laurenchanting

Little Things

2012-02-10T12:45:00.000-05:00

If you follow me on Twitter, you know that yesterday was a little crazy.

My friend and coworker came into my office around 12:15 saying that she wasn't feeling well, and making sure it was okay that she went over to emergency care. She looked really pale and shaky so I offered to drive her, but she said she was fine. She got her coat and bag and came back to my office and said "I think I need you to drive me." As I was kicking off my heels and grabbing my car keys, she collapsed. And I panicked. She was conscious, so I asked her if I should call 911. She moaned. I couldn't figure out how to dial 911 on my office phone so I picked up my cell phone. She moaned out "Someone help me please" and I panicked more. The medics showed up so quickly (THANK YOU!) and they carted her away to the hospital, which left me simultaneously shaking, wondering if I should have gone with her, and trying to get in touch with her fiance.

She's been released from the hospital and she's seen her doctor, and while they have told her to cancel her upcoming trip to Italy (sad), she is alive and okay (so good). I was quite seriously freaking out. For the few hours between the incident and finally hearing from her, I found myself thinking about our wedding chats, venting to each other about work frustrations, sharing cute websites and accessories and nail polishes, and all the things she does to make me smile. The little things, you know?

This week's little things...

Brandi (said friend/coworker)

My hair only takes like 5 minutes to dry in the morning

I've finally been sleeping better

We rearranged our bedroom and it's awesome

Our little home

Buffalo chicken dip. Hollerrrr.

Dad bought these cute NYG M&Ms :)

Homemade pizza!

The Giants won the Super Bowl, and here's a picture of Tommy, Daddy, and me SO FREAKIN' EXCITED ABOUT IT!

We have such nice parks in Arlington

The radio that Mike installed in our car one snowy day. I love this thing. It keeps me sane!

Did I mention that the Giants won? Sweeeeeet. This is a picture of Mike (in a Giants hat!) and me from the game :)

A pretty manicure

Mike being silly

Sitting on the sofa looking through the IKEA catalog together...
a little sun on a cloudy day

After the Giants won the Super Bowl, we took this picture.
That's Tommy, Liz, me, and Mike.

As I was driving home from work, an inattentive driver decided to make a left turn across the road I was driving on without checking to see who was coming down the road. I am thankful that I had changed the radio station a moment earlier and not at that moment, because I had to swerve really hard to avoid broad-siding that car. This is a picture of my bag - it was on the passenger seat and had flown up in the air and landed upside-down on the ground. It's a little reminder that it could have been worse, and thank God it was not.

Mmm football :)

My favorite picture from the Super Bowl - Liz, Tommy, Daddy, and me :)

Happy Friday, y'all! Do you have any big plans this weekend?

I have homework and a trip to IKEA in the plans.

Have a great weekend :)

xo.

Blanks and Wrapped

2012-02-10T10:24:00.000-05:00

Happy Friday!

This is sort of a two-fer, because two things I wanted to accomplish today will flow pretty nicely!

Let's start with Fill in the Blank Friday, hosted by Lauren at The Little Things We Do. This week's questions have been supplied by Courtney ( shop | blog ).

I started my blog because I missed journaling. I used to use paper journals exclusively, then I heard about the Internet (lol) so then I used Livejournal. But then I realized that if I kept using that, my ex-boyfriend would keep stalking me. So I switched to Blogger and I've had three or four blogs since then. I keep trying to "brand" my writing but at its heart, I'm just a slightly overwhelmed-by-life girl who tries to stay positive and has to write everything down or else I'll forget it. I'm not a mom; I'm not an event planner; I'm not a spectacular cook. I like everything that's in my life and I like to write about it and share some ideas.
One thing I love seeing on other blogs is photographs! Really, people, I love seeing photographs. Of you, your family, your dogs/cats, your living room, anything. It makes everything that much more real.
Something I love about blogging is most definitely the sense of community.
A favorite blog post of mine is probably our engagement post. I'm so glad I have those photographs and memories written down.
Something my friends in real life know about me that I've never before mentioned on my blog is ... it's hard to pick one. I guess my recent medical issues and surgery could be one, but I'm planning to write about that. Otherwise I'm mostly an open book. I'd say that only thing that my real-life friends know that I don't blog about is anything that's going on with my family. I feel like those are not my stories to tell so I'm usually hush-hush.
My new favorite blogs to read are the ones my bloggy-friends-turned-real-life-friends write.
Some things I tend to avoid doing on my blog are telling stories that belong to other people, complaining, and generally being negative.

So! Speaking of all that bloggy goodness...

Sarah has been doing a "Friday Features" post for a while now, linking up to all the cool things she found throughout the week. I always, always end up finding some super cool thing off of her links list! I thought about it a little bit and realized it must be so useful for reeling in all those neat things you see all week long and giving them a place to be remembered (we've already talked about my memory!).

I got inspired, so I'm kind of doing an off-shoot of it here

(mostly so that I can remember these things)

but also because they're cool and you should know about them.

This week's awesome links, wrapped.

Joelle posted about what she believes, and oh my gosh did it bring a smile to my face.

You guys know that Sydney (from The Daybook) is writing a style column for Washingtonian, right?

I really enjoyed Katie's simple braided friendship bracelet tutorial.

Rebecca shared a great, cleansing "post-SuperBowl" salad - and it has some of my favorite toppings! This is definitely going on my menu plan.

PJ continued his Geocaching 101 series with Logging In, an introduction to the geocache log. The other Geocaching 101 posts: Trackables and All You Need To Know.

Victoria shared a fantastic, fun girls' party idea: wigs and wine! I think it would work great for a Valentine's Day party. Hmm, maybe an idea for my bridal shower? Haha :)

The Creative Coastie Wife is sharing her love story! Check out Part One here, and Part Two here. It's so sweet :)

Also, I'm late to the party on this, but Kendi (from Kendi Everyday) now has the online boutique (for her real shop) open!

Jane wrote an awesome recap of our recent DC-area blogger meetup, and she also gave some tips for bloggers to organize their own area meetups! (Aside: Do iiiiiiiit! It's seriously the coolest thing ever.)

Rachel wrote a guest column on Wedding Aces sharing some tips on knowing when to rent vs. buy for wedding supplies and decor!

Peter Dewolf's letter brought a little bitty tear to my eye!

16 Lessons.

This motorcycle literally made my jaw drop. It's so, so beautiful. (#nerdalert)

MWF Seeking BFF focused on living alone vs. living together in this week's Research Wednesday post. As someone who has never lived alone (except for about a month after my cheating ex-bf moved out of our apartment and before I moved back home to Virginia - but that's a story for another day!) I found the data, and her interpretation and advice, super interesting.

Creative Bits posted a business card comparison that's actually incredibly useful!

A Daily Something's Blog Birthday was this week!

Last week when Mike and I went for an errand and a walk around Old Town, I wondered aloud "What's it like to live in one of these old houses?" Mike immediately shot back "Expensive." Well, yes, but besides that... I was wondering about the history, the smaller spaces, the decorating dilemmas. Well, I found the answer to my wondering: Old Town Home!

Becky entered the First Annual Stratejoy Essay Contest, and her essay was picked as a finalist! You guys have to check it out, it's soooooo good.

lolasangria (with a little help from Kim) came up with an awesome Valentine's Day deed - bouquets for besties! Check it out here, join the idea, and check out #bouquetsforbesties.

Marisa provided some advice on how to avoid more radiation!

You saw Lindsay's rebranding right? The blog and shop you had known (and loved) as Aisle to Aloha is now Hello Hue!

What caught your eye this week? Let me know in the comments so I can check it out too!

xo!

Wine and Love

2012-02-09T11:05:00.000-05:00

Wine and Love is hosted by Nora. Want to join? Read this page for the meme instructions and grab the picture. Then go to Walking With Nora to link up!

What's got me reaching for
a couple glasses of wine this week...

The worrrrrrrrstttttttttt girl week everrrrrrrrrrr. I want to die. Please make it be over.
My neighbors have taken to smoking cigarettes in their bathroom. We live in a condominium that was built in the 1950s and the ventilation systems are all connected. Yes, this means that their stinky, awful, cancerous cigarette smoke has been FILLING our home at night. Now my pretty home smells like a cheap hotel. Ugh ugh ugh.
Things, potentially not-cool things, that are going on, that I can't talk about.
There's really nothing worse than those things.

What I'm loving this week...

The Giants won the Super Bowl, holler!
I won Becky's giveaway! This is especially awesome because now I get to read a few books for me instead of just reading for class.
I've got an A in one class and a B in the other, and we're halfway done with the semester!
Last night I met up with my 8th grade Civics teacher (yep, kids, that would have been 1999) to catch up! And it was so nice! I hope that everyone has a teacher (or a few) like that in their lives.
Working on my Stratejoy blogger application is just so much fun!
I have a fun blogging side project thing going on and it's pretty darn cool!
My job is going to cover some sort of Wordpress training for me!
The Borrowed Abode!
I'm planning to do some neat decoration things to my office :)
We rearranged our bedroom this week! (Pictures coming soon, swear.)
I found out that Mike has a thing for mid-century modern, who knew?
We're going to Ikea this weekend! C'mon. Ikea is so worth love.

Love that there is so much more love :)

Happy Thursday!

xo.

Wedding Wednesday: A General Update

2012-02-08T16:34:00.000-05:00

Happy Wednesday!

There are many seriously awesome things going on in my life lately, and just a few not awesome things. My boss and I had a conversation about positivity this morning and it reminded me (yet again!) that it's so important to stay positive. Even though there are always (always!) going to be negative things in life, I've realized that there's really no sense in letting those get me down.

Anyway - let's get to Wedding Wednesday! I love these link-ups; they really help me to organize my thoughts :)

I don't have a huge update this week, but I think that's okay. Since we're having such a long engagement I'm not rushed or stressed in planning anything (yet!) so a lot of little things are still in play...

Catering
I'm going to be super honest here: the catering part scares me. I think it's mostly just the price of all of it! When we met with Sharon at the Hendry House last month we got a list of their recommended caterers, and I also got information from a few at the bridal expo. Next is to go through all of that and figure out who we might want to work with... same with the cake!

Dress
I'm still dreaming about the dresses I fell in love with at Alfred Angelo, but I'm definitely not prepared to make that call yet. My Grandma has an in at Macy's, so Mom and I are going to look at their dresses next week. There are still a few silhouettes I want to try on. And I'm still not ruling out begging a family friend to make my dress :)

Music
We are so not even close to making this call yet, but I did grab some information from DJs at the bridal expo so I'll keep that on hand. I've been keeping a Google Doc of all the music I love, just so that I can make sure not to leave anything off. I mean, you know how awful my memory is, right? A pretty cool thing happened over the weekend though - I heard a song on an internet radio station and immediately knew that it's the song I'm going to walk down the aisle to. So that's kind of awesome!

Photographers
I met a lot of good photographers at the bridal expo, and I've gotten a ton of information from them. Mike and I are going to sit down this week to go over all that and figure out who we like. I'm also trying to get information from photographer friends as to what I should be looking for and I think that will help.

I had the opportunity to meet and speak with Jane (at The Borrowed Abode) last weekend, and she was kind enough to send me a ton of resources! So that has been awesome! (Thanks again, Jane!)

My goals for the next couple of weeks are:

~ solidify the budget (oh, what fun!)
~ meet with photographers
~ try on more dresses!

On Fire

2012-02-08T12:22:00.000-05:00

The lovely Felicia at Open Up The Sky awarded me with the Blog on Fire Award and its cool image -

She also gave me a list of questions to answer, so here goes!

1. If you could invite any 10 people in the world to a dinner party; fictional or real, dead or alive, famous or not, who would you invite?
1-4: My grandparents - all of them.
5-6: Ewan and Charley.
7: Mike
8: Edward Abbey
9: Eleanor Roosevelt
10: Whoever designed this.

2. What is something that you have always wanted to do but have never had the chance to?
Whitewater rafting.

3.What skill do you wish you had and why?
I wish I could wake up early in the morning. I'm not very good at that. On the days I have woken up early, I find myself with more energy and focus.

4. What's your most favorite dessert that you can never resist?
Tiramisu!

5. You're stranded on a deserted island - what 3 books do you take with you?
The Lord of the Rings (the trilogy!)

6. You're at Subway - what do you get on your sandwich?
Lettuce, tomato, pickles, black olives, and mayo.

7. As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? What do you do now?
I wanted to be a teacher or a secretary, and now I'm in operations for a company. So I guess I do a little bit of what I wanted to do!

8. What is your nervous habit?
I pick at my fingers and my nails.

9. If a blog were having a giveaway, what would really entice you to enter?
Mostly if it were a product or service that I really loved.

10. If you were a colour, which colour would you be?
Red!

11. What is your favourite quote and/or verse?
Oh I have too many, they sort of rotate. I keep a running tab of them here. Today I particularly like this one from Mark Twain:

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

BONUS: What is your favorite thing about snail mail? :D
Seeing the writer's handwriting! I think handwriting is kind of a lost art; it says so much about the person and it always brings a smile to my face!

Favorite

2012-02-07T11:32:00.000-05:00

In the midst of working on one really deep post, several photo-heavy posts, and one research-heavy post, I wanted to take a break to daydream a little. The Sweet Violet Photography Link-up today is "Favorite," and this is absolutely one of my favorite photographs ever.

Mike and I had just gotten engaged, and we were spending a long weekend at a bed-and-breakfast in the Shenandoah Valley. We walked and hiked and explored and photographed our way around, and couldn't resist this shot.

Please click to enlarge it - it really is beautiful.

Ten on Tuesday

2012-02-07T10:24:00.001-05:00

Hello! Thanks for bearing with my lack of posting yesterday; I was sick and then I realized that I'd forgotten about an assignment that was due, d'oh! Anyway, I'm still under the weather (what's new?), but back at work and back into the groove of things. Naturally, being back in the groove means that it's time for Ten on Tuesday... or Ten Things... or whatever I'm calling it these days.

As you probably know by now, this is hosted by Chelsea at Roots and Rings. You should do a couple of things today:

Check out Roots and Rings because Chelsea's a funny lady and has a super cute kid.
Grab the Ten on Tuesday questions, answer them, and link up!
Read the other Ten Things link-ups for their answers!
Read my Ten Things and ~~laugh at my answers~~, I mean, comment!
Email Chelsea with suggestions for future Ten Things questions!

1. How do you feel about Groundhog’s Day?

February 2nd is my Dad's birthday so I have way more to celebrate than some silly made-up holiday.

2. What color are your fingernails right now? (Bonus points if you include a picture.)

I am sporting an iridescent french manicure right now... it's really demure and low-key and I love it. And the picture... in which you can hardly see my nails. hahaha

[EDIT]
Annnnnd I took another picture... haha

[ please forgive the sunlight lines on my hands ]

3. Do you like riddles?

No I do not. The teachers at my elementary school in Florida used to ask all these crazy riddles as we would walk to the playground or cafeteria and it would stress me out. I'm so, so bad at riddles.

4. When you were 10, how old did you think "old" was? At your current age, how old do you think "old" is?

When I was 10, I probably thought "old" was like 25. Now... nothing is old.

5. Do you wish on stars?

Absolutely - all the time!

6. Do you recycle?

I do recycle at home, but I do not recycle at work because we don't have

7. On a scale from 1-10, how good of a cook are you?

I'm a 10 if I'm following a recipe. I'm like a 4 if I'm winging it.

8. Do you color your hair? Professionally or at home?

I have colored my hair a number of times, mostly at home. I am now growing it out, because I want to have my natural hair when I get married. (Is that weird?) Although if my hair is more than 50% grey by that point, it's back to the bottle for me. The hair dye bottle, I mean.

9. One a scale from 1-10, how do you rate your manners?

Oof, I'm probably like a 5. I could use some brushing up.

10. Who are the last 5 people you have texted?

Josy, Rhiannon, Ligia, Beard, and Liz.

PS: I started a Facebook page for this bloggy thing, so would you pretty please go check it out and "like" it?

You can find it at http://www.facebook.com/laurenchanting

I promise I won't spam you with a million dumb things a day. Thanks :)

A Simple Weekend

2012-02-05T14:29:00.003-05:00

This has been a truly great weekend. It certainly hasn't been simple in the meaning of easy or laid-back (for the most part) but it has provided me with so many of life's simplest pleasures and most wonderful moments.

On Friday evening, I had the opportunity to meet up with a few blog friends! I had met Lisa before, but it was my first time meeting Rebecca and Morgan. What lovely ladies! We dined at Dogfish Head Alehouse in Fairfax, which was loud and crowded, but I think we made the most of it :) We shared stories and favorite blogs, offered advice, and found friendship. It's so nice when blog friends become real-life friends.

Lisa, at Hello Suburbia

Rebecca, at A Daily Something

Morgan, at Paper and Olives

(I don't know why I always crouch in photos. Someone please yell at me next time I do that!)

lovely ladies!
Lisa, Rebecca, Morgan + me

Friday night found Mike and I watching episode after episode of The West Wing and snuggling. Ahh.

We were supposed to go for a ride on Saturday, but after some plans changed and I wasn't feeling well, we changed direction on that. When I woke up, Mike was sitting on the sofa playing Zelda. Apparently he had rediscovered his old-school Nintendo console.

I never played video games as a child or teenager, except for the odd Pac Man arcade duel, so I am not terribly familiar with Zelda or any other classic video games. I went from no video games ever straight into World of Warcraft, and then I traded that addiction for blogging. I dressed up as Princess Peach for Halloween once, and that is pretty much the extent of my video game knowledge.

