December 2024

The Bride and Groom....and their baby!

My baby cousin got married at the start of December. It was a beautiful themed wedding that captured the feel of the 1920s. All guests fully leaned into the theme and flappers and zoot suits crowded the dance floor. Oh! And I can't forget the cocktail hour entertainment...burlesque dancers.

It was a throw down, and it took a week for my blisters on my feet to heal from all the dancing.

SONG: "When We Get Married"
BY: Joe Bataan

December brought our family a wedding! So, this classic Chicano Soul song is a must for this month's wrap up.

The Bride and her doting Bridesmaids.

At the end of the reception, we got to take over DJing and danced until they kicked us out. 

My favorite time of day: Me, in front of my vanity in my 2nd bedroom that I've converted into a closet, getting ready for the day.

Christmas Pj Party at my Auntie Angies for my Uncle Jerome's and my cousing Bella's bday.

My family has always had matching pjs for Christmas Eve/Christmas...and it was fun to wear them again for this family bday party!

After the PJ party, some of the cousins decided to keep the party going and to go to a local little hot spot for dancing.

Luckily, I had a change of clothes in my car and I was ready to get into some weekend mischief.

After dancing, we landed at the pool hall. Two of my favorite things.

Christmas shopping at the antique shops off South Broadway.

SONG: Oscar Winning Tears
BY: Raye

I recently found this artist after one of my former students (he was in my first class ever...and he's a 22 year old college graduate) sent me a message saying that he found my celeb look-a-like. 

I was intrigued, so I searched her up on Youtube and was blown away. Her voice, her style, her joy is infectious. Her most recent album "21st Century Blues" is fantastic, but I would argue that her live performaces trump her recordings. This video is a prime example of that, but I would also recommend her performance of "It's a Man's World" at the Montreux Jazz Festival. 

Golfing in December.

I'm atrocious, but I'm also always down for a good time.

I'm a full moon woman.

SONG: "Dodger Blue"
BY: Kendrick Lamar

As a lover of electro-funk, this song off of Kendrick's latest project was an immediate add for me. Its a genre blending jam that highlights his love for his city. There was a whole week of December that I looped this as a cruised Federal Blvd in my favorite city. 

My little sister and our family's newest gift.

A sweet card from the Math teacher I have been co-teaching with the past year and a half.

He is moving to another school district and I will miss learning from him and teaching with him.

Christmas festivities at EHS.

My dolls and the neighborhood Nativity scene.

My first Christmas tree.

I decorated her with dried orange slices, baby's breath, and a single string of lights.

I love her and she will be sitting here elegantly until the Stock Show ends...as any proper Denverite should do.

My Christmas present to myself was this gorgeous mid-century modern console.

The abstract, geometric wood grain design is a gorgeous piece of art. I also love how the "legs" of the console are different on each opposing side: one side having the classic mid-century peg leg and the other side making use of a large block that runs through the piece. Another aspect that I love is how the console is tiered: the console box, the oval block on the left side and then a glass shelf that is held by two sterling silver columns.

She is gorgeous and I am happy to provide her a safe home!

SONG: "Levii's Jeans"
BY: Beyonce & Post Malone

"You call me pretty little thing
And I love to turn him on
Boy, I'll let you be my Levi's jeans
So you can hug that ass all day long (ass all day long)"

A drum circle at Red Rocks Winter Solstice celebration.

This is held every year at sunrise on the Winter Solstice. All walks of life bring their drums and welcome the sun as it creeps over the expansive horizon.

This was my first year attending and I was deeply moved by the spontaneous ceremony that erupted there. All generations were gathered and it was beautiful to encounter others who connected and in tune with rhythms and cycles of nature. The celebration of light following a long darkness was deeply moving and something that I will carry with me into 2025.

A festive Downtown Denver.

Pampering: Getting a manicure and pedicure concurrently had me feeling like a Queen.

First Wrestling Match of the Year.

