2009 Wrap Up

You've heard it time and time again, but it really is true- as you get older, the years go by so much faster. Honestly it feels like New Year's Eve 2008 in Charleston was just yesterday! (which, let's be honest, is going to be pretty hard to top.) All in all I've had a pretty good year. Spring semester was as easy AND enjoyable- can't get any better than that! Summer was amazing. My friends and I talk all the time about how much we miss it. There was such a good group here and we did lots of fun things. In the fall I got serious about getting my act together and as of a few weeks ago I can say that it paid off- I got my acceptance letter!! So sitting here on the last day of the year, I am looking forward to all that the new year that has in store. I'll keep working full time at the job that I love so much until May when I make the move down to Charleston. Going back to school after an entire year off will be an adjustment, but a very exciting one. 3 more semesters and then I am completely done? I just cannot fathom how amazing that will be. But as for now, I am trying to endure this ridiculously long day until I'm off to Charlotte with my two besties to bring in the new year. One last get together before our beloved Stephanie leaves us for Utah. Can't wait for shopping tomorrow!!! Have a safe and happy New Year! Love you all!

we gonna talk about people... we gonna talk about places, we gonna talk about fangas!

http://www.hulu.com/collections/315/102975 --if you're wondering whats up with my title. (go picabo, go picabo)

halloween weekend was packed with things. let's talk aboot it. i managed to get myself a day off from work, so i drove down to charleston thursday night. i got to spend some time with my lovely friend tara. it was fabulous- i never get time with her anymore!

then friday morning i met with the head of the physical therapist assistant program at trident. that's right folks, i'm actually doing something with my life!! can i just tell you that it feels terrific?! anyway, i really enjoyed meeting with her, she's super nice and down to earth (ummm what does that even mean anyway??). i chatted with her for about 45 mins. i think we drifted off the subject of school more times than expected for a conversation with someone 25ish years older than me, who i'd never even met. anyway, laughter was involved and i love anyone that makes me laugh so basically i think i'll love having her as a teacher. she told me that as long as i had everything turned in by mid december, i should have a pretty great chance of getting into the program summer semester. i got all of my applications squared away that same day and transcripts as of yesterday. (today i'm working on finding places to get my observation hours done. 40 hours! whheeeww) so let's all cross our fingers for me that things pan out.

friday night bryant, maryellen, kyle and i went to boone hall for their haunted hayride. hahahh i can't even really describe this experience. just know that the zombies/monsters/ghosts could smell my fear and went at me more than i would have liked. and of courrrrsseee you had to go through a cornfield to get back after the ride. and of couuursseee there were children running amuck in said fields asking to play games and grabbing at our ankles. needless to say, ellen and i linked arms and power walked our way to the end.

saturday i had a goodtimes afternoon with ellen and kyle (bryant of course couldn't miss clemson football!). we saw where the wild things are (still not sure what i think about that movie!) and played some beatles rockband till our arthritis kicked in. for halloween night tara and jenny had a party. my costume, which i'm dang proud of is here:

yep! i was flo the progressive insurance girl. i'm not quite sure i'll be able to out do that one next year. it was a lot of fun trying out liquid eyeliner for the first time (but i'll never use it in real life) and drum roll please, a bumpit! bahaha. it was kind of a pain trying to figure out how to use it. the commercials make it look so easy! fyi, it's not. i think it's mostly because i don't know how to tease my hair. when you're from the south, the humidity does that for you. but honestly, i kind of liked it. again, i'll never use it in real life but it was fun nonetheless. and if you watched the video up at the top, fyi, i rocked the picabo dance a few times. wooooo.

so that's all i got for ya. enjoy this weather while it lasts- i know i am!

can you name that late 90's pop music reference?

