearly, that project didn't happen, but this one did! I decided since the canvas was meant for the wedding, that I'd use lyrics from Matt and I's song, "Home" by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros.

I grabbed the canvas, a black sharpie and a pencil and went to work.

^^^ I took the pencil and drew/wrote the lyrics, "Home is wherever I'm with you"^^^

^^^ I stood the canvas up and made a few more tweaks since having it straight in front of you is a better perspective ^^^

^^^ Ta da! Finished. I placed pictures of our wedding day and my bouquet underneath. ^^^

^^^ Here's another pic, just because.^^^^

The whole thing took me about 30 minutes total. I scratched my itch to do something crafty and gave my little wall an update. I'm not sure I'll keep it there since the proportions of the cubby and canvas seem a little out of whack. But it's good for now and makes me and matt smile. Sunday is now complete.

Sister Love,

Lindsay

I'M BACK

Hello sisters,
Sorry I haven't posted anything in a while. I've been super busy trying to get everything back on track. This week has been a very productive week though. I think it's because on Monday I wrote a list of all the things I need to get done each day and my weekly goals. It's crazy to think that just writing things down helps get things done. Well it at least works for, I've been to every class and I kicked ass on both my tests this week. I've started making time to work out again (thank God). AND I've kept my room clean all week. That alone is an achievement.
The only thing that is really stressing me out is registering for classes. And I could really use your advice on this issue. so...I REALLY want to do this study abroad program over the summer. It's 6 weeks in Europe taking 2 classes ( a cooking class in Florence, Italy. And a wine tasting class)  We only have class for a few days while we're there and the rest of the time is open travel time. This is exactly what I want. The are a couple issues holding me back, I'm behind in my credits and I need to catch up, and although I would get 6 credits for this program I don't know If  I can afford to take out another loan to do this. I would have to pay for it myself. So now i'm conflicted. Do I take out another loan or do I take summer classes at Saddleback and catch up on credits in an affordable way? I can always save up and go on this trip Summer of 2015 except I wanna go NOW. Any thoughts, comments, or ideas on where I can get about $10,000 before summer let me know!

Love always,
Kira

Vanity and Hair Loss

Hello Sisters!

Pregnancy was a wild, wild ride. So wild, in fact, I'm losing my hair over it. Literally, my hair is falling out.

Postpartum hair loss is a common after-effect of making a tiny human and birthing him/her. It strikes around 3-4 months after birth.  Some people hardly notice it and some people are like, "WHATTHEEFF I'm going bald." I range more toward the latter and I've been silently struggling with it, big time.

Why? Because I'm vain. Cue the song... (You're so vaaain, you probably think this song is about you, you're soooo vaaaiiiin)

Here are the reasons:

1) I wanted to defy the odds of getting the dreaded "mom cut." The truth is, I had no idea I would lose so much hair. Because my hair is at empire waist length, it weighs it down and lacks volume or any kind of shape. I have no shape hair. I totally understand why some new moms get it chopped. The crap load of long hairs floating around EVERYWHERE in the house is less than desirable and downright gross.

2) I've somehow included having long hair into my identity. Lindsay = introvert, creative, coffee lover, wife, mom, athlete, long dark hair... etc. I don't know how it happened, but it's totally there. You know how I know? Because my first immediate thought of me with shorter hair is "that's not me. I won't feel pretty." Negative self-talk is not healthy, people. Plus, "I am not my hair." Thank you, India Arie.

3) My sisters have long dark hair. Ok you guys, this may seem silly, but seriously. I love that we all have longer hair. It made me feel closer to you in some way. A family trait. A sister thing. I liked sharing that with you.

4) I've spent three years growing it. Arguably, the dumbest of them all. For the last three years at each hair appointment, I'd say, "please, only 1/2 an inch off and clean it up" I was committed to my hair.  Why? Because of vanity. I thought I am most stylish with long hair.

 5) I view others with long hair as beautiful, therefore, if I have long hair I must be...  this one wins the most embarrassing award. Sadly, it's true. Me = human.