So I was (understandably, I hope) mesmerized by Zelda. I kept asking Mike questions about the game and the levels and the things he was battling. My favorite exchange of the day:

"What are those crab things?"
"The red ones?"
"Yeah..."
"Those are bats."
"Oh."

Then he tried to explain the Triforce and I got really, really confused. So we gave up and went to Old Town Alexandria. We had to visit our jeweler and it was a nice enough day to take a walk around together. Old Town is a pretty cool place: it was founded by Scottish merchants in 1749 and as you might imagine, it holds a lot of awesome old American history. It used to be a port town but now its docks hold private boats and party yachts, and the old, old buildings are lined with cool new restaurants and cute shops. There's an awesome ice cream shop called Pops Old Fashioned that I love love love, and a former Torpedo Factory that now functions as an art center, complete with artist studios and an event space. The city was planned out as a perfect grid and many of the streets are still cobblestone. There are beautiful old homes and churches, and neat alleyways too. Rhiannon and I used to venture to Old Town after school many days, and it was a cool hang out area for a lot of our classmates as well. Oh, and the date nights - don't forget the date nights! Being taken out to an Italian restaurant in Old Town, like Landini Brothers or Il Porto, was a big deal! (Visit Alexandria's information page about Old Town is here.) It's only about a 15-minute, very pretty drive from our home, so it's a nice place to enjoy together.

We went back to the jeweler where Mike had my ring re-sized because it was recommended to us by a good friend of the family, and they do great work. Grandma gave me a ring of hers over the Christmas holiday and I wanted to get it appraised, so that was part of why we went. Another part was to see about getting my ring re-re-sized, because it's been a bit loose lately; however, we decided to wait until warmer weather, just in case. Another part was to drop off Mike's father's wedding band to be re-sized, as it will be Mike's wedding band. It's a beautiful, tapered yellow gold band with detailed etching and three tiny diamonds, and it means so much to Mike that he'll be wearing his dad's ring. It's only a little bit big on Mike, so the jeweler recommended adding a small bar to the inside of the ring instead of completely re-sizing it. The final task at hand was to discuss my wedding band. I don't want to give too much away because, I mean, c'mon: I have to keep y'all entertained for the entire 18 17 months until our wedding! Haha :) In talking about our wedding bands, it was always important to Mike and me that they matched in some sense. We were able to spend a while talking with Lawrence about our options for how that could happen, and we crafted a design together! I swear, we walked on clouds out of that shop! I am so, so excited to see what the final design looks like - almost as excited as I am to marry my wonderful fiance... almost ;)

After we left the shop, we walked down toward the river along King Street. We were surprised that so many of the shops had closed, and enjoyed peeking in the windows of the ones that had just opened. We stopped into Starbucks to grab some drinks (coffee for him, chai latte for meeeee!) and then kept walking along the docks. As we curved around part of the dock, I saw this image and immediately knew that it was perfect for the Day 4 assignment of #febphotoaday.

4. a stranger | #febphotoaday

We kept wandering and eventually Mike found an alley and pulled me down the cobblestone alleyway. I realize that sounds like a horror movie, but I swear it was funny and we both just like alleys. Heehee :)

love this guy!

being a model,
obviously

We eventually wound past the Life is Good store:

life *is* good

and past a hobby shop:

I'm really lucky that Mike likes photography as much as I do, because he doesn't mind me stopping in the middle of the street to take pictures of die-cast cars ;)

I headed to Caffe Amouri in Vienna on Saturday afternoon for a lovely blogger meetup organized by Jane (at The Borrowed Abode) and Christina (at The Scrappy Housewife). I had only found out about it on Friday, from Sarah at Sunny Side Up, so I hope these ladies didn't feel like I was crashing their party!) but I was so super excited about it. I love meeting bloggers in my area. A few months ago, I honestly believed that there were no DC-area bloggers and I was all alone in my own little bloggy la-la land. How wrong was I?! There are so many friendly, talented, wonderful, smiling bloggers out there and I am lucky to know as many of them as I do. The group of us descended on Caffe Amouri (which is in such a cute area of Vienna that I didn't even know existed!) and talked and talked and talked for hours. Seriously, at one point people started looking at their clocks and saying "Oh my gosh! I told my husband I'd only be gone for an hour!" haha :) It was truly a great time, filled with laughter and good ideas, and I'm hoping I get to see these lovely ladies again very soon. A picture was taken but I'm not sure who has it, so if I find it I will be sure to share :)

For now, for some awesome blog reading, please do check out:
Christina, at The Scrappy Housewife (+ Facebook)
Jane, at The Borrowed Abode (+ Shop) (+ Twitter)
Kimberly, at Maher Family Grows (+ Twitter)
Michelle, at Two Streets Over (+ Facebook)
Rachel, at Funnelcloud Studio (+ Shop) (+ Twitter)
Sarah, at Sunny Side Up (+ Twitter)
Steffanie (+ Twitter)
Toya, at New Family Naturals (say hello to amazing kale chips!) (+ Twitter)

When I got home I was really hungry, so we raided the kitchen and threw together an Indian feast: naan, chana masala, and potatoes and chicken and spinach in a red curry. Mmm mmm mmm!

As we ate we watched more of The West Wing, and eventually we made brownies - topped with frosting and sprinkles - I do not mess around with my brownies. Don't brownies make everything better?

Mike woke up early today to go to a friend's house to wrench on his old Vespa, but I stayed in bed until exactly 10am. How funny, considering that the Day 5 assignement for #febphotoaday was 10am ;) So this was my 10am:

5. 10 am | #febphotoaday

My Sunday has been deliciously restful. I am enjoying coffee and blogging, making a point to not stress myself out, and letting my body heal (because I am finally feeling better!) and relax. It's been wonderful.

Tonight is, of course, The Super Bowl! And me being the huge football nerd that I am, I will be watching with Mike, Dad, and Tommy. And eating lots of yummy food. And drinking beer. Regardless of what you're doing tonight, I hope you have a fantastic Sunday!

I am linking up with Simple As That's Simple Things Sunday for the first time today - because you guys know how much I love link-ups to get my creative mind going! ;)

I found this through Daina's awesome blog, NY State of Mind.

Friday Means It's Almost The Weekend!

2012-02-03T11:40:00.000-05:00

Fill In The Blank Friday

Hosted by Lauren at The Little Things We Do

This set of questions was written by Meg of Mr. C and Me

If money wasn't an issue, the first thing I'd cross of my life list is traveling the [entire] world, at least partly if not wholly on a motorcycle.
Mayonnaise on my french fries is something I like that other people think is weird.
If my life were a movie right now, the title would be The Crazy Girl.
Three things I am looking forward to this month are 1) seeing how much money I can hole away during #SuperFrugalityMonth; 2) the Super Bowl; 3) snow, because c'mon, it's winter and we haven't really had a winter so it's gotta happen sometime... right? Right? Bueller?
My favorite song to sing in the shower is the chorale from Beethoven's Ninth.
If I found out that the production of Hot Mix was ending this month, I'd go out and buy as much as I could tomorrow.
One thing I'll never grow tired of is laughter :)

Are y'all super excited for the weekend? Because I am SUPER excited! In case you haven't noticed, I love football. Love love love it! And I'm a Giants fan. And the Giants are in the Super Bowl. And the Super Bowl is THIS WEEKEND. I'll be watching the game with Dad and Tommy, just like last time the Giants were in the Super Bowl and beat the stinky Patriots :) The rest of Sunday will probably be dedicated to school work and whatnot.

Mike and I are planning to hop on the GS and ride around somewhere on Saturday, maybe even out to Harper's Ferry! Saturday afternoon there is a little blogger get-together that I am hoping I will be able to make it to (if we're back from the ride in time). And Saturday night I'm going out dancing with Mommy and her friends - how cool!

And today kicks off the whole she-bang, with my steady old #10 jersey, an appointment to get my nails done, and then dinner with some blogger friends tonight!

There's so much to do and so many wonderful people to see. I'm so excited :) I don't know why I described my weekend backwards... weird. Well anyway I hope you all have a FANTASTIC weekend!

xo.

Currently: Appreciation for Self and Little Things

2012-02-03T08:00:00.000-05:00

Linking up with The Paper Mama for her Self Photo Challenge!

This is me, today.

My hair is full of static and won't behave

I am wearing pearls and a football jersey

I am not wearing makeup
My nails are chipped and too long
I didn't like any other photos I took

I am not entirely awake yet

Currently, I'm:

Obsessing over...
Coffee, blog friend meetups, my social awkwardness, and web design.

Working on...
Reworking our training process, completing website edits, and pre-planning a conference (for work), reading and preparing a writing assignment (for school), and getting info on a new side project, figuring out coding issues for our wedding website, planning to get together with friends, and setting up our wedding budget. Whew.

Thinking about...
How much all this wedding stuff actually costs, how to sleep better at night, what the weekend will look like, and how to improve my writing.

Anticipating...
Meeting with friends tonight (and potentially tomorrow too!), enjoying The Superbowl, and writing a paper for class.

Listening to...
Florence + The Machine, Ceremonials.

Eating...
Dry oats-and-honey cereal and a warm cup of coffee.

Wishing...
I could sleep better and wake up easier. I'm having a rough time lately and it's making me crazy.

Wednesday night's mini-breakdown reminded me, once again, how important it is to keep my focus both on growing and appreciating myself and on appreciating the little things. I am going to add some focus on myself by filing out this "currently" list periodically, and on the little things by, of course, writing out the list!

This week I have especially appreciated...

my incredible fiance/best friend/everything
evening walks
wedding planning sanity talks with Brandi
phone calls with Grandma
laughter with family
cuddling in bed and laughing
coffee
inside jokes
phone calls from Rhiannon

laid-back weeks at work
#febphotoaday

1. your view today:
my desk at work


2. words: a journal from high school

Wine and Love

2012-02-02T13:10:00.003-05:00

Wine and Love is hosted by Nora. Want to join? Read this page for the meme instructions and grab the picture. Then go to Walking With Nora to link up!

What's got me reaching for the
bottle of wine this week...

The stinkbugs are everywhere, ugggh.
I found out that one of my cousins is really sick, and that makes me sad.
The fact that any organization would pull money away from providing breast cancer screenings makes me really sad and I have no words. Marisa said it better than I can.
And on a much less serious but still annoying note: seriously, can this election year be over already? This whole candidate sideshow thing makes me sick.

What I'm loving this week...

Phone calls with Grandma.
Rhiannon accidentally calling me when she meant to call someone else makes me giggle.
I am still smiling about this little blog redesign.
The venue, oh my gosh the venue. And because we found the venue, we set a date.
The work week has been insanely productive and yet rather laid-back.
Mike and I had a heart-to-heart last night and sort of realigned ourselves and our relationship to make sure that we're moving in the right direction. Of course it started with me bawling and it was ugly, but the entire situation eventually turned itself back around.
Y'all are so wonderful, so supportive, so lovely. I'm glad to know you.
THE SUPERBOWL IS THIS WEEKEND!

Happy Thursday!

xo.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

2012-02-02T10:17:00.002-05:00

Today is my Dad's birthday!

[ Tommy, Daddy, me ]

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Wedding Wednesday: The Venue Search

2012-02-01T13:28:00.004-05:00

This is hosted by Joelle at Something Charming!

Happy Wednesday, and happy February! Can you believe that it's already February? I sure can't. Everyone's been talking about how crazy the weather is and it's true - this morning I heard a bird singing as I walked into the office. Whaa? I wish it were winter. Maybe Mother Nature will oblige and make sure that the day after the Superbowl is a snow day... cough-cough-hint-hint.

Anyway! Yesterday I promised some pretty awesome wedding planning news and today I will deliver!

On Saturday, Mike and I had an appointment to tour The Hendry House, a potential wedding venue! As you guys know, our first foray into the venue search did not go so well, so even though we were OMGSUPEREXCITED about this, we tried to keep ourselves in check.

The Hendry House is located in Fort CF Smith Park, an old Union fort used to protect Washington D.C. during the Civil War. Arlington County has a lot of great information about the history of the site here. The park and the house were acquired by Arlington County in 1994, and since then the Parks and Recreation department has maintained the site and renovated the former private residence into an events venue.

Mike and I have been to the park before. It's a mere 1.5 miles away from our home so Mike has run past it a dozen times and he and I took a walk here last autumn (you know, before I decided to keep being lazy for always). The last time we were here, the sky was blue, the trees were turning all sorts of glorious colors, and the gingko trees especially were spilling their wonderful yellow leaves all over. Mike took some funny snapshots of me acting a fool in the leaf-piles - I'll have to find those ;)

The circumstances were a bit different on this visit: it was cool, grey, and January. We arrived a bit early for our noontime appointment, parked the car, grabbed the camera, and meandered our way toward the house.

We walked past the Farm Well...

Guests would walk from the parking lot past this old well
and the interesting structure around it.

...and down the Garden Path (which used to be a road from Spout Run to the farm!)

This is the pathway to the house.

And at the end of the garden path we saw the house. We had both seen it before, but it was really breathtaking once again. The roof is a bright red, the upper level a brick red, the walls such a creamy yellow, and the porch ceilings are blue! The walking brochure states that the main house is "Victorian Vernacular" but I don't really see that... the windows and roof slopes read more like a craftsman to me. Anyway!

This is the first view guests would see of the house.

The Hendry House, a little zoomed-in.
If you enlarge, you can spot a bit of the light blue porch ceilings :)

We wandered around the house for a bit until we saw Sharon inside the house and she came to the front door to meet us. The front door is huge and it opens into a beautiful portico with tons of windows and double doors that open out onto patios on both sides! The level of detail inside the house is wonderful, and there is just so much light everywhere. If the weather turns out to be good when we get married (fingers crossed) we will be able to open up all the windows and doors for a truly inside-outside feeling. The patio, portico, and porch all flow into each other so there will be a lot of free movement and we don't have to worry about anything being stuffy.

The first floor of the house has a large main room with a fireplace and built-in benches and shelves, a square side room that is typically used for the buffet, and a long room with built-in shelves that ends in a sunroom. There are handicapped-accessible bathrooms on the main floor, and there is a huge kitchen for catering, with a service entrance! There are also coat closets and the entire house is wired to speakers with a stereo hook-up! The rooms flow so nicely to each other, and out to the covered porch and uncovered patio. And again, you guys, THE WINDOWS.

A winding stairway leads to the second floor, which has the park office (someone is there during the entire event!), another bathroom, a room for the guys with a TV and wifi, and a big bridal suite with its own private bathroom and make-up area!

Having an outdoor ceremony is important to us, so Sharon shared some ideas for outdoor options, including a ceremony on the brick patio facing toward the meadow or at the wisteria arch.

The view from the house toward the meadow.

(Sorry about the sun glare!)
This is the large meadow to the side of the house.
You can sort of see the wisteria arch here.

I don't have any interior pictures, and that's partly because Mike took them and partly because I don't want to give everything away!

We got a lot of information from Sharon, and we even took the time to look at pictures from previous weddings held at the space. Speaking of Sharon - she was friendly and knowledgeable and awesome. She gave us honest feedback and ideas from weddings that have been at The Hendry House, including the worst of the worst! She shared design ideas for different parts of the house, and we felt like she explained every possible option to us. She gave us a packet that contained the contract, recommended vendors, floor plans, and a ton of other information, and said that we could contact her anytime with any questions.

There are a million reasons why Mike and I both walked around with big, dumb smiles on our faces, but let's suffice it to say that by the end of our tour we were in love with The Hendry House. The house, the entire park, it's all so elegant yet so open to making it "us" - yay! We're OMGSUPEREXCITED about this! We have a venue!

[ If you're interested in learning more about using The Hendry House for events,
fill out this form on the ARL website! (No, they did not pay or perk me for that!) ]

We were waiting for the venue decision to make a lot of the other decisions (like the date, colors, what to wear, food, etc!) so now all of those ideas are swirling and some plans are even in motion! Rhiannon and I went to the Washington Bridal Showcase on Sunday and we got a lot of great ideas. I even met a photographer that I really like!

So this is the exciting time! I love it!

xo.

Coming Up For Air

2012-01-31T13:57:00.000-05:00

Do you guys remember the Ben Folds Five song "Air"? I love that song. (You can listen to it on YouTube here!) Wasn't it on the Godzilla soundtrack? That movie was awful but the soundtrack had some really kick-ass songs on it. I think I still have the CD somewhere. The title of this post reminded me of the song so yes I am listening to it right now. And possibly singing along. Sometimes, I swear, the people in my office must hate me.

I had the best intentions of sitting down on Sunday to schedule out some posts and share the back-log of pictures I've been piling up on various computers (really, it's embarrassing). And the best intentions yesterday of sharing our weekend, a few awesome wedding updates, and getting started on my big assignment that's due next week.

But ahhhhh ~~motherland~~ - I mean ahhhhh work! And ahhhhh school! And ahhhhh me being a huge frenzied grumpus!

Things get in the way. I know, I know...

via.

I finished training last week and conducted a pretty in-depth training review with our entire office, and I'm coordinating those improvements. I'm also redefining my role in the company as we've hired someone new who's going to take what I used to do and make it a million times better so I get to do other awesome things. That's all really exciting and keeping me busy.

I'm also, as of last night at 11pm, done with two weeks of school. I still have six weeks of these two classes (we run on eight-week sub-terms) and then eight weeks of another two classes, then ~~forever and ever until the rest of my life~~ about a year-and-a-half until I'm done... at which point I'll probably want to go back and get my MBA. (Baby steps.) School is pretty exciting, and also pretty frustrating.

