Sunday, March 13, 2016

FOUND IT.

I found Library of Souls.
I apparently put the book down on my bed, and it slid between the crack next to my wall.

I promptly finished reading it.
IT WAS SO GOOD.
GO BUY THOSE BOOKS.
GO BUY ALL OF THEM.
Ransom Riggs - Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.

I'd say it's not as weird as it sounds, but it is. And it's well written and the plot is fantastic and the ending was perfection.

So definitely do read them.
well... That's all I wanted to say....

Uh. Next I will be working on the Iron Fey series, by Julie Kagawa.

good night then.



Wednesday, March 9, 2016

I Put a Book Down.

So I'll spill.

I am talking to this guy right? His name is Thurston,
Any way, the reason I'm even mentioning Thurston is because he is a distraction.
Like, he's taking time away from my reading and I think it's going to be a problem.



You see, I bought Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (The box set - there are three) by Ransom Riggs (which sounds like a super hero name.)
And I zipped through the first (Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children) and the second (Hollow City) and I was working my way through the last (Library of Souls) when I started actively talking to this Thurston.

Well, I put my book down (which usually doesn't happen until the book is finished) somewhere and I CAN'T FIND IT. I was more than half way finished and NOW I DON'T KNOW WHERE IT IS. This is what happens when I talk to cute guys. I lose books and then never find out how books end.

However, you should totally read the books. They're great. Well so far. I mean the ending may completely ruin it for me but I doubt that very much. Apparently they are coming out with a movie and I'm pretty freaking pumped. I mean come on, IT HAS SAMUEL L. JACKSON IN IT. It's gotta be good. AND AND AND it's directed by TIM MOTHA TRUCKING BURTON,

Anyway, that little theatrical gem will be hitting theaters September 30th of this year, if anyone would like to be my movie date. If you ask nicely, I may even let you borrow my books... if I ever find the Library of Souls. I mean, I had it Thursday. In the Kitchen. So its definitely around here somewhere...

Boys are nothing but trouble.

haha, well.
It's late. I've given up the search for tonight and I'm nestled in my bed like a hamster. I'm in a blanket bubble because I'm freeeezing.
So good night! Or good morning! Or whatever you feel like saying ;)


Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Addictions

NERD ALERT.


I have a very addictive personality. When I like something, I like it so much that I do it all the time.
Like reading.
and calligraphy.

and now...
MINECRAFT.

It's a problem. I'm not going to lie.
A guy I started talking to was like "try it out."
and then after literally banging my head against a wall, laughing at a whole lot of mistakes, I kinda sorta got the hang of it.
And now, I just keep playing it.
I built a giant house.
I used a youtube video. I'm not engineeringly inclined.

I HAVE PIGS!
I caught four.... four. and now I have all these cute little piglet babies. I'm in heaven.


I also have horses but they don't really care about me.
the brown one was just a baby last night. They grow up so fast :')


And, Hi I'm brittany so of course I have a library in my minecraft house. It's in the attic. yay.

and guys, I've only been playing this stupid game for like four days. This is my little creative world. The monsters don't attack me but they still freak me out so I spent all night in my library. or my bedroom. Where I could sleep but why would I when I could go around creating things or expanding the cave under my house? Psh.

Well, I'd love to write some more, but I need to go catch some sheep.
Bye!

Sunday, February 28, 2016

Calligraphiti

I just want to write a quick little blurb while my tinies are napping.
just so you're all aware, words that are not in white are either links to the products I bought or links to things I think are relevant. That way you can also buy the things or see the things I have also seen. Enjoy


I've taken up calligraphy as of two months and four days ago. it's pretty great. I thought it was going to be awful so I threw a fit my two year old would have been impressed by when I got my first nib and ink. (Kyle got mine at Hobby Lobby but they're cheaper on Amazon)
I started off with youtube videos and it quickly overtook my pinterest feed as well as my instagram.

I started out with a dip pen. Which is kind of what you think of when you think of the declaration of independence. or harry potter. I guess it depends on what kind of person you are.
So you can get different nibs (or tips) for different styles.
and of course, I ordered a calligraphy set.
and I experimented and played around with those for a while until I got a little better at handling the nibs and the flow of ink.
then I ordered a ink pallette.
I don't know if it's what ink does in general or if it's just speedball, but the speedball inks I have have crazy differing consistencies, and I don't really like that about them. Black seems super watery and thin and it bleeds through everything so easily. But my metallics are super thick and chunky almost, I find myself needing to dip multiple times just to get through one word. The flow from my nib is always different and it's making me crazy. I think I'm going to try out Winsor & Newton inks next.

