Wednesday, July 31, 2013

happee birthdae harry!

Happee Birthdae, Harry Potter!




I absolutely love Harry - did ya know, he was my second celebrity crush?

Right after Aaron Carter, of course.



I watched the Philosopher's Stone and BAM! Insta love for the gangly kid with skewed glasses. (Note: I have a crush on Harry, not Daniel Radcliffe)

He is a cutie patootie.
A stud muffin.
My slice of pie.



And to show my true love for this boy, I hired a team of singers, songwriters, and a very well-renowned actress to create a tribute to how Harry Potter changed my life.


If that's not dedication, I don't know what is.

xoxo,
McCall

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

diddly-wack-mack

Happy Hot Enough For Ya Day!

Mmkay everyone stop what you are doing and follow this link.

This is the best graduation speech since sliced bread (can I say that?), honestly I want to quote EVERY. SINGLE. SENTENCE.

Way to go Mack Daddy-O.

The Grimester.

M-Dawg.

Yo.



xoxo,
McCall

Monday, July 22, 2013

hogar, dulce hogar

Happy National Ratcatchers Day!

There's no place like home.

Because EVERYWHERE is home!

I find that I adapt to situations quickly - or, at least I think I do.

I haven't tested that out on a grand scale yet, as I have always had my family with me. Regardless, I believe that as long as you have an open mind, anywhere can be your hogar (hogar, dulce hogar.)

Last week I had a fabulous vacation in the tropical isles of Michigan, followed by an excursion to the deep, deep south.

AKA Indiana.

I am about to do something monumental here people.

I...

Am going to...

POST PICTURES AT A REASONABLE TIME AFTER A SIGNIFICANT EVENT!

Yawoo for me!

Me being artsy with my shoes ^

Me being artsy with some leaves ^

Me being ridiculously attractive ^

My sister and I being ridiculously attractive at the same time ^

 Our adorable condo had some little Christmas lights on the back porch ^

Our adorable condo looking very impressive ^


The beach we were going to play at, before we realized there were 5mil people ^


The beach we actually played at ^

Abby testing out the waters ^

The cute 'lil town & their flowers ^

Abby next to a Moose and a waterpark ^

The largest Culvers in the WORLD ^

Little Dudeman playing with Grandpa ^

Little Princess with her roll of paper towels ^

This trip was literally perf. We had the whole package: waterparks, ziplining, eating out, hotels, condo life, our own kitchen, little towns, beach time, family time, road trip, and we were able to surprise my sister and her family!

We popped up on her front doorstep, pretending to be new neighbors.

Surprise.

When her hubby got home, Marissa claimed there was a huge spider in the kitchen pantry.

Surprise.

When his mother arrived, we casually walked around the kitchen, made obvious conversation, and tried our hardest to appear like we were supposed to be there, hoping that she would catch on. It took a while for her to notice our presence.

Slowwwww surprise.

I really had a wonderful time, and thankfully this trip didn't pass in a blur. I was able to savor every little moment, including the 4+ times we ate a Culvers. All within EIGHT DAYS.

We might be a little bit obsessed.

xoxo,
McCall

P.S. I literally spent five hours this morning laughing and crying and having the time of my life on It Just Gets Stranger. Enter Eli McCann, a hilarious attorney in the mystical land of The Republic of Palau. He is an accomplished prankster, as well as a fabulous writer, and I find it physically impossible to read one of his posts without giggling.

Enjoy.

Monday, July 15, 2013

the power

Happy National Tapioca Pudding Day!

I love reading.

I especially love it when I am able to read an entire book in one day. For example, when I was in junior high, I would read one Pendragon book a day, so I had the entire series done in no time. 

It's actually really fun, y'all should try it sometime. 

Well, it has been a while since I have done that, so yesterday I decided to give it a go. 

The book I chose wasn't that long, only around 200 pages or so, but it was rewarding nonetheless. I just love the idea of conquering a novel. 

Plus, the book itself was one of those reads that makes you excited for life. It makes you feel that you are invincible, that the whole world; no the whole universe is your playground. I can do whatever I want to do, I can be whoever I want to be. 

Because everything I desire already exists. It's there waiting for me to call upon it, waiting for me to put in the effort and make it mine. 

I really love this book. 

The Power, Rhonda Byrne

I just ask that you give it a try. There are quite a few negative reviews out there, but only positive things can come about from this book. 

Don't let the muggles get you down. 

Besides, you never know what might be the key to help you unlock all your dreams. 

*poof*

xoxo,
McCall

Thursday, July 11, 2013

^lift

Happy World Population Day!

I would just like to inform you that I have found my new favorite stranger. Ever.

This may be a slight exaggeration, but honestly this girl is my hero.

