New site and a name change!

A new site!  A name change!  

I am excited to be making these much needed changes.  While this little blog has been great in helping me keep memories, and share my photos, it is time to make the leap to a new site.

And the name change? That was prompted by (several) people asking me who "Carly" is.  Carlyle is apparently not an easy name to pronounce.  That, paired with the fact that people thought Carly was one of my sisters, really brought home the fact that a change was needed.  

So here we are. The last post on this blog.  

Sad, but exciting.

If you wish to continue following me, my little family, and my photography, feel free to log onto www.robinchandlerphoto.com and choose the blog tab.

Enjoy!

Mountain Views

During vacation in North Carolina, the husband found a few hikes for us to do.  The first one was up to a defunct government "fire" watch tower. Lets be honest... it was a moonshine distillery watch tower. You say potato, I say mash liquor.

Looks like something from Lost, doesn't it?

Half way up. 

I swear I'd marry him again tomorrow.

By the time we got to the very top, my legs were shaking like crazy. This thing was HIGH. And lord only knows the last time its stability was checked. No hands was a big deal.

These are the mountains where Last of the Mohicans and The Hunger Games were filmed.  I'm nerd enough to enjoy that tidbit.

Jeff and the in-laws.

Another hike we did was to a waterfall called "Skinny dipping falls". Too bad the water was FREEZING.  I only dipped my fully clothed legs in.  

Oh, what's that? You want more photos of mountains? Lucky you.

Busy- as told by my iPhone

Boy oh boy oh boy, this is been one busy season in my life! Right now I am sitting on the couch doing nothing. So it feels a bit odd to be telling you about how busy I am. So what have I been doing?

1) My sister got married. Holy crap, she was the most gorgeous bride EVER.  I'm not kidding, she was the most beautiful bride I've ever seen in real life. There were lots of parties leading up to the big event that kept me happily busy.

Decorating the trellis the day before the wedding!

My parents were jazzed.

Busted my chin while doing the worm.  Second worm in two weddings.
I've officially retired the move.

2) I went to visit my BFF in Tennessee! It was a quick trip, but we were able to talk a ton, giggle even more, and hang out with her sweet boys, and hilarious husband.

Moonshine?  When in Rome...

3) I've been working.  "Mandatory" overtime rocks. :)  And no, I'm not kidding. I actually kind of like working overtime (read: I like time and a half in my paycheck).

Yeah. I have a stand up desk. I look like a total tool at work.

4) I've been taking pictures of cows.  Ok, so it's not really a thing I'm doing, per say, but it did happen the other day and it felt preeeeeetty note worthy.

5) I've gotten to babysit these sweet boys!

Elias!

Duncan and Whit!

6) I went to visit my alma mater. Most of the glory spots still stand, these five years after I graduated.

My old dorm!

The best pizza ever. I wish I was kidding.

BCM!  Yes, these are all iPhone drive by shots

First place I smooched my husband.

7) And the thing that keeps me the busiest of all is of course loving on this one...

 Good day.

How to survive a power outage like a Chandler: Winter Edition

Didn't know there would be another version of this, did you?  Neither did we.  

-The power will go out.  That's ok!  Snuggle in your bed on this snowy day.  Enjoy the extra time with your loved one.  Besides, you live in the city. It will be a max of a day and a half before all power is restored.

-Don't get annoyed by the constant chirping of the smoke alarms that are no longer centrally wired, and are now begging for batteries.

-Eventually meander downstairs for breakfast, which will consist of oatmeal and cowboy coffee.  Be grateful for your Jetboil.

-Snuggle up in a blanket and start reading and writing all of those lovely words that otherwise seems to allude you on a weekly basis.

-It's day two, and no longer warm in the house. Pull out extra blankets and sleeping bags. 

-Forget that the sleeping bags are rated for 20 degrees.  

-Wake up drenched, and realize what you've done.

-Need light? Remember, headlamps are best, but in rare cases, make a minimalist candle holder. That would be one cup and aluminum foil. Don't cry, Mom.

-Reach the very farthest end of your cold/sick/anxious rope on day three, and sit and cry at your kitchen table.

-Start driving to your parents house for a shower.  It's been three days since your last one.

-When you see a power man, stalk him. Stalk him good.

-After learning your power will be on in less than an hour, watch TV on your iPhone in your husbands car.

-Laugh like an idiot when you see your porch lights turn on.

-Begin the heating up process like a champion.  

Now you know how to survive a winter power outage like a Chandler. And knowing is half the battle.

Chucky Cheese

As long as I can remember, I have hated mascots, clowns and puppets. This particular fear goes so deep that even dolls and claymation can give me the heebeejeebees.

It also is a fear held my all five of my sisters. I'm pretty a sure it can be tested for via amniocentesis.

My poor future children will never know Disney Land/World. They will never see Mickey or smell the sweaty custom Goofy is walking around in. I feel only slightly bad about this.

This weekend's trip to Chucky Cheese only added the number of things I plan on depriving my future spawn of.

The place was awful.

I love my sister in law. She is JACKPOT when I comes to in-laws (and you know I'm being honest because she does not read this blog), but I hated her this weekend for making me go to Chucky Cheese. I consider Chucky Cheese to be a culmination of all my fears and hatred. I walked around thinking "Oh dear God what is this place?". Playthings from the late 80's, screaming children, huge singing and dancing animatronic mice. And the minimalist in me almost died when I saw children running towards the toy counter clutching their hoard of tickets in their sweaty hands in order to collect their junky trinkets. Oye vey!

I wish I could have been a better sport about the whole thing, but my hatred of all things mascot etc. was in full swing and I could not get the literal or figurative bile to settle. What made it worse were the parents. One mother behind me told her child to "stop being such a little $h!+".

