moments with mommy, v.viii

downton abbey gifs instead of a photo because my mother loves downton abbey and she is always right. 

• mommy: "jocelyn, i'm training you to be excellent. you'd be surprised how little it takes to be excellent in this world. it takes so little it's not even funny! and it takes even less to be above average. and right now, you're above average. most teenagers (though you're not a teen, you're a young adult), hardly hear it when someone asks them to do something. less do it, and maybe one or two out of the mix ask if they can do anything else to help. but since you're a young adult, and you're above average, you do what i ask, when i ask it, without huffing or puffing or blowing the house down."
• me: "...this is such a random conversation. where did this come from?"
• mommy: "you know me. when i think of something i say it.  but anyway, i'll give you an example. when we were in the car on the way to volunteer at the long centre, and i told you to hand me my purse, which was in the backseat. i needed to floss my teeth, i told you. so you grabbed my purse, but instead of just handing it to me (and i was driving), you took the time to take the dental floss out of my purse and hand it to me. that is being above average."
• me: "so if i just threw the purse at you i'd just been a normal teenager?"
• mommy: "no, a normal teenager wouldn't even hear me."
• me: "so if i want to be excellent, i have to offer to floss your teeth for you?"

true story, ladies and hiddlestons. the reason i post this is because it's my mom's "29th" (#ehehe) birthday, and she's a pretty legit mom if i do say so myself. even if she really doesn't share her food with me that much. so here's to you, mommy! and i still like loki. #youmad #idowhatiwantexceptidontdowhatiwantbecauseyouremymom #awkward #peaessthisiswhatahashtaglookslike

-kiss kiss kiss, box of cats-

very punny.

this thanksgiving, everyone in the family came down, except for the aunt and uncle, who we only see at Christmas and very special occasions. so it was daddy's parents, and mommy's mom, and we all sat at the dining table and took turns telling each other things that we were thankful for [i'm thankful for food and tom hiddleston this year]. basically, my grandparents are thankful for being alive. specifically, this is what they said. 

• grandma: "so glad to be on top of the ground instead of having the ground being on top of us!""i'm so glad to be seen and not viewed!" 
• grandma sugar: "we prayed from the womb to the tomb!" "God willing that the creek don't rise!" "my sheet was not my winding sheet and my bed was not my cooling board!" "there is an alternative to getting old! and it is death. so you better get old, girl!"
• granddaddy: "it's great to be vertical and not horizontal!"

if you don't understand, i promise you, your grandparents will. incidentally, we laughed over these more than we ate. 

and that is literally impossible with my mom/grandmothers' cooking.

-kiss kiss kiss, holla-

cupcakeking, v.7

instead of a post about my sister's seventh birthday, which is today, joy asked if i could post a picture of a cupcake so she could see it later. so happy birthday, joy. you know i love you, because i totally could've been at the theatre watching the perks of being a wallflower right now. #ehehe #justkidding #youmad #idowhatiwant #yesimusinghashtagsinablogpost #getwithit

-kiss kiss kiss, sisser-

moments with mommy, v.vii

we were sitting at grandma's house on monday, watching the basketball game or something of the sort, when mommy decided to tell me a story.

Mom: jocelyn, i'm going to tell you something, and i sure do hope it doesn't happen to you, but i want you to know anyways.

Me: oh Lord, please let it not have something to do with the Cosby Show.

Mom: the night after i gave birth to you, i was in the hospital resting. i was so, so tired, and i didn't feel like doing much of anything but sleeping. so i was resting, and i was awoken by this whining sound. and i said to myself, "what was that?" and i looked over, and there was a baby next to me. so i'm looking at it, and i say, "oh my, someone had a baby!" and then i realized it was you. 

Me: you forgot you gave birth to me? i feel so loved. 

Mom: i know your grandmother teases you about forgetting things, but if you want to forget something significant, then forget that you had your own baby. but you forget, i like, just had you, so i was delusional. i was in labor for thirty-six hours, you know. 

Me: but i turned out good! 

Mom: that's... debatable. no, i'm kidding. love you, jocee!

at least, i hope so. but seriously, you guys, she forgot i was born. that is so. awkward.

-kiss kiss kiss, teenage alzheimer's-

{pea ess: fixed the photo issue. thank you, abby!}

moments with mommy, v.vi

-today, coming home from church and dropping mommy off at grandma's-

Me: wait, why are we here?

