Day 6: Pet Peeves

Day 6 is all about pet peeves, and boy! Do I have some pet peeves!! Let's start small, I canNOT stand poor grammar. It doesn't bother me as much in text [I get it, we all make typos, it happens] but when we are face to face and you can't form a complete sentence, well, I'd just as soon not talk to you. [unless you're three in which case I could excuse your lack of grammar.. coincidentally enough, my 3 year old nephew can hold a more intelligent conversation that the growing majority] I don't like slow people. By slow I mean the girl in front of you in the mall dragging her feet for no apparent reason, the guy in line at Subway that has apparently never eaten there before and needs a detailed description of EVERY item on the menu before ordering, you get my drift. Move with a purpose people! I'm also irritated by people that seem oblivious to their surroundings. We all know them. They're driving the car in front of you that never got the memo to "turn right on red". They're the people asking for directions when they're standing in front of the directory. The light turns green and they're busy digging for gold. THOSE guys, make me nuts. I can't stand people that have children and/or dogs that they allow to run wild, with  seemingly no discipline or consequences. "Seriously lady, your dog just peed in the middle of the aisle, aren't you gonna clean it up?? What's your dog even doing in Lowe's anyway? Is the roof on his dog house leaking?" Why do people feel the need to take their dogs everywhere with them? I LOVE my little Cali, but she and I both know she isn't concerned with whatever errands I need to run. She would rather be in the backyard with that big black cat up a tree for the millionth time. So, I'll leave her to be a dog, and if I see something she MUST know about, well I'll snap a photo on my phone and we'll discuss it when I get home. The only times I take Cali with me into public, is when I'm going somewhere appropriate for her. For example the dog beach, or fishing, maybe the park. NOT the grocery store. I also HATE when I can hear someone breathing. Especially that "I'm suffocating in between every bite of this cheeseburger" gasping for air while they eat.. Seriously? I don't draw the line there though, I can't sleep if I can hear my husband breathing. That's right BREATHING, imagine the mini homicide that plays through my mind when he starts full on snoring. I never act out anything [JEEZ!] But, I have been known to drop a bow in the middle of the night to cease the snoring. I also hate when I can hear people chew. Actually, this list could pretty long. In general I think ANY and ALL grunting/snorting/heavy breathing noises are gross. Farting, and burping included. People just have no tact these days. I don't want to hear it, and when you openly do these things in front of me, it changes my opinion of you. I now think you're a slob. Don't get me wrong, accidents happen. I'm referring to those people that think it's cute, especially the "women" that think it's cute. It's not. It's very unladylike and unattractive. Ok, now that I got that rant out of the way. I think I'm done here! Have a good day!!

Here's a snapshot of our weekend :)

Day 5: A photo of you as child

 

Welcome back everyone! Today's post is going to be pretty short. Since a photo says a million words, I guess I won't need to say much! Here's some baby Kaicee :)

And here's one of me and a few of my siblings

From left to right:

Chrissy [middle sister, and also owner of http://www.parloandlogi.com/ ]
Lia [Oldest]

Me, and Cj [Younger brother]

OK one more, just the girls :)

Day 4: Your Parents

Hi everyone! We're up to day 4 of "30 days of blogging"! Today, I'm gonna tell you a little bit about my parents, but be warned, I have quite a few.