I should warn you that I'm going to whine here. Since this is my blog, I'm allowed to. Skip down to the bottom if you want!

I actually forgot how frustrating school can be. Take my Bible Studies class for example. Our professor assigns anywhere from 100 to 300 pages of reading in three different textbooks, and provides us with a weekly study guide of 30 to 50 questions to guide our reading. He then sends us an email on Tuesday (our "week" runs Tuesday at 12:00am until Monday at 11:59pm) with an additional 30 to 50 study questions that are completely different from the study guide. He then sends us "mid-week study helps" with another completely different set of 30 to 50 study questions... usually late on Friday or Sunday nights. Basically what I'm trying to say is that he makes it impossible to structure any sort of study time, aside from cramming everything in on Monday night right before taking the quiz (which is always due by Monday at 11:59pm) and it's SO. FREAKIN. FRUSTRATING. I am trying really hard to get started on my work early in the week and I get slammed with all these new questions and have to completely re-start the reading. If I could, I'd complete the reading, fill in the questions, and take the quiz as soon as I'm done... but it feels like our professor is hell-bent against us doing that until the very last minute of the school week. Grr. Oh and then let's get to the discussion board assignments, you know, wherein we have a topic and some questions to answer and have to post our "paper" on the discussion board. Let me tell you, my classmates need some serious writing help. I try not to judge, but it's kind of annoying knowing that I took the time to write something that met every specification and was professional and was spell-checked and was proof-read... and they didn't. I don't know if the grades are going to reflect that yet but man oh man, the American education system needs help. Now let's get to Apologetics... this course is confusing. I do all the readings, I look up things I don't understand, and I take a lot of notes. And still there are quiz questions that totally stump me! I got an 80 on the first quiz and a 90 on this last quiz, which is definitely okay, but I fully expect to get at least a 95 if not 100 on every single assignment in these courses. I mean, they're easy courses. This week I'm going to do my readings a few times, and if that doesn't help on the next quiz, I'll have to figure out some sort of tutoring or study-help situation. It's the classic situation of doing well in the class that drives me crazy and not doing so well in the class I like!

Oh and poor Mike. He came home last night as I was fighting with his computer and trying to take my quiz and getting ready to write 250 words on studying the Old Testament narratives. (I wrote 517 words.) I was less-than-happy at the moment. I Tried to make up for it by bringing him some Jello chocolate mousse and not grinding my teeth in my sleep last night... not sure if any of that worked. I'm sorry, honey!

Now I'm making time to sit down and process all of this. And what I have processed is this: I really do like school, and I really don't want to turn into a crazy woman. I have to remember that some things are not in my control and I have to do my best to work within those issues instead of trying to change them.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Totally changing gears here... we had a pretty awesome weekend! On Friday afternoon we decided to go out to Rabbit, a new-ish salad and grill place in Clarendon. I had the steak+potatoes salad and Mike enjoyed the salmon meal - and it was all really good. The salad was HUGE! We also both enjoyed a Lagunitas IPA of some sort, which I'm definitely opening up to after being with an IPA-freak (I mean that in the nicest way) for such a long time. One of my favorite things about Rabbit is that it serves Red Velvet cupcakes, hells yeah! I snagged a vanilla bean to take home :) It was a super-sweet date night and a really nice way to end the (crazy) work week.

After dinner, Mike loaded his bicycle into the trunk of our Civic and home we went, to debate what to do in between now and the concert we were going to hit up later... dun dun dun. We're good indecisionmakers. Eventually Mike read and I fell asleep.

Later Friday night, we headed off to IOTA for a concert! If you live in the general Northern VA area and have not been to IOTA, I highly recommend it. It's such a nice venue, and the food is really good too. The only thing that sucks is the parking, but you could always metro/walk like good cityfolk.

Mike found out that Laura Gibson was playing and then found out that Cotton Jones was opening up for her, and then found out that tickets were pretty cheap, so out we went!

The venue was just right for these two awesome musical acts, and it was just the right crowd. Cotton Jones was amazing, even though they all looked like they'd just been in a fight with each other and didn't really enjoy being on-stage together.

And whoa - Bob Boilen was there! :)

Laura Gibson - oh! - she and her musical team were wonderful. They powered through some technical difficulties, they made us laugh, and they created a magical concert.

During one interlude Laura told the audience that she had been at NPR's studios doing a Tiny Desk Concert earlier in the day, which was awesome because it was the 200th and she had actually done the very first one back in 2008. For her final song, she taught us a melody and had us sing along with her, a capella, and it was mesmerizing.

I wish I knew how to write a proper music review because this show deserves it, but my little memories will have to suffice.

On Saturday we had pancakes, went to look at a potential venue, hung around, and went over to Mike's parents' house. Bill made us a delicious dinner and we talked, drank, and ate our way late into the evening! Sunday found me sleeping in, then enjoying a walk to the bakery for some treats with Mike, then heading off to a bridal expo with Rhiannon - whoa whoa whoa. I'm still processing that one! lol :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I joined the Blogger Map. You should too.

"Join your other favorite bloggers on this map! As you plan travels, or want to arrange local meetups, you'll know who to contact. You might meet some new local faces and be able to reconnect with old when you find yourself away from home."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finally, here's a sneak peek of some awesome wedding progress we made over the weekend...

I promise you'll hear all about it in tomorrow's Wedding Wednesday post :)

Happy Tuesday!

xo.

Ten on Tuesday: I Opine on Food

2012-01-31T11:39:00.000-05:00

Ten on Tuesday

Chelsea has started up Ten on Tuesday again, and this week's questions are provided by Kara's Chatter :)

What’s your variety of apple?
I like red delicious!
Do you prefer Long-English or Field cucumbers?
I really don't know what the difference is... I just like cucumbers. But please don't call them "cukes" - that's weird.
Tomatoes – Delicious or disgusting?
I looooooove tomatoes (hello, I'm Italian!) but I have recently developed an allergy to uncooked tomatoes so I can only eat them in small quantities. However I will always eat them. They're so good.
What’s one fruit or vegetable that you can’t stand and why is that?
I don't like lima beans, partly because of the texture and partly because of a really gross story I heard once from my friend. Ew.
What’s your favourite way to prepare veggies? (Grilled, boiled, roasted, sautéed, etc.)
Give me vegetables in any way and I will eat them. I guess I like most things roasted or sautéed the most.
Sweet potato pie: Love it or hate it?
I don't know that I've ever had it...
What’s your favourite “style” of French fry? Wedges, shoelace, curly, crinkle-cut or other?
FRENCH FRIIIIIIIIIIIES! The curly kind are my favorite normal kind, but I die for Belgian-style frites. Although I will very seriously eat them in any way, shape, or form they are presented to me.
What’s your favourite fruit-pie filling?
Mike makes really yummy apple pie (he even brought me a slice one night when I was working late - before we even started dating!), and our friend Marion makes a delicious blackberry pie. But other than those... I don't really know!
When you were a kid did your parents make you sit at the table until all your veggies were eaten off your plate?
I don't think so. I clearly recall being made to sit at the table until all my meat was eaten, and on more than one occasion I made barters to eat more veggies instead of meat. ~~I was a weird kid.~~ I am weird.
Do you drink veggie & fruit juice blends (such as V8, etc.) or make them yourself?
I have never had V8, but I do very much like fruit smoothies. I used to make them a long time ago but I haven't in a while. There's a really good smoothie place near where we live, so we have been there.

Join us! Head over to Roots and Rings to link up :)

Check out my other "Ten Things" link-ups and lists here!

xo.

Little Things

2012-01-27T15:50:00.001-05:00

It's time to sit back, relax, and ~~wish for 5 o'clock~~ reflect on this week's little things :)

Head over to Aisle to Aloha to learn more and link up!

[ wedding dress shopping
oh yes
it was GLORIOUS ]

[ Rhiannon drew this
on our table
at Macaroni Grill +
I love it so much ]


[ my iPhone! if you had told me in the 1980s that someday I'd have a PHONE that could take PICTURES LIKE THIS I would not believe you ]

[ the garage
wrenching
Ol' Stinky ]

[ these two
I loves them
they look like the Beastie Boys would
if they'd been gearheads ]

[ lovely texts from Rhiannon
to brighten up my day ]

[ the thunderstorm that happened
on my way into work this morning
(yeah, I thought it was January too)
oh and yeah,
those little raindrops too ]

[ afternoon sunshine
mhm, same day
as the thunderstorm
I love Virginia ]

Fill In The Blank

2012-01-27T12:34:00.000-05:00

Hello, friends! Happy Friday!

Thanks to those of you who shared some of your favorite blogs yesterday :)

It's time for...

Fill In The Blank Friday

Hosted by Lauren at The Little Things We Do

This set of questions was written by Erin at A Symphony of Grace

My favorite place I've ever traveled to is Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Fo' real.
Ireland is somewhere I'd love to go someday. (Really, though, I want to go EVERYWHERE.)
I pass the time on a plane (or bus, or car ride or train) by relaxing! I try to unplug and breathe - traveling is usually the only time I get to do this!
My three must-haves when I travel are my iPhone, a map, and a bottle of water.
My favorite travel companion is ... I couldn't possibly choose! I love travelling with Mike, Rhiannon, my brother Tommy, my Dad, my Mom, and my Aunt Boo! And of course my Grandma.
The craziest thing that ever happened to me while traveling is a sudden storm on Lake Mead!
The most exotic food I've ever tried while traveling is ... I don't have an answer for this. I don't eat exotic foods when I'm traveling. I lived in New York; all my exotic food experiences happened there!
If I could live anywhere else, I'd live in the Virginia countryside!
I have been to 26 states in the U.S. A long time ago, I made it a goal to visit all 50 before I turned 30 - so hopefully that still happens!

What blogs do you read?

2012-01-26T16:18:00.003-05:00

Could you help me out a little, friends?

Could you share in the comments one or some of your favorite blogs?

(I'm quite serious - I want some more blogs to add to my reader, and where else is there to start but with you fine people?)

Thanks!

Wine and Love

2012-01-26T14:50:00.000-05:00

Wine and Love is hosted by Nora. Want to join? Read this page for the meme instructions and grab the picture. Then go to Walking With Nora to link up!

What's got me reaching for the
bottle of wine this week...

I have slept so terribly all week long. Mike said that last night I was tossing and turning, grinding my teeth, and I kept sitting up at random intervals, looking around, giving him a misplaced kiss and then hitting the pillow again.
My most recent training session at work did not go so well, and I feel frustrated and slightly responsible. I'm trying to look at it as a learning opportunity but it's sometimes just frustrating.
Medical offices need to learn how to keep appointments, because 11:30 does not mean 12:18. I am going to start billing them for my time.
I got another bill for my surgery (which was in October), from a totally unrecognized doctor, for lab work. This is frustrating for a number of reasons: it's another couple thousand dollars; I didn't even know that I would be charged this because it was not cleared with me before the surgery; I already reached my copay amount for 2011 so it should be covered; every time I try to call to find out more about it, the lines (both of them) ring busy; and medical billing stuff is generally overwhelming and stupid.
My boss has been snapping at me all week. I understand that he's upset over the recent death of one of his mentors/friends, but really dude... it's not my fault. Please don't be mean.
Probably stemming from all of those things above, I had my first "oh my God, work school wedding everything ALL THE THINGS" mini-meltdown yesterday.

What I'm loving this week...

After said mini-meltdown, the lovely Ms. Klutzyballerina reminded me that cookies and coffee are a much-needed break, so I took her advice :)\
Have I mentioned that I have awesome friends? Mike teased me about checking in on "The Twitters" yesterday and I reminded him that I was checking in with my friends - then it struck me: that's true! Y'all are! I'm lucky.
Mike and I re-started watching The West Wing. Heaven. I swear that show makes me smarter, snarkier, and an all-over better person.
I fiiiiiiiiiiiiinally went to the doctor. You know, for that sinus thing I've had since before Christmas? Yeah, that. First I waited for 40 minutes past my appointment time (see above) and then I calmly walked up to the desk and told them that they needed to reschedule my appointment because I had to get back to work. Ha. The doctor was with me not 5 minutes later. She said that I had a fever, and I've probably been running one for as long as I've been sick. She gave me two prescriptions and then told me that we were going to get like twenty feet of snow in February. I think that was her way of making small talk. She was nice. Now I have medicine and I'm starting to feel better.
I bought two new wedding magazines while I was filling my prescriptions :)
I emailed my cousins Kaitlyn and Annmarie (who are also my bridesmaids) with a wedding planning update and some pictures, and I got the sweetest emails back from them. They really put a smile on my face :)
There's more fun wedding stuff happening this weekend: Mike and I are going to visit a potential venue on Saturday, and Rhiannon and I are going to a bridal expo on Sunday! I can't wait!
My blog redesign makes me smile :)

I swear not all of my "loves" will be about wedding stuff. To tell the truth my life is a little boring. I missed book club this month because I was sick, plans with friends keep falling through, work is crazy, and school is keeping me really busy. So the wedding stuff is really the only really exciting stuff that I have going on. Please bear with me as my life gets cooler... someday.

Hope you're having an excellent Thursday, dearest friends.

xo.

Wedding Wednesday: The Dress Report!

2012-01-25T11:00:00.000-05:00

Hello there! A lot of you have been ever so patiently waiting for a wedding dress update, and I finally have a moment (and the wherewithal) to sit down and write it! The past few days have been insane at work, and a little rough. I've been hard on myself too. But in those bad moments I look back at the awesome weekend I had and I'm all smiles.

My Aunt Boo and Grandma drove down from New York on Friday night, in the snow, to go dress shopping with me! We were all a little bit anxious about the weather forecast and how it would affect our plans, but thankfully they traveled safely. I woke up so early on Saturday morning, bursting with excitement. I was so excited that I couldn't even eat! I had a few sips of coffee and out the door we went.

Rhiannon (my best friend and maid of honor!) was going to meet us at my place and carpool, but she changed her plans after the ice on her car got her off to a late start. She got to the first appointment early, met with Mom and Marianne (Mike's mom), and stopped off for some coffee nearby.

Our first stop was Alfred Angelo. I had been there before, looking for dresses for someone else, and I was honestly expecting it to be more crowded. Maybe it was the weather, or maybe the morning appointment (10am!), or even the expanse of the place, but we didn't feel crowded at all. We met our consultant, Stacey, and got to work! She asked a bunch of questions and went through some of my cut-outs, and we explained that we wanted me to try on a lot of different styles and silhouettes because I wasn't sure what I wanted. By this point, Mom, Marianne, and Rhiannon had joined us and everyone was looking through the style books. I know you're not supposed to bring a whole entourage to a dress search, but I couldn't imagine leaving out any one of these amazing women. My Aunt Ellie was even supposed to join us, but she had a conflict. (Next time!) Stacey started pulling dresses and a corset and eventually asked me to join her in the room. I was sooooo excited!

The first dress was a beautiful tea-length gown. I hadn't originally considered tea-length at all because I really want a floor-length gown, but Stacey was right to put me in it. It looked fantastic - so good in fact that I can't share the picture with you because I'm still considering it! Two other dresses made the "still considering" cut so I don't want to show them quite yet, but here are some of the dresses that I loved but just weren't exactly right:

Stacey was great. We got along really well and she had me laughing like crazy, and she dealt with my family so incredibly well. I soon found out that she's Italian and from Long Island, knows what bocce is, and rides a motorcycle! (I pretty much wanted to ask her to be my BFF on the spot.) She also made sure that I had on the right undergarments, was really careful getting me in and out of dresses, and explained the details of each and every dress to me as she was dressing me.

After the spectacular start to the day at Alfred Angelo, we headed over to David's Bridal. We ended up over there a bit early, so Mom treated us to lunch at a nearby spot. It was a lovely, laughter-filled, happy meal :)

Then into David's... wow. We stood at the front of the store in a daze for a few minutes before an associate was available to check us in. The store was loud and crowded, but after a bit we got settled in and waited for my consultant to start bringing dresses over. As with Alfred Angelo, I let my family pick out most of the dresses, and wow were there some interesting ones!

Only one dress from David's made the cut into "favorites," and I have to be honest and say that it wasn't a great experience. My consultant was obviously way too busy (helping four different groups), was inexperienced, brought me the wrong sizes in undergarments, kept disappearing, kept forgetting what she was supposed to be pulling for me, and pressured me to buy whatever dress I had on. The store was crowded and dirty, and there were discarded dresses and apparel everywhere. And, sadly, the dresses were disappointing. They were obviously cheaply made and a lot of them were damaged, which I find surprising considering that David's (this particular location; I don't know if this applies to all) only sells the dresses they have on the racks and will not place an order for a dress.

I certainly didn't set out for it to be a competition between the two stores, and I've definitely seen some gorgeous dresses bought from David's, but Alfred Angelo really took the cake in my book.

** If you're in the Northern Virginia area, I highly recommend visiting the Alfred Angelo in Springfield. Go on the weekend and ask for Stacey! (No, Alfred Angelo did not pay or perk me for this and neither did Stacey!)

I'm definitely not done dress shopping yet. There are a few more silhouettes I want to try on, and I want to have a chance to do some shopping in NY with some other members of my family. But there's a chance that I already found my dress!

We met Mike back at home to get the scoop on the motorcycle and share some pictures, and we ended the night with a joyous and very funny meal at Macaroni Grill, with Boo, Grandma, Mom, Mike's mom Marianne and his dad Bill, and Rhiannon.

And of course I'm linking up to Wedding Wednesday :)

This is hosted by Joelle at Something Charming!

10 Reasons Why Hanging Out In The Garage Is Awesome

2012-01-24T12:58:00.000-05:00

I made up my own Ten Things list since there wasn't a traditional ten things today. So...