And that's my cue to leave.

So why had I put myself in such a terrifically horrifying place? For the love of a nephew, of course! It was was my first nephew's birthday. He was adorable and sweet and deserves every uncomfortable moment I experienced. After all. You only turn four once. And what's a little panic attack compared to that?

How old are you Joshua?  

I used to do yoga

I used to do yoga. I loved it.  Well... sometimes during the class I hated it, but then loved it so much after that I would forget I hated it.

I think I miss yoga mostly because goes against everything that is natural within me.  And for 90 minutes a week, that might be just what I need. A little swim upstream to shake me awake from what is usual and expected of me.


Last week a friend of mine asked me to go to a new yoga class. Our old teacher had fallen in love (with a tree, or some pretty rock formation, no doubt) and moved away to get married.  She promised the new teacher was comparable to the former teacher who we both had swooned over.  And by swoon, I do hope you know I mean, we loved him for his impeccable sirsasana and peace chants.

This new class started with 10 minutes of meditation--or in non-yoga terms; awkward silent sitting.  10 minutes may not seem that bad, but just try sitting completely silent for two, even three minutes.








I'll wait.

















Hard, right?

After meditation, we did the normal yoga stuff.  Dogs (downward and upward), pigeons, and warriors.  You know the drill.

After the usual stuff of yoga was over, the class came to an end.  Which means savasana. Aaaaah, the celestial nap that marks the end of suffering.  This savasana was so welcomed that at one point I had to pick my consciousness up off the floor, give it a good smack on the hinny to make sure I was awake.  I actually had a moment of panic thinking that I may have drifted off into a deep meditative state sleep, and was the only person left in the room and it was 3 am.

I wasn't. This time.

New look!

Please pardon the interruption while I do a little blog tidying. On this, the 150th blog post, I have decided to shake it up and make this blog (and photo website!) more my style. Which as it turns out, consists of a lot of white space. Who knew?

I love the outcome so far!

And in the name of make overs, here is my most recent personal makeover. 12 inches of hair--GONE

While I miss my long locks, I know someone needs it more than I do. So I'll just grow it out again to a desperately unmanageable length, and donate it all over again.

It's been a really long week…

It’s ten minutes until I leave work and I’m mentally done for the day, so what is left to do? You’re right, go to the bathroom.

I round the sharp corner, glide through the doors of the bathroom and BOOM, I’m less than four inches from another woman’s face. Holy personal bubble Batman!

I back up, she backs up, both of us shocked by the near body slam we almost encountered. She looks at me and says “excuse me”. I look at her and say “I was just looking for a hug…”

She walked away confused.

Happy Friday.

Am I Pinky, or The Brain?

Me: What do you want to do for Valentines Day?

Husband: What we do every Valentines Day... try to take over the world.

My heart belongs at Ikea

The first time I stepped foot into an IKEA, I didn’t have too many expectations other than leaving with the items my husband and I had come to buy: curtains, bedding and side tables for our living room. What I got was so much more.

Breakfast! 
        Lamps!
                Inspiration!

Our house turned from white walls and bare wood floors to something much cozier. And a little nuttier. Just our style. Orange curtains and light blue side tables? Yes, please! Silver lamps with black mirrors? Sure, why not?

IKEA is our JAM.

Every now and then, we realize we need something from IKEA. We scour the website to make sure it’s the only thing we need, and then we begin our pilgrimage. We finally ride that smooth escalator up to the show room floor, and steady on, we shop.

This most recent trip was no different. It was time to get rid of our old table. It had been good to us—me in particular, since it had followed me all the way from college. It was too big for our dining room, and had unknown origins since it had been found on the side of the road in New Jersey. The finish was coming off, and it had been stained by one too many beer pong tournaments in college. Then Jeff found its replacement - thirty-five dollars worth of bright green table.

If you’ve never been to IKEA, let me explain a few things. When you enter, you enter into the show room. This is where they have set up fake living environments for you to see their pieces at work. When you like something, you turn over its tag and write down the item’s specific magical numbers. These numbers translate to where you will find it in the basement.

Descending down into the basement, (not at all spooky like the one you grew up with) you swipe a dolly/shopping cart with the perfect turn radius, and enter the stocking room to gather your previously chosen items. The aisles are wide, tall, and rival any big box store you’ve ever been to. This is apparently why you pay so little for their wares—you get your own stuff instead of paying someone else wearing a laborer’s cummerbund to get it for you. Genius.

Travel a little further into the belly of the basement, and you can check out. You finally get to take it all home with you in your car that might be too small for your massive haul. Unless you have a wagon - you should get a wagon.

And while my love for IKEA’s physical store and stuffs is obvious, I think my love is also because it is the one store that explains some of the reasons I love my husband the most.

I love that I have a husband who, while he be daring and design savvy enough to instigate the buying of a bright green table, will also be cool and handy enough to be able to wire our house so our new lighting rig (that HE made) actually works.

I love that my husband will up and decide that the two of us should get in the car and drive on gorgeous back roads while listening to music or discussing the most mundane of things, all just to get one item. OK… fifteen items.

So friends, I don't know that IKEA will make you feel the warm tingle of the Swedish love bubble I feel, but I think it might just be worth a shot. Don't you?

Birthday #27

Right before Christmas, I celebrated my birthday with 2 of my sisters and 4 of the nephews at a Winter Wonderland.  The boys were mesmerized by the toys and terrified by Santa. The perfect way to spend birthday #27. 

Yelling at the choo choo to come back

So much to look at!

Focus. 

Baby Lincoln!

Its' ok to play with guns if they are pink...?

Train conductor Duncan

Cousins riding ATVs. 

Confused how we went from trains and guns to ATVs?  Birthday magic.