dip pen mischief from me. let's all keep in mind that I'm new and not great. Stop judging me.

but more recently, like last week, I ordered and received my first brush pen set made by Tombow USA. I'M IN LOVE. Basically these pens are equivalent to a paintbrush that never runs out of ink. This fixes a lot of things. I can control the width of my lines by easy pressure, and I don't have to worry about when to best pick up to get more ink. Plus it flows so much easier. Bonus, the other end is like a fine tip marker so you can always touch up your letters a bit more. Best part? They don't bleed through paper very easily. Which means I can also use them in my adult coloring book that by love Rhonda got me to get bolder pictures.
I love that there are tons of different palettes to choose from with Tombow USA as well. I ordered the Soda Shop pallette too, but it's backordered, so I'll be waiting rather impatiently for those to arrive.

and here's my more recent exploits with my Tombow USA dual brush pens. (it comes with a blending pen, and that's how I got that magical rainbow thing happening with Selena Gomez's Lyrics that have been stuck in my head for a couple weeks)

I honestly use all of my calligraphy stuff on regular old sketchbook paper. I have a packet of parchment I got recently on sale at Barnes and Noble that I love but it's super thin and nearly see through so I'm not sure how often I'll use it.

However, I stumbled upon a hashtag on instagram that said #crayoligraphy.
which is where people have disvoered that regular crayola (and other brands I'm sure) MARKERS can be used similarly to a brush pen (so writing super light on upstrokes and then pressing down pretty hard on down strokes) so I tried it out... AND IT WORKS. Here I am spending money on pro brush pens and I could be using markers. what.

I'd like to take this paragraph to explain that there are tons of different brands out there for both dip pens and brush pens. I have only discovered a few due to lack of funds. I'm sure I'll be experimenting with different brands of both types. I don't foresee my love of hand lettering and modern calligraphy dying out any time soon.
So, that should answer quite a few questions that I've been asked. If you have any more, please comment and I'll try to answer them. I'm still pretty new.

That's all folks :)

Thursday, February 25, 2016

Attempt.

OKAY: DISCLAIMER. I'm just writing. I'm not backspacing or rephrasing, I'm just pulling a Cady Heron and allowing word vomit to present itself on my blog. You're welcome.

Today I mentioned my blog to a cute guy.

and it made me think.
Why did I stop writing?

really, I don't know. I feel like it's mainly because I wasn't really writing anything that anyone would want to read. I just logged into my dashboard (that's what bloggers have, just so you know. a dashboard.) and I have over 7,400 views. I seriously don't know how that happened. I had like, a thousand the last time I remember checking. So obviously I'm hilarious. Or something. And that means I should obviously keep writing on my blog.

I don't really want my blog to die. So I guess in order for that to happen I should really give it a purpose.
Like, should I write about how incredibly crazy it is to be a single mom trying to date people? Because man, I could start screen shotting my conversations and have a book made by next Tuesday.

Or maybe review the insane amounts of books I've been reading? (seriously, it's insane. I've read... hold on I'm counting. 41 books this year.)
In the 56 days (don't check that we all know I failed math) that have happened in 2016. I've read 41 books.
That's more books than most people read in a year...
In two years.
In 15 years, if you're my mother. (Love you ma)
I could review those books. I would have to google how to adequately review books, but I could do it.

DETOUR: Click here to go to my instagram and see the 23 books I read in the month of January. And then creep on the multiple other books I've been reading. And then check out my calligraphy, because I've been practicing. And if you have instagram, follow me, because it makes me feel cool.

CARRY ON: Maybe I should just keep writing about life. The silly things Rhyssie says (I'm not whining just my lips are) or start counting the evergrowing list of ways Kamden gets himself in trouble (seriously, tonight he made himself throw up on purpose to get out of eating dinner. It worked. He won. He's magical. Seriously I was gagging so hard, I'm a useless mom) Or how my Xiaden (who failed kindergarten) is now pretty much on a second grade reading level. (#proudmom) (seriously did I just put a hashtag in my blog?)

who knows. I don't.
I guess I have some thinking to do.

Maybe I'll think about it while I read Hollow City by Ransom Riggs (the second novel of Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children) 'cause it's fantastic.
And text cute guys. 'cause I can.
And continually push Minerva off of my face. 'cause she's a cat and the word "no" doesn't actually exist.
those are the things that I will be doing in between thinking about the fate of this silly little blog of mine.

laters, haters.

Friday, January 15, 2016

Not Even a Blog - Its Just a Quote

Here's a quote I think everyone needs to read.
Mostly because I am a girl who reads. This quote speaks to my soul. It's beautiful. Its long, but it's incredibly worth the read.
So if you're single and ready to mingle, just hit me up. Because I am a girl who reads. I mean, I'd date me.