10 Reasons Why Hanging Out In The Garage Is Awesome

1. I get to spend time with Mike

2. I get to spend time with friends

3. I get dirty and greasy

4. I get to play with cool garage tools,
like the thing that rolls around on the floor
(this is called a creeper, I'm told)

5. Funny faces are more acceptable in the garage

6. Pizza tastes yummy with grease on it

7. We get to salvage cool things(and eventually hang them up on the walls in our house)

8. I learn how to use toolsso that when Mike says "I want this for Christmas"I know what "this" is

9. I learn how to fix my own stuff...or at least I have Mike and Beard to do it for me

10. Anything goes in the garage!

Ol' Stinky, or My Fiance Bought Another Motorcycle While I Was Shopping For A Wedding Dress

2012-01-23T09:45:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, I went wedding dress shopping.

On Saturday, Mike went to buy another motorcycle.

True story.

Mike cruises Craigslist all the time to see what's out there and spark some creativity, so when he found the XL250 and told me he wanted to strip and customize it, I wasn't surprised.

I had been telling him "No more bikes until we have a garage!" because really, people, we live in a condo. The GS and Stella are parked on the side of our building under covers. I feel bad for them whenever it rains or snows, poor things. Plus repairs can be hard if you have to lug your toolbox down to the side of the building and work outside. I thought it was a good argument... "We get a place with a garage, let's buy all the bikes we want. Until then..."

But then I saw the XL and I let that argument go.
It's kind of a big deal.
It's kind of an awesome project.
I could tell how excited he was.

Mike talked to Beard and they decided to take a look at the bike together. If they liked it, they'd go half on it and keep it at Beard's garage. They were going to check it out on Saturday, when I was shopping for a wedding dress with my family, his mom, and my maid of honor. How perfect is that? Wonderfully typical of our relationship. I left in the morning with strict instructions to send me a picture of the bike as soon as he saw it. I got the text as I was standing on the podium at David's Bridal in some sort of lace concoction.

She really is a beauty. I'm so excited for these guys.

I know that motorcycle enthusiasts and gear-heads are not my typical audience, but I highly recommend that all of you check out:

Rebuilding Ol' Stinky

(yes, it explains how she got her name)

Mike and Beard are great photographers, crazy talented gear-heads, and they're funny. It's going to be a good ride. And now I'm done pimping my fiance's new project.

xo.

We're going to the Superbowl!

2012-01-23T09:04:00.006-05:00

I just have to get this out there...

WE'RE GOING TO THE SUPERBOWL!!!

YEAHHHHH NEW YORK GIANTS!!!

Whew.

Oh, and by "we" I mean The New York Football Giants. Not me. I wish.

xo.

In The Bag

2012-01-20T15:47:00.002-05:00

The phrase "in the bag" makes me think of EA Sports' old (or current?) motto, wherein an angry man would shout "E A SPORTS - IT'S IN THE GAME!" ...Maybe I listened to my brother playing video games wayyyyy too often in my formative years.

Anyway! Earlier this week the lovely Tessica asked if I'd like to do a "What's in my purse" feature with her, so today you get a sneak peek into my bag!

I have a million purses. I mean, I know people with much larger purse collections, but mine is pretty substantial. It's a big thing for Mike, kind of like he has so many motorcycle helmets. It's our banter.

There is a big wicker chest at the foot of our bed that holds all of my purses. It must drive Mike crazy that I bring the same bag to work every day even though I own so many others. If this were a weekend I'm sure the bag and the contents would be different. Alas, it's a weekday!

I should note here what while I very well could have (maybe even should have) used this opportunity to clean out my bag, I did not. You're getting the full report on everything that was it in all week long. Except maybe an odd balled-up cough drop wrapper. Those I tossed.

My work-day/school-day/weekday bag is by Ralph Lauren. Mom gave it to me a million years ago, and I love it. It has two front pockets, and the inside is divided into three compartments: two open ones, and a zippered one dividing them. Because it has so many of its own compartments, I don't really have to carry around smaller bags inside of it.

The back compartment is usually for my papers: school work that travels with me, the work work that occasionally comes home, my planner, bills, mail, etc:

planner
a bill to send to VHC
red folder with all my schoolwork
red notebook with all my notes
a Bible Studies textbook

The zippered center compartment is for, a-hem, lady items, makeup, and toiletries. I usually don't carry very much makeup with me, but the weather has been so dry lately that I have to wait about an hour after I shower to put makeup on, and that usually happens at work. So today I have...

Oil of Olay active hydrating beauty fluid (I really hate that it's called beauty fluid - really, people?)
L'oreal true match liquid makeup
Neutrogena healthy skin blends powder
Maybelline fit me bronzer
Maybelline one by one volum' express mascara
Covergirl perfect point plus eyeliner
generic lip moisturizer
generic lip sheer
Lip Butters (in Creme Brulee and Berry Smoothie)
American Beauty lipstick in Plum Dandy
Estee Lauder re-nutriv lipstick in Gold-Dipped Pink (I swear this lipstick is older than I am)
two barettes
NyQuil Sinex (no idea why, because I obviously would not take this while at work)
nail clippers and an emery board
cough drops

My keys get hooked onto the front compartment with the awesome red motorcycle hook that Mike's mom gave me. The front compartment is for the stuff I always reach for:

headset headphones
sunglasses
hand-me-down Ghurka wallet
lotion
phone screen wipe
phone (not pictured)
and other random things...

flash drive
wine cork
love note from Mike

The front left pocket holds all the pens, and I seriously mean all the pens. My pen hoarding has gotten out of control. Right now I have:

1 purple highlighter
1 pencil
3 black pens
2 green pens
4 blue pens
2 purple pens
2 red pens
1 red permanent marker
1 pink pen

See? Out. of. control. Why do I need so many pens? I have no idea. But I do know that whenever someone needs a pen, I will be the girl with the pen. Unlike the girl in Cake's "Short Skirt Long Jacket."

The front right pocket usually has a lipstick, lotion, and other random things that fall in. Like a granola bar. And overflow pens from the other pocket.

That's what I keep in my bag...
and suddenly my backaches make so much more sense...

Take a look at Tessica's purse-peek here :)

Little Things

2012-01-20T10:25:00.001-05:00

This week has been pretty stressful
tons of stuff going on at work
getting used to being back in school
planning planning planning
but the little things kept a smile on my face!

[ Linking up to Aisle To Aloha ]

[ my coworker knew that I started classes on Monday,
so she bought me some school supplies
and wrote a sweet note. ]

[ Dulce Dog - ready for the game!
btw, that game?
oh. my. gosh. ]

[ we're all getting excited for dress shopping!
this mid-day text from my Aunt Boo put a huge smile on my face.
and yes - that is Cinderella's Castle as my background! ]

[ we finally made it out to Cheesetique -
with a couple-friends of ours
(I mean, really, they're a couple
and we're all friends)
and we had a GREAT time! ]

[ last Friday night my good friend Jose and his band
played a great show at Jammin' Java!
I was up way past my bedtime,
but it was sooooooooooo awesome! ]

[ hard cider, served warm with a cinnamon stick -
mm mm good. ]

[ study study study!
so happy to be back in school! ]

Happy Friday!

Have a GREAT weekend!

xo.

Wine and Love

2012-01-19T17:14:00.001-05:00

Wine and Love is hosted by Nora. Want to join? Read this page for the meme instructions and grab the picture. Then go to Walking With Nora to link up!

What's got me reaching for the
bottle of wine this week...

The venue saga was really tearing at my heartstrings for a while there.
I came across a mean blog post that contained some mean things about me.
I have been in a funk for a few days... weeks? It's been painful for both Mike and me. Thankfully it's OVER!
Stupid people are everywhere. Still.

What I'm loving this week...

OH MY GOD, BLOGGERS IN SIN CITY.
Meeting lovely bloggers through #BiSC.
Laughing with Mike. It's just so wonderful.
Work is going really, really nicely.
Last night we had dinner with a couple we're friends with, and it was a fantastic time. We're all kind of the same people.
We found another potential venue that we like even more than the other one
My Aunt Boo and Grandma are visiting this weekend for...
...dress shopping this weekend!
I'm working on a blogging side-project and I'm really excited about it :)

Wedding Wednesday: Deflated

2012-01-18T14:13:00.002-05:00

Wedding planning is poised to take over my life, my attitude, my free time, and my blog. I'm not letting it.

But ohmygosh I'm so excited.

So I'm limiting my updates (with minor exceptions) to Wedding Wednesday. This will be my one opportunity per week to let it all out. Whew.

This is hosted by Joelle at Something Charming!

Remember when I wrote about my awesome bridesmaids (!!!) and then I ended the post saying that I was excited to go check out a potential venue? Yeah...

I am going to be honest and say that I went in with expectations. I had seen photographs and videos of this venue. I had seen write-ups and reviews. Everything seemed absolutely perfect. It was the one place I could not get out of my head. And then when we went there on Saturday... the entire situation totally deflated me, pffffffft. Just like a balloon. Happy and floaty and then pffffffft on the ground.

The very first potential venue is a winery just outside of Leesburg, VA that we both love. The view is incredible and it's a charming place, and the wine is good.

It was obviously a busy day there: when we arrived (ten minutes early - I love my fiance!) another group was leaving, and there were a few cars parked in the gravel lot. We debated whether or not we should walk into the venue because we saw some people inside, but after a few minutes of the freezing temperatures, we decided to go in. There were two women speaking with a group of six people, and we didn't get noticed for about five minutes. Finally one of the women came over to introduce herself and began the tour. The other group was still standing in the middle of the space, so we went outside first... then back inside... then upstairs...

I was somewhat bothered by the lack of explanation as to her plan. I know I'm overly sensitive about this, and it's because in my line of work I try to be really careful to explain processes to people. The very first thing I do when introducing someone new to something new is take the time to explain how it's going to work. For example: first we'll do a tour; then I'll ask you some questions about your plans; then you can fill out the information card and I'll put together an estimate; then we'll field questions.

Things seemed weird. I get that our host has been doing this for umpteen years or whatever, but I haven't been. I hardly felt welcomed to be there, or at ease to ask all those potentially silly questions I had in my head. I couldn't get a clear picture of certain things, like which tables were actually available to me, and I felt rushed. I was trying to take a lot of notes (I had a feeling that they wouldn't be giving me a brochure with all this information) but our host was talking (and walking) pretty fast.

Eventually we ended up at the final table, where I was instructed to fill out an information form and look at pictures in a few books (some of which were events at the venue, and some were vendors, I think?). Our host started to pull out worksheets and another woman kept asking questions about how things were calculated and where to put what. It didn't take long to feel like I was witnessing an event coordinator training class.

We asked if this was the only venue option; do they do weddings in the winery building? Well, sort of, yes, no, maybe, the guest list maximum is 50, they've had an event for 150... WHAT. I had so many more questions to ask, clarifications to get, notes to write down.

My heart dropped into my feet when I saw the worksheet. I had purposely high-balled the guest list (which we haven't finalized) just to see the multipliers and be able to work things down. She had filled in the catering estimate at $90 per person, which took me completely by surprise because literally the only mention we'd had of catering was her handing us a few sample menus. A note on the worksheet said "Buffet meal Menu Average rate Menu Pricing range is $55-90" - what does that even mean? Our host had filled in numbers here, there, there, there... all the way down to the shocking amount at the bottom of the page.

It was close to $20,000. I was in shock. Quite honestly, as I looked around and paid attention to how I felt: I could not imagine what on earth at this place would make me want to pay $20,000 for it. Sure, maybe if more things were involved in that price, such as upgrades, extra time, wine, beer, liquor, and cake. Maybe if it could be negotiated slightly. Maybe if we had our host's attention to ask more questions and get an idea of their process.

We left without any clear idea of "what's next." Our host did not offer to call or email me to follow-up, she didn't tell us when we should plan to have our next meeting, and she didn't even give us an idea of when we should have our date booked.

When we got back in the car, we were pretty quiet. I had so many questions and I felt stunned. Mike drove up the hill to the winery building for our free tasting* and we finally allowed ourselves to get excited... about the wine.

* It's awesome that they give you a free wine tasting if you come to look at the venue, but the "ticket" for the free wine tasting is the coordinator's business card. So they took my two "tickets," and suddenly I didn't have her business card anymore. That, my friends, makes no sense.

While we were sipping and chatting about vertical tastings and comparisons, Mike casually brought up how much the venue's prices have gone up. Huh? "Yeah, I caught a glimpse of the worksheet underneath ours, and the 2013 prices are about two thousand more than the 2012 prices." That added one more "ick" to the icky feeling. As we talked with some of the tasting staff, they mentioned that they can have weddings in the winery building, and they thought the cut-off was 75. Mike and I talked about how awesome that would be... in theory... because we didn't really have any of the answers.

Even after the wine tasting and the drive home, we couldn't shake the deflated feeling. We couldn't even really talk about it until Mike's Dad's birthday dinner that night. And even then, I was still upset. I had been looking forward to finding "the venue" because it's going to set the wheels in motion for so many other aspects of our wedding. As it stands right now, our wedding date is not set. We're leaving that open so that we can be flexible with a venue we love. So we don't know where, what time of year, or anything.

But, we do know that we're getting married to each other and that's kind of TOTALLY FREAKIN' awesome.

We have started to look into some other venues, and we both feel a lot more upbeat about it now. I guess it was good to get that first one out of the way, and in some ways I'm happy that the very first one was so deflating because it's only up, up, up from here!

Next week's update is going to be awesome because I am going dress shopping this weekend and I refuse to let that be anything but AWESOME.

---------

EDIT

---------

I lied.

I knew two thing going into this:

1. I don't want to overwhelm my regular blog readers with wedding mumbo-jumbo
2. I was never going to be able to keep my updates to one Wednesday a week

So another blog was born!

It's been a great way to share my thoughts as I process this whole wedding planning thing, and I'm having a lot of fun with it. I'm keeping the wedding updates on this blog to Wedding Wednesdays, but I'll be posting daily confessions on this other one.

If you're interested in my wedding planning thought process, or just want to watch me trip my way along, please come visit!

xo.

It's About To Get Crazy

2012-01-17T16:59:00.001-05:00

I woke up yesterday morning singing "and now some shhhhh is about to go down," which is my cleaned-up/butchered version of Ke$ha's totally awesome song "Kiss and Tell."

Here's a little-known fact about me: I blare Ke$ha's music when I'm home alone.

Anyway, why was shhhhhh about to go down?

Because yesterday was my first day of school.

Well, I mean, not first-ever. Obviously. I've been to kindergarten and all that jazz. I think I even passed fourth grade. Wait no. That was the year I failed grammar.

Yes. Me.

Just grammar.

I passed fourth grade.

Moving on. Let's try this again:

Yesterday I started classes to finish my college degree!

I have quite the storied history when it comes to college. To save my dear family (hi, family!) from having to relive those wonderful years, let's just leave it at that.

But I am so back in the game.

And so excited to do this thaaaaang!

I was able to transfer a lot of credits over into Liberty so I probably have 1.5-2 years left before I'll have my degree in business. And then, on that glorious day, even though I'm taking advantage of Liberty's distance learning program, I'll be able to walk during graduation at the school's ceremonies. Oh, and! I can take intensive classes on-campus as well. Hollerrrrr! (Yes Dad, "holler" is a thing.)

I'm really excited. If you follow me on Twitter or we're friends on Facebook or you've allowed me to speak for more than two minutes in the past few weeks, you know this. I was excited when my textbooks arrived, I was excited when my professors emailed first announcements, I was excited when I got access to Blackboard. I glided around on my hopes and dreams for a while there.

Then a huge realization set in.

I am a huge nerd.

Yes, well, that and...

I am about to become a really busy huge nerd.

::sigh::

I am still working full-time and my company is really taking off lately. I am carrying a full-time course-load at school. And Mike and I are planning our wedding and our marriage. Oh and I am training for a 10-mile run, working on losing weight, and planning tons of blogging activities, research, and fun.

No, no... I'm not kvetching. I am truly excited by everything that's going on; all the opportunity and the progress. But I know that all this activity could easily get me down and knock me around.

I was really excited to find Whole Living's article describing "7 Strategies to Regain Control of Your Day" on their website.

A few of them in particular really spoke to me:

1. Don't multitask. Um. Yeah. I'm a huge multi-tasker. Huge. It's bad. I need to align myself to limits: work time is work time; school time is school time; wedding planning time is wedding planning time. Otherwise I'm sure to get overwhelmed quickly.
3. Delegate. This is going to be huge for me as our wedding approaches. I am blessed with a very close group of family and friends who are willing to help; I just need to remember that it's okay to ask them!
4. Stay positive. It doesn't take much to get me down, and I am far less productive when I'm grumpy. It's going to be important to stay positive about everything that I'm working on. Right now, my tactic is to keep bright-colored sticky notes handy for inspiring quotes, silly doodles, and any other required kicks-in-the-rear.
6. See organization as a means, not an end. Sometimes I get on organizational kicks instead of actually doing what I need to be doing. To limit this, I have one planner for everything; one filing cabinet for work; one folder and one notebook for school; and one pile of magazine cutouts for wedding shopping. I won't really need any more than that.

If there is a lot on your plate right now, I would definitely recommend checking out that article. It's great to have those little reminders and bits of advice every now and again. Let me know what speaks to you!

And if you have any advice or resources for advice on juggling work, school, and wedding planning (and me-time!), I am seriously all ears.

Until tomorrow,

xo.

Ten Things: Ten Reasons Why I Am Going To BiSC!