let's please talk for a second about how much i hate this cold weather. i'll be really honest with you- i'm an incredibly sweaty person. so you'd think that i would love cold weather. wrong. sweaters just make me hot and and itchy and uncomfortable. and we all know the story of sitting in church where it is about 98 degrees inside and 20 below outside. am i right, or am i right? so heat (other than heat from the sun) makes me feel like i'm suffocating. which brings me to my car. the inside of a car on a brisk morning is no ray of sunshine. but once the heat finally decides to grace me with its presence, i literally feel like a pillow is being shoved over my face and i can't breathe. so off goes that heat. anyway, so since it has been so cold in the mornings lately, my car has felt the need to make the most wretched of noises when accelerating or idling (at least, this is what my dad has told me is the reason. i think my car is thinking of suicide and is just trying to prepare me for it). anyway, so i come home from work and throw on a hoodie, wrap up in blankets and lay on the couch for three hours. i literally don't move at all. straight up paralyzed. (which reminds me of sleep paralysis. i will never forgive you R&B for bringing that crap into my life!!) so yes, i wrapped up in a blanket cocoon and watched Hercules. ummm can i just say that that is not one of disney's best? i really thought i liked it... falling asleep half way through might have caused me to miss the good parts, but really. does anyone like that movie? enough complaining.

i really like finding different photographers websites and looking through their portfolios. i found one today that i love love love. it's called kickstand studio. i don't know all the photography terms to tell you why i like it, but i just do. i think it might have a lot to do with the fact that it's local so i recognize a lot of the places where sessions were shot. that AND i recognize a few of the people in the pictures too. looking through this portfolio made me realize that i'm strangely drawn to shots with interesting couches or chairs placed in obscure places. why??

so now i'm watching tarzan and the opening is blessing my ears with phil collins' beautiful voice. (we went through old vhs tapes the other day and i pulled out a few that i wanted to watch before we got rid of them. that's what's up with my random disney watching...) anyway, is it weird that i love mr. collins? am i the only one?

i can't cut a straight line, but at least it's cake day.

i learned something today at work- i can not for the life of me cut a straight line. i was given four of the same instruction cards all on different sheets of paper to laminate. my first thought was, why would you not put these tiny cards all on one sheet. helllooo environment?? green movement?? now, in actuality, i thought this because four sheets of paper meant more cutting and more cleanup. but let's just pretend. so anyway, as i'm cutting, the edge of the paper just got closer and closer to the text. so my finished product i'm sure looked like it came out of a third grade classroom. and that's actually probably insulting to third graders. luckily it wasn't anything important. but, i'll just chalk it up to my lack of scrapbooking in the past year.

so today is wednesday which means lottery day, the most dreaded of days in my work week. i don't mind going to buy the tickets. i don't even mind collecting everyone's money once a week while they each proceed to make some sort of tired, generic "you better make us some winners this week" comment. but what i do mind is the insane amounts of change that people give me to turn in. A- i hate counting change- you can never get that metal smell off your hands. B- i hate counting said change to give to the woman that works at the gas station. i look like a drug addict scrounging for nickels and dimes hoping to score a few extra dollars to support my (enter your drug of choice here) habit. but whatevs.

today was one of those days where when i got back to the office after running an errand, i sat in my car in the parking garage, listening to "sexy back" and not wanting to walk back in. now, let it be said that i absolutely love my job. i know i have it made. an average day consists of, facebooking, gchatting, online browsing and sudoku. with a bit of copies, scans, errands, and special projects thrown in here and there. i do have some really busy days though.. anyway, back to my boring day. so i spent a lot of the day trying not to die of boredom and moreover, trying to contain the incredible desire to hack my feet off. for some reason every few weeks i decide hey, i'll wear heels today. my feet won't hurt that bad. WRONG. gets me every time. so today i made it to about 3:00 before i wanted to die. as i was walking (more like stumbling) to my car at the end of the day, it took everything i had in me not to take them off and hook them on my fingers like a drunk girl downtown at the end of the night. i'll talk to you next month when i think "oh, it wasn't that bad" and make the same mistake again. but on the upside, it was cake day (yeah, that's right. we have cake day. haha once a month for birthdays we have a cake. and it is a very important day. don't mess with cake day.)