For the longest time, I have been weighed down with regrets.

Not learning to play piano. Never joining gymnastics. Never finding a favorite sport. Wasting my summer days because I have no friends. Not starting that money-making scheme that I wanted to.

Every abandoned venture, every sidestepped opportunity haunts me. I am constantly bombarded with the thought "It's too late." It's too late. I am constantly making terrible decisions and then wallowing in the pain that results from these supposedly lost opportunities.

But this girl, this girl has shown me that I can still do it. It will take time, it won't be as easy as it could have been, but it is possible to achieve my dreams. I don't want to look back on my life and feel a wave of disappointment. I want to feel accomplished, I want to know that I did my best and did far better than anyone could have dreamed. Yeah, I messed up a ton. But I still have the potential to become something great.

I want to be great.

Wish me good luck?



xoxo,
McCall

P.S. I am going to attempt using Lift - check out my progress here.

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

super mom

Happy Hop a Park Day!

I am super lucky to have some super role models in my life.

Specifically, some super moms.



I have the privilege of growing up with these two FANTASTIC ladies: my mom, and my sister, Marissa.

My mom is basically perfect. She is the sweetest person you will ever meet - I can't imagine anyone having an issue with her. She makes great first impressions too; one of my friends could interact with her once, and they will praise her for being "so nice....", "fantastic...", or they will say "you have the best mom ever!" I'm serious. No editing required. She has this magical ability that allows her to produce the most delicious desserts. She doesn't even need to try hard, she could follow the exact same steps as someone next to her, and still her dish ends up 200% better. As if this isn't enough, she also has a gift for being a friend. People are drawn to her, and she is someone that you can trust easily. She will spend hours on the phone because someone needs some advice, or an ear to hear. 

And then there is my sister.

Marissa has been a huge hero to me ever since I can remember. She is a wee bit older than me, so for a large portion of my childhood she took on the role as caregiver, and so I was able to firsthand experience her motherly skills. She is incredibly patient, she can turn any bad situation into something positive, and she has a knack for children. As in, children can't help but love her. I always knew that she was the perfect babysitter, and that her love for kids is unmatched. 

Both of these ladies made motherhood look like a piece of cake. It came as a big shock to me that not all women are perfect at being a mom - I  figured that it was the norm. I've been spoiled rotten by these two, and forever and always they will be the best. Thank goodness I can look to them for when my children are yanking on my hair and clapping their grubby hands.

I can learn from the best.



xoxo,
McCall

Sunday, July 7, 2013

red, white, & blue

Happy Chocolate Day!

I celebrated this exquisite holiday with a bag of M&Ms.

Aaaaannnndddd some choco chip cookies.

I like me some cookies.

For my avid(non-existent) readers out there, I realize that I have not been revealing all of my juicy secrets.

Super-duper-deep-secret #1:

I'm goin' gluten-free.

*GASP*

Oh the horror!

There is very little reason for me to do so, other than a few random physical ailments that I thought could be related to gluten, and an underlying desire for a lifestyle change. I want to fuel my body with the best, and I have realized that most of my favorite junk food is in the grain family.

It's actually uber ironic, because my favorite thing in the whole wide world is food. Especially bread. And milk. And fruit. And chocolate.

But I have been pretty faithful to this new adventure.

(I refuse to call it a diet, because diets are nasty and not good for you.)

- + --- - + - --- - + --- - + - --- - + --- - + - 

Here is a lil recap of our fourth of July:

We started off with a bang, spending some quality family-bonding time through a game of Life.
Mom got to the retirement square first, but then she ended up with the least amount of money.

This is a lesson kids. More work = more pay.

We then created an impromptu festive dinner, and it was as themed and delicious as every year. In our family, we are huge on having cute little meals for the holidays - and they always include jello, some fruity drink, and almost always we dye the vittles (ie green mashed potatoes, pink spaghetti, etc)

For fireworks, we went to some random city and were forced to walk through the creepy carnival to buy some beverages. Abby was basically hiding behind my back the entire time, and the situation was not helped by the presence of a clown. A clown. As if it wasn't freaky enough, they had to throw in the #1 child traumatizer. Despite this, the show was good, and I can call this year a success.



In case you are curious, as I was, here is the significance of each portion of our flag:

"The colors of the pales (the vertical stripes) are those used in the flag of the United States of America; White signifies purity and innocence, Red, hardiness & valour, and Blue, the color of the Chief (the broad band above the stripes) signifies vigilance, perseverance & justice."


"The star is a symbol of the heavens and the divine goal to which man has aspired from time immemorial; the stripe is symbolic of the rays of light emanating from the sun."

http://www.usflag.org/colors.html


Reasons I love my brother in law:


xoxo,
McCall