the perfect day

i was so excited to get my wedding pictures back from our photographer, shelley, a few weeks back. unfortunately, though, i have also been swaaaaaamped with work and haven't even had a chance to really look through them and/or post them here or on facebook. things at work haven't slowed down a single bit, but i did make time tonight to really look at them and i just had to share a couple of my favorites from before the ceremony...enjoy! :)

**disclaimer: i have sooo many more favorites, i just can't show them all because i'm using some for some gifts for friends and family. i'll post more soon! 

our "first look." lol.

this just cracks me up. christi, the girl with the disgusted look on her face,
is michael's sister and couldn't bear giving him a kiss. haha. 

"cheers" with our best friends.

he's stupid good-looking. i am waaaaay too lucky. ;)

with my sister.

best looking bridal party. ever.

our rings :)

my bouquet (which was perfect and rustic and gorgeous). the tie around it is my mimi's (my dad's mom) garter that she wore when she married my papa 65 years ago. such a sweet "something blue" for my big day. 

more to come, lovelies!

day 29: music that will change your life

Day 29, Wednesday: Five songs or pieces of music that speak to you or bring back memories. Use Grooveshark or YouTube to include them in the post

"music expresses that which can not be explained and can not remain silent." -victor hugo

1. dig by incubus

if i turn into another

dig me up from under what is covering

the better part of me

sing this song

remind me that we'll always have each other

when everything else is gone.

to me, one of the most beautiful things in life is to find someone who loves you despite your psychotic nonsense flaws. that's what love is. the ability to appreciate differences, flaws, and imperfections. knowing that michael loves me even when i've become the no-make-up-face-neurotic-emotional-monster, and knowing that it doesn't scare him off, makes me appreciate him and love him even more.

2. inaudible melodies by jack johnson

slow down, everyone,

you're moving too fast.

this was, not only, one of my dad's favorite songs and always will remind me of him, but it also just reminds me to relaaaaaaaax. as an event planner, i'm constantly looking to the future...the next week, the next event, the next deadline. sometimes you just have to chill. 

3. hey ya! by outkast

shake it like a polaroid picture

this song makes me think of back when i was in high school. it also just makes me happy and want to dance. let's be serious...sometimes you just need to shake it!

4. amarillo by morning by george strait

i ain't got a dime, but what i got is mine.

i ain't rich, but lord, i'm free.

amarillo by morning, amarillo's where i'll be.

this song makes me think of my granny and papa. they used to go out dancing all the time...they even taught me and my cousin, justin, how to waltz when i was probably no more than 9 years old. such a sweet memory. and you gotta love george!

5. shake it out by florence + the machine

i am done with my graceless heart

so tonight, i'm gonna cut it out and then restart.

cause i like to keep my issues drawn 

it's always darkest before the dawn...

...and it's hard to dance with the devil on your back

so shake him off.

this song reminds me to keep myself in a good mood. it's so easy to be grouchy/bitchy/negative...at least for me. i just love the picture this song paints for me. someone trying to dance around and be joyful, but they can't because the devil is weight down on their shoulders. i loooove this song, especially on days where my mood needs a bit of an adjustment! it also takes me back to the best. concert. ever. i love you florence!!

day 24: my worst traits

i know, i know, i know. i have sucked at blogging this week. we've had a lot going on--mikey's birthday, work, etc. just life in general. i'll do a catch-up post, i promise. :) for today, though, i get to tell you my three worst traits. this is actually really easy for me to admit...

1. i am stubborn. sooooooo stubborn! when i feel that i've been wronged, i expect an apology. no exceptions. you hurt me? guess what. you're now dead to me. it's really something i need to work on. remember the wise words my granny spoke to me about forgiveness and moving on, and not living in the past? yeah...it's a little easier said than done for me most of the time. i will say, though, that once i feel like appropriate amends have been made, i'm fine.

2. i am a control freak. i want things done a certain way. i want people to see my point of view (and more often than not, agree with me). i want things to go my way. at work, i want to be everywhere and do everything. sometimes i have issues delegating.