 My body is physically shedding something I've been coveting. I got the message, body. Long hair isn't everything. I don't need it. I'm lucky my hair still grows. Yesterday, after showering and cleaning up yet another handful of hair from the drain and tub, I looked in the mirror and said, "GET OVER YOURSELF."

So I am. My attachment to my hair is ridiculous. There are people out there losing their hair over very serious conditions and I should slap myself for being so selfish. The way I've chosen to combat the crazy attachment is to cut it and donate. Cut off the vanity and turn it into confidence for someone in need. I've decided to donate to the nonprofit, Children With Hair Loss, because they make and give the wigs at no cost to the child.

I have an appointment later today for a new cut. To be honest, I'm nervous about it. But I'm also excited. It's been a long time comin'. Thank you, post-partum hair loss, for the wake up call. I'll post with an update later!

SOTM

Hello Sisters!

I now pronounce Wednesday's to be Songs of The Momemt posts (SOTM). At least from me. You guys know how huge music is and has been in my life. It is a passion and well, something I doubt will ever leave me. I keep my Spotify playlist, "SOTM" up to date with tunes I'm currently in to, so I thought I'd share with you a tune or two from my list that I think you might like!

Enjoy!

Yuna: Her voice is unique and dreamy. Lately I've been playing her music when get a moment to sit down and blog or catch up on emails. I recommend her whole album.




Sister Love,
Lindsay

Be like...

This may or may not be true for most women, but it is outrageously true for Columna women.

Sisters, appreciate, laugh and deny.

Love you,
Kianna 

An Artful Halloween

Hey Sisters!

How was everyone's Halloween? Kira and Indigo, I know you spent Halloween together at CU... so you best be sharing about that!

I didn't go out or do anything special for Halloween. Working retail during the holiday season gets you too pooped to go out and do anything, but I rocked out some cool makeup! My two looks were Avatar and Sally from A Nightmare Before Christmas.

To prepare for these looks I watched some Youtube videos to see how some makeup artists have created them previously.

My favorite video for the Avatar look was by Promise

And here's my Avatar!

Creating the look is really fun and easy to do! It seems really complicated, but if you're good at painting and shading it will be a sinch.

I mixed blue, white and teal paint from Makeup Forever's Flash Palette to create the blue base color for the face.

Black gel eye liner from Bobbi Brown to paint on the stripes. Then the white paint from MUFE Flash Palette, and Illamasqua blush in Naked Rose for the cheeks and nose.

On my lips I wore Urban Decay lipstick in Liar. BTW, those lipsticks are THE BOMB. Long wear, creamy and hydrating. Get some.

Sally's look was a little more complicated because her eyes are really character-like and big. You actually have to close your eyes to see her eyes! Get it? Promise helped me out again for this look.

I mixed white paint from Krylon and a little bit of the teal color from the MUFE Flash Palette on my face and neck. On the eyes I used white to contrast with the face.

I used Marc Jacobs liquid eyeliner to make all the outlining and stitches, and multiple blue colors from the Sephora Disney Ariel Palette. And on the lips, Hourglass lipstick in Iconic.

Sally was really fun to be! But if I were to do the look over again I would have painted her eyes up a little further on my head my real eyelashes would be the base of her eye. Oh well, for next time!

I wanted to paint Tim's face as a skeleton so we could be Sally and Jack for Halloween and hit up a bar or something, but he was a CHICKEN! He said I looked too scary and he didn't even want to kiss me!

It's funny to see a 6'4", buff, bearded face, tough looking guy be afraid of a little face paint. I guess I just looked too realistic!

Sister love,
Kianna

Friday Funnys

When people give me strange looks for breastfeeding in public:




Me trying to get up after a long night of Thomas not sleeping:




When I'm carded in the liquor store... or anywhere:




When Thomas has a blow out (read: poop everywhere):




When grown adults trick-or-treat for their infant:




When my dog barks while the baby is asleep:





Hope this brings a smile to your day! Happy Friday!

Sister Love,
Lindsay