My inner circle is full of the most amazing people and I couldn't ask for anything more.  They sometimes annoy the hell out of me, but I love them all dearly...because no matter what's going on between us, when it comes down to it, there's nothing they won't do for me (or I for them).

I've been terribly depressed since my talk with Kevin and everyone knows it.  Jacen is very much attached to me, and while she doesn't really know what went on between me and her father, she's been fairly depressed herself.

Remember my cousin Taylor?  Well, she's been living in L.A. for a while now and it's like she's a whole new person.  She's the happiest I've ever seen her...she's enjoying life, love, and her job. When I talk to her there's always a smile in her voice now.  There's no one in the world who deserves that kind of happiness more than her...so for her to pack up the kids, hop on a plane, and leave her life behind for the weekend just to come cheer J and I up means the world to me. 

J adores Isaiah; he's the big brother she's never going to have.  She seems to be having fun with her cousins.  Caden is too (but he has fun with everybody, that kid is way too easygoing.  He obviously gets that from his father).   I have eight kids in my house right now (my two, Taylor's three, Ryan's two, and D's daughter)...if that's not enough to keep me distracted nothing is.

Of course my two ultra-fashionable hot boys wouldn't leave me hanging, though I suspect Adrian's presence is more about checking up on his East Coast Hag (Ryan) than me...it's cool though, Alvin is all mine.

While I love my left coasters, I've got to give props to the friends I don't have to fly to see.  James actually took a day off for me, I was shocked and extremely appreciative.  We strolled canal walk and had a long venting session.  I needed that, and I get the feeling that he did too.  Despite her atrocious morning sickness (yes, she's about 3 months pregnant), D has gone out of her way to make sure I laugh my ass off at least once a day.

It goes without saying that my parents and my drunk French mother-in-law (I love that woman) are always available for moral support. 

J and I are going to be fine...they won't have it any other way. 

It's safe for me to talk about this here since I know Ry doesn't read my blog.  It's not about physics, there's no string theory, no Hawking paradox...she's totally uninterested.  

Last week James called and asked if he could have the information for the photographer that did the black and white nudes I took when I was pregnant with J.  He had convinced Ryan to take some...which says a hell of a lot about how much she loves him.  As gorgeous and as outgoing as Ryan is, she hates taking pictures.  Seriously, she has some kind of crazy, irrational fear of cameras...she's been known to run or hide behind someone when there's a camera in her face.  In fact, the only time I've actually seen her willingly pose for a picture was on their wedding day. 

Anyway, James got her to take these pictures (some with him and some alone)...which are absolutely stunning by the way, under the guise that he just wanted to capture her body in its prime for all eternity because she's never been more beautiful than she is right now (I know, he has game right?).   The woman does have a fantastic body though, and so does he for that matter.  So they took the pictures and he very cleverly had the photographer tell her he'd borrowed a diamond and sapphire necklace from a jeweler to use as a prop....but really it's part of James' anniversary gift to her.

In fact, the pictures are part of his surprise for her too.  He came by my house today with the proofs so I could help him pick out four of them to have blown up and framed.  Ryan's favorite song in all the world is Jeff Buckley's "Lover, You Should Have Come Over".  The song is pretty much about losing love or taking it for granted, but it's still beautiful.  She loves it so much it was the song the had their first dance to at their wedding.  So what he's doing is taking four extremely romantic lines from that song,  picking out four pictures that match the four lines, and having the lyrics printed onto the pictures...which he's then going to have blown up, put in gallery frames, and mounted on their bedroom wall.  

I have a pretty good eye when it comes to photography so he wanted to consult me first.  I guess I should tell you what the four lines are...

~my kingdom for a kiss upon her shoulder...

That one was a no brainer, there's one picture where she has her back to the came and James is holding her to him with his hands resting on her lower back.  She's resting her head against his shoulder with her eyes closed, and he's pressing a kiss to hers.

~all my riches for her smiles when I slept so soft against her... 

For this one we picked a close up of Ryan lying in a pile of pillows, looking down at James and running her fingers through his hair as he rests his head on her chest. (That one's probably my favorite out of all of their pictures).

~all my blood for the sweetness of her laughter...

For this one I picked this sort of candid shot where they're lying in a bed together in a tangle of sheets and James is curled up behind her.  He said she wasn't supposed to be laughing in the picture, but he had accidentally put his hand on her hip (she's very ticklish on her left hip bone) and the photographer liked it so much he just snapped it...something about the sparkle in both their eyes and the sparkle of the necklace.

~she's the tear that hangs inside my soul forever...

For this one we decided on a rather haunting close up of just Ryan's face and shoulders.  The central sapphire in the necklace he bought her is teardop shaped.  Ryan's eyes are the color of cobalt glass, and the photographer left everything black and white except her eyes and the sapphires.  It's quite striking.

Their anniversary is coming up pretty quickly.  It's either at the end of this month or the beginning of December...I can't remember.  So Scott and I will be responsible for keeping her busy while he mounts the pictures and covers the house in candles.  She's going to flip when she sees it.  I'm so excited for her...she's going to love it. 

How awesome is he? The kids will be with her parents so I probably won't see them for a few days after that...so I had to make him promise not to get her pregnant again, at least not until Brody-James is a year old.