3. i'm a processer. when anything happens to me (or someone close to me), i have to talk it out...a lot. i call it processing. this isn't necessarily a bad thing, because it's how i deal with stuff, but it can cause me to be redundant and slightly annoying, i'm sure. i have to talk about every aspect of the situation; how i felt, how any other party felt, what was said, what was in the underlying body language, etc., etc., etc. i'm sure other people thing i'm just plain exhausting.

i could easily make this list 10 items long, but according to the challenge, i get to catch a break and stop at three. :) happy friday!

day 17: favorite picture

day 17: a favorite photo of yourself and why. 

today's challenge topic is super easy for me. ever since this photo was taken back in 2007, it's been my favorite. 

there's not really a way i can say why this is my favorite picture of myself without sounding totally vain and shallow, so let's just call a spade a spade here. lol. i think i just look drop dead sexy in this picture. come on! those boobs? that hair? WOWZA!

the night it was taken (before one of my sorority date parties), i felt like a super model! and isn't that the best feeling? like the stars have aligned and your hair, outfit, make up--everything--just feels and looks great? well this was one of those nights! i felt confident, sexy, sassy, and fun! it was wonderful and i'm so glad we snapped a picture. every woman should have a picture of herself where she just felt gorgeous. this is mine!

day 16: strength

today, on the challenge, i get to discuss something difficult about my "lot in life" and how i'm working to overcome it. i think one of the major aspects of the hand i've been dealt in life is being strong. is this a bad thing? absolutely not. can it be difficult? totally. 

i've had some curveballs thrown my way; all of which lead friends, family, etc., to tell me, "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger." they were all right. those hard times did make me stronger, but guess what. that doesn't mean that i feel any less shitty about what's going on.

when the going gets tough, the tough get going.

that's great, too, but it sucks to have to feel like you have to be tough all. the. time. 

there for a while, i literally felt like i couldn't catch a break--that my only purpose on this earth was to take emotional hits. my grandmother, who i was extremely close to, passed away very suddenly. not even three months later, i found out that my dad had stage 4 throat cancer (and he wasn't even a smoker!!!). the two years following were an emotional hurricane of cancer treatments, and statistics, and hoping, and praying, and surgeries, and more surgeries, and procedures, and traveling, and medications, and having dad get a little bit better, only to find out that something else was wrong. it was emotionally exhausting.

i felt a lot of pressure. pressure to keep the tough persona up. pressure to "stay strong for dad." pressure to keep my mind focused on school (because i was in my senior year of college and trying to graduate). pressure to not just totally give up. pressure to not totally disengage myself from the situation. pressure to not become totally numb. there's a lot of work that goes on emotionally when you feel like you have to be everything. 

i'm really not trying to whine. 

for me, the way i found best to "overcome" the feelings of pressure and having to be tough all the time was to simply let go a little bit. as a bit of a control freak, you have no idea how hard that is for me. i've learned that it's okay to get upset. it's okay to cry. it's okay to be a little depressed. expressing those emotions doesn't mean that you can't handle what's been given to you. it just means that you're human, and that's okay. if i'm stressed, or scared, or feeling a little less than perfect, i feel that. 100%. then, once i've taken time to process those feelings, i'm able to move on and be entirely more productive than if i would have tried to totally suppress those feelings and be "strong." 

the ability to be hit with a situation that shakes you to your core and makes you question life or death or anything else, then take those feelings, express them, and come out on the other side with a better understanding of life and yourself. that is strength. 

day 15: a day in my life

as i think about my daily routine, i sadly realize that i am quite boring. at any rate, here it goes...

wake up
get ready
head to work

then it's a jumble of:
take photos of the restaurant's daily specials
client meetings
answer emails
site tours
phone calls ("rooftop event spot, this is rachel. how may i help you?")
answer more emails
more phone calls
email out floor plans for client parties
send out contracts (and hopefully receive some!)

head home
play with benny-boy
watch law & order: svu
hit the sack

i try to throw in some reading here and there, and of course quality time with mikey, too. :)

day 14: my happy list

today, on the challenge, i get to boast about what ten things make me the most happy! hopefully, it'll spread some happiness your way, too! :)

1. celebrity gossip in any form.
2. lazy weekends with mike.
3. laughing so hard i cry.
4. the beach.
5. giving people presents.
6. wearing shorts and long sleeve shirts.
7. fishing at my parent's house.
8. amusement parks
9. driving with the windows down and the music up.
10. ryan gosling.

have mercy!

day 13: I truely apologize

today, i need to issue a public apology...

to anyone who had to look at the enormous zit coming up on my right cheek today, i'm sorry...