Mommy: because if i go home i'm going to work, and i don't want to work, i want to rest. so i'm resting at grandma's house till dinnertime. 

Joy: i want to go rest with you! 

Me: no, joy! she said she wants to rest!

Joy: but i'll be quiet!

Mommy: ha ha! ha, ha, haha, ha. bye.

happy mommy's day, mommy! you're funny, and you deserve all the cupcakes.
-kiss kiss kiss, never a dull moment-

moments with mommy, v.v

-in the car on the way to the long center-

Me: so, i've begun to realize and understand the courses of my life-

Mom: wait, there was an appetizer?

Me: what?

Mom: you said the courses of your life. you have an appetizer, salad, main course, and dessert. are you talking about the appetizer?

Me: what? what does that even mean? -awkward silence- oh wait... i get it.

i swear, she doesn't even try to be funny. it's like my grandma, she's being totally real, and everyone's rolling on the floor. but to go along with her, i think i'm in the salad of my life. in the words of adam young: not all who salad are tossed.
-kiss kiss kiss, chew the bacca-
{pea ess: who else wants to just reach into the screen and grab that pizza?}

we interrupt this program for an important message from my sister.

{i'm sorry about all the black and white, you guys. but c'mon! it's so pretty. can't resist.}
Joy: -gasp- your blogger friends all have blogs? oh my gosh! that's amazing!

and now back to your regularly scheduled posting.
-kiss kiss kiss, i will go down with this ship-

{pea ess: yes, she seriously said that. no, i don't know what's wrong with her. she's six.}

{pea pea ess: today's the day! i'm so excited.}

moments with mommy, v.iv

-me and mommy in the car sucking lollipops and talking about hipsters-

Me: hipsters have messenger bags. not backpacks, messenger bags.

Mom: what's a messenger bag?

Me: it's.. a really nice bag. 

Mom: do people carry messages on it?

Me: .... you've got to be kidding me.

she seriously said that and, for the record, still doesn't know what a messenger bag. i love my mom.

-kiss kiss kiss, bolivian eagle- {as opposed to american eagle.}

moments with mommy, v.iii

source

-in the car on the way home from music composition-
Me: so, in the end, he knew she was prego all the time and-
Mommy: wait, wait. she was spaghetti sauce?
Me: no! mom, she was pregnant. you know. prego, preggers, etc.
Mommy: so we now call expecting women canned tomatos?
Me: -le sigh- mother, it's just an abbreviation.
Mommy: well, i'm just checking. you never know what those hipster people will come up with next.
Me: oh goodness goshbubbles.
Mommy: mm-hmm.

that's so my mom.
-kiss kiss kiss, best day ever-
{pea ess: i can't tell you why it's the best day ever, but it involves a camera. stay tuned.}

march the twenty-eighth, nineteen ninety-two.

today. twenty years ago. my mom donned her lace and puffed sleeves and my dad tied his bow tie and tucked in his shirt and they said i do. but most importantly, they didn't save me any cake. but i wasn't born. so i guess i don't have much control over that.

ever since i knew what a wedding was, i wanted to have one. i didn't really know anything about love, but i knew that God was going to pick the guy out and we were going to walk down the aisle and kiss {then gross}, and dance to cinderella music and eat cake. i remember watching my parent's old wedding vhs and thinking, i want one of those. why wasn't i there? i want my own wedding.

i remember mommy and daddy kissing all the time. it was gross, and it pretty much still is. i'd run between them and push them apart and then they'd kiss me. which was better. i remember them renewing their vows just so i would get some cake. that was fun, because i got to be the flower girl mommy never had. and the cake was delicious.

now, it's been twenty years. when the bluebonnets start to come out, it's the sign that one more year is almost here. i've been here for fifteen of those, and joy's been here for six. i'm pretty glad my parents got married, because if they hadn't, i wouldn't be here. oh right, joy wouldn't be here too. but anyway.

{photo and design by gracie, who's beastly.}

happy anniversary, parentses! you guys are really getting up there. i kid, i kid. 