Lets start off with my dad, Chris. He's my hero. My daddy has always been there no matter what. He's always put my needs and even my wants above his. He's the smartest man I know. He can build anything, fix anything, literally DO anything, and I have him to thank for my inquisitive mind. If I don't know how to do something, I'll google it, or find a book on it, and teach myself. I'm not afraid to jump head first into something unfamiliar and figure it out. I get that from my dad too. Growing up I was ALWAYS Daddy's girl. We'd spend every spare moment together. My fondest memories are riding around in his old work truck. I loved our fishing trips, our shiner hole, and catching bass at the spillway. I'll never forget the night I caught my record bass. I landed it, and I was beaming from ear to ear.. BUT we weren't bass fishing, we were snook fishing, and he was in the "snook zone" so, without a second thought he tossed it right back. No one ever believes me when I tell that story, it's just a "fish tail" he wasn't THAT big.. but if I had to pick one person to share that story with, I'm glad it was my daddy. He never sugar coated things. He always made sure I had common sense and understood what the "real world" was like. When he taught me to drive, he taught me the basics of course, but he also taught me what to do if I hydroplaned, or if my tire blew. He taught me always be smart, and look out for myself. I've found myself in situations more than once where I heard his voice telling me what to do. I'm truly blessed to have a father that was so present and so loving in my life. I can't imagine how I would've turned out without my dad. It's been about 4 years now since he met my step mom, Kathy. I'll admit at first things were rocky between us. I've never been good at sharing my dad, but since then I've grown to love my step mom. She's difficult at times, and hard headed, but she always has my best interest at heart. There are times that I really resented her tough love, but as I get older I realize that she never did it to hurt me. She just wanted me to appreciate what I had, and to be responsible. That was hard for me, especially considering that my dad had always spoiled me, and just given me what I wanted. I'm thankful now that she cared enough about me to be "the bad guy" when I needed a stern voice. She helped me learn to spread my wings as an adult, and rely more and more on myself. I love spending time with the two of them. Few things feed my soul like sitting around my dad's big dinner table to an amazing meal with my family. There are times we've sat around that table for hours just talking and laughing. That's what family is all about.

 Let's move on to my Momma! She's the fun one! Days spent at her house are typically finger foods all day long while we lay around watching movies and laughing, or playing video games together. I love having my "girl time" with my mom. We'll spend the whole day shopping, and then go back to her house and pamper ourselves. My mom has been a big part of my life [obviously]. She taught me to be nurturing. She has a million little tricks to cure what ails you. I remember the first time I ever had cramps, I felt like someone had punched me in the stomach and I wanted to die. My mom brought me a mason jar filled with hot water, wrapped in a towel to help ease my cramps. I know it sounds weird, but it was exactly what I needed. Just enough heat, with just enough weight, I felt better in no time. [Who thinks of that?!] She's quirky and a little bit out there sometimes, but that's why we all love her! I want to say it's been about 2 years now since she met my step dad, Ray. There was never an awkward stage with Ray. He fit right into our crazy family like he'd been there all along. He's good for my mom, and my little brothers. He's a man's man. He can build it, he can fix it, and he can make it look good. He's pretty goofy sometimes, but I suppose we can look past that.

Last, but CERTAINLY not least, is my in-laws. Lenice and Randel, my Mom-in-law, and Dad-in-law. Unfortunately my father-in-law is more than a little camera shy. He's like bigfoot, you can't catch him on film! But he's awesome. He's the "know it all", especially when it comes to living healthy. He'd cringe if he really knew how much sweet tea I drink. He's also our financial guru. I've spent many hours in his office just trying to absorb all of the knowledge he's throwing at me [literally, throwing. you'd better take notes, he doesn't slow down] He's a great father to my husband, and to me. Now Lenice [or Le-niece, for those of you wondering how that's pronounced] She's technically my "step" mom-in-law, but I'm as close with her as I am my own mom. Not many days go by that I don't talk to her. She's always got great advice, and she's always willing to listen. [Even when I'm so mad I can't see straight and she gets yelled at for 20 mins.] She's my "check out what I found on pinterest" experiment buddy. We've tested quite a few pinterest recipes [mostly desserts]. Randel never eats them. [He's all health conscious and what-not] [[he WILL however put a hurtin on some brownies.. go figure]] I actually lived with Lenice and Randel the year that my husband was in Iraq. They were my rock when my family couldn't be there. Lenice kept me occupied, and well fed ;). and I could never really repay them for everything they've done for me. I love them just like they're my own parents, and they love me like their own daughter. ---Oh and side note; the LOVELY woman you see pictured with Lenice is one of her gorgeous daughters [my sister-in-law] Leslie. :) She's pretty great too, but this is about my parents, so you'll have to learn about her later :)

Day 3: Favorite picture of your best friend

Hmm.. My BEST friend you say?? Well, I actually have a few.