...if looking at it made you sick.
...if you felt like you couldn't eat lunch because of it.
...if you mistook it for mount rushmore.
...that i am 25 and my body is still apparently working out the kinks of puberty.
...you had to see the poke marks around it (I really tried to leave it alone).
...i tried to cover it up with make up only to make it look like a juiced up wart.
...my watery eye (from messing with it) made you think I was a cry baby.

and finally, i'm sorry for bringing it up now. 

apology accepted? lol.

day 12: what i miss

my favorite picture, and how i remember my dad.
smiling and waving hello at the beach. (taken around 2001)

plain and simple. i miss my dad. a lot. his words of encouragement, wisdom, jokes, sense of humor--everything. he was the goofiest, most fun, happy-go-lucky guy around. he also had the strongest relationship with christ that i've ever seen and he made a constant effort to spread the joy that he found in christ with anyone he knew. he was a surfer, a modern-day hippy, a confidant, a creative spirit, and faithful friend. even with cancer, he never stopped being himself. he never lost hope. he truly lived. he was fearless. 

we're coming up on the 3rd anniversary of his passing away, and it still seems like it just happened yesterday. my life has changed so much in the last three years, and there's so much of it that i wish he could have been a part of. i think that's the hardest part for me. the fact that he wasn't able to celebrate mine and michael's wedding with us, or knowing that my kids will never get to know him makes me sick to my stomach, but it also points out the selfishness in my own heart. i'm selfish because i would rather have him here with me, but in order to do that, he would have to be taken from the eternal peacefulness of heaven. talk about a catch 22. 

i was looking at my dad's facebook page earlier and was very encouraged by a status he posted back in march of 2010. what an incredible call to action that we should all take to heart! bottom line: i miss you, dad. 

day 11: selling myself in 10 words or fewer

today, i'm selling myself in ten words or fewer for the blog-everyday-in-may challenge. here it goes...

i'm a woman--hard-working, always honest, and a realist.

short and sweet for today. happy saturday, lovelies!

day 10: well this is embarrassing...

let me preface this oh, so embarrassing story with the fact that i pretty much embarrass myself on a daily basis with one thing or another. it seems that i am constantly running into something, falling down, putting my foot in my mouth, etc. and always, always in front of a group of people. because of this, it is extremely hard for me to pinpoint just one of those embarrassing moments for today's blog challenge, but here it goes. 

*sigh*

florence + the machine comes to dallas for a show, and me and two of my girlfriends decide to make it a girls' night out. (read more about the incredible force that is florence here.) as with most girls' nights out, some cocktails were involved at the concert, and throughout the night, i texted photos of the concert to my friends and parents. 

i, in my greatness, decide i wanted to buy a glow headband from this guy selling them because it just seems like the best idea ever. (please keep in mind that the headband will now forever be known as the "glow stick.") 

me, with said glow stick after the concert, but before the most embarrassing thing. ever.

as we're leaving the concert, my friend, erica, snaps a photo of me (above). i think it's cute and decide to i send it to my parents (via group text) and michael. 

we get to the car, and i decide to text michael and let him know that we're on our way home. my friend, erica, is driving, and amy is in the back seat. as i mentioned before, i had had a few drinks, and with amy's encouragement, i think it will be funny to send a little risque text to michael. what's the harm, right? WRONG!

in an effort to do a little play-on-words (because i'm soooooo literary), i make a reference to michael's "glow stick," only to realize that i accidentally entered the text into the group message i have with my parents. 

awesome.

as soon as i realize it, i scream what i've done, erica almost wrecks her car, and amy almost pees her pants laughing. i, on the other hand, am mortified. but guess what! you can't "unsend" a text, and i received the following response. thank goodness my parents have a sense of humor!

wondering why mom mom says "we are getting used to it?" don't worry. this, sadly, is not the first time this has happened. 

moral of the story? glow sticks are overrated, and group text messages are of the devil!

day 9: snuggle bug

"is it really time to get up?" -ben

the moment of my day that you get to see today is my sweet little snuggle bug, benny. i snapped this photo maybe a week or two ago, but he makes the same face every morning. he gets all cuddled up in our comforter and gives me a little look out the side of his eye that says, "there's no way i'm getting out of this spot." 

sweet baby. :)

day 8: take some advice

one of the greatest pieces of advice i've ever been given came from my granny. 

my granny. what a looker, right??

it's so good, in fact, that i feel like for today's topic for the blog-everyday-in-may challenge i'll share this little tidbit with you...

