Surprise!

This weekend I took a little road trip to surprise one of my close friends on her engagement. Her sweet fiance set the whole thing up and it was hard to keep the secret from her for the last few weeks. She is going to make such a beautiful bride!

 The Birthday Girl, The Bride-to-Be, and Me

The happy couple!

New Ryan Adams

I can barely wait for the new Ryan Adam's CD to come out on October 11. HERE is a preview of the song that I can't get out of my head. I promise this won't be one of those songs that you get stuck in your head and then want to kill the person who put it there. You'll thank me.

Guess what my sister and my new hobby is. Did you guess ZUMBA? You'd be right.

I felt a little lame {and by lame I actually mean prude} in the beginning but by the end of a very sweaty hour my sister and I were laughing and dancing to some Miley Cyrus in the car.

I need some luck

On a day when nothing seems to be going right, I believe there’s something to fortune cookies, wishbones and 4 leaf clovers.

necklace from this etsy shop

piggy banks and cookie jars

It's hard to save in the piggy bank for big things that you know are a long way down the road when you've can stick your hand in the cookie jar right now. Does that make sense? Probably not because it was formed in my silly head. But truly, I am lusting over husband and I moving into my dream house {I mean our dream house} but am struggling with being willing to make sacrifices to get there. Being a grown-up is hard. 

I am so jealous about JCrew's crewcuts line for kids. I want to be five years old. Or have a five year old. Or be the size of a five year old. Any of those would work if it meant that I got this swimsuit.

Fail

Friday was a bit of a fail. I woke up with bites all over my ankles and became convinced {with the encouragement of my co-workers} that I had a bed-bug infestation. So, after lots of online research, I begged husband to help me search the entirety of the mattress and bedding for anything that might resemble a bed-bug.

While all of the bedding was in the wash, husband decided to make us some cocktails. We learned our lesson that carbonation and martini shakers do not mix. 

 Oh well, tomorrow is a new week and we are bed-bug free. False alarm! 

You know you're a needy sister when....

....before your younger sister goes out for the evening she calls you to make sure you'll be alright at home by yourself.

Yep, I've been watching too many crime shows before bed and have been taking a little too much comfort in having Melanie so close by when husband travels. The poor girl is stuck consoling her older sister before going out with friends!

But look how cute she is. Wouldn't you want this to protect you if you'd been watching crime dramas and were afraid of the dark?

She had this coming

Kate plus 8 has been canceled. How long do you think it will be before she starts hitting the reality show circuit?

Greedy List

I apologize for letting another week go by without popping in to say hello. I started my graduate program this week via an intensive 40 hour week of lectures, role plays, and a test. It has been an overwhelming test on my patience, my competence and motivation. 

Then yesterday husband and I drove to my hometown to help my parents and sister create a "greedy list." My parents are going to Italy for my Dad's 60th birthday and insisted that they complete their will and divvy up all of their valuables before the leave {and die?}. We spent 24 hours talking about death and "arguing" over which sister got which set of silver flatware. Even though my sister and I poked fun at how silly the whole ordeal was, we both left feeling sad that the reality is that someday we'll be dividing up my parents house for real. 

But then I got to come home to this beautiful scene and I was reminded to take a deep breath and enjoy all that life is throwing me right now. Life is good. 

 

View from our living room window tonight

It's a good thing Toyota and I agree on the motto: The more cup-holders the better!

This past week has been hectic, and ended in me driving a bus full of pre-teens for four hours and getting a speeding ticket. Sweet.

I start my intensive week for my graduate program tomorrow. As always, I'm nervous to start something new {what if no one wants to sit by me?!} but excited about this new journey.