Missing siblings.

I woke up to this sweet picture of my little brother and his favorite furry friend, Megatron.
{yes, the lil' guy really is called Megatron}.

I have been missing my brother and two sisters like crazy lately.
My brother lives with my sister and her lil' family in Charlotte, NC and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little bit jealous that they get to spend so much time together {and have always been very close}. With my father and I at odds right now, seeing my baby sister is a little tricky-- If you haven't noticed, I am having some major sibling withdrawals.

There is a place in my heart that can only be filled by my siblings, that's the only way to put it.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed in hopes that my sister surprises us on Thanksgiving and shows up on my doorstep with my brother and niece in tow. That would be sah-weet.

I miss them terribly. This was a bad way to start my day, now I'm sad. :(

I miss my sweet Xander too..

I'm thinking happy thoughts now, I swear.


xo, r.

Sisters

I surprised my baby sister today by picking her up from aftercare. 

It's her 8th birthday on the 30th. 

I seriously can't believe she is 8. 

The first thing she said to me was...

"Ryyyy-nin, I heard you are getting married.. maybe when I am ten...if you have any babies I can take care of her for you.. maybe mommy will let me keep her like you saiiiiid."

(A few weeks ago I promised Hayden my first born child in exchange for some silence at breakfast... the kid talks a lot, and sometimes without coffee..... it's a little too much to handle-- she is obsessed with babies, so I told her she could have any future children I may fruit.)

Also for about 2 years she referred to R as her "boyfriend," awkward/funny.

I took her to my favorite place for sweet treats as a kiddo.

R and I grew up on Rainbow Snowcones-- 

He likes Cocoanut cream, I like Banana-Blueberry. 

It's the best stuff ever. 

Hayden got rainbow, and said mind tasted like nail polish. 

(clearly she knows nothing.)

 

Then we went for a walk through the neighborhood and raised some hell.

I totally encourage bad behavior. I can't help it; when she is bad, it is so cute.

Hayden wanted her picture on a porch she thought was pretty and she took advantage of someones {available} backyard swing. (Whatttt? I did not encourage that!)

We had so much fun I decided it was necessary to spoil her with cupcakes. 

SO, we got cupcakes too.

I almost cried giving her back to the after-care program. 

I love my farkle faced little sis. 

She is seriously an awesome little dude.

Happy Birthday Hayden, you will never understand the many ways your have change my life. You are sunshine on a cloudy day, the beat to my drum, and the most precious gift I have ever been given. Thank you for being such a spunky little kid, and thinking its great when I call you bratzilla. Love you little sis!

JJ! and sibling love.

He's almost done!

I can't believe how good he is looking! This is about 14 hours of work. 

I estimated about 15-20 hours, so I am right on schedule! 

I should be finished with him tomorrow and onto the next,  I was asked to paint another JJ in the lobby of the gymnasium, and another in the cafeteria-- they're keeping me busy!

I think the best part of my day today was hanging out with my little brother (he's 20). 

He dropped in to kept me company.. We listened to music-- shared our new favorites (I love that we love the same music) and we talked about everything and nothing and he acted as an extra set of eyes, helping me make sure JJ looked his best.

My siblings have truly become my best friends. With the exception of our mother, we don't have a lot of people rooting us on to follow our dreams-- in fact my family can be pretty negative in general. I hate to say that in public forum, but.. it's the truth-- dreams shouldn't be squashed, even if they are deemed unrealistic. One thing I always envy in other families is the support system. 

I can't tell you how many times someone I love has told me my goals are impossible or unrealistic, or that I wont make a living in the arts. This creates a lot of conflict for me. I'd love to say it adds fuel to my fire, but honestly.. most of the time I just feel defeated. 

Brother, sister and I started a club today.

It's called, EFF THE NAYSAYERS. :)

_______________________________________________

I can't wait to show off my finished mural.

xo, r