2012-01-17T15:45:00.001-05:00

Ten Reasons Why I Am Going To BiSC!

aduronia is going.
Klutzyballerina is going.
I have never taken myself on a vacation before.
Mike said that I should follow my heart.
Yesterday I received a raise for a year of hard work. I deserve this!
It's a reason to take off from work.
Friendly bloggers! Fellowship! Vegas!
I have only been to Vegas once before; I was 17 and I didn't do much but look out the window of an RV.
I am going to learn and experience so much in four days.
It makes me feel all sparkly inside.

Are you going?
If you are...
here are 5 things you should know about me.

If you're not...
check bloggersinsincity.com for all the details and then come join us!

By the by, have you heard that Paper’d is giving you a chance to win a FREE spot at BiSC 2012? Yep yep! Go here for all the details, and to enter! :)

Ten-Pound Challenge: Weigh-In

2012-01-16T11:23:00.000-05:00

I am taking part in the Ten-Pound Challenge and it starts today!

This morning I took a deep breath and stepped on the scale.

Today, Monday 1/16/12,
I weigh 134 pounds.

I thought that sharing my weight would be

a lot

scarier.

... It's not.

It's empowering.

Let's do this thing!

Wedding Update

2012-01-14T07:00:00.000-05:00

Holy whoa, I have been trying hard to keep the wedding planning overwhelm from getting me. Ever since Mike and I got engaged (almost two months ago - I can't believe it!) I've been deflecting wedding questions to "We're not going start planning until after the holidays." It was valid: we had Thanksgiving, a getaway to a B+B, Christmas in New York City, New Year's, and a trip to Disney on our calendar. I certainly wasn't about to add wedding planning on top of all that. But I was also looking for an excuse to not plan yet: it was scary.

Oh, I was definitely excited. I bought wedding magazines and folded, circled, and tore out pages.I discussed ideas with family, friends, and Mike. But I felt like I couldn't get into the true details of it yet because there was so much yet-undecided. What type of dress should I wear? Well, first I don't know what time of year we'll be getting married, and I don't know what looks good on me. What should the wedding party wear? What colors should we use? When should we get married? What venue should we use? What about flowers, food, transportation? Every daydream, every bit of planning, every question was somehow attached to a decision we hadn't yet made.

I tried to relax. The best piece of advice I've received about being engaged, loud and clear, is this:

enjoy it.

So I focused on enjoying our engagement, our love, and the fun part of putting together a great event. I thought about what we knew: that we want to have a relatively small, distinctively us wedding in Virginia. I did what I could do now, even without the big decisions: I organized my magazine cutouts. I pinned. I wrote down the must-invite list. I figured out financial matters. I researched vendors and made spreadsheets. I made appointments to visit venues. I made appointments to try on wedding dresses, and I had the opportunity to try on dresses belonging to some of the amazing women in my life! Perhaps most importantly, I began to think about who I wanted to be standing with me when I marry Mike. Because we are having a relatively small wedding, we knew that we wanted a relatively small wedding party. A few names came to mind immediately. Mike and I talked about it and thought about it, and made our decisions.

I got to work pouring through my pins, my magazines, and my ideas for a great way to ask that important "Will you be my bridesmaid?" I figured that I had to be able to come up with sometime better than just blurting out "Will you?!?!" excitedly, right? Well, best-laid plans...

I went on a family vacation with my entire family in the first week of January. We all flew to Disney World and surprised Grandma in celebration of her 80th birthday. It was so nice to spend that time with everyone, especially my cousins Dan, Joe, Ken, Kaitlyn, and Annmarie, and my brother Tommy. We have a great time together.

On our last night, Grandma took Tommy, Ken, Annmarie, Kaitlyn, and me up into the Characters In Flight balloon.

[ Characters In Flight
at Downtown Disney ]

[ Annmarie, Kaitlyn, Grandma
aboard the balloon ]

I don't know if it was the 400-foot height, the views of Downtown Disney, the memory-making of a week with my family, or pure giddiness, but before I knew it, I was standing in front of Kaitlyn. "Kate," I began, even though I'm pretty sure she hates being called Kate, "I have a question to ask you: will you be my bridesmaid?" The light on her face made my heart melt. She said yes and gave me a huge hug. The giddiness wore on as I walked across the balloon's gondola to Annmarie, who was clutching the inner railing with both hands and did not look happy with the height! I got close to her and asked her "Will you be my bridesmaid?" I wasn't expecting much excitement from her, but she surprised me! She had the biggest smile. I asked her to let go of the gondola railing to give me a hug, but she only let go with one hand :)

So much for those elaborate plans, hm? I am still planning on giving the girls something to commemorate their roles, but after I send those off I will be sure to share some of those ideas with y'all.

Here are my two beautiful cousins, my bridesmaids: Annmarie and Kaitlyn. How lucky am I?

[ Kaitlyn, Annmarie, me
Christmas 2011
yes- I'm the oldest and the shortest! ]

[ various pictures of us three
- they might kill me for posting these -
as we were growing up
and probably the last time
that I was taller than them ]

I thought surely that I would present myself better when I asked my intended maid of honor. I mean, I had some extra time to prepare before the next time I saw her, I could totally pull something off...

::sigh::

Rhiannon and I had a phone date and the talk eventually turned to the wedding. She offered a lot of advice and encouragement, and talked about how much she was willing to help. My heart got all giddy and happy, and before I knew it... "Well I was kind of hoping you'd want to help, because I'd like you to be my maid of honor. Would you?"

And there was silence.

Gosh darn it, Lauren, learn to keep your big mouth shut! You don't ask someone something like that over the phone! Hahaha :)

Luckily Rhiannon knows me (and my big mouth) so well that she completely overlooked the phone bit and simply got really, really excited. And a little speechless. When she finally resurfaced from the "Oh my gosh!" bit, she said yes and we both stayed giddy for the rest of the call.

I am so, so, so lucky that she'll be there with me throughout all of this!

Here are some photos of my beautiful MOH, Rhiannon (and me), over the years :)

[ old pictures of Rhiannon and me
hanging out, driving around, partying
living the good life ]

[ more recent pictures of us
such goofballs!
honey, you are a rock... ]

I'm so excited that these special girls will be involved in our wedding! The details of our special day are slowly, but surely, coming together. Today Mike and I are headed out to check out a potential venue, about which I am ridiculously excited. I'll post something about that soon.

Happy weekend!

xo,
Lauren Margaret

Little Things

2012-01-13T12:18:00.000-05:00

[ coming home ]

[ snow on the sunroof ]

[ Christmas present from Mom
THANKS MOM!
I love it ]

[ naan, homemade by our friend Matt ]

[ Mike being silly
love him ]

[ Christmas present from Mike
this has been living at my office
it's so good to take a bite
every now and again ]

[ favorite coffee mug
it was Mike's
he gave it to me a million years ago ]

[ our messy kitchen
after cooking for and with friends
I love what this says
about us
and our friends ]

[ flan, homemade by our friend Mary
mmm mmm mmm!
I still have two slices in the fridge... ]

[ 1) purple nails
2) reading in bed - yes, it's a textbook!
3) my Cinderella's Castle blanket ]

[ Maserati, beautiful Maserati:
be still my beating heart ]

[ picture-perfect clouds
Titian-esque
completely unedited ]

Sometimes, you have to stop
and take a look at the little things.

xo,
Lauren Margaret

Fill In The Blank

2012-01-13T11:45:00.002-05:00

Today I'm linking up to
Lauren at The Little Things We Do, for

Fill In The Blank Friday

The last thing I ate was a peanut-butter granola bar - hello, breakfast at 11am!
The last song I listened to was whatever classical piece was on the radio when I was driving to work. Before that, it was probably something by Bon Iver or Bobby.
Using the letters in my name I can spell neural, unreal, learn, lunar, renal, earl, earn, lean, lane, lear, luna, lure, near, real, rule, rune, urea, ale, are, ear, eau, era, ran, rue, run, urn, an... that's all I can think of.
If I had to dress in one color for the rest of my life I would pick blue, so that I can wear jeans and my Giants jersey :)
[ rocking #10 for Big Blue Friday! ]
If you were to look in my bag right now you'd find Brides magazine, Real Simple magazine, three checks that need to be deposited, my planner, two bills to be mailed, a notepad, a can of tomato soup, 13 pens, some cookies, a granola bar, lotion, bronzer, lip gloss, various other toiletries, car keys, and my wallet. Yes. My bag is a mess.
When I finish filling in the blanks I'm going to take a look at my schedule for next week and make sure it's all in my planner.
My all time favorite song to dance to is anything! I looooooooooove to dance! But I especially love dancing to 80s music - none of which I can remember this early in the morning, haha.

xo,
Lauren Margaret

Wine and Love

2012-01-12T09:30:00.000-05:00

Wine and Love is hosted by Nora. Want to join? Read this page for the meme instructions and grab the picture. Then go to Walking With Nora to link up!

What's got me reaching for the
bottle of wine this week...

Oh my gosh, coming back to work after a week's vacation is a pain in the rear.
My upcoming year-end review has got me nervous.
Stupid people are everywhere. ::sigh::

What I'm loving this week...

All the work that Mike did while I was gone: a new-to-us dresser, rearranging some elements of our living room and bedroom, repairs and improvements on the car - wow.
Having dinner with friends twice this week: last night and tonight. Fun :)
Tea. Mmm it's so good.
The wild weather this week has sure kept me on my toes: snow, sunshine, rain, warmth.
Mom gave me a subscription to Real Simple for Christmas, yaaaaay!
I had a phone date with Rhiannon and it was awesome. We laughed for like an hour.
Some elements of our wedding are finally coming together.
There's soooooo much to look forward to these coming weeks and months!

Ten-Pound Challenge

2012-01-12T07:00:00.000-05:00

I haven't shared my 2012 resolutions yet (I will!) but I'll give you a sneak-peek that one of them is to lose weight, so when Krys posted the other day about the Ten-Pound Challenge, I got really excited.

I joined the 10-pound Challenge hosted by Newlyweds on a Budget.

Lose 10 pounds in 12 weeks, win $$$.

Are you in?

The first weigh-in is gonig to be January 16, so I'll post my starting weight and some more details then.

... I guess this means I have to hide the Doritos.

xo!

A Couple of Raccoons

2012-01-11T10:25:00.002-05:00

My Aunt Boo gave me an awesome raccoon hat for Christmas.

Mike and I got silly with it.

These are our pictures.

Snow Dance

2012-01-09T15:27:00.000-05:00

Everyone's talking about this crazy winter weather:

It's so warm!

What's going on?

I wore shorts / flip-flops / a swimsuit to the grocery store!

Where's winter?

Well guess what?

It's snowing!

Yes, here in Virginia! Big fat snowflakes. They're sticking to the grass and the trees and the cars. Maybe soon we'll have some of this...

Drifty drifty.

Snow sunset.

Each one unique.

Dwight says don't stand under them.

Donuts!

There's a yardstick somewhere in there.

That was my car during Snowpocalypse...
or Snowmaggedon...
or Thundersnow.
I forget.

Welcome, winter!

Snow snow snow, so then I'll be able to stay inside with my Cinderella blanket, my Acorn slipper-socks, and coffee! Ha!

Tonight I will be doing my snow dance in anticipation of cuddly days in. My snow dance consists of: turning my PJs inside out, hopping around the house, and doing somersaults.

I don't mess around.

Do you like the snow? Do you have a snow dance? Please do share so that I'm not the only fool out here...

xo.

Tag, You're It!

2012-01-09T11:30:00.000-05:00

The lovely Tessica tagged me in a three-part tag game (which is awesome on so many levels, but mostly because my brain is still getting used to working again after vacation!) so here goes!

Of course,

there are rules.

Post these rules.
Part 1 - Post 11 random things yourself.
Part 2 - Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post.
Part 3 - Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
Then tag 11 people to do this. Go to their blog and tell them that you've tagged them. None of this "You are tagged if you are reading this," you legitimately have to tag 11 people!

Part 1:

11 Random Things About Me

I used to use the word "random" a lot when I was younger. After my Mom made fun of me for so long about it by saying "That's sooooo random!" in a sing-song voice, I realized how pointless it was. So now I never use it.
I have nice handwriting. My brother tells everyone that I have the best handwriting he's ever seen. Our Dad was serious about learning cursive: we'd practice for hours and the dining room table still has the marks of our penmanship!
I grind my teeth at night. It's awful. I wish I could stop. I have a mouth-guard but I guess I didn't mold it right because
I love Doritos, especially Cooler Ranch. And yes, I still call it Cooler Ranch, I won't have none of this trendy new Cool Ranch stuff.
I really wish I had a natural accent. I do accents pretty well, especially the New York one when I'm around my family, and the Southern (Virginia-style, not Georgia-style) when I'm in the mountains. But I wish it were natural and around all the time instead of situational.
I know of no songs about girls named Lauren. There are songs about almost every other name. When I told Mom this, she made up a song. I don't know if that counts, so please let me know if you know of any Lauren songs.
There are a few words I cannot spell, ever. Commitment is one of them. Thank goodness for spell-check.
One day, sooner than later, I will be moving out to a cabin somewhere in the Virginia countryside. I'm serious.
When I live in this cabin, I will work as a consultant, do freelance editing work, and grow a garden. I'm still serious.
I am soooooo awkward. I love people but I never know what to talk about with them, or how to not be awkward, or if I can make weird references to Better Off Dead, or if I should just sit there and shut up.
I only know one joke. I always end up laughing before the punchline.

Part 2:

11 Questions I Was Asked By Tessica

What is your favorite flavor chapstick? Cherry, fo' sho'!
Any upcoming plans you are really excited for? I feel like the past few months have been all about Thanksgiving! Christmas! The big secret Disney trip! Omg! So it feels nice to relax for a few weeks. I am super psyched to start planning our wedding, especially going to try on wedding dresses later this month!
Any moment in your life that didn't live up to your expectations that you had for it, as in...I thought that would be more exciting...? Yes: Splash Mountain. I was sooooo nervous and it was not nearly as bad as I thought it was. I felt pretty foolish for jamming my head into my mom's shoulder right before the dip. Afterward I kept thinking, 'Wait... I just gave myself a panic attack... for THAT? Oy.'
What was something that way surpassed your expectations for it? New Year's Eve! We had dinner out but then cancelled our plans to go to a party. Even though we ended up staying in, it was an emotional and wonderful way to ring in the new year. I thought of everything the past year has given me, and everything I have to look forward to in 2012, and I couldn't help but do that silly crying-and-smiling thing.
Last movie you saw in the movie theatre? I honestly do not remember. No, my memory is not that bad, it's just been that long since I've seen a movie out!
Something you love to secretly watch others do (example: watch Dads play with their children)? I like seeing other people hug. It's so sweet.
Mittens or gloves? Gloves.
Pancakes or French Toast? Ooh, this is a tough one! Probably pancakes... unless they're up against Grandma's french toast, in which case that wins!
Favorite store to shop at? I love J. Crew, although I hardly ever buy anything there.
Do you collect anything? Not anymore. I used to collect keychains. Now I just save mementos of occasions, but I don't know if that's a collection.
If you could recreate a scene from a movie which scene would it be (in real life with the real life people in your real life)? The rowboat scene from The Notebook!

Part 3:

11 Questions I Am Asking The...

What's your favorite color?
What time do you wake up in the morning?
When was the last time you put on music that you wanted to listen to - not the radio, but a playlist you selected?
What is your favorite way to exercise?
Who was your favorite teacher in high school?
Did you do any extra-curricular activities in college?
Do you make your bed every day?
Are you an early riser or a night owl?
Do you hyphenate adverbial phrases, as in newly-engaged or poorly-constructed?
What is your favorite type of weather?
If you could be anywhere right now, where would you be?

...11 People I Am Tagging!

xo.

Surprise!

2012-01-02T16:11:00.001-05:00

I'm at Disney World!

My Grandma hit a milestone birthday in December, and in lieu of a party my aunt arranged a family trip! Aunt Boo and Uncle Izzy gifted the trip for the three of them, and we kept it a secret that the other 11 of us -her children and grandchildren- would be joining them.

We set up the surprise at Olivia's, a restaurant at the Old Key West resort, and it was so great! Grandma is happy to have all of us here, and we're happy to be together.

Happy 2012!

xo.

2011 Wrap-Up

2011-12-30T13:08:00.001-05:00

I ~~stole~~ borrowed this fantastic idea from missris. This will be a new tradition!

1. What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?
I: got engaged... sold a car... bought a car... had surgery... went on a multi-state motorcycle trip... got my motorcycle license... moved to a different county in VA... moved into a high-rise... probably some other things I can't think of.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?  
Yes, I did. My resolution was to make my forever life: I cultivated my relationship with Mike, which resulted in our engagement; I got into school to finish my business degree; I chose my friends and activities. It was good :) I am definitely making more resolutions for this year!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?  
Yes, our friend Gabby had a beautiful baby boy.

4. Did anyone close to you die?  
Yes, my great Aunt Helen passed away.

5. What countries did you visit?  
None :(

6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?
Dedication to physical health! And second: more travel!

7. What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
11/20/11- the day we got engaged.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?  
Launching new websites for work, or getting into school.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Not running or exercising more.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Yes, I was diagnosed with potentially cancerous cervical lesions in June.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
Our car :)

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Mike, for simply being wonderful; and my brother Tommy, for graduating from college!

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?  
Oh I shouldn't get into this.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Paying bills and student loans.

