Catching up with the Tibbetts

Helllooooo!  Man it’s been a while not that I don’t adore all of you and want to share every little bit of everything that happens in my life, but life has been in high gear for the last month or so and it seem that I am nonstop on the go. This is good and bad. Good in the sense that I am constantly moving and shaking so all the yummy food and celebratory libations haven’t ALL gone straight to my ass. (Just most of them) Bad in the sense that I am constantly on the go and it’s been hardtop find some me time or even hubby time. Man we haven’t been on a date, just the two of us, in about a month.  Life really has been fun and had a lot of changes this last month! 
              To start we made it to one year! I hear this is quite the feat but we feel like it went by so fast with little hiccups in the big picture sense. We really have gotten a lot closer and stronger. We have had some challenges that not only have hurt a little but have helped to build our bond and solidify that we made the right choice with the right person. When it comes down to it that is what marriage is about. Never giving up on the love you felt the day you committed your life to that person. We had a fabulous trip. We went and stayed in Venice with our family friend Sonia. From there we made the trek over to Disneyland, but first we picked up Kelly from the Long beach airport, if you can even call it an airport. Sorry LBA. We spent two magical days and nights in Anaheim at Disneyland. We rode some ride (pirates is my favorite, F splash mountain) When it was time to leave the most magical place on earth we hit the open road for a 4 hour car ride to one of the sleaziest places on earth…VEGAS BABY! OH MY was that fun, we ate great food and drank way too much. I even danced on the bar at Coyote Ugly! We stayed at the New York New York. By this time we were ready for our own bed and some routine. So we hopped back in the car drove 8 hours through the Nevada dessert AKA Deliverance and through the back side of Reno through Tahoe to home sweet home.  

 

Then it was back on the pony gearing up for the fabulous events to lie ahead. Next was my “little” brother’s graduation from high school. *tear I can’t believe He is 18 and graduated. It was so cool to be there and watch him get his diploma and then that weekend Adam and I went to his house for a little BBQ and presents to celebrate the accomplishments of the last 4 years! I am so proud and excited to see where is takes his life now! 

 

He is so smart, kind hearted, tenacious, and focused. I know He can do anything He puts his mind to. A week after Spencer graduated My Seester turned 30!! What a fabulous 30 she is. Dad, Mom, Alan, Steph, Jodi, Jason, Adam, and I all went to dinner at The Kitchen. It is a wonderful high class place that serves amazingly delicious food with exquisite wine and what a show they put on. It is a little pricey but so worth saving your pennies! Then we all headed back to her house where parents went to be and Kids hit the town. We walked to Ink, The Blue Que, and Pine Cove. I wore the complete wrong shoes and ended up with blisters but I was a wee bit intoxicated so I didn’t care at the time. ;-)

 All of this excitement was preparing us for the big moment it all was leading up to…Audrie Brown became Audrie Kerr. It was so much fun, but wait I am getting ahead of myself. Of course there was lots of prep and planning that went on but then the Saturday before the big day was time to relax and celebrate the shedding of the past and the start of a new future. Sara (the maid of honor) Audrie, Molly and I all drove up to South Lake Tahoe for a night on the strip. It was so fun we got all dolled up had dinner at the Hard Rock Café. As full as we were we headed over to the Cabo Wabo bar where they were serving pitchers of Waboritas to any bridal party of 5 or more so we hooked up with another bridal party we saw in line who only had 3 ladies and we got 2 pitchers, how I am not sure. Guess we were so dang cute we looked like we had more girls than we did. OH well no one was complaining. So we hung out and talked with them for a while and danced. They had a band playing that was really good and we knew almost all the song! By then it was 12:30 our dogs were barking and we had some major drunk munchies! So we walked back to our hotel (again in heels, my poor feet hate me) where we snuggled in to eat chips and bean dip and watch Best in Show. Great movie. Great night and company.