"people are going to screw up and hurt you. you've got to learn to forgive it and move on. you can't live in the past."

this little chunk of greatness has been quite the hard pill to swallow for me lately. i'm the type of person that is pretty much black and white whenever it comes to relationships. if i feel that someone has wronged me in some way, it's impossible sometimes hard for me to get past it without an apology from the "guilty" party.

there is so much truth in what she said to me. i was in high school at the time and for reasons i'd rather not go into too deeply, was not on the best terms with my mom. i was going on some rant about how unfair she was and how i would never have anything to do with her again and granny stopped me and shed some light on that situation. she was so right. we all have to forgive the people that hurt us on our own terms. for some people, forgiveness comes alongside cutting the person who hurt you out of their life. i am a firm believer that you can forgive a wrongdoing, but still understand that you are better off without certain people in your life. i'm not a heartless bitch for saying this, either. it's more along the lines of "fool me once, shame on you. fool me twice, shame on me." i am so grateful and happy to say that the relationship between my mom and me made it out of that place and are now super close and extremely happy. 

it seems so simple, doesn't it? three truths right there in a row, wrapped up pretty and just waiting for you to take advantage of it. it's inevitable that people will hurt you at some point in your life. that's life. finding a way to move past it whenever it happens is the most important part. after all, who wants to spend their time dwelling on something that happened in the past? what a waste of time. 

xoxo.

day 7: AHHHHH!!!! you scared me!

today, i get to tell you what scares me. honestly, i don't really get scared that easily. 

there is one thing, though, that has remained the main source of fear in my life. getting arrested. really getting in trouble of any kind scares the living shit out of me! i am a habitual rule-follower. i know--boring. i just can't help it. it makes me suuuuuper uncomfortable to break any rules. i'm really just terrified that i'll get caught and thrown in the big house. i also am not the least bit smooth whenever it comes to breaking rules (probably because i'm so uncomfortable), which, 99% of the time, leads to me getting caught. ANY time i get pulled over, i immediately have a panic attack and begin to cry because, even though i know i simply was [fill in moving traffic violation here], the thought of something escalating to the point of me being arrested just scares the bajeezus out of me!

i'll never forget one time when i was in college. my friend kristy and i decided to catch a movie. we were using the little kiosk inside the theatre because we were paying with our credit cards. when you use the kiosks, you get to choose which type of ticket you purchase. kristy went to buy her ticket and selected the child's ticket because it was less expensive. we were about 22 at the time...clearly not children. i went to purchase my ticket, and kristy nonchalantly said, "just get a kid's one like i did. they never really look and it's cheaper." i immediately was unsteady about this, but she reassured me with, "don't worry. me and jenee (our other friend) used to do it all the time." 

against my better judgement, i purchased the child's ticket. 

of course, as soon as we got up to the ticket-taker, he barely even looked at kristy's ticket and she passed through. i get up there, though, and all of a sudden, mr. ticket-man get's microscopes for eyes and immediately calls me out. to add insult to injury, there was a long line that had accumulated behind me. awesome. 

i then had to go, get refunded for my child's ticket, and repurchase the correct one. so. embarrassing!! kristy still laughs about that. 

i was so thankful that the movie-theatre police didn't come out with guns blazing, but needless to say, i never tried to cheat the system again. it's just not worth it!

i do think that fear is relative to whatever else is going on in your life, though. for example, i don't think sky diving would is scary because i have absolutely no fear of heights. now that i'm married (and eventually when i have children), though, sky diving would likely become much scarier. not because my fear of heights suddenly came about, but because the thought of doing something that could possibly end in my death, which would separate me from my husband and children, is so scary it's unthinkable.

so, i admit it! i'm a scardy-cat when it comes to breaking the rules. sue me. what scares you??

later lovelies!

day 6: "so what do you do?"

today's prompt calls for me to answer the question "what do you do?" with something other than your job. 

what do i do?

well, i laugh. at everything. when something is funny (duh) or uncomfortable or silly. i just laugh. sometimes i even laugh to keep from crying. that sometimes happens a lot. bill cosby said it best.

"through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. and once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it."

life's too short to be taken so seriously, so i suppose i try to find the humor in all situations as best i can. 

xoxo.

day 5: i just love ya!

today, i get to share my love and devotion for one of my blogger friends! 

meet megan from it's about the journey. 

photo courtesy of it's about the journey

megan and i went to high school together. she is passionate about travel (she lived in iraq!), reading, and anything country. she's also hilarious! need proof? read about her chicken problems. yes. you read that correctly...chicken problems. lol. i also have a confession to make about ms. megan. i began reading her blog and immediately got stuck on it--big time. (this was before my blogging days.) well, one day came along and ms. thang decided she was going to take a break from blogging. one day went by, then two, then three. as more and more time went by, i found myself getting more and more angry at her. where's my daily dose of hometown farming and crafting and cooking?! i admit i began to curse her from behind my computer screen.