15. What did you get really excited about?
Everything! I'm so excitable. I was stoked for my 25th birthday, Mike's 25th birthday, a lot of our motorcycle trips, our engagement, Christmas in NYC with my family, meeting blogger friends, and Stratejoy :)

16. What song will always remind you of 2011?
"Pumped-Up Kicks," fo' sho.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: 
– happier or sadder? Happier :)
– thinner or fatter? Fatter :(
– richer or poorer? Richer, I guess.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?  
I wish I'd hung out with more of my friends.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?  
Be lazy.

20. How did you spend Christmas?  
In NYC with my family, as always :)

21. Did you fall in love in 2011?
Yes, in love with my life with Mike!

22. What was your favorite TV program?  
Of 2011? James May's Road Trip. Of ever? Tie between Top Gear, The Office, and The West Wing.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?  
Nope - I don't hate ;)

24. What was the best book you read?
Bossypants was GREAT.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery? 
Bon Iver orrrrrr Fleet Foxes (thanks Mike!)

26. What did you want and get?
To get into school.

27. What did you want and not get?
To win the lottery! Lol :)

28. What was your favorite film of this year?
I did not watch many movies. Maybe To Have and Have Not, or Cave of Forgotten Dreams.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 25 this year; Mike cooked dinner for me, and then I had some friends over and we drank and ate cake. It was chill and nice.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
If I'd kept running.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?
Fashion? Lol.

32. What kept you sane?  
Mike, classical music, Stratejoy, and yoga.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
A one Ms. Florence, as in + The Machines. Swoon.

34. What political issue stirred you the most?  
American politics are disgusting, so I try to stay away. (Yes even though I live a stone's throw from DC.)

35. Who did you miss?  
My family in New York, like whoa. And I missed having a best friend. But that's all better now :)

36. Who was the best new person you met?  
Brandi, a girl I work with, is awesome. The Bloggers Who Brunch ladies are also awesome.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.  
That I'm the only person responsible for my happiness.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.  
"Let your troubles roll by," from Carbon Leaf.

Happy 2012, my friends!

xo.

Fill In The Blank Friday: The New Year Edition

2011-12-30T10:12:00.004-05:00

I haven't done a Fill In The Blank Friday in a while. I feel like my schedule got all messed up somewhere in November and I'm still playing catch-up. Oh, holidays.

Anyway! This week's theme is... can you guess? NEW YEAR'S! Lauren put together a nice little themed list, so be sure to head over to The Little Things We Do to check it out, comment on hers (and check out her previous resolution - the "30 Day Hair Challenge" - I am in AWE!) and link up.

New Years is a wonderful celebration! When else does the entire world celebrate together? I think it's one of the happiest moments of the year.
One of my New Year's resolutions will be to learn how to cook.
A New Year's resolution I've made in the past was to live dangerously happy. It's a line from a Carbon Leaf song that I actually heard at a New Year's celebration, and I decided it was just too perfect. I needed to be happy and do whatever it took to get there. It took a while to sink it but it eventually worked!
The most time consuming resolution I ever made was I honestly don't remember... I used to be really bad at resolutions... lol :)
This year I will be spending New Year's Eve with my love and my friends!
If I could wish one thing for my new year it would be inner strength.
2012 is going to be a crazy but wonderful year, possibly even a continuation of The Hella Crazy Year. I'll be changing my role at work, going back to school full-time, and planning our wedding - and who knows all the surprises that will be thrown in there! Everything is movement towards my forever life, but it is going to be rough at times!

What are your plans to ring in 2012, friends?

My plans have run the gamut - from a quiet night in with family, to a blow-out party and concert at a hotel, to running down the street with friends banging pots and pan, to rooftop house parties. My celebrations have certainly been varied!

This will be my second New Year's with Mike and I am so excited :)

Last year we settled in with another couple (who had just found out they were expecting!) and watched the ball drop quietly.

This year we are doing a little bit of everything: going out to a dinner, then to a friend's house party, then progressing from that party with our friends to "one of the chillest bars in Arlington" (yes that's how it was described to me!) to watch the ball drop. Yay!

Happy Friday!

xo.

Enlightenment

2011-12-28T15:18:00.002-05:00

Remember yesterday when I mentioned We Love DC's Best of: Photos 2011?

Well I said I'd share my favorite today, and here it is:

[ photo by pablo.raw - click the photo to be taken to flickr page! ]

I especially like the "Seeking Enlightenment" bit.

I'm seeking enlightenment in many ways. It's a difficult process, so I take advantage of every little bit I attain.

Mike and I spent last Friday (before Christmas) in Manhattan. It was a whirlwind day, traveling from here to there and back again. We shopped and sighted and photographed and laughed. We saw tourists and crazies. We wandered.

And when we finally took a seat to rest, I came to realize something important.

I don't know if you know this, but I am from New York and so is my whole family. We left when I was 7 and moved around a bit. After I graduated high school here in Virginia, I moved in with my Grandma in Queens and went to college in The City. Those boroughs became my place. I loved my time there, even though I didn't follow the track I'd always thought I would; I had so many experiences that contributed to who I am today.

I still know the strees, the routes, the subway lines; how to walk, how to talk. I still feel excited when I see the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge on the drive up there.

Part of my heart will always be at my Grandma's house in Queens, with her and with all of my aunts and uncles and cousins.

New York City will always be where I'm from, my starting point, and a definitive time in my growth. I will always respect and revere The City and all it has taught me.

But it's no longer my blood.

I used to be scared: who would I be without New York City? I'm not scared anymore. I realized that I do not need to hold on to my memories in The City. They are not my safe harbor.

I am living my forever life now

Ten Things... Or Maybe Twelve Things

2011-12-27T10:09:00.000-05:00

Happy Tuesday!

I usually do Chelsea's Ten on Tuesday list but she's taking a much-deserved vacation, so I am writing my own totally non-thematic tally of ten things that happen to be on my mind this morning.

1. Christmas was amaaaaaaazing! I'm going to do a series of posts this week about my family's awesome Christmas traditions.

2. Did you celebrate Christmas? How was it? Where did you go? Was Santa good to you? Please tell me all the things!

3. Have you seen We Love DC's Best Of: Photos 2011 yet? It's awesome and you should take a look. Let me know which one was your favorite! I'll share mine tomorrow.

4. Today finally feels like winter - it is cold, the sky is grey, and the trees are bare. It only took until December 27 to get here. But... it's still raining. No snow. Boo.

5. Christmas means family which means reliving memories which, in my family, usually means watching baby videos. And my oh my, were there baby videos:

[this is me sitting in a brown paper shopping bag.
yep.]

6. I'm incredibly excited for January because January is after the holidays and after the holidays means we get to start planning our wedding!!!

7. Speaking of our wedding, my entire family was so excited to see Mike and me, and to congratulate us on our engagement, and to hear the story, and all of it! It was wonderful to see everyone so happy :)

8. Whoa nelly, chasing down transcripts for college transfers and acceptance and whatnot is really terribly exhausting.

9. Does anyone have a tip for dealing with awfully dry heat-is-on-all-the-time winter air? The air in our bedroom is killing me. I've been waking up with a sore throat and bloody nose (sorry if that's TMI!) for a week.

10. I really must find a post office. I have packages that are way overdue in being sent to friends!

Oh and 11. (because these go to 11) This is how I feel about being back at work after a lovely long weekend: PFFT.

Oh and 12. (because 11 was not enough) That David Tutera wedding show on WE scares me. Am I the only one?

xo.

Ten Things: It's too warm for December

2011-12-20T16:19:00.000-05:00

Ten on Tuesday, provided and hosted by Chelsea at Roots and Rings

1. What is your favorite online-only store?

I guess Amazon? I mean I do all my shopping online, but I guess most of those other places also have storefronts.

2. Do you enjoy wrapping gifts?

Yes! I love it! But I stink at ribbon. Mom is so good at it, and obviously I did not get that gene.

3. What is the temperature in your city today?

It is currently 54F in Vienna, which is where I work. What the heck, December.

4. What time do you eat dinner?

Unfortunately I don't have a set dinner-time; it varies wildly. Hopefully that will change in the new year!

5. Will you be making New Years Resolutions?

Absolutely! I always do.

6. How old is your oldest pair of shoes that you still wear?

It's a toss-up between my green Converse high-tops (given to me as a gift in 2005) and my burgundy Birkenstock clogs (2004 or 2005... I can't remember).

7. Do you have any restaurant phone numbers saved in your phone?

Hm, let's check... Yes. I have a pizzeria's number.

8. What is your favorite and least favorite letter to write in cursive?

I looooooove writing in cursive. Love love love it. It's my go-to handwriting. I don't think I have a favorite, but I really like writing G, H, J, L, M, S, and Z. I don't so much like writing A, W, or Q.

9. Do you know any good riddles?

Not a single one! I am not good at those.

10. How do you feel about snow?

I greatly enjoy snow so long as I do not have to drive to work.

Go over to Roots and Rings to link up! :)

Fifth Avenue Street Cred

2011-12-15T13:32:00.003-05:00

Once upon a time, I was a girl from Virginia who moved to New York City. I took the subway every day. I went to architecture school in Harlem. I met some of the coolest people. And I did really awesome things.

Facebook recently opened up their Timeline feature to, um, everyone, so I checked it out... and my Timeline has allowed me to regain parts of my life that I totally forgot even happened.

Things like this exchange with a friend, from years ago:

Kebba: How come u haven't been snooping round my building?

Lauren: It couldn't possibly be because i have better things to be doing. Have you finally given up stalking me?

Kebba: Never!!!!!! But wait a sec... Weren't u the one who came to my work place?

Lauren: If by my work you mean the 59th street subway station & dean and deluca in borders at 59th street, well then, yes... I am stalking you. Damn. Just because you work at one of the busiest/coolest places I often frequent, well, yeah... I'm stalking you. ;)

(You should've seen the look on my friend's face when I punched you on the subway stairs. He was like wtf? You go around punching random big black guys!?!?! Hahahahaha)

Kebba: You should have been like hell yea (it would have earned you some street cred)

Lauren: Baby I got all the street cred I need

Kebba: Yea 5th ave street cred

I forgot about all the funny conversations we had. I forgot how often we just ran into each other in the city. I forgot that I used to hunker down at the Dean and Deluca inside of Borders at Columbus Circle. I forgot about our street cred jokes, like Gun Hill street cred and Fifth Avenue street cred. I forgot just how New York I was. Now I'm starting to remember who that girl was, and fall in love with her all over again.

My heart is all warm and fuzzy :)

Ten Things: I'm a picky egg-eater.

2011-12-13T09:21:00.002-05:00

Ten on Tuesday!

These questions were provided by Chelsea... and hosted by Chelsea... Chelsea does all the things. If you have a suggestion for Ten on Tuesday questions, let her know!

1. How do you eat your eggs?

Scrambled, well-blended with no chunks of white or yellow left, well-done and absolutely not runny, and with cheese and seasoning. That's it.

2. Do you volunteer?

I used to when I was younger. I want to more, but I need to figure out how to do all the things first. I become sort of useless when I get overwhelmed.

3. What’s your favorite brand of jeans?

Lucky Brand Jeans, please. I also like Levi's.

4. What was your child’s first word? Or what was your first word?

I have absolutely no idea what mine was, and I don't have any kids. So... I can't answer this.

5. Can you french braid?

No way. Mike's Mom has tried to teach me and I'm a failure. I can't do anything with hair. It's sad. It's either up, or down, or half-up... and that's it. But I really want to learn.

6. Do you prefer wide rule, college rule, or blank paper?

College rule all the way.

7. Is there a specific treat you always make during the holidays?

Nope... I'm sure there will be someday.

8. Do you have a KitchenAid mixer? Do you want one?

I do not have one, and OHMYGOSH I want one. But our kitchen is too small. That mixer would take up approximately 80% of our counter space.

9. What kind of computer do you use?

At work I use a Dell Optiplex desktop. Sometimes I use the office IBM ThinkPad laptop. And my personal laptop is a Sony VAIO, but the power connector has decided to stop working so it won't hold power, so I obviously have not been using that. It makes me angry so it's hidden under our sofa right now.

10. Favorite Christmas movie?

Love Actually.

My Christmas Wishlist

2011-12-12T13:27:00.005-05:00

My Christmas Wishlist

(in no particular order)

My number one request for this Christmas is to be able to share some special time with each of you, my friends and loved ones. Maybe tea for two. Maybe a week at an Italian villa. Maybe some wine and chocolate. Maybe a Skype call. Maybe simply knowing that I'm thinking of you and sending some love your way. I'm blessed to know some of the most wonderful people in the world! xoxo.

But as for the tangible things, well, maybe I've got a little list...

1. Kitchen decorations, such as:

[ via funnelcloud on Etsy - listing. ]

Our kitchen walls are pretty bare. Some fun prints, like these from funnelcloud, or photographs or paintings would be awesome.

2. A race bib holder, akin to:

[ via Running On The Wall on Etsy - listing. ]

I love love love this because I have a ton of race bibs that I don't want to throw away, but I can't find anything to do with them. This would be an awesome way to display them!

3. Pretty rings, such as:

[ via Esteverde on Etsy - listing. ]

[ via ranaway on Etsy - listing. ]

[ via OliveWoodJewellery on Etsy - listing. ]

I love rings, especially unique ones like wood, leaves, and the classic infinity knot. (I can wear sizes 5.5-7 ;) )

4. Wedding planning tools. I don't know if this is a wishlist item or a plea for help! If you have a recommendation for a wedding planning tool, be it a website, book, vendor, etc., please pass it along to me! Thank you!

5. A new watch, such as:

[ via Swatch ]

Source: shopbop.com via Lauren Margaret on Pinterest

I have a great workday watch, but I'd like something more "me" for weekends.

6. A new casual winter coat, like:

Source: abercrombie.com via Lauren Margaret on Pinterest

My current casual coat has, um, seen its better days.

7. Neat t-shirts. I used to have so many t-shirts, and now... I don't. Sadface.

8. Toms. I particularly like the Highlands Grey Wool Fleck Fleece Women's Botas, the Black Canvas Classics, the Red Snowflake, and the Silver Morocco.

9. Vintage red lanterns, such as:

Source: etsy.com via Lauren Margaret on Pinterest

10. Miscellaneous things, like: scrabble tiles; knitting yarn; small glass jars; cloth bins; a typewriter; stationery set(s); wine corks; wine barrel(s); wool socks; trouser socks; comfortable black heels; seasonal wreath(s); tea; your favorite hair product, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, and/or makeup; wine; photographs; fabric; paintings; crafting supplies; braided leather belts; headbands and/or barrettes.

The Hella Crazy Year

2011-12-09T15:15:00.000-05:00

I first saw a version of this on missris, and then a few more places after that. I think it's a really good way to take a snapshot of the year.

Mike and I spent New Year's Eve 2010 and the first days of 2011 with each other, and over champagne I was happy to tell him that 2011 was going to be the year I made my forever life.

I had been bouncing around for so long and I was finally ready for some continuity, some permanence. I made the conscious decision that this year would be it. It wouldn't be perfect, it wouldn't be easy, but each step I took in 2011 would be a step toward creating the life I wanted: my forever life.

And let me tell you...

2011 was hella crazy!

I experienced the joy of choosing to do things, like getting my motorcycle license, deciding when to finally be done with a friendship, and encouraging my own creativity.

A bunch of things happened to me - nothing that I chose, but things that I had to deal with... things like broken-down cars, an earthquake, and a cancer scare.

I turned 25.

I watched my baby brother graduate from college.

I got engaged!

I felt the joys and pains as my friends and family went through their own celebrations and trials. With hiccups and interruptions here and there, I felt like 2011 was an intentional year for me, and one of the best ever.

