for halloween, i rounded up my sisters and suggested a grayscale/film noir/silverscreen starlets theme and they jumped right on board at the idea! what an awesome concept; needless to say, it turned out fabulous!
at first, people were a little confused as to who/what we were supposed to be... but as soon as a picture was snapped to illustrate the concept, the living photoshop made complete sense and we were the photo ops for the night!
...and if you're wondering why my face is covered in all the photos it's because i accidentally wiped my nose and forgot to bring touch-up paint! so for the remainder of our night out on the town my nose was colored, womp, womp, womp! >;( only to me does this happen, lols. but all in all, it was still a great time with my sisters and the boyfriend. oh, and yes, he is an elephant. and that is his trunk..! ;D what a goof, smh, hahah.
the day i left milwaukee, i made one last attempt to take in the city and see those few kindred spirits that i didn't yet have a chance to see. naturally, i started my morning off at the local favorite, rochambo's coffee and teahouse on brady street with a dear friend :) you know, the type of friend where it doesn't matter how much time has passed between correspondences, but you know you can always pick up exactly where you left off..!? yeah, it was definitely a great morning with my dear kattia; nothing short of what i would've expected when you put 2 people with our energy in one room and add 2 pints of quality espresso beans to the mix, haha. and i don't even need caffeine! exactly what i needed to begin my last day of my brew city visit - lots of love and laughs while catching up on life!
i stuck around the neighborhood for a light lunch and eclectic shopping, then took a stroll down the once familiar lakefront i spent so much time at a lifetime ago... until i met up with another old friend that afternoon at the nomad, brady street's infamous world pub. he was working, i was getting thirsty and it was the absolutely perfect day out to enjoy a drink while people watching outisde the joint as we and joked with his regulars and soaked up the sun.
and let me just say, wow! you wouldn't believe me if i told you :) haha. oh, the people i met and things i saw that afternoon. it was definitely an "experience," they say "the nomad doesn't get any more eccentric!" and it sure lived up to its reputation :) thanks for the libations, mando!
one thing led to another, and before i knew it, i was at hosed enjoying more cocktails over great conversation with a small group of women i randomly met at the nomad who invited me to join them on their quest for drinks as they traveled deeper into the neighborhood :) one of which also so happened to own and operate fred boutique - a cute little shop not more than a block from my sister's condo on the river in milwaukee's infamous 3rd ward... it seems the further you venture, the smaller the world gets!
and you see, this is ultimately what i love about this city; the mixture of diverse people all within a small area and the surprise of not knowing who you will meet, run into, or where the day will take you as you make like a leaf and blow in the wind. :) good times. goodbye milwaukee.
so i took a week off life to spend it in milwaukee, wisconsin with my nieces and nephew while my sister and her husband were in california on a well-deserved getaway :) this post is a collection of just a few our random happenings that kept me plenty busy!
i got in town on saturday morning and the parents were off to catch their flight! so what did we do? auntie packed a picnic and we headed off to the lakefront for some time under the sun. had lunch while taking advantage of a beautful day and splashed around at the beach. what a fun day spent hanging with my favorite little people! <3
...and before the official "week" began, we enjoyed a sunday pho'otball fun day cheering on the packers too! #GPG
the challenge began right on monday morning though! oh, the life as a soccer mom... with the honda pilot and 4 kids, i had to jump right in and make sure they all got to where they needed to be on time, clean and fed! school, baseball, soccer, handbells, church activities, birthday parties, etc! boy, do i have a new found respect for parents; especially those who encourage extra-curricular activities and commit their limited free time to all the logistics and time management involved! whoa.
definitely not easy - not even for a sahm - but, boy, is it worth it the effort and investment in your child's life and future! :) pssst... it's no myth, supermoms really do exist! i took on the responsibilities for one for a week and it nearly drove me nuts! i literally had no time for me, at all! sorry to all my friends i had planned on stopping by to visit; you'll need another visit specifically allocated for you!