fast forward a couple of weeks where i ran into megan at our friend, piper's bridal shower. i worked up the courage to confront her about why the crap she felt it was necessary to continually string me along with her blog. (i am not a psycho, i swear.) i mean, you can't just write about all this cool crafty stuff, and then just stop. not cool, megan, not cool. we had a really good laugh about how i stalked her blog and cursed her from behind my computer. she even devoted a post to me! 

truth be told, megan was actually one of the things that inspired me to start blogging. she said something at that shower that stuck with me. it went along the lines of how she didn't really do any type of social media like facebook or twitter, but that she did take time to blog because it was like an online scrapbook that she could always look back on. that's when i realized that i wanted to start a blog of my own. i wanted something that i can look back on and see how blessed my life has been. won't it be nice to be able to show my future children that there was actually a time when their parents were young, fun, and free? i think so. :) 

you should definitely stop by megan's blog and get to know her. she's just great!

day 4: a wise man once said...

today's prompt for the blog-everyday-in-may challenge is to discuss your favorite quote. now, i could easily make a month's worth of blog posts about quotes alone. i've said it before, and i'll say it again, sometimes, someone just says exactly what you're thinking. there's no need to beat a dead horse, or say something a million different ways, so i've found it's better to just quote them. 

one of my favorite quotes, ever, is by none other than mr. william shakespeare.

"love all, trust a few, do wrong to none." how simple. how direct. how true.

love all...how many times do we, as humans, pass judgement on someone else? whether it's because of a different religion, lifestyle choice, or what have you, how many times to you catch yourself spreading negativity to another person? this will make me sound a bit liberal (gasp!!!!), but rather than jump to discrimination, try to put love first. coexist. we are all human and possess the need, at some point in time, to be shown kindness and compassion. being different isn't bad, it's just different. love all... if you don't agree with something, don't judge someone who partakes, just don't do it.

trust a few...as a reformed cynic, this phrase in particular sits quite well with me. while i'd like to think that everyone on the face of the planet has the best intentions, this helps me to snap back to reality and remember that not all people have pure hearts. it really sucks, but it's true. when you do find those people that are worthy of your trust and confidence, hold on to them for dear life. they become your lifeline in so many ways. in my experience, the few that you are able to trust the most, are the ones who love all no matter what. they're the people that you can go to with any situation--good, bad, ugly, whatever--and there is no expectation of perfection from you. those people, while they are definitely few and far between, are the ones to trust without any apprehension.

do wrong to none...the simplest, yet sometimes, the hardest part of this whole quote. it says to do wrong to none. not do wrong to none unless they pissed you off, or hurt you, or were a "bad person." none. every person has value, in some form or another, and that value should be appreciated, regardless of the form it comes in. like the jerk who cut you off on the freeway. appreciate and understand that he may be fighting a bigger battle than you ever thought was possible. don't curse him and flip him off. 1) two wrongs don't make a right. 2) he likely can't hear or see you and you look like an idiot going crazy in your car, screaming at some stranger.

ol' willy challenges me everyday with this quote. it's so simple, yet complex, and forces me to evaluate the actions i take in my everyday life. i love it.

xoxo.

day 3: things that make me uncomfortable

my interpretation of "uncomfortable" for today's challenge post translates directly to "awkward."

1. basically every aspect of this video. poor baby...she didn't stand a chance. come on, that open-mouth hip wiggling? the penguin dance stance? i can barely watch it myself. my personal favorite cringe-worthy spot is where johnny spins her away at the very end and just bounces on her (right around 1:23). sorry, baby, the dancing was even too awkward for groin-thrusting-johnny.

2. when you see someone you know wave and you wave back. then you realize they were not looking at you at all, rather, they were saying hello to the person behind you. this situation makes me want to crawl under a rock.

3. when you try to give the "high five" to someone and they totally do not reciprocate and you are "left hanging." the discomfort is especially terrible when you're surrounded by a group of people. neat.