I can still smell the sweat and feel the heat from this match, but it was all worth it to watch my baby cousin take first for his first weekend back to wrestling.

I'm still a jock, through and through, so I will always love watching live sports; however, watching your blood participate brings a whole other level of enthusiasm.

Amen.

My kind of girl: She has her dress and "heels" on to go for a bike ride.

SONG: Traingazing
BY: Sam Wills ft. Honey Mooncie

A silky r&b whisper that captures the feeling of "what could have been".

Baking for the Christmas Eve Party.

My Reindeer Cookies

Jersey Shore Christmas Costume

For the past ten-ish years my family has thrown a curve ball into Christmas and we have made our Christmas Eve party themed. It all started with an ugly Christmas sweater party and then it quickly transitioned into full on costume parties.

Some of our previous themes have been: Tutu Christmas, Wig Christmas, Prom Christmas, Movie Star Christmas, Cholo Christmas, Biker (Motorcycle) Christmas, Mardi Gras Christmas, Christmas in Mexico, and a few others I've forgotten.

This year's theme was proposed by my sister Dianna and her husband Josh. They are die-hard "Jersey Shore" fans and they proposed that we take this Christmas to the Shore. Below are some photos of this year’s fun.

SONG: "In Da Wind"
BY: Trick Daddy

Play some southern crunk, break out your stank face, and reminisce for the days of Y2K fashion and T9 texting.

Two wild Snookies in the kitchen.

A J-Wow and her wow-wows. lol

I cackled when she walked into the party. My girl is already well-endowed, but she went on amazon and bought her a pair of prosthetic breasts to really bring the J-Wow factor to the party. Not only were they jaw-dropping, but at the end of the night she took them off and passed around the table for further investigation.

A Snookie in party-rocking mode.

A deep-cut classic of Mike "The Situation" in a neck brace.

Brianna, Dianna, and Moranda enjoying their time at the Shore.

Things got a little wild after the kids left to be tucked in bed for Santa Clause.

Christmas Morning

We have had matching pjs for Christmas every year since I was born, but these year's might be my all-time favorite.

Being an auntie is so much fun, especially when you get to spoil them with outrageous gifts.

This year I gifted my niece a Barbie Dream House for Christmas. This was a "holy grail" item when I was a child, but unfortunately Santa never got me that item off my list. So, I got to play Santa and give this to my niece to add to her hand-me-down Barbie collection that she inherited from my sisters and I. Now her dozens of Babies have a home and a decades long wish-list item of mine has been fulfilled.

Adding to my bedroom mural has been a slow and steady process...with a lot of painting and a lot of painting over.

On this day, I painted for a total of 8 hours, then I layed down in bed and decided that I hated the orange. Next day, I bought more white paint and started over.

Some might find that frustrating or consider it a waste of time, but I truly do enjoy the painting process and allowing myself the margin of error to try something, reject it, and then start over.

Painting has been very meditative for me as it allows me to slow down, hyper-focus, and allow my mind to connect thoughts, music, images, emotions into a single composite. I'll keep you updated on its progress. I'm sure it will be finished by summer....at least I hope.

SONG: "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall"
BY: Bob Dylan

This selection was prompted by my recent viewing of "A Complete Unknown" with Timothee Chalamet. It was a fantastic movie that illuminated America's folk music history and Dylan's transition into it and then out of it.
​ 
I have a great appreciation for Dylan's lyricism and the movie has inspired me to transpose pieces of my poetry and set it to music. 

My painting station.

Texas Hold 'Em

I played so well that night that players started taking out loans from me.

A romantic New Year's Toast.

SONG: "Murphy's Law"
BY: Roisin Murphy

A four year old song that feels four decades old. It's disco, it's synth-pop, it's guaranteed to get your hips moving.

First heard this while browsing my favorite antique store. You should seen my dancing down those aisles. 

I was a lady in red for a New Year's Eve Pajama Party. One silk robe layered under my luxurious see-through mesh robe with fur hemmings had me feeling hot.