Summertime, and the livin's easy...

My day today:

Went to Samammish with a few friends. On. A. Boat. :]
The scenery was beautiful, the sun beams were hot, and the water was cold. We stayed out for hours in the heat, talking, laughing, and soaking our shirts in lake water to keep cool in the 85 degree weather.
Afterwards we relaxed in the hot tub for a few then headed over to James' house after and talked around a fire. Definitely a perfect day today, and a perfect way to leave Lake Samammish, with the sun on our backs and the wind in our hair on the drive home. I'll miss going out on the boat all summer with the boys to watch them biffing it on the wake-board repeatedly. ;]

Looking forward to great things, tomorrow I have a tattoo appointment with my favorite Seattle artist and good friend, Travis Broyles. So stoked! I'll be getting my little birdy finished that he started in 2011. Can't wait to see how it comes out, pictures of that will be updated as soon as it's finished!
I'll also be doing a shoot with my best friend Bresus Christ! and my wonderful photographer friend, Trevor Locke, next week! 

I've been writing random lists- what to pack, what to do, who to see before I go, trying to stay organized with this move as I can possibly be. But these lists don't contain the anxiety that comes with the thought of "tell dad", or the "say goodbye to" pit in my stomach that I'm currently feeling. It might be that I'm afraid that what I imagine as "my daughter can never move 1500 miles away," or the opposite, "oh, yeah, okay whatever". My relationship with my dad is currently struggling. :/

Onto better things, I'm looking forward to being able to spend some quality time with my family before our sendoff, packing and helping around their houses. It was such a cool feeling to know that my family is learning to respect me and so far they are relatively proud of me, from what I can tell.

 

19 days until liftoff!

 

Lake Havasu, Arizona Sunset

Sweet!
Stargirl

When the lights go out, will you take me with you?

"And highways I called home

Something I can't know 'til now

'Til you pick me off the ground, 

With brick in hand, your lip gloss smile, 

Your scraped up knees-

And- if you stay I would lead away your mind
Or until your heart explodes out
Until we find our way in the dark and out of heart
You can run away with me

Any time you want..."

Here's to new beginnings!
So, first off! I'm starting off this new blog to document a new transition in my life and all of the things that follow. There will be a lot of art; sketches, paintings, crafts, photography, and the sort. All of my random life happenings, emotions, some brilliant scenery and of course some cute pictures of my tiny dog Bella!  

So here's the scoop-
I'm moving from Washington to Arizona in 2 weeks with my stellar boyfriend Joey. We'll be staying at a beautiful house complete with a swimming pool and palm trees like I only imagined I'd see on an expensive vacation advertisement. 
We're both starting new jobs at the same company working under Joey's mom and her boyfriend Randy,  who owns the business and the house.
As the cherry on top to get us down there, and soon, Randy and Mom offered to get the ball rolling on my tattoo apprenticeship, which I am ever so grateful for, and no way I could pass up such an awesome opportunity! With the right motivation and such an amazing team of support, I feel like my dreams are coming true.

As with all upsides, there is always a downside, I'm going to miss my family and friends so much more than I ever imagined. I can already tell by my struggle with tears today, saying goodbye is going to be the hardest thing to do.
My tears got the best of me today before we arrived at my Cousin's house for her birthday. Joey and I were singing along to Sleeping with Sirens, I was staring out the window at the familiar scenery flying by, thinking about all of the people and the places I hold so dearly and tears kept flooding my eyes. This has been happening the past two days, since we finalized our plans of taking this big step.

I know this is going to be hard for me, I never thought I would ever actually move out of Washington, but looking towards the positives. The thought that from leaving now, I can bring back a new life for myself and my family in the future is keeping me strong, along with the constant love that my sweet man shines my way. <3

So here goes world, I'm giving you all I've got! Taking a risk and following my dreams with the love of my life. I'll be updating as frequently as I can, the next two weeks are going to be hectic, taking care of business and seeing my friends before I go.

Take a leap with me baby!
Stargirl