Then it was prep prep  prep! Friday the village spent all day at the hall decorating and transforming it from a little farm hall to a beautiful country ball room. It was elegantly simple and classy. The girls spent the night at Audrie’s house and Chris and some of the boys spent the night at his brother’s house. In the morning Audrie and I cleaned wonders pasture, loaded up the car and drove to the hotel they were staying at that night to get ready! I did hair and make up for us while we sipped champagne. We loaded up again to get to Sara’s parents house for pictures and putting on the dress. She looked absolutely stunning. I think Chris was blown away by her beauty, grace and that dress!!! The wedding was pretty nontraditional, as Chris walked her down the aisle, they did what’s called a first look before the ceremony and went and did some of the reception, then took more pictures later on about half way through. Mostly because it was ridiculously hot, I think it actually got to 109!! From there it was a dance party till the end. The bride and groom took off into the night, leaving for the Mendocino coast the next day! Meanwhile the village was back for round 2…clean up! Great weekend, great wedding, gorgeous bride! 

 

Now it’s just been back to the grind stone workin workin workin. Been offered a little extra position at the restaurant as sommelier! So been wine tasting and crunching numbers to find our next local winery! 

Day 27

Today I am thankful for pride.


               Pride is a total double edge sward for me. At times I am very prideful and stubborn. I know that everyone has those moments and I have learned to make them fewer and farther between. Pride in this manor can be pretty unhealthy and destructive. I feel good that I have learned this lesson at a young age. I feel as though I still have a lot to learn when it comes to pride. Sometimes I judge myself to much, take things to personally, and tell myself things that are mean. This is the most wicked and for me hardest to overcome. Fact is this is my prideful ego who is telling me these things.  Not the healing loving energy that is Me, the pure love and light of my being, my "soul" if you will. My soul loves its vehicle in this world and is pride filled not prideful.  I am so proud of so many aspects of my life.The ego is fighting back because the more light that fills me , the less room there is for the ego. So I consciously and acknowledging that I am proud of my husband and the life we are creating. I am proud of the love that I am able to spread with the world. I am proud of the amazing supportive family that I have. I am proud of the kind, fun friends that surround me, ect. But I feel that I need to learn to truly be proud of who I am. Oh man even typing it now makes me a little anxious and a million reasons why I shouldn't be proud come to mind. Lately I have really been holding on to the past and who I thought I was then. I haven't always been someone I have been proud of. I suppose that this has been a good inspiration for me to continue growing and change. I look at a lot of people in my life and think " That is the type of person I want to be". Tonight it was pointed out to me that I wouldn't have these people around me or have a great life that I was proud of if I wasn't that type of person. That I am attracted to that  energy and it is attracted to me because we are one and the same. Some thing to be be proud of! I am beautiful, strong, honest, funny, a loving wife, an adoring daughter and sister, a supportive friend and a cousin/niece/granddaughter who will always be there for her family. I woman who is deserving of all life offers, and who wants to share healing light with the wold. I am learning to be proud of those thing and remember that I am attractive to good things to come! 

Peace and Love to all, namaste.

Day 23

Today I am thankful or trying something new.

            I have been doing a lot of this lately. The newest thing I have done ( literally like 20 minutes ago, well actually more than that by the time I post this) is start walking the dogs. Ha more like walking myself! I have heard that is takes a month ish to make something a habit. We are house sitting for almost 2 months, meaning we walk the dogs (ourselves) everyday. This is great! The best part is we still have "Bucky" to walk when we get home! Sure it will be more difficult physically, the road behind our house has a pretty good hill. Also harder road wise as we have no side walks but that's what the next couple of months are for...training! 

             I also have tried a couple of new recipes that were good but need perfecting so I am not ready to share. But I am willing to share a new adventure The hubs and I had with Ethan, Mel and one of their friends who doubles as the O.T.P. marketing guy (I believe) Russ. We went to Mt. Vernon Winery to taste some really good wine. We tried 7or 8 of their 16 varieties. My favorite as usual is the Old Vine Zinfandel. We are looking for some great placer county wines and I think we are going to make a "thing" of this. There are 16+ wineries on the placer county wine trail! I KNOW RIGHT!  I was shocked. Apparently we have great soil for it, I had NO idea!! I digress, so we are thinking that we are gonna try for every Friday we hit up a winery on the trail! I am so excited. Especially because this Friday is my birthday! Whoot Whoot! We are not sure where we are going this week yet but stay tuned for reviews! Or if you have any favorite Placer county winery please share!