       Amy left us on Nov. 3rd 2008, and the world is better for having her, but will never be the same without her. Amy was the kind of girl that you just WANTED to be friends with. She was ALWAYS laughing, she always looked amazing, and she never let anything bring her down. She once told me that she woke up in the morning and simply decided to have a good day, and it was, because she decided it would be. She lived ninety to nothing and you either ran with her, or she left you in her dust. She was ripped away from us for one small mistake on a horrible night; that changed my life forever. I was with Amy when we wrecked her truck, and I walked away, while my best friend lay in a rut, bruised and broken. Even as hurt as she was, the first words out of her mouth were "I'm sorry" and "Is everyone ok?" that was just Amy, she never put herself. Not even when she became an organ donor, giving her heart to a 12 year old little girl in need was her last gift. Like I said, she truly was amazing. A borrowed angel, that heaven needed back.

       Carissa [on the left] is my newest friend, but quickly becoming my closest. She's AWESOME! ... No, really awesome. I wouldn't say that I want to BE her [:P] but she deffinately pushes me to be a better person [or should I say she inspires me]. We have LOADS of fun together, and I am beyond excited to see where our friendship will lead!

       Oh the bestie! Carisa and I have known each other since 6th grade. We've always been friends, but it wasn't until college that we really became sisters. We've been through a lot together. She's had my back, been my shoulder to cry on, and my ever reliable coffee buddy when I just need to vent. The most random things always happen when we're together. For instance, we once passed a woman driving 30 mph on the interstate with a car FULL [when I say full I mean, barely enough room for her] of cantaloupes.. let me try and paint a picture for you. If this woman were to do the head bob from "Night at the Roxbury's" she would headbutt a cantaloupe.. THAT'S the extent to which her car was loaded down.. I'm getting sidetracked.. Carisa is the only person I have burst out into random song in front of and she jumped right in and finished my song "High School Musical" style. We really are the same person..

       I love these girls more than they probably know, and you'll more than likely be hearing about them more often in my blog! As for me, I'm gonna get on out of here! See ya later!

Day 2: Where your blog name comes from

  My blog name comes from a side venture that I recently started. I am in the process of teaching myself to sew/quilt, and I aspire to eventually sell my creations. At the moment it's more of a hobby [since I'm still working through the learning curve], but even still, I felt my new found hobby needed a name. So, after a few weeks of going back and forth between names, and just not really finding anything that appealed to me, I had a moment in my car where it just came to me. I decided that I wanted it to be the "Pink Zebra". I know, there's a million people with that name.. go figure. That didn't phase me much, maybe it should.. it doesn't. The reason I wanted Pink Zebra so much, is because when I was 18 [4 years ago] my best friend Amy and I were involved in an accident, that took her away from me. I won't go into great detail here, but perhaps I'll write a post later... One of her favorite things was hot pink and zebra print, honestly, I'd never been a fan of animal print, but I've come to love zebra stripes.Amy loved all things loud and bright and funky, as do I. I draw inspiration from patterns and prints that seem fun and happy. Like Hot pink and Zebra. ANYWAY turns out EVERY blog name I could think of was taken. EXCEPT "Tails of a Pink Zebra" which really is perfect, because this is a lifestyle blog, and these are my "Tails".

DAY 1

Good morning everyone! As I'm sure you all have noticed, when it comes to this blogging stuff.. well, I was born yesterday. I figure the easiest way to get my feet wet is to just jump in head first.. right?  So, I've decided to start with a 30 days of blogging challenge right out of the gate. I'll learn my way around this blog, and you can learn your way around my brain [whoa. Good luck in there].

1. I have locked my keys in my car more times than I can even count. Twice in one week before. One of those times it was running -_- [oh and did I mention it was FREEZING out?] Another time I was on my lunch break. I had to climb under my car at a gas station to find the hide-a-key my F.I.L. covertly hid.. only to find it had fallen off -_- (oh yea, I got covered in oil, and had a meeting after lunch)

2. I've also run out of gas at least 3 times. One of THOSE times I actually managed to roll [through a red light] and right up to the pump [after my car shut off] <-- that was kinda cool.

3. I married the male version of myself, and also the polar opposite of myself, yea, we're both pretty complicated like that.

4. I'm very confrontational, and opinionated. I'll tell you in a heartbeat if you've crossed me, and I won't think twice about hurting your feelings. Sometimes the truth hurts people. I also love a good debate, however I will not enter into a debate unless I'm at least 85% sure that I'm going to win.