side note: yesterday i bought the best water bottle ever. if you're a big water drinker, or want to drink more water, please invest in a camelbak better bottle.

i swear i drank more water yesterday afternoon than i ever have in one day. that actually might not be true, but regardless, i refilled it 4 times from 6pm till i went to bed around midnight. so clearly i'm a definite advocate of the better bottle. go get one! http://www.camelbak.com/sports-recreation/bottles/better-bottle-75L.aspx

"even when life is dull, nothing puts a spring in your step like a sick pair of shoes!!" -jane aldridge

over the past month and a half, i have shopped more frequently than i probably ever have. and ya know what? i loved it. i might have spent a little bit of a ridiculous amount of money but i pride myself on the fact that i rarely ever buy anything full price. want to see a few of my favorite purchases? good. because i'm going to show you.

this is a ring that i bought at the greek festival. random, i know! i rarely buy things from vendors or any place where i have to plunder to find things. but i walked under this one particular tent just following my mom and was immediately drawn to it. i wear it almost every day and it is a new favorite.

these beautiful things were an amazing find at banana republic. a complete steal at half their original price! i haven't worn them yet- i'm still trying to think of a good outfit for them. but they are surprisingly comfortable!!

these boots are amazing suede wonders that i had the pleasure of wearing for the first time this evening. these i actually did pay full price for, but they were only about $40. they were a little rough on the balls of my feet.. but then again, i was standing for about 4 hours. nothing a couple of insoles can't fix! they made me probably a little over 6 foot, but like i've said, i have learned to embrace, and maybe even love, my height. of course i get comments, but mostly it's from guys who are most likely already insecure about their average heights. sorry boys, i love fabulous shoes, and they tend to include a pretty good sized heel.

this shirt has a fun story along with it. i saw it in a monthly mailer sheet that i get from the limited and liked it. a week later while online browsing, i stumbled upon it again and decided i really liked it. then while in the store last weekend i tried it on and that like turned to love. i had a $15 money card and the shirt was $50, so i said 'done!'. well, i went to the counter and lo and behold, it was friends and family weekend (that means 40% off)!! as if that wasn't amazing enough, i was still able to use my student discount (YES! not many people know this but, show them your student id and you get 15% off anything!) so i ended up getting 55% off this shirt that i was so ready to pay almost full price for. so in the end, it was only about $24. i wore it the next day with a black cardigan and a black pencil skirt. loved it!

okay, so this last thing i didn't buy but it needs to be mentioned. it's fall now, so that means it's time to switch up the fragrance. i bought burberry summer back in april and can i just say how much i have loved it?! i still have a little less than half in the bottle so i might still sneak it in every now and then. anyway, my mom bought new perfume and decided it wasn't for her. a little skeptical at first- i mean, really, who just gives someone an entire bottle of perfume just because? i wore it one day just to try it out. one day has turned into three consecutive days and i've grown a strong attachment to it. it's pretty light and it lasts all day. so next time you're around some cosmetic counters, check out the juicy couture scent! (spray it on. i think it smells different on than in the bottle.)

and to leave you with, here are two things i've had my eye on. theres a brown zebra print scarf from the limited and a big buddha bag. the style is tribeca and they have it in green, purple, brown and this orange color that i love. i'm pretty sure they'll be in my closet sooner than later.

sorry this post was so superficial. but these things make me giddy. you might see a lot more of them. but then again, if you're reading this, you know me and know that i love to shop. and when i say "you", i mean my sister bc i'm pretty sure she's the only one that reads it. hahaha so hi ya sis! (and i'm not sure why the last few paragraphs are underlined. i couldn't fix it :(

wow.

so basically, i am a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad blogger. this might be because i feel like my life isn't interesting enough to write down and share with you. or it could be that i honestly forgot i even started a blog until my sister called me out on never updating! a lot has happened since april, so i guess i'll give some of the highlights.