Peace and love to all. Namaste.

Day 18

Day 17: Today I am thankful for meeting new people (friends)

               On Wednesday I got to meet Hanna Beckley. After hearing how wonderful she was and watching a small child weep at the fact that she had gone away to college (UCSC) and no longer worked here I expected if Donnie Darko and and Storm from X-Men had a love child it would be Hanna...I was not disappointed. She is so sweet and genuine. The cutest 18 year old ever and HI-larious! She is back "on call" for holiday hours, and I am hoping to to get to work with her more. I have made more female friends at this job than I have ever had...in my entire life to be honest. Like with Melanee. We have become friends fast and I totally adore her. She and I laugh so much. Crafting and backing and being wives are not only the most important things to us but what we really love doing. She is so naturally beautiful and kind its refreshing me meet one more woman who uses her brain and cares about making a good life for her family. It doesn't hurt that Ro comes along with Mel and that I am really getting 2 friends! I do not think this is a coincidence and I am really enjoying it.

              Dave is another really just awesome human being. Adam and I really get along and relate with Dave. We have some great conversations and he even came over to our house for thanksgiving. He is extremely witty. He has more nicknames than anyone I know, and is wickedly sarcastic. I have never met anyone with as fierce a beard as my Grandpa until Dave ( then I met Brett a regular customer who is more like a part of the OTP family)

               Again not a coincidence so many great people have become a part of one place and intern become friends. In the past I feel like I have been less open and unable to understand or relate to people. I guess this is what finding your self is about I am very grateful to have learned how to accept and love myself more to be more comfortable forming lasting relationships.

Day 16

Day 16: Today I am thankful for smiling


               Smiling physically feels like it changes how I feel. Its one of my favorite things (looks wise) about myself; and is my best accessory. A smile can change a persons day, mood or just cheer them up a little. A smile is how we greet each other, and is the sign that we are friendly and open to new people. When I got my braces off I remember people telling me "you parents paid a lot for that beautiful smile, make sure you use it as often as you can."  Adam says he has loved my smile from the first moment he saw it. His is what I look forward to most at the end of any day, and the first thing I see every morning. My favorite things about smiles is they transcend gender, social status, and nations. Share a smile with a stranger!

Day 15

Day 14: Today I am thankful for my Job.


              Today I got to work a double. I am very tired but so happy to just have the hours. Many people are out of work right now, we know that all to well. I have worked a few jobs in my time and this is by far the most fun.  I have never worked at a place where I love so many of the people that I worked with. We started working at OTP to earn some extra cash and it has become a great job and what is getting Adam and I through right now. It is really kinda fun to work with Adam. I wasn't sure what would happen, I mean we are great together, but working is a whole other story! Honestly I love it. Its so easy and we get to spend time together. Pretty cool. OTP is a different kind of place to work, its like one big family. We are fitting in very well and it feels great. Tuesday is our Christmas party and I am so excited. I am bringing mini chicken pot pies ( kinda nervous) and I expect that other people will bring some deliciousness as well! (they better, hahaha) Melanne is making dessert...YAY!  We are very thankful for the money, but more than that we are thankful for the good times and love! Here's to many years together my friends, and experiencing la vita molto bene!

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Day 9

  Day 9: Today I am thankful for inspiring people.

            I am a truly blessed to have so many inspiring people in my life. My sweet, loving grandmothers. My kind, strong minded aunties. My endearing, funny uncles. My protective, close nit cousins, regardless of how long its been. My understanding friends who can talk me through anything. My thoughtful brothers and sister. My compassionate, patient, wise Mommies. My quick witted, insightful Dad.