4. this one's a double whammy. it's soooo uncomfortable when you see someone and they don't remember you. add insult to injury when they make it known that they don't remember you and you make it known that you clearly know them. second one, it's super awkward when you think someone's about to ask you to do something (go on a date, hang out, etc.) and they're not.

these are just a few situations that make me suuuuuper uncomfortable. what about you? what makes you cringe??

later lovelies!

day 2: "weight watcher" survival skills

day 2 of the blog-everyday-in-may challenge is officially underway! today's topic requires me to educate you on something that i know a lot about or am good at. now, i'm definitely not trying to claim to be any type of fitness and nutrition guru, but i absolutely can shed some light on how to survive weight watchers (or any diet in general). 

you may or may not know that over the last few years, i've struggled with my weight. now, i'm a pretty confident gal, and i believe that women are all beautiful, no matter their size, (cue dove's beauty campaign here) however, i also understand that when i am carrying some extra weight, i don't feel as good as i do when the weight's not there. i have personally found a lot of success with the weight watcher program. as a person who eats to resolve any situation (happy, sad, stressed, anxious, etc.), weight watchers allows me to be mindful of what i am putting in my mouth at all times. if you are looking to drop some pounds, give weight watchers a shot, and when you do, take these survival skills, pack them into your brain, and never forget them. they'll save you so much stress (i hope!). 

1. don't drink your points (or calories) away. you aren't given many points, so you have to learn to make them stretch throughout the day. one way to totally screw yourself is to waste points on non-filling things like juices (which super high in sugar and carbs) and non-diet sodas. For example, an 8 oz. glass of simply orange orange juice is a whoppin' 3 points! when you only have 26 points each day like me, 3 points is a lot to waste on something you drink. this also (unfortunately) applies to alcohol. i've basically stopped drinking altogether simply because it's annoying to have to a) count points when you're trying to have fun when you're out with your friends; b) let's be serious--after a couple of drinks, you just aren't worried about how many points you've consumed, and then you're back at square one. needless to say, drinking, while it does cause lots of fun, it also causes killer headaches, nausea, and hangovers that make me want to scarf all the greasy goodness i can find. never good when you're on "the watch."

2. restaurant food is pretty much always bad for you. the sooner your realize that, the less frustrated you will be. when you can, just stick to cooking your own food. now, i know what you're thinking..."rachel, it's impossible to not eat out." you're pretty much right. our society makes food not only the center of our lives (there's an entire tv network devoted to it!!), but it also is one of the more social aspects of life. i mean, when was the last time someone said, "hey! it's been a long time since we've hung out! let's go for a jog!" yeah right. it's always "let's grab drinks!" or "how about dinner?" this can be really challenging, but i've learned the best way to combat it, is to plan, plan, plan. if you know you're going to be going out to eat, check out the restaurant's menu online and decide what you're going to eat hours in advance. it sounds crazy, but going in with your mind already made up makes a huge difference.

3. the healthiest choice isn't always the most obvious one. this is somewhat of an extension of #2. when you sit down to order, i'm sure your eyes immediately go to the "salads" section of the menu and think you're home free. not always a good thing. take chili's, for example. the quesadilla explosion salad has an astounding 1360 calories, 88 grams of fat, and 87 grams of carbs (!!!!!!!!!!!). even the santa fe chicken salad rings in with 680 calories, 46 grams of fat, and 36 grams of carbs! at chili's you can get the classic sirloin, rice, and steamed broccoli with garlic butter (yum!) for a total of 520 calories, 19 grams of fat, and 51 grams of carbs. HUGE DIFFERENCE!!!!

4. track, track, track! write down everything you eat with the points plus value it has. here's where you have to get a little psycho (and that's totally okay!). make it a game! see how much food you can actually consume and still make your points last. if you aren't writing down what you're putting in your mouth, there's not possible way you can know exactly how much you are eating. i was just floored when i first started tracking. it definitely makes you mindful of not only what you're eating, but also how much you were eating beforehand. 

5. stick with it, even on the hard days. you know those days when you wake up and just want a cheeseburger? that's okay. every once in a while, you can have that cheeseburger. the key is to just not have the cheeseburger, fries, jumbo chocolate milkshake, and dessert. stick that delicious cheeseburger with a side salad and call it a day. you get to feel like you're eating the good stuff, but you aren't totally blowing it out of the water. one of my favorite quotes (that i heard from my weight watchers meeting leader) is "the time's going to pass anyway, so you might as well lose the weight, too." 

these are just a couple of little tidbits that will help you stay on top of your weight loss program. i continue to learn new things about myself and what works best for me when it comes to weight loss, but the most important thing is that i keep myself dedicated to striving to be healthy. after all, "nothing tastes as good, as healthy feels." 

until tomorrow...