- i lived with my best friend, sam, for the summer. although our schedules rarely meshed and she was out of town for about three weeks straight, it was so much fun having that time with her!

- i spent a lot of time with some people from the branch and got to know them a lot better. stephanie and i got to be great friends... she lived one apartment complex over- there was a hole in the fence so we could just walk on over! one of the most fun things we did as a ysa group was go on a canoe trip in augusta. the savannah river is absolutely fantastic! a direct quote from that day was "it was a lot of fun. dogs were bought, people were hit by boats."- ryan jennings. andrea really did buy a dog off the side of the road. and i got hit in the shoulder by a motor boat (not quite the crisis that it sounds, i assure you). on the way home, a few of us went to the drive in theater. it was a very long day but oh so much fun.

- my nephew was born! june 12 (only three days before my prediction!) around 12:30 a.m at 8 1/2 lbs and 20 1/4 inches. he was such a gorgeous newborn! holding him for the first time was the best feeling- being so close to something so perfect, a spirit who had just left our Heavenly Father, completely untouched by the world. how special that was. i haven't been around him nearly as much as i should, but it has been so much fun watching him grow.

- i have yet another life plan. but i'm pretty positive this one is it! hahha so here it is- i'm taking the year off from school, working (some what) full time. then in april/ may sometime i plan to move to charleston (about time, i know.) and finish up school at trident. their physical therapy assistant program starts a semester earlier than midlands (and i refuse to go back there anyway). so i would start in the summer semester and be done with school by the following spring. hopefully!

anyway, i think what would help me keep up with my blogging would be actually having something to write about. i don't have a very exciting life at the moment, so there's nothing really there. i'm not an insomniac of any sort anymore so i'll be needing to change the name of this as well...

your life is wherever you are.

i was just watching marley and me and jenny said "your life is wherever you are". and that's pretty applicable to my life right now... basically, i don't want to be in columbia anymore. i don't know what i want to do with school. so. i'm going to take some time off from school and figure out WHERE i'll be happiest before i decide WHAT will make me happy. school wise anyway. i'm young, i have lots of time and i'll always regret it and wonder what if? if i don't do this now. my sister has her baby in june and i would hate not being around for that. my family is here, my friends (well, some of them anyway), my job, my school, everything i have ever known has been here, my life is here. but, i guess my life is wherever i am. and it won't be here much longer.

no longer a mommy :(

yesterday i gave cooper over to her new daddy. i'm really sad about it but i just really did not have the time to spend with her that she needed and deserved. the guy seemed pretty nice and i think it'll be the best thing for her. i'm such a ninny and started crying as i handed her over to him. it was weird coming home later that day and not having her race to the door to meet me... agh, but besides that it was a stupid day yesterday and i'm glad it's over. anyway, it was the first day back to class for me after spring break. can i just say i'm so ready for summer??
marlee gets married this friday! yaaayyy :D so i'll be down in florida (AGAIN!) this weekend. but i'm excited. can't wait to see my dress all put together. annnnd i'm excited to ride back home with austin and laura. 5 whole hours with my lovely friend who i haven't spent much time with in wayyy too long!!

march!

for one thing, i'm really sick of being cold. so hooray for good times weather this weekend!
for another, last weekend was a terrible one. i went to charleston to stay with tara for the night and felt like a scared mother for the first time in my life. i brought cooper with me and while we went to publix i put her in her kennel and left her in the garage. i felt kind of weird about it and thought maybe we should close the garage door. anyway, she ended up getting out of her kennel and i had somebody call me (i.e. drunken neighbor from new years) asking if i had a black lab named cooper. worst feeling ever. so anyway, saturday morning i drove to florida to get fitted for my bridesmaid dress for marlee's wedding. i love the geralds so of course that was nice being there. but on my way back home, before i even got on the interstate, i got in a wreck. i was paying attention to cooper and didn't see the person in front of me stop. excellent. of course i was shakey and crying anyway bc i know how terrible getting hit is but when we pulled into a parking lot i saw her go to her backseat and pull out a baby. i lost it and started bawling. by the time i finally got back on the road to go home i think it took me about an hour to actually calm down. ugh. so now i have an awesome $150 ticket and $500 deductible to pay. sooo that's fun.
anyway, i'm ready for spring break. although, i'm not really sure why bc i'm working 8:30-5 every day. but it'll be nice i guess...