-kiss kiss kiss, hug wedding bells-

moments with mommy, v.ii

source

 -outside {during the golden hour} leaving for volleyball-

joy: -points at me- you! 

me: -points at joy- you!

me + joy: -secret handshake- {because secret handshakes are beastly}

mommy: you two are just weird. 

me: mother! you're not supposed to say that! you don't let us say things like that to each other, so you can't say it to us.

mommy: um, quite the contrary. i'm mother, and i can say you two are weird and loud and whatever else. speaking of which, you two are especially loud. 

me + joy: -yells- that's her fault! 

mommy: and my point is proved.

the morning started quiet, but knowing my mom and sister, it's obviously not going to stay that way. i haven't exactly eaten breakfast, so for now it's orange flavored kool-aid and tom hiddleston to keep me otherwise occupied. i find chris evans to be adorable, and i promise you, a real post will come soon. inspiration-darling is on spring break with everyone else. goshbubbles.

-kiss kiss kiss, hug febreeze-

moments with mommy, v.i

source
-mommy and i talking about my wedding whilst she's heating up waffles-

me: anyway, mommy, i want the all the men to wear bow-ties. all of them. 

mommy: mmhm. as long as they don't wear pink. *takes out her burnt waffles out of the stove* 

me: *looks at the waffles* mom, those look disgusting.

mommy: hey! don't be sass-mouthing my food! i'm eating it!

right. she's very defensive when she is eating. we can't even talk about chocolate pie! {wink if you get it} what are some funny moments you've had with your mom?
-kiss kiss kiss, okay & okay-

keeping my temper

this is joy. yes, we know joy is cute. moving on...

joy's my little sister. if you have siblings yourself, then you know by alot of blood, sweat, and tears that they're not exactly what they seem like when other people are around. can i get an amen? i mean, don't get me wrong, i love my sister. but she's very good at pushing my buttons. if you could get a humanitarian award for pushing buttons, joy would be the lifetime recipient. but, for one whole day, i decided to put that aside and be nice to her. if you're dying to know, then yes, i am still alive.

the day starts with the usual groggy joy, slumping down the stairs and waddling over to me to beg for breakfast and a blanket. i'm hungry, who's going to get me breakfast is her signature saying at the moment. instead of telling her to wait for daddy like i always do, i get up, and get her a big bowl of cornflakes. then she steals my blanket. being the lovely, adoring sister that i am, i go upstairs and get another one, because only an idiot would sit in a cold house without a blanket.

after her second breakfast {which is everyone else's first, because only joy eats cereal that early in the morning} she perks up and proceeds to tackle me with hugs and kisses and screams of look at those chunky-wunky cheeks! you're so cute. family joke. and of course she takes advantage of these hugs, because usually i'm the person running up the stairs for dear life. for a six year old, she's really strong.

to be perfectly honest, the day continued as such, but at swim practice she decided to tell all of my swim friends what a meanie i was for stealing her fishsticks. i would like to make something clear to all of you: our family has not bought fishsticks for eight years. joy is six. she shouldn't even know what fishsticks are.

but i grinned and bore it. and got hit a few times from my said swim friends. but this time i didn't defend myself. why? because i was keeping my temper. and my swim coach always says i whine. i don't whine. i get excited.

eventually, bedtime rolled around and the day was over. it was exhausting². emphasis on the squared. however, i survived. and as a reward, i am going to drool over this cupcake: 

i was really good, you guys. really good.

number fifteen of sixteen before sixteen = complete.

-kiss kiss kiss, real or not real- {<< i can't get over it, megan.}

{pea ess: finished mockingjay a few nights ago. i have mixed emotions right now, so i don't really know what i feel. i do know, that i love peeta though.}

{pea pea ess: to those who want to know why i don't like gale, he just wasn't my sort of guy. he was self-centered and said that katniss would choose whoever she couldn't survive without (spoilers), not who she loved. he just annoyed me.} 

a true story.

source

-mommy and i relaxing after dinner-

mommy: you know, jocelyn, for awhile i never thought i'd be able to become a mother. 

me: why?

mommy: because i wasn't about to share the chocolate cake batter!

the sad thing is: she still doesn't share it. 
have a lovely sunday, you guys.
-kiss kiss kiss, hug tie-dye-
{pee ess: dear blog, fix yourself. the wide-tooth gap in between paragraphs -sort of paragraphs- is making me nervous. in other news, harrison ford has an earring.}

hey, look: you grew up again.