5. I'm VERY competitive, but I'm not such a great loser. Thankfully, I know what I can and cannot do, and I simply choose not to do things that I know will end with me failing miserably, and running home in tears. (Did I say I was 22? I meant 5) On a good note. My determination to be the best is a great motivator!

6. I've been told that I could have ADD or ADHD.. idk it wasn't a doctor who told me this. The point is, I'm easily distracted. Ya see, the problem is, my brain is like a T.V. only, the remote is being controlled by a 3 year old. You ask me to get you a drink, and I come back 20 minutes later with nothing. I wasn't ignoring you. I went to the kitchen, but on my way I tripped over my husbands shoes, and had to move them to the front door. By the time I made to the fridge, I opened the freezer, stared blankly at it for a moment, took out some hamburger for dinner, and came back to the living room feeling good about my trip to the kitchen. I'll remember your drink in 5 minutes when you finally get up to get one yourself.

7. I'm a cosmetology student, and In the past 7 months my hair has been brown with hot pink ombre highlights, brown, red, purplish-red, black with purple streaks, Swamp monster green, red again, half red-half brown,  Brown with Turquoise and blue streaks, and now half auburn half brown with blonde streaks. Whew. that's alotta color!

8. I have a puppy that I share a love/hate relationship with. Her name is Cali, and I love her [no, really I do] She is half pitt half black mouth curr, and some days I think she's all pitt. She really knows how to push my buttons.. She's like having a child.

9. I babysit when I'm not in school. Two adorable little girls, named Kailey(9) and Hanna(6). You'll be seeing them in most of my arts and crafts posts.

10. I'm one of 6 (yea, 6!) children. 3 girls and 3 boys, and I'm smack in the middle. I'm the baby girl though ;)

11. I live in LaBelle, Fl, and for those of you who don't know. I'm about an hour northeast of Fort Myers. It's a small town, 30 minutes from everything, but we have our 4.5 acres and THAT makes us happier than being in the city!

12. I have a love of photography. I'm a wedding photographer on the side for a freelance wedding coordinating company [at the beach!] When I'm not taking pictures for them I dabble in some freelance photography in my spare time.

13. I'm obsessed with learning to do EVERYTHING myself. I see things and mentally pick them apart to see if I can make it myself. I've made and sold my own jewelry, wax melts, body wash, lotion, hand sanitizer, etc. Not to mention I dabble in graphic design. I'm a creative spirit :)

14. I have a wonderful husband that I've been married to for almost 3 years. A month after we were married he deployed to Iraq for a year. So, we had to postpone our first year of living together until after our anniversary. It was hard, but we got through it, and it made us stronger than we ever imagined.

15. My goal is to be as self sufficient as possible. We are currently working on getting our garden up and running, and we plan to buy a few cows as well. I'm SO excited to share with my adventures with you!

And as promised, a few photos!

Oh, and here's what to expect for the rest of the month!

Day 1: Introduce, recent picture of yourself, 15 interesting facts.

Day 2: The meaning behind your blog name

Day 3: A favorite picture of your best friend.

Day 4: Your parents.

Day 5: A picture of you as a child

Day 6: Pet peeves.

Day 7: What makes you happy.

Day 8: A place you’ve traveled to and where else you want to travel.

Day 9: Your first love.

Day 10: Something you’re afraid of.

Day 11: A quote you love.

Day 12: Something you don’t leave the house without.

Day 13: A habit that you wish you didn’t have

Day 14: A picture of you last year – how have you changed?

Day 15: Songs you listen to when you are happy, sad, bored, hyped, mad

Day16: A picture of something that makes you happy

Day17: A picture of you and your family

Day 18: Something you miss.

Day 19: What makes you different from everyone else

Day 20: Write about a sweet memory from your past

Day 21: Something you’re proud of.

Day 22: What do you want your future to be like?

Day 23: Favorite Movies and TV Show.

Day 24: Something you’ve learned.

Day 25: Something you are looking forward to.

Day 26: Something you crave a lot

Day 27: Photo of your city .

Day 28: What stresses you out?

Day 29: Who is you hero?

Day 30: A picture of yourself this day and 5 good things that happened since you started the challenge.