spring?!

i'm a full believer that sunshine can cure everything. for the past few days the weather has been absolutely amazing and it has put me in a great mood! the rest of the week is supposedly going to be about the same and i love it! it just makes me hate the fact that i have to go to work and be indoors for much longer than i would like. i would love nothing more than to be outside playing with cooper all day. hate responsibilities!

25 things

i've been tagged in this on facebook about 5 or 6 times, so i guess i'll finally do it. here are 25 things you may or may not have known about me.

1. i don't have a favorite color.
2. i love to sleep.
3. i get bored with things more often than not, therefore, i like change.
4. if you make me laugh, i love you.
5. i'm taking spanish and i want so badly to learn it now!
6. pictures are the best.
7. i plan trips when i'm bored that i will never take. most recent: puerto rico. RT ticket and 5 night hotel stay for $415, who's with me??
8. i have just recently learned to appreciate, love and embrace my height.
9. i love reading books that you never want to put down. i hate finishing them.
10. i love being near the water and in the sun.
11. i have broken my left wrist and right ankle. funny stories if you ever care to hear them...
12. i'm stubborn, impatient and indecisive but i promise i have good qualities too.
13. i miss art class.. i was just mediocre but i really enjoy painting and drawing!
14. i have a lot of best friends, all for very different reasons.
15. new clothes make me really really really happy.
16. honestly, i've never had a memorable birthday.
17. i think ice cream is good no matter what time of day it is or what the weather is like.
18. i appreciate almost every genre of music.
19. i really miss playing tennis.
20. i hated high school. whoever said those were the best years of your life lied. i wouldn't relive it if you paid me.
21. i am so very very excited to get a nephew in june!
22. there's nothing like the feeling of walking in soccer cleats. or a great pair of heels.
23. mascara is my favorite kind of makeup.
24. i bought a black lab puppy today and i absolutely adore it.
25. there are so many exciting things happening this year and i just can't wait for it all!

spring semester.

so today was the first day of classes for me... it was a pretty long day. i had to be at school at 9:30, went to work then went to class again and finally got home a little after 8. ridiculous! but i'm surprisingly in a really great mood! no idea why. but it's nice to be happy, (or really smiley as andrea and bax put it the other day..) for no reason. i like it! anyway, so i really like my spanish class and i'm excited to learn. i've been talking with marlee the past few days about bridesmaid dresses. yaayy! i'm so excited for her. everybody is getting married! i wrote down three weddings in my planner the other day. haha love it...

2009!!

yay for the new year! new year's eve was a lot of fun- if you weren't at tara's party, yes, you missed out. so next week it will be back to the... what's that expression? eh, i don't remember. but i start classes next tuesday. hopefully it will be the easiest semester of my life and really help boost my gpa. especially after this wretched fall semester. that'll teach me for being lazy i guess! this year i made a list of resolutions instead of making just one. that way, if i keep at least one, i won't feel like such a failure. hahah. the one that i really hope i keep is to try to be a nicer person. so, good luck to me.
i wrote down a lot, but most are more like goals rather than resolutions so i'll share some of those too. i want to volunteer... even though i work and will be going to school, both of those don't really take up that much time. i think it would be fun. not sure where or doing what, but i'll figure it out. also, i'm going to read the entire book of mormon this year. i always get side tracked and never seem to finish it. so. hmm, i know there were others but i can't remember what else i wrote down. ah well. that's a start at least.
also, i am just noticing that the dress i am wearing today makes it appear as though i am with child. just, fyi.