...but who could complain? waking up to these smiling faces every morning and never tiring of the bye auntie, i love you's and thank you's! as they zoom out the door to catch their bus? <3 definitely the most rewarding feeling in the world! they are truly the greatest, most thoughtful kids in the world! i'd do it all over again, all day every day! :)
i don't know about you, but i have a pretty large arsenal of quality scrap paper (and fabrics, for that matter) that i've acquired from previous projects over the years. dub me a hoarder, but i still think they're too good to toss... plus, i keep telling myself "one day i'll use them for a really cool project!" and uhhhh'm, yeah - no. hasn't happened, ahah.
seeing them slowly accumulate in a box is not very inspiring either... especially when i have to justify keeping it around every time i reorganize. as if that weren't bad enough, with the recent holidays, cardboard boxes have also been piling up! although i'm not complaining :) thank you for thinking of me, friends, i love presents! eheh.
anywaaays, this cardboard "scrap"book project came to me, recently, like one of those over-exaggerated and animated eureka moments! while i was reorganizing my arts/crafts supplies and faced with the challenge of having to justfify my box of various scrap paper (for the nth time! or throw it away). challenge, accepted! and i ended up making this neat little cardboard [literally] scrap book in an attempt to use up what i could! <3
the first thing i did was cut the cardboard into similar sizes; it didn't need to be perfect..! :)
second, i went through my scraps and picked out the salvageable pieces :) naturally, a color scheme surfaced.
third, i took out my scrapbooking boxes containing my letters, embellishments, ribbons, trinkets, etc... and found complimentary pieces to use in tandem with my scraps to create basic layouts and decoration.
the fourth step was going through my box of "old" photos that never made it into my traditional scrapbooks and picked out a themed-selection to use for this particular book. in this case, it was pieces of me while i lived in milwaukee, wisconsin.
after all the "pages" were put together, i drilled holes into each cardboard piece and secured it all together using twine... and might i add, i absolutely love the finished product! this was the perfect dorothy project to re-purpose leftover cardboard, use up some scraps and showcase photographs that've been sitting in a box for the last [almost] decade! it's no secret i love, love, love all things handmade :) so i'm kinda proud of this little baby. don't judge me, lols, kthxbye!
the lakefront; brewery. cielito lindo. lincoln park. urban fishing. bbq's for two. miller tours. summerfest. mpm. mam. pabst. tap city. mke county zoo. seven mile fair. value village. records. thrifting. 727 21st. 437 shawley. ugly mug. yellow jacket. stonefly. hip hop. libraries. marquette. the darkside of the moon. budget cinema. washington park. dineen. stallis. brady street strolls. rushmor. the blue armadillo. wizard of odd. eesanes. 7th&maple. oakland gyros. oak leaf trail. autozone. music festivals. jjs. pizza shuttle. thomson. herbs. jameson. jim beam. little red, the devil schwinn. bremen cafe. cafe mocha. art bar. maingia. berni. dan. mando. pie. enid edie. el rey. renaissance books. and bayview.
it's not that i miss you or that i long to someday return - but moreso, that feeling i can still vividly recall while i was there with you that brings a certain peace to my heart. so thank you... for being such a big part of me and showing me what beauty really entails when you can look past the rough streets and begin to appreciate the hidden gems between each nook and cranny so many overlook. for that, i will always love you. and regardless of the evils - we had some pretty amazing times, you and i :) that's what i choose to remember and take with me.
♪ ♩ ♫ when i was drinking, when i was with you... living it up when the rent was due. with nothing and no one to live up to. you and me dying on the vine, holding hands and drinking wine. now i'm not the same girl i left behind with you. twelve bars behind us and twelve bars to go... bottles of beer lined up in a row. one for each hour you didn't show. you and me dying everyday. getting high just to pass away, but that's not the reason i couldn't stay with you. now i am sober, now i'm alone... three years have gone by since you have gone. letting you go, letting me go on, but i'll raise a glass now to you and me. to lift me higher so i can see... which of these blessings are killing me. ♪ ♩ ♫
whether it's a quaint date night, to lift my spirits, or inject inspiration... the milwaukee art museum has always been that special place for me. browsing until my heart's content, even the millionth time felt like the first. what seemed to have been a world away from the hustle and bustle of the city once within its sparsely decorated walls of works from warhol to georgia o'keefe, i could always count on getting lost in all its beauty and find myself fully rejuvenated once again. <3 after all, art is freedom... being able to bend what others see as straight. om.