I guess you're normally supposed to cross off the things you've done, but I'm going to write a little bit about each of these, even the ones I haven't experienced this year :)

In 2011, I have...

gotten a new piercing- No, although I really wanted to. But I guess there's still time!
dyed my hair- Yes! First red and now brown. I love dyeing my hair.
ended a relationship- Nope.
started a relationship- Nope... Mike and I were together when 2011 began!
been on a long car trip- Yes! AND on a long motorcycle trip!
passed an exam- No exams for meeeee.
met someone who’s now an important part of my life- Yes! I met a number of new friends in 2011, including Mike's ADV friends and the Bloggers Who Brunch!
cried on someone’s shoulder- Yep, probably more than once.
gotten a raise- Yes, thank goodness.
had a massive fight with someone- Yes.
received flowers- Yes!
had a valentine- Yes... the best Valentine's Day ever!
written a letter using pen and paper- Absolutely! I love writing old-fashioned letters.
been prescribed medication by a doctor- Yep, my normal stuff and then some post-surgery pain medication as well.
read a really good book- Yes! Bossypants was probably my favorite of the year.
been promoted- Yes!
gone to the zoo- Nope, not this year.
spent too much money on unnecessary things- ::sigh:: ...Yes.
traveled by train- Yes! I love traveling by train!
cried over a member of the opposite sex- Nope
spent the day out in the sun getting a tan- Ha! I did, actually, but for me a tan is relative. Getting a tan consists of putting on the highest possible SPF I can find and then going out into the sun and praying I don't turn into a lobster. I had one such successful day this year. It was kind of a big deal.
wasted a whole day on the internet- Oh, of course.
slammed a door out of frustration- Yes - once at work and once at home.
had an anxiety attack- Mhm.
moved- Yes, TWICE! In January from my parents' house to Vikram's house, and in July with Mike to our home!
babysat for a friend’s child- Nope, not yet...
had a bbq- I have not hosted one, but I've been to a few! Dad and my brother Tommy are BBQ masters.
gone to the fair- I have not done that this year.
rekindled an old friendship- 100% yes!
fallen down the stairs- YES! I did this once at Vikram's house. Oh. my. gosh. It hurt.
gone bowling- Sadly I have not done this in 2011. I love bowling! I used to be on a bowling team! ::sigh::
seen a film- Yes, I did see one or two movies in the theater. But I really prefer Netflix!
seen a film in 3d- I did! Mike and I saw a film about Saudi Arabia at the National Museum of Natural History.
gone on a date- Yep, just a few of these!
been the only sober one on a night out- Um... nope. I'm not the responsible one. lol
helped someone home after they had been drinking- Yes, yes I have... even though I wasn't sober either... it's fun staggering together!
stayed up all night- Yep, done this a few times!
talked on the phone for more than two hours- Absolutely!
supported someone who’d received bad news- Most definitely. A few of my friends and family have had to deal with bad news this year, and I was happy to be there for them.
watched a live sporting event- Yes, quite a few! Mike and I went to a handful of Washington Nationals games; my entire family went to a New York Mets game; and Mike and I recently went to a Washington Capitals game. So much fun.
read an entire book in one day- Not quite one day, no.
bought a dvd the day it was released- Who buys DVDs? I don't...
eaten fast food more than four times in a single week- Ew, no.
cried as a result of stress- Absolutely. This happens way more than I want it to. I let myself get way over the breaking point before letting it out. Hm, something to work on for 2012?
met some incredible new people- YES! I already touched on this above, but I met so many wonderful people through Mike and ADV, including Pam, Mat C, and Beard. I had the opportunity to rekindle a friendship from high school. I was able to get to know the Bloggers Who Brunch girls. It was a good year for meeting incredible new people!
gone to a great party- Absolutely! I'm lucky to have a wonderful group of friends who know how to party.
gotten a bad bruise- Yes.... I am the queen of bruises. I actually got my first bruise of 2011 on January 1, 2011 while hiking with Mike. I slipped on a rock in an icy creek and wound up with a watermelon-sized bruise on my backside. Owwww.
broken my glasses- No, thank goodness!
worn a watch every day- Almost? Almost every day. Maybe half the days.
cried over someone in my past- No way. Over that!
thrown up- Ew. Yes. Do not like.
cried over a film- Yessssss... I'm a sucker.
gone out of my way to avoid an ex-boyfriend- Nope, haven't felt the need to avoid anyone. When they've sought me out I have expressed my forgiveness and hope that they're happy now.
fought with someone in public- No way.
been in a relationship for a year or longer- Yes! Yay!
cried in front of someone- Yep! I think the only one I've cried in front of was Mike.
lost one of my closest friends- Yes, but not in the way you might think... she didn't die, and it was actually my choice to "lose" her friendship. It was a sad but powerful moment in my 2011.

Oh 2011... the only reason I'm ready to say goodbye to you is because I can't wait to see what 2012 will bring :)

xoxo.

Little Things

2011-12-09T11:16:00.001-05:00

It's been a while since I have taken the time to focus on the little things in my life, and boy has it shown. I have been exhausted and overwhelmed to the point that I have been avoiding even my most favorite things (I'm looking at you, Joy Council) and I have been spending my days under a fog of everything.

When the people who know me best ask what's wrong, I always say nothing because I don't know how to define it, how to change it, how to overcome it. I opened up to Mike earlier this week and he helped me to talk it through, make a list, and start tackling what I could. (Oh, I wish for the day when I will find the words to thank him for being in my life.)

One of the steps I know I need to take is to remember to slow down and express my appreciation for all of the wonderful little things in my life.

Things like Mike making me coffee nearly every morning!

Things like pretty skies when I leave the office at night.

Things like cute, funny illustrations in hair color instructions.

Things like finally drinking this delicious wine from our
trip to the Finger Lakes in May.

Things like beautiful clouds.

Things like Lip Butter.

Things like winter weather.

Things like my new brown hair :)

Other things:

talking to my family in the middle of the day. Mom, Dad, my Aunt Boo, my Grandma
checking off a lot of my work to-do list
funny text messages from Mike
this shiny promise on my finger
sleeping in on rainy mornings
taking the stairs instead of the elevator
receiving two lovely 'congratulations on your engagement' cards
sending our first Christmas cards this week
Hot Mix. omg.

Ahh... wonderful. Happy Friday, and happy weekend!

Don't Be Condescending

2011-12-07T10:05:00.001-05:00

Don't Be Condescending

or: Dissecting An Email From Customer Service

One of my big pet peeves is when people are condescending to others. I think it's generally mean and nasty, and it's completely unnecessary behavior.

The even bigger pet peeve is when a company is condescending to its customers. I mean, besides being nasty, it simply doesn't make sense on so many levels. I work in business and I coach people against doing this sort of thing all the time. You do realize that your customers are your biggest influence right? When I am speaking with my clients - by phone, email, in-person, whatever - I do my best to be calm and helpful at all times. But I'm going to stop there, because I'm going to try really hard to not get into this from the business side; I'm getting into it from the consumer side.

As a consumer of various widgets and tchotchkes, I've been subject to a fair share of condescension from businesses. A particularly striking example was the woman who was pouring our wine tasting at a local Virginia winery. She had the worst holier-than-thou attitude I've ever seen. She consistently tried to correct our tasting impressions and notes. She actually told us we were wrong at one point. She turned candid conversations into opportunities to one-up us. The wine was good, but that woman left such a bad taste in my mouth that I will not be going back to that winery again.

A business can choose what type of people to hire and how to treat their customers. As a consumer, I can choose to give you my money or ignore you; and that decision is made based on your products, your ethics, reviews from other consumers, and the way you treat me.

This latest incidence cut a little deeper than some wine-pourer who I'll never see again. This happened with Company ABC (yes, that is a fake name) - a company I've been supporting with my hard-earned dollars for four years, a company whose products I have given to my friends as gifts, a company I have recommended to others quite frequently.

It was particularly painful because by the end of my communication with Company ABC, I felt confused and rather dumb.

Psst, guess what, companies? If you leave your consumers feeling confused and dumb, you're doing something wrong.

Let's go back to how all this started:

Mike and I got engaged in November. That means we're getting married! Yay! That also means that we get to plan a wedding, which means that, being a planner type of person, I need a wedding planner book/binder/folder/bag of some sort. I've had my eye on Company ABC's wedding planner since they launched it. Now I could finally buy one. Oh happy day!

Thus began the process of choosing a design and officially ordering it. I poured over my options, poured over the details... and then I stopped. Company ABC's wedding planner has a calendar, which I think is a super handy thing to have in a wedding planner, but the calendar only covers thirteen months from the day you order it. Hmm. That takes me to December 2012. Mike and I are looking at getting married in 2013, so a calendar that only takes me through part of the engagement isn't so useful.

But wait! I can call Company ABC! They have their email address there, a phone number, a Twitter account, a Facebook page - there are plenty of ways to get in touch with them. I can just ask if they can add in an extra year. All my problems are solved!

I called Company ABC and sat around listening to strange music for a little while. I think it was hold music, but I don't know because there was no message stating "Hello, you've reached Company ABC! We're totally swamped right now - no, I mean, we're literally in a swamp so it's going to take us a few minutes to wade back over to the phone to answer it. We would appreciate you hanging on." Nope; just weird music. And then finally someone answered! I explained my situation and what I needed, and he basically just said NO.

"We can't do that. The planner only comes with the thirteen-month layout."

Oh... oh, well all right. Thanks for your help?

I got their email address and prepared an email. I did this because I wasn't sure that the guy with whom I was speaking understood my incredibly simple request. I wasn't sure that he had the authority to say no. I wanted to say some things in the email that are harder to say on the phone: things like "I've been a customer for years!"; "You guys are awesome!"; "All of my friends bought your stuff!" "Pretty please?"

So I wrote. It was a long(ish) email but the message of it was "Hi, is there a way to add an extra year to the wedding planner? Let me know! Kthxbye!"

I did not like the email response I got. It made me feel dumb, difficult, and confused. By the time I read through this, I actually thought that I was a bad person for asking them about a custom order. This time the answer was not just "No," it was "No, because of all of these reasons that are so much more incredibly important than you being a happy customer."

They said "It would be really wonderful to" do what I was asking. They said that unfortunately, their "holiday elves" are just too busy to handle custom orders right now. Yes. Holiday elves. I did not make this up. Look, I get that I'm asking for a custom order in the middle of what has to be busiest time for any small business. It's fine to tell me that I can't have what I want right now. But let's be adults about it, all right?

They said that "during spring time next year" they'll finally be able to "see if it is a possibility to have a coil large enough to support all of these additional pages." Oh wow. Where to begin. Let's start with "spring time next year" because that is March. So thanks for telling me that my little order is not important enough to be looked at until March. And then, oh, is there a coil large enough? Who do I think I am, requesting all of those additional pages?

Finally, they wrapped up by saying "We apologize if we're unable to accommodate your request at this time." This is not an if. You're definitively saying that you are unable to accommodate my request. On top of that, you are leaving out any other options of accommodating my request, oh, except for waiting until March.

Then they thanked me for "understanding." This is interesting because I want to know what they think I am understanding. Understanding that I had wasted my time emailing them? Understanding that I just asked them to do the impossible by adding a few pages that will make their product all the more valuable to me? (And really, am I the only bride who wants a calendar that covers their entire engagement?) Am I supposed to understand that your formerly small-and-awesome company is moving toward becoming a bloated, holier-than-thou company? Or is it that I should understand that my business isn't important to you until March?

I don't know that I've ever been so disappointed with and annoyed at a company before.

If I were Company ABC, here are a few things I would have done differently:

I would have given a specific timeframe in which a custom order could be accommodated. "We will be happy to take your custom order on 12/28."
I would have offered to contact the customer myself to take the custom order. "We will be happy to take your custom order on 12/28, and I will call you at the number in your email signature to process it."
I would have gotten my facts and numbers straight. "Our traditional coil system can only support 100 pages, so to add the additional 12 calendar pages we will need to use a larger coil. There will be an additional fee of $15 for this customization."
I would have ended my email with something helpful and nice. "If you have any further questions, please call or email Company ABC. We appreciate your business."
I would have left the elves out of it.

Dear Company ABC,

You have put me in the difficult position of deciding whether your products are worth the way you treat your customers. Thank you for understanding.

xoxo, Lauren

Ten Things

2011-12-06T10:45:00.001-05:00

Happy Tuesday! It feels odd to be around on a Tuesday, after last week's vacation... boy I wish I could vacation all the time. But back to the real world: today is Tuesday. It's 60 degrees and raining here, which I don't understand because IT'S DECEMBER. Hello Mother Nature, what's going on up there?

I'm tired today but I don't know why, because I am an old lady and I slept from like 9pm to 7am. And also because I'm an old lady, Mike and I watched approximately 3,583 episodes of The Office last night. Okay more like 6 or 7 episodes. We giggled especially hard at a scene where Jim and Pam were talking about wedding planning. Mike convinced me not to eat bean dip for dinner, oh that guy. Then he helped me dye my hair! Now I am sporting dark brown hair, and I love it bunches. I think I look like my mom did when she was younger - what do you think?

My new dark hair :)

The beautiful women in my family: my mom is the one on the far left with the string of pearls.
She's standing next to my wonderful Grandma.
My Aunt "Boo" is stunning in blue, and
my always-fashionable Aunt Ellie is on the step below them.

That's the only electronic copy of an old picture of my mom that I could find, so I'll have to steal/scan some more soon. But that's that. Aren't they gorgeous? Earlier today Mom said that she thinks I look like her with darker hair, and I think that's such a compliment :)

I bought beauty stuffs over the weekend: three Revlon nail polishes including Facets of Fuschia, which I am completely in love with and is currently on loan to my coworker; and four Revlon Lip Butters. I'm obsessed. All the Bloggers Who Brunch girls have been talking about them non-stop but I didn't really get it until someone said "I hate lipstick and I love these." That sounded like something I could work with. My local CVS had then buy 1-get 1 50% off, so I loaded up with a nude, a coral, a berry, and a red. I'll write more about the specific colors later. For now: I'm in looooooooove.

Anyway, here's to Ten on Tuesday! As always, this is hosted by the lovely Chelsea at Roots and Rings, and the questions this week were provided by Sarah at Simply Sarah!

1. What are 3 things that are on your Christmas wishlist?

Three random things picked off of the longest list ever are: socks (wool and trouser, please); a toiletries bag for traveling; and a wreath. I'd really love a wreath.

2. What’s your favorite Christmas song?

All I Want For Christmas Is You

3. Do you have a favorite band or singer that sings it especially awesome?

The scene in Love Actually! lol :)

4. Have you heard about the website goodreads?

Yes I have, and I love the idea and have an account and try to keep up with it, but... I haven't. sadface.

5. What are 3 books you want to read?

Maphead, The Help, and Is Everybody Hanging Out Without Me?

6. Do you hunt deer?

I have never hunted anything. Even so we have about 5lbs of venison in our freezer. Oh, life with a country boy ;)

7. Have you started Christmas shopping? Are you completely finished?

No and no. Eep.

8. Did you shop on Black Friday? What was the best deal you got?

I accidentally shopped on Black Friday. I didn't mean to, but I had to go to Target to buy some stuff for Saturday's brunch. Thankfully it wasn't too bad. I got a nice acrylic snowflake tray for like $5 - hollerrrrr.

9. What’s one holiday tradition your family has?

Christmas Eve. It's huuuuuuuge. That's all I'm going to say for now.

10. How many blogs do you read? Do you subscribe/unsubscribe often or do you purge every once in a while?

I follow well over 100 blogs in my Google Reader account, and a read many others sporadically when chasing links around the web. I purge my Reader list pretty frequently.

Ten Things

2011-12-02T10:03:00.001-05:00

I want to start off by saying that I fully realize that it's Friday. I'm finally catching up on all the blogs I read and I'm going through a ridiculous amount of withdrawal from not being around on Tuesday, therefore not being able participate in the Roots and Rings Ten on Tuesday questions thing that I've been doing for-ev-er... so I'm doing them now. On Friday.

1. Do you wear glasses, contacts, or are you one of those perfect eyed people?

I am blind as a bat! I wore glasses from 9-17, and I've been wearing contacts since then. I still wear my glasses at night and on the odd occasion that I don't want to wear contacts.

2. What is the next item you are going to purchase?

Yesterday I got a super discount voucher for Erin Condren, so I think I might just get the wedding planner that I've had my eye on for, oh, about a year now ;)

3. Have you ever watched Judge Judy or any other real court show?

I've seen bits and pieces, but I've never sat down to watch a whole episode. Those court shows tend to be on in nail salons which is the only reason why I've ever seen them.

4. How do you feel about fake nails?

I love them and wish I had them! My nails are really weak so polish is always chipping off of them. I had fake nails during college and absolutely loved them. Okay and I think it's worth noting that there are nice fake nails and hideous fake nails: The kind that are so long you can't touch anything? Or bright orange? Or curl under your finger? Hideous.

5. What is your favorite sport to watch?

American football!

Wait - in person or on TV? If it's in person, it's baseball. Love me some live baseball games. If it's TV, it's definitely football. ::swoon::

6. If you could create your own Ben -n- Jerry’s ice cream flavor, what would it be and what would it be named?

Ooh. I don't know. All my favorite flavors are already out there.

7. Do you have any scars?

Yes, I have so many scars! A million billion on my arms and knees, a brand-new oven burn scar on my wrist, an old scar on my right eyelid from surgery I had when I was a kid, two scars on my bottom lip... none of the others really stick out.

8. Does your pet’s name fit them? Is there a more appropriate name?

I don't have a pet right now...

But my aunt-and-uncle-and-Grandma's dog (that we got while I was living with them) is named Dulce and that's perfect because it's the Spanish word for "sweet" and she is diabetic. Ha, ha.

My family dog, who passed away in April, was named Cookie and she was a Dalmatian, so that too was perfect.

9. What is your favorite television show theme song?

The West Wing.

10. What was your favorite activity on the playground?

The swing set! I loved - still love - swinging.

PS - It's December already? I am sort of not okay with this.

Friends, Champagne, and Wrapping Paper

2011-12-01T14:18:00.001-05:00

Last weekend I had the pleasure of hosting some lovely friends for a fun event:

brunch

cookie swap

ornament-making party!

You've heard about these friends before. They're all local bloggers and they're really wonderful people. I can't think of any other situation in which I'd be comfortable having some people I'd only met twice before over to my home, but this - this is different. Because we're all connected through our blogs, Twitter, and email, we know each other a lot better. Our get-togethers have become a monthly occurrence and it's been super nice to bridge the gap between blog-friends and friends :)

And can I say how absolutely inspiring they are? Photography, sewing, painting, fashion, art, crafting, beauty, style, motherhood, home decorating - these girls have it all! There is so much giving, so much inspiration, so much kinship in knowing each other.

In all the fun we had, I managed to snap only two pictures!

This is *great* with champagne.

Wrapping paper madness.

Tessica, Ashley, Rachel, and Sarah came over around 11 for brunch and some drinks, lots of chatter and laughter about all things under the sun, and some ornament-making instruction! Many, many thanks go out to Tessica for organizing this whole thing, and for being our craft instructor! I love the snowflake and can't wait to make more :)

Rachel wrote a really lovely recap over on Funnelcloud that made my heart smile!

Ashley shared her (always amazing!) photographs on That Is All. Seriously, Ashley, my home has never looked as good as it does in your photos.

(and go visit Sarah and Tessica too!)

And of course, there are more wonderful girls in our group, and there will be many more events :) Until next time...!