             

Another person who has really inspired me in my life is Isabel Toro. She is a holistic counselor. I am so thankful for her, openness, hospitality, warmth, sharing of knowledge, guidance, kindness, love, and general care for me. She has taught me a lot about being calm and enjoying and being thankful for life. Has taught me to be objective and understand myself and life better. She is a truly in touch with the greater energy and has helped me to grow closer to it. She has opened her home to Adam and I and brought us through some hard times, and helped us find the tools to continue to get through them. I look forward to continuing my journey and growth with her. I think the biggest influence she has had on me is helping me realize my ultimate goal in life is to be a healer, to help people feel better in their lives.

Most of all my husband. He is such a hard working, selfless, dedicated, honest. I know that I will never have to worry about where he is or how he is with. I will never feel unloved or unappreciated, I never hear angry cruel words and he will never reinforce the message of my wounds. He is what makes me want to create and inspire another human life to have and live a life of all of these qualities. He makes it so easy to want to be the most amazing wife I can be and the best human I can be. He has inspired me to really look at what I and we want for our future, to grow up and figure out how to make what ever life throws at us work. His soul continues to impress and amaze me.

All the leaves are brown, and the sky is grey...

I know I know it’s been awhile, things have been busy and stressful around these here woods. Adam and I both started working at our favorite pizza place, Old Town Pizza (OTP) and are really enjoying it. It is a very fun and family oriented place and we fit in quite nicely! Adam had also started a new job with 2 of his brothers at a construction company out of San Francisco, but they were let go because they were too expensive. The guy couldn’t keep paying them what they were worth plus gas and company vehicles. So now we are all making it work and learning a little more how to work together and I think the true nature of our hippy commune!

That said I am so thankful to live in a place that sees all four seasons, and a beautiful property that I can sit and breathe it all in any time I want. Not everywhere, even in America sees all 4 seasons. Growing up Summer was always my favorite, as I think is true with most kids. Now I am torn. I love the Spring time. The sun comes back out, you get a warmer rainy day than in the frigid Winter months, and of course ALL the flowers start to bloom. There is a beautiful wash of warm bright colors every where you look. I am a Flower Child through and through, thank you Grandma Barbara! To be totally honest though, the older I get the more in love I fall with Fall! The urge to cuddle up with my love, pumpkins, cider, and the way the leaves that so skillfully and timidly poked themselves out in Spring now gracefully and boldly turn to the most breath taking shades of yellow, orange and red. Man, when the sun hits a liquid amber at just the right angle, at just the right time of day in mid November, it lights up like it’s on fire, and my heart begins to sing. One of my favorite things about Fall…the change in weather! So cold and snuggly. And it’s soup, stew and chili season! I love any food that requires a bowl and some dipping bread. I am Italian and Irish for goodness sake. We live of that kind of food! Last week was no exception. I made Chicken Chili. I also had sweet Melanee O’Hagan (whose family owns and operates OTP) and her precious little Rosanna to share in the gloriousness! They loved it. “Mo beans peese!” was all the little one could think about. We also had a fun time coloring with Bryan after dinner, and she even tried to steel my markers by stuffing them ALL in the front pocket of her sweatshirt…some without the lids! HA! I guess she figured that she didn’t need those. Good thing they are washable! We had some leftovers and normally I would have just packed ‘em up and put ‘em in the fridge, but Adam was working that night…he was closing. So I was a good wifey and brought him enough to share…it was devoured! I hope that you try my recipe and if you have a great chili recipe please share with me! 

Chicken Chili

Garlic Salt

Chili Powder

Cracked Black Pepper

Coriander

Cumin

Cayenne Pepper

Beer

Black Beans

Red Kidney Beans

Pinto Beans

Whole Corn Cornels

Diced Tomatoes

Cheese/Sour Cream/ Chives

Mix in crock pot: black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, corn, and diced tomatoes. While they get to know each other, on the stove cook 3 chicken breasts. In frying pan: oil bottom, add chicken, water and beer until chicken is covered. Beer does not need to be fancy. Add a bit of garlic salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder. Boil until fully cooked. Shred or cube, and add to crock pot. Add more garlic salt, pepper, coriander, cumin, and chili powder to taste. Simmer on high 2 hours. Top with your choice of grated cheese, sour cream and chives.