“You should date a girl who reads.
Date a girl who reads. Date a girl who spends her money on books instead of clothes, who has problems with closet space because she has too many books. Date a girl who has a list of books she wants to read, who has had a library card since she was twelve.
Find a girl who reads. You’ll know that she does because she will always have an unread book in her bag. She’s the one lovingly looking over the shelves in the bookstore, the one who quietly cries out when she has found the book she wants. You see that weird chick sniffing the pages of an old book in a secondhand book shop? That’s the reader. They can never resist smelling the pages, especially when they are yellow and worn.
She’s the girl reading while waiting in that coffee shop down the street. If you take a peek at her mug, the non-dairy creamer is floating on top because she’s kind of engrossed already. Lost in a world of the author’s making. Sit down. She might give you a glare, as most girls who read do not like to be interrupted. Ask her if she likes the book.
Buy her another cup of coffee.
Let her know what you really think of Murakami. See if she got through the first chapter of Fellowship. Understand that if she says she understood James Joyce’s Ulysses she’s just saying that to sound intelligent. Ask her if she loves Alice or she would like to be Alice.
It’s easy to date a girl who reads. Give her books for her birthday, for Christmas, for anniversaries. Give her the gift of words, in poetry and in song. Give her Neruda, Pound, Sexton, Cummings. Let her know that you understand that words are love. Understand that she knows the difference between books and reality but by god, she’s going to try to make her life a little like her favorite book. It will never be your fault if she does.
She has to give it a shot somehow.
Lie to her. If she understands syntax, she will understand your need to lie. Behind words are other things: motivation, value, nuance, dialogue. It will not be the end of the world.
Fail her. Because a girl who reads knows that failure always leads up to the climax. Because girls who read understand that all things must come to end, but that you can always write a sequel. That you can begin again and again and still be the hero. That life is meant to have a villain or two.
Why be frightened of everything that you are not? Girls who read understand that people, like characters, develop. Except in the Twilight series.
If you find a girl who reads, keep her close. When you find her up at 2 AM clutching a book to her chest and weeping, make her a cup of tea and hold her. You may lose her for a couple of hours but she will always come back to you. She’ll talk as if the characters in the book are real, because for a while, they always are.
You will propose on a hot air balloon. Or during a rock concert. Or very casually next time she’s sick. Over Skype.
You will smile so hard you will wonder why your heart hasn’t burst and bled out all over your chest yet. You will write the story of your lives, have kids with strange names and even stranger tastes. She will introduce your children to the Cat in the Hat and Aslan, maybe in the same day. You will walk the winters of your old age together and she will recite Keats under her breath while you shake the snow off your boots.
Date a girl who reads because you deserve it. You deserve a girl who can give you the most colorful life imaginable. If you can only give her monotony, and stale hours and half-baked proposals, then you’re better off alone. If you want the world and the worlds beyond it, date a girl who reads.
Or better yet, date a girl who writes.”

― Rosemarie Urquico


Saturday, December 26, 2015

Fourth Christmas

Today (erm, yesterday?) was the fourth Christmas I spent as a single mom.
That's a crazy thought to wrap my head around, that I've been coordinating multi family Christmas excursions for my littles.
But it's great.
Because I'm no longer in an emotionally abusive relationship.
I'm no longer lacking confidence or self worth.
I'm no longer having panic attacks thinking he'll leave me alone.

Because it's done. Finished. I walked away from a toxic marriage, hoping time apart would heal what we broke and glued back together, that time would allow the glue to do it's work. But instead, the time apart convinced my husband we should never be together.
And I was devastated. I was alone with two children and a baby on the way, and the center of my universe walked out if it.

But in the years that followed, magic happened. I found who I really was as an adult, and I loved myself. I shed the self doubt and self consciousness and embraced who I was. And who I am is a woman who can raise three kids alone. A woman who knows what she wants and refuses to settle for less. A sensitive woman who will not let the world harden her.
That's who I am today.
Four years ago, I was in this bed, mourning my first Christmas alone.
Tonight I'm in this bed, celebrating the person I am because I'm alone.

Tonight, I'm laying in bed, content with who I am.
Tomorrow morning, I will wake up content with who I am.
It took me 23 years to figure it out, but better late than never.
Right?
I love myself.
And I've never been able to say that before.

Obviously I face insecurities and obstacles of my own making. I'm not freaking perfect.
But I'm pretty awesome, and that's pretty cool.
I'm single. I'm alone. And it's pretty liberating!