PS, You can see my snowflake in this photograph of our Christmas tree :)

PPS, Yes that's our very first Christmas tree and we are super excited about it!

Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T17:03:00.001-05:00

"How do you make the green bean casserole?"
"It says right on the back of the French fried onions... green beans, cream of mushroom soup..."
"Cream of what?"
"Mushroom."
"What's in that?"
"Mushroom! ...Oh, shit!"

Hm, guess which new addition to the family is allergic to mushrooms?

Yep that would be me. I'm falling all over myself laughing.

(I'm all right.)

What an amazing day with my future in-laws! :)

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all

The Proposal Story

2011-11-22T16:22:00.001-05:00

Hi y'all!

The proposal story

(and photographs!)

are up at our blog:

Life Two-Up

You get to read the story

from me

and from him!

Hope you'll visit

and follow :)

xoxo.

Thanksgiving Ten

2011-11-22T12:24:00.001-05:00

Time again for Ten on Tuesday!

This week Chelsea's talkin' Thanksgiving - please pop over to her blog to join up!

1. What are you doing for Thanksgiving this year?
This year, in a total break from tradition, I will be spending Thanksgiving with my fiancé and my future in-laws!

2. What are you most thankful for this year?
My family, Mike, his family, all of our friends, and in general all of the wonderful people in my life! Y'all are the best!

3. Do you have any traditions on Thanksgiving? The parade? Football? Long naps?
We usually run a "turkey trot" race, organized or not! There's always parade-watching, tons of cooking, and football-yelling. When I was younger we would play football in the backyard, too :) This year it'll be a departure from tradition though! Mike and I will be going to a family friend's house for Bloody Mary Brunch, and having dinner at his parents' house. Dessert may be at my mom's... we'll see!

4. Is it called stuffing or dressing? Is it in the bird or a separate dish?
It's called stuffing, and it's a separate dish.

5. Do you cook?
Yes, I love to cook! But I don't usually cook on Thanksgiving; I just make a really yummy cranberry glaze and leave the rest of the cooking to the pros.

6. What is your favorite dish?
Dad's corn bisque is amazing. Boo's candied yams, mm mm. Mom knows how to make a great bird. It's so hard to decide! Each year I tend to gorge myself on the various potato dishes, so I guess that would be my pick!

7. What is your dessert preference?
Pumpkin pie with a disproportionate amount of whipped cream - Reddi-Wip, people. Not Cool Whip.

8. What is your favorite Thanksgiving memory?
Happiness and laughter around the table.

9. Do you plan to shop on Black Friday?
Absolutely not!

10. What are you most dreading about Thanksgiving this year?
That I can't spend it like I have in the past - my parents, brother, aunt, uncle, grandma all laughing and happy around one table. C'est la vie! It will be a happy day nonetheless. I have a lot to be thankful for.

I said yes.

2011-11-21T06:00:00.000-05:00

I'm on cloud nine

We're engaged

I'm going to marry my best friend

...wow.

The Worst Trip

2011-11-18T19:49:00.001-05:00

Y'all, I feel like I've been in a tizzy for days. Everything is off.

My office wanted me to go to Philadelphia for a trade show - well in truth they told me that I was going. No yes or no, no choice in the matter. Okay, fine. Going with a coworker, eesh. Okay. I looked at the calendar: November 17, 18, 19.

Oh hell no. November 20 is our anniversary - our very first anniversary! I am not leaving home the weekend of our anniversary!

But remember that part about being told I was going on this trip? Yeah.

So I may have been miserable about this from the get-go... but all the while I tried very hard to not let the timing of the trip or the lack of decision-making dampen my spirits!

A coworker made all the travel arrangements for me - thank God for her! - so I actually completely forgot what was going on with this trip for a while. To the point that I had scheduled a 10:30am meeting and a 2pm phone call on the day of my trip - when I was supposed to be on the 1:02pm train! So Thursday morning ended up being quite insane, and every part of the trip got pushed back. Somehow I managed to pack my stuff, make a few sandwiches, get in a cab, and get to the train station in time for the 2:02pm train.

I snuggled into a seat in an empty car, set up my laptop, and got ready to dial in to the 2pm call and take notes. Then two very loud people settled in the seats across the aisle. They were together, obviously, but they sat in separate rows. They chose to sit up, peer over the seats, and yell to each other instead of just sitting next to each other and talking like normal human beings. Sigh. Then at BWI a very nice-looking flight attendant asked if the seat next to me was taken. Nope, I said, too quickly before I took a breath. She smelled, er, reeked of perfume. And POOP. Seriously. Perfume and poop. I very nearly threw up just from sitting next to her. Philadelphia could not have come soon enough!

Y'all, this trip has taught me that I don't like people and I don't like leaving home.

I'm kidding.

Sort of.

So I got into 30th Street Station and hopped over to the taxi stand. (It didn't help that there were Homeland Security forces swarming the 30th Street Station.) My driver was a kindly old man, or at least he looked like it. I usually get to know my cab drivers but I didn't have a chance with this one because he wouldn't get off his stupid cell phone. Seriously. The entire trip. The only time he stopped talking on the phone was when he dropped me off at the hotel and called me "Young Lady" a bunch of times.

I struggled my way out of the cab and into the hotel lobby...

Oh. My. God. This hotel is absolutely awful. I can hardly stomach calling it a hotel. I should have known when I found out it was on Industrial Highway. (Oh, and by the way - I'm in Essington. Not Philadelphia.)

The lobby smells like cigarette smoke. The hallways smell like marijuana. The bathroom smells like mold. There are doors slamming - really slamming! - all the time. There is trash lining the hallways. There's crappy wood paneling everywhere. The hvac unit is so loud that it wakes me up from my sleep. There is an orange light shining into my room. The only window is a sliding door that overlooks... Industrial Highway. (Semi-trailers, sport-bikes, and all.) My room is crappy and old. There are not enough power outlets. The ironing board is missing. The TV picture is scrambled. There was a teeny tiny black bug crawling up my leg when I woke up. Ew.

But, whatever, right? It's miserable but it's not that bad, and I'll be out of here soon.

Then... when I got out of the shower my face was covered in a blister rash.

I don't know if a blister rash is a thing or what, but apparently it's how my skin reacts to things. Way back in May or June I was taking a sulfur-based medication and had a really bad allergic reaction to it. My hands, wrists, and feet were covered in a blister rash: most of the blisters were tiny little blood blisters under my skin, but some of them were bubbled, raised blisters. It took forever to go away.

Now it's on my face: the left-side of my forehead, temple, and cheek; my chin; both eyelids; my neck. What the hell? I immediately started going through the possibilities... Could it be the shower water? Well no because then it would be all over my body. Could it be the soap? Well I washed my whole body with that, too. Could it have been that little black bug? A bug bite wouldn't really cause a rash. I turned it over and over in my head until Mike texted me that he'd done some research and he thought it had something to do with the sheets.

Duh! The pillowcase could have been laundered separately from the bedsheet, so that would explain why only my face was affected. I thought it had to have been the detergent until a coworker said "Well, maybe it was the water... if they laundered it in water that was high in sulfur, that would leave some residue..."

I worked with the front desk and the housekeeping staff to get more information on the soaps and detergents. They didn't have any sort of hypoallergenic bedsheets, so my best bet was to get a set of brand-new (aka never washed by this hotel) sheets. Things seem to be all right now: except that I'm still all-over itchy. And I'm bundled up in long pants, a long sweater, and a scarf... to sleep.

Oh right. AND except for the huge, itchy, swollen rash all over my face and neck! Boo to that. Who else is lucky enough to get a rash two days before their anniversary? Ughhh. I have apologized to Mike probably a dozen times because a rash-ridden, red-faced girl is gonna come home to him tomorrow. Poor kid.

I'm half-expecting someone to send me a nasty email telling me I have to file my TPS reports. That's just kind of how this is going. Did I mention that there's still another whole day of the trade show?

A bit of silver lining is that all the smoke from the industrial plant next door to the "hotel" has lit up some interesting sunsets.

I have never been more anxious to get home.

Anticipation

2011-11-15T16:27:00.001-05:00

I remember most of last November being a lot colder. A lot lonelier. Not nearly as fun.

Then this really handsome guy --who had grown up so much since I had last seen him more than six years prior-- showed up and swept me off my feet.

Very nearly one year ago... xoxo.

Ten Things

2011-11-15T13:09:00.001-05:00

Hey y'all, it's Ten on Tuesday time :)

Head over to Roots and Rings to read Chelsea's answers and link up!

1. What are your pantry staples?

Pasta, canned soup, beans, and some kind of crackers. Oh and spices - do those count? Because we have every kind of spice known to man.

2. What are your refrigerator staples?

Coffee creamer, leftovers, and the stuff to make crack dip. Oh and beer.

3. You already look like Heidi Klum (or your favorite supermodel). Now, what are the top three non-physical things you would change about yourself?

I would be better at making friends, I would be more motivated to exercise, and I would be less lazy in general.

4. What’s holding you back from your dream job? (If you already have your dream job, how did you get there?)

Oh gosh, I am trying to figure out that exact answer right now through a Stratejoy course! That means that I'll have much more to talk about in the next few weeks, but for now: I'm not ready to make the leap yet... although I'm trying to figure out how to get there!

5. You have $500 to spend but it has to be on one item only. Go.

Unfortunately $500 won't buy me a GTR, so it would have to be a Michael Kors handbag or a super awesome vacation.

6. What is something that you are embarrassed to admit you buy on a regular basis?

Pop-tarts - haha :)

7. What’s in/on your bed every night?

We each keep a glass of water on our (respective) nightstands. Lately we've also been keeping our book on our bed so that we will remember to write down that day's thanks. Other than that it's just two pillows and a comforter!

(That's because our heat is back on... when the heat was off for those six awful weeks, I had two extra blankets on top of my side of the bed!)

8. What is a non-necessity item that, no matter how expensive it gets or how tight your budget if, you will always find room for it?

Coffee creamer, Neutrogena facial toner, and motorcycle gear.

9. What is the weirdest sandwich you’ve ever made?

I don't really do weird sandwiches, but I do make a killer tuna melt on a english muffin... I guess some people might think that's weird.

10. Would you rather: Be banned from Pinterest forever, but gain a million captive Twitter followers; or, never get on Facebook again but gain five thousand blog readers?

The latter. I could easily do without Facebook. I cannot do without Pinterest inspiration and blog reader inspiration.

14 Bottles

2011-11-14T09:35:00.001-05:00

Happy Monday y'all!

We bought way too much wine over the weekend...

[[ 14 bottles of wine! ]]

Can't wait to share our vacation pictures and stories :)

I wish I were still in the mountains!

Ten Things

2011-11-08T12:00:00.000-05:00

Ten on Tuesday!

Head over to Roots and Rings to read Chelsea's answers and link up!

1. What’s your favorite television show for each day of the week?

I do not watch very much TV... Antiques Roadshow is usually on PBS on Monday evenings, and New Girl is Tuesday night... that's about it.

2. How many times do you wear your jeans before you watch them?

Maybe 5 times? But I'll wash them immediately if they get visibly dirty.

3. What is your favorite pasta shape?

Cavatelli!

4. Do you read newspapers?

Not anymore. I used to read The Washington Post every day.

5. Do you sleep in socks?

Only when I'm sick, camping, or really really cold. Even then I usually kick them off in the middle of the night.

6. Favorite genre of movies?

Um... romantic movies, I guess.

7. How do you feel about wrestling?

Wrestling confuses me.

8. Should men pluck their eyebrows?

No. But they should shave their unibrow thing.

9. Do you have dimples?

Not real ones. I have fatty ones that come out when I smile a certain way.

10. Do you like to camp?

Yes, I absolutely love to camp. Especially if there's a real toilet somewhere nearby. And I could camp for weeks if there was a shower...

The truth, and a numbers game

2011-11-07T16:26:00.003-05:00

The truth is that I've had blogger open to the "new post" page for, oh, about the entire day.

Seriously.

I feel like I have so much to say.

But I can't write a sentence.

I can't complete a thought.

My brain is all over the place today.

So when I saw this idea on Ashley's blog, I just had to do it. (Anything to get my brain going, I swear.)

Active Blogs: 4
Blogs: 7
Autographed Books: 2
Blog Subscriptions: 142
Books Read in 2008: a lot.
Books Read in 2009: more than a lot.
Books Read in 2010: even more.
Books Read so far in 2011: 5+
Boyfriends: In the history of ever? Um... a few ;)
Broken Bones: 1: my right-hand pinky finger. It's still malformed.
Cars Owned: 3. I've driven 4 but that first one was my dad's and I got in an accident on Christmas Eve and totaled it. Like two months after I got it. I'm [still] really sorry, Dad.
Cellphones Owned: Oh gosh. Um... 5 or 6.
Countries Visited: 2: USA and UK. Pathetic!
Email Accounts: Many... 6 or 7 maybe?
Facebook Friends: 318
First Kisses: A lady does not kiss and tell ;)
First Dates: 16
Fluently Spoken Languages: 1
Funerals Attended: 5 or 6
Homes: I have lived in 11 different houses/apartments.
Hospital Stays: Overnight? None. But I've been in the hospital 2-3 times.
Jobs Held: 9
Journals Currently in Use: 2
Journals Filled: 20+
Living Grandparents: 1
Movies Seen in Summer of 2005: I honestly don't remember, but if I had to guess I'd say 2 or 3. I'm not big on movies.
Pairs of Shoes: Something like 20
Recipes Tried in 2010: 10?
Recipes Tried so far in 2011: 20+
Snow Globes: 0
States Visited: 26
Weddings Attended: 5
Twitter Accounts: 1
Years in school: 17
Years Alive: 25
Youtube channels:1

So, dear readers, What do your numbers look like? Does anyone else only have Is there anything in this list about which you would like to hear some stories? :)

Happy Monday!

PS, You guys, our heat is finally back on :)

Little Things: Love Notes

2011-11-04T10:30:00.000-04:00

There is no official Little Things link-up for a few weeks, but I just couldn't go through the week without taking a minute to reflect on the little things in my life.

This week has been crazy busy, between work and being sick. I've spent most of it at the office or sleeping... with very little in-between.

Even so, Mike kept me smiling throughout with little notes like this...

Happy Friday, friends! Have a great weekend!

Wine and Love

2011-11-03T08:00:00.000-04:00

Wine and Love is hosted by Nora. Want to join? Read this page for the meme instructions and grab the picture. Then go to Walking With Nora to link up!

What's got me reaching for the
bottle of wine this week...

I'm sick. I have an icky sinus thingy that's making me miserable and tired. The weird thing is that I can pinpoint the exact moment that I realized "Oh, crap, I'm sick."
Heat is still not on. I'm sick of thinking about this, but it's still annoying, so I'll leave it at that.
The fun that is requesting transcripts and making sure they're sent to the right places and following up with people. Really not that bad, but kind of a pain.
Bills. Pfft.
When I was 18 I had asked a photographer friend to take some shots of me. I paid her like $80, which was not small potatoes. Well guess what? It's now more than seven years later. She hasn't given me the photographs, despite many many requests, and now I honestly don't have a use for four rolls of photographs of me as an 18 year-old. So I wrote her a final note stating that I never got the photographs and asking her to pay me back. She said she was moving on November 1st and she would dig up the photographs, which she's sure she has, and get them to me. And now it's November 3rd, so I'm guessing that's not happening. She's an honest-to-goodness talented photographer, but because of the way she treated me I will never, ever A) trust her; B) ask her to do another photography project for me; or C) (and I can imagine this sucks for anyone trying to get into photography as a career) recommend her to anyone else I know. So that kinda blows.

What I'm loving this week...

Nearing the end of my post-surgery you-can't-do-anything-normal phase!
NaBloPoMo.
It's almost Friday!
Finally starting to feel a bit better.
Inspiring friends :)
Finding ways to pay off bills sooner.
Being thanked.
Having a breakthrough!

Being Me

2011-11-02T13:53:00.000-04:00

These are some things that are very me.

I like to wear a very long feather earring in the second pierced hole of one of my ears. Just one.
I own huge pink glitter hoop earrings.
The seeds inside of bell peppers freak me out.
If I am using a dial or scale with numbers, such as the remote control volume, the number has to fall on a 0 or a 5.
I bite my nails.
I can't focus on someone or something for very long if there are lines behind them. This includes horizontal window blinds.
My faded red Birkenstock clogs are my favorite pair of shoes.
In high school I used to turn every combination dial to 0 as I walked past them.
I sometimes write the letter a two different ways in the same sentence, and then I get really mad at my handwriting.
Even though I haven't been in school in more than three years, I still have a soft callous on my middle finger from where my pen would always rest while taking notes.
I miss having acrylic nails because that was the only time my nails didn't chip.
I wear my watch on my right hand, even though I'm right-handed.
If I start cracking my knuckles or playing with my nails, I have to go all the way around both hands in order before I can stop.
I used to think that the number of letters in your name had to match the number of letters in the name of your beloved, otherwise you couldn't date/kiss/hold hands/do the mamba/marry/etc.
My right pinkie is busted up.
I arrange M-and-Ms by color.

Sometimes I get really caught up in being someone else, or being like something else, and I forget to love all those little things that make up who I really am.

Halloween

2011-11-01T13:48:00.000-04:00

Our Halloween was awesome.

I made my owl costume from a Pinterest idea. (Yes, it was my Fall Pinterest Challenge. More on that later.)

Mike made his bird watcher costume out of things he already owned. Majorly jealous.

There were people we knew and people we met. A high-school reunion of sorts. A dinosaur. A red thing. Georgetown Cupcakes. The Cupid Shuffle.

It was a good night :)