today is most likely a normal day for you. today you'll probably wake up, eat breakfast, dress, go to school, come home, do homework and go to sleep, then repeat it the next day. well, for me, today isn't just any old day. today is my mommy's birthday. -insert yay here-

mom's are pretty cool people, because from that first day, they took care of you. they feed you and washed you and made sure you were fairing okay. she saw your first steps and swears that your first word was mama instead of dada. she planned your birthday parties made cake and helped you blow out the candle. she cleaned your mess and took you to school for the first time. 

my mom's played a pretty big role in my life, because she did all those things. the little things that really aren't worth remembering are the things that are always retold to the friends and the grandparents. the way she read me stories and spent all night decorating for my birthday parties and things like that. i still call her mommy. because to me that's a sign that no matter how old you are deep down inside you'll still be a kid again. and she just likes to be called mommy. 

so, here's to you, mommy. i have lots of virtual cupcakes. 

happy birthday! i heart you.

-kiss kiss kiss, hug my mommy-
{pee ess: this is texas and it is currently 37 degrees farenheit. someone send me a blanket.}

continuous and others

taken in the driveway, whilst mommy and joy were painting the back door. 

it's funny. the hot weather has gone away, cooler temperatures are setting in, thanksgiving has passed. like you're caught up in the moment and then suddenly pushed back into reality, realizing that the year is almost over. my birthday is in sixteen days. talk of decorations and meal plans fill the house, over the clink of silverware on ceramic plates holding the thanksgiving leftovers. i feel as though i have to wait for everyone's birthday to pass until it comes to mine. but then i realize, it's all relative, our birthdays are all the same distance apart. and we don't take the time to understand that we're getting older each second. we don't acknowledge our growing maturity. longer hair and stature, and the wrinkles creep up on us, even though it seems so far away. speaking of birthdays and maturity..

i am amazed how generous my grandma can be. sells her summer house in michigan, buys a house close to us, and opens it up so we can drop by anytime, for football, puzzles, the word of the day, among other things. i love my grandma. she's always cheery, quick to respond with a witty, memorable answer, and one of the first things out of her mouth is hello, love! how are you? would you like some hot chocolate? this morning {with nine minutes to spare} i'm at grandma's house, with a mug full of hot chocolate and the michigan game on, about to make blueberry muffins from scratch, and talking with mommy over birthday party plans. 

how are you, today? 

-kiss kiss kiss, hug architecture-

dancing! at the disco

literally. 

mommy's mommy came from illinois on wednesday. we call her grandma sugar, because she's so sweet, and she smells good, too. she sold her summer house up in michigan and bought a house two blocks away from us. this trip is for the coming of thanksgiving. family, food, and recognizing your blessings. the weather is cold, the skies are darker, and the air constantly smells of marshmallows roasting in the fireplace. 

every night we go to grandma's house and eat dinner and put together puzzles. we play the "how many words can you make out of this" game and we watch our favorite cop shows. the mentalist is amazing. amen. there's talk of sports, home decoration, food, and fun, and there's always an oreo in there somewhere. 

we go scavenger hunting and find old photo albums, unearthing memories from 'back-in-the-day'. and last night, we unearthed something new. grandma's record player. 

a bookshelf loaded with reminders of the 1950's, 60's, and 70's. and you can guess what happened next. i picked one out, switched on the turntable, and pressed play. let the dancing begin. of course Joy appeared out of nowhere and began to dance the way only six year olds dance. one hour of nat king cole, frank sinatra, sammy davis jr, and the top disco bands from the 1970's {whose names i do not know}. 

you can guess that i spontaneously made the decision to play these records at my fifteenth birthday party. you guessed correctly. i am now a part of an age that i was never able to experience {oh the horror of being born in the 90's} and i am quite le happy. 

number seven of fifteen before fifteen: complete. 

and now if you'll excuse me while i admire this cleverness:

-kiss kiss kiss, hug lincoln logs-

{pee ess: i'm making an etsy. no, i'm not selling anything [yet] but i would like to sponsor some blogs/etsy shops so we can have some giveaways in the future. how does that sound? also, that's what the poll is for. to name my future etsy shoppe. be excited.}

{pee pee ess: what are your standings with white chocolate?}

guess what, mommy?

this is my mom.