Day 1: About me in 250-ish words or fewer :)

december 4, 1987

i was born december 4, 1987 in houston, tx. my parents divorced just 6 months later. mom remarried and i got a new brother and sister. at 7 years old, we moved to mt.vernon, tx, though i still split my time between there and houston. mt.vernon is where i met michael, my high school sweetheart. i seemed to always feel like a city girl stuck in a small town, so in 2006, mike and i called it quits, i graduated high school and moved to lubbock, tx, for college (wreck 'em tech!). i was super active in my sorority, chi omega, studied abroad, and interned for texas tech athletic media relations during the mike leach era. in 2007, we found out my dad had stage 4 cancer. 5 months after my college graduation in december 2009, my sweet dad passed away, and shortly thereafter, i moved to conroe, tx. april 2011 rolls around and i've got a wedding to attend. as fate would have it, michael was also in mt. vernon the same weekend. we've been together ever since. in august 2011, i quit my job and hauled ass to dallas. i started a new job as an event planner, and michael quickly moved in with me. he proposed on april 29, 2012 and we were married on march 16, 2013. life has been unexpected, but it's also been so good. we have a tiny apartment (that's never clean), a precious puppy, and overall, a pretty sweet life.

248 words! suck on that!! lol. see you tomorrow lovelies!

31 days

so i've decided that i need to get my blogging crap together. i've been doing a lot better about blogging consistently lately, but sometimes, i really find it challenging. it's quite sad that my life is so boring that i can't even find things to write about. 

jenni, over at story of my life, challenged all of her readers (sooooo many readers) to partake in a blog-every-day-in-may challenge. i have decided to formally accept the challenge and get to blogging! YOU should take part as well! 

here's the list of topics. be bold, boring, or whatever you'd like, but always blog. :)

Day 1, Wednesday: The story of your life in 250 words or less (or one paragraph... no one will be counting your words... probably)

Day 2, Thursday: Educate us on something you know alot about or are good at. Take any approach you'd like (serious and educational or funny and sarcastic)

Day 3, Friday: Things that make you uncomfortable

Day 4, Saturday: Favorite quote (from a person, from a book, etc) and why you love it

Day 5, Sunday: Publicly profess your love and devotion for one of your blogger friends. 

What makes them great? Why do you love them? If you don't have blogger friends, talk about a real-life friend or even a family member

Day 6, Monday: If you couldn't answer with your job, how would you answer the question, 'what do you do'?

Day 7, Tuesday: The thing(s) you're most afraid of

Day 8, Wednesday: A piece of advice you have for others. Anything at all.

Day 9, Thursday: A moment in your day (this can be just a photo or both a photo and words)

Day 10, Friday: Most embarrassing moment (s). Spill. 

Day 11, Saturday: Sell yourself in 10 words words or less

Day 12, Sunday: What do you miss? (a person, a thing, a place, a time of your life...)

Day 13, Monday: Issue a public apology. This can be as funny or as serious or as creative as you want it to be.

Day 14, Tuesday: Ten things that make you really happy

Day 15, Wednesday: A Day in the life (include photos from throughout your typical day - this could be "a photo an hour" if you'd like)

Day 16, Thursday: Something difficult about your "lot in life" and how you're working to overcome it

Day 17, Friday: A favorite photo of yourself and why

Day 18, Saturday: Tell a story from your childhood. Dig deep and try to be descriptive about what you remember and how you felt.

Day 19, Sunday: Five of your favorite blogs and what you love about them

Day 20, Monday: Get real. Share something you're struggling with right now.

Day 21, Tuesday: A list of links to your favorite posts in your archives

Day 22, Wednesday: Rant about something. Get up on your soapbox and tell us how you really feel. (a pet peeve, a current event, a controversial topic, something your husband or roommate or neighbor or boss does that really ticks you off)

Day 23, Thursday: Things you've learned that school won't teach you

Day 24, Friday: Your top 3 worst traits

Day 25, Saturday: Something someone told you about yourself that you'll never forget (good or bad)

Day 26, Sunday: Something you read online. Leave a link and discuss, if you'd like.