well, kind of. she's not clair huxtable, but she looks like her, and acts like her. this is just an idea. 

every once in awhile my mom and i sit down and look at my blog. she works a lot, so she doesn't really read it, but a few times a month we sit down with our cups of tea and she reads my latest posts. and it all starts with "guess what, mommy?"

i remember when i first started this blog. within week two of blogging i already had around ten followers.  "guess what mommy?" i have ten followers now! and she'd say "really? what did you post about?" and the number kept growing. "hey, guess what mommy? i got a new design?" and she'd say "really? let's see it!" 

even when i didn't feel very happy, she'd always ask what was wrong, and offer to help with the problem. now, my mom isn't really one to feel sympathetic for a person, she's more like the person who offers a solution to the problem. and in the end she's always right. 

so now, there are 212 of you guys, and with every one of you there's been a "guess what, mommy?!" and i know there'll be a lot more to come.


i asked her to say something to you guys, and this is what she says:
mom: i love my daughter very much and i'm proud of her.
me: no, mom! you're supposed to say something funny!
mom: *pauses for a moment, then says* how do you expect me to say something funny? i'm eating! if you want me to be funny, i'll be funny after meal hours. speaking of which, can you make me some tea?


that's my mom for you. she's awesome :))
-kiss kiss kiss, hug wicker basket-
{pee ess: twitter, or not twitter? also, i've put an FAQ up on my sidebar! anything you wanted to ask? just send me a comment!}
{pee pee ess: i'm going to need a few guest posters. i'm not leaving, but i'd like some people to post on tuesday, thursday, and saturday of next week. volunteers, please?}

ice cream and cakecakecake, ice cream and cakecakecake

ice cream and cake dothe ice creak and cake, ice cream and cake dothe ice cream and cake!! 

this is just so cute, isn't it? kind of like cupcakes in a jar :))

on this day of september 14th, in 2005, at exactly 10:38pm, after months of waiting and years of praying and over two hours of boredom, my sister, Joy Catherine, was born. yay. she's six years old now...and she's very tall for her age. i mean...really tall. she's more than half my size!! and i'm like...5'9"! so, yeah. she's really tall.
anywho, she demanded to send a message to all you blogger lovely-happies so here it is: "hi you guys, it's my birthday on september 14th, i'm six years old, and i'm wearing a pin so i get money!!!!"
that's seriously what she said.

this picture was taken a long time ago. but whatever. happy birthday, joy!! we love you, and we are terrified of you.
-kiss kiss kiss, kiss kiss kiss-

tuesdays, thursdays, todays and tomorrows...

song stuck in my head (have i been slacking off or what?!): "to the sky" owl city. 

So, me and my mom have this thing. I'm not sure where it came from, but she started saying:

"I love you on Tuesdays, Thursdays, todays and tomorrows..." and it's been a family quote ever since. So, if I ask her a question, she says "what day is it?" and if it's not Tuesday or Thursday, it's always today. Hello! Revelation! *ahem* Anywho. 

Yesterday (which was a "today") I made cupcakes. 16 lovely-happy works of art that were eaten in less that two hours. Um....how could you? H-how...I just can't understand it. Well, I got some pictures before mom went on a sugar/cupcake rage:

Isn't it so pretty? My camera did a beautiful job. So did Picnik. Bravo, bravo. I also got this really cool closeup of the sprinkles (or jimmies, whatever you call them) before my sister devoured them all and has been on an extreme [probably world record breaking] sugar high ever since. 

I think I'm going to end the "What should I name my photography" poll early and put up a new poll. Yeah, I think that's what I'll do. Anywho, do you like this picture? I do. I love how my camera did an actual closeup. It's actually clear, ya' know? Hello! Or the British way: 'Ello! Or the C.S. Lewis way: Hullo there! Yup, C.S. Lewis wins everytime. And now I'm going to put some lovely-happy-goshbubbley-professional cupcake pictures on this blog:

I'm going to spend the rest of my day listening to the Voyage of the Dawn Treader soundtrack and watching William Moseley interviews. Oh by the way,

Just try to contradict me. I dare you. 

P.S. I didn't expect all the feedback I got on the "Teenagers VS Young Adults" series. Wow, thank you so much, and I loved all the opinions. Interview number two shall be tomorrow!!