Day 27, Monday: A letter to your readers

Day 28, Tuesday: Only pictures

Day 29, Wednesday: Five songs or pieces of music that speak to you or bring back memories. Use Grooveshark or YouTube to include them in the post

Day 30, Thursday: React to this term: Letting Go

Day 31, Friday: A vivid memory

loving this right now

you guys have to hear my new fav jam. i'm absolutely looooooooving paolo nutini right now.  i went to my go-to "relax" playlist on spotify  earlier and realized that i just HAD to share this guy with the other 5 people that read my blog. anyway, he's so good and the epitome of easy listening and relaxing. 

enjoy, friends, and if you feel like it, follow me on spotify!

boston

is there ever really a way to explain terror or tragedy? there never seems to be a shortage of situations like columbine, the oklahoma city bombings, 9/11, the virginia tech shootings, and in this particular instance, the boston bombings. time will eventually tell the "who," "what," "when," and "where" for every aspect of this disaster, but i find it hard to believe that anyone, especially myself, will ever be able to explain the "why." the one thing i cling to when i see madness like this, is that there is hope for mankind. 

a blogger that i follow, jenni, shard the quote below. sometimes, someone else just says exactly what you can not figure out how to say. 

patton oswalt nailed it. 

"Boston. Fucking horrible. 

I remember, when 9/11 went down, my reaction was, 'Well, I've had it with humanity.'

But I was wrong. I don't know what's going to be revealed to be behind all of this mayhem. One human insect or a poisonous mass of broken sociopaths. 

But here's what I DO know. If it's one person or a HUNDRED people, that number is not even a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a percent of the population on this planet. You watch the videos of the carnage and there are people running TOWARDS the destruction to help out. (Thanks FAKE Gallery founder and owner Paul Kozlowski for pointing this out to me). This is a giant planet and we're lucky to live on it but there are prices and penalties incurred for the daily miracle of existence. One of them is, every once in awhile, the wiring of a tiny sliver of the species gets snarled and they're pointed towards darkness. 

But the vast majority stands against that darkness and, like white blood cells attacking a virus, they dilute and weaken and eventually wash away the evil doers and, more importantly, the damage they wreak. This is beyond religion or creed or nation. We would not be here if humanity were inherently evil. We'd have eaten ourselves alive long ago. 

So when you spot violence, or bigotry, or intolerance or fear or just garden-variety misogyny, hatred or ignorance, just look it in the eye and think, 'The good outnumber you, and we always will.'"

-patton oswalt

wicked

you guys. my mind is officially blown. 

michael has always told me that wicked is his favorite musical. ever. surprised that michael is even a fan of musicals? you shouldn't be. he was quite the thespian growing up, actually. truth be told, he went to state in one act play NOT one, NOT two, NOT three, but FOUR years in a row! he even had the lead role our senior year! (class of '06--holla!) anyway, he always told me what a great show it was, but i've never had the opportunity to see it. a few months ago, i found out that the broadway show was going on a national tour and would be making a stop in dallas. could it be fate? i think so. to my dismay, though, the tickets practically sold out as soon as they went on sale (at least the ones i could afford). 

earlier this week, my friend, jennifer, text me and said she had an extra ticket to see the show in fair park, and asked if i wanted to join. my answer? ummmm....heck yeah! jennifer's boss has season tickets to the music hall at fair park, and had already seen wicked, so he passed the tickets along to her. and THEN she invited me!!! score!!!!! 

so last night, me, jennifer, her roommate, tara, and tara's mom, all loaded up and headed to fair park. we stopped and enjoyed the quaintest little pizza place--pizza lounge! we got a couple of different personal pizzas and salads (and wine, of course!) and shared. i seriously recommend the hawaiian...it's sweet and savory, with the perfect amount of sauce. also check out the pear and gorgonzola salad. de-lish! i've always been afraid to try gorgonzola cheese because i was afraid i wouldn't like it (have i mentioned that i eat like a 5 year old?), but i was pleasantly surprised. the pears were sweet and delicious and the pear-vinaigrette was top-notch. you will not be disappointed with this place. 

so! we ate dinner and headed to the theatre. tara and her mom made their way to their seats, and jennifer and i headed to our. one word: WOW! we seriously had some of the best seats in the house--8th row, center section. it really doesn't get much better than that. obviously, you aren't allowed to take pictures during the show, but i did sneak a quick pic of the stage prior to the show's start. 

look at that crazy dragon! yikes!

me and jenny-boo before the show started.

you guys, if you ever have the chance to see this show, you have GOT to! i would go into a full synopsis of the plot, but don't want to ruin it for anyone. in a nutshell, wicked is somewhat of a prequel to the wizard of oz. it's the life story of both witches from the story, and explains how "the good witch" and "the wicked witch" became good and wicked. it was phenomenal. 

go see it! you won't regret it!

added bonus? the show featured one of the songs that we sang at chi omega's pref night at tech. PC '06, you know what i'm talkin' about. check it out...

later gators! xoxo