Vacation!

I know I'm completely slacking on my trip recap, but it's just going to have to wait while I soak up 8 glorious days of vacation at the beach. I'll be sinking my toes in the sand tonight and I'm not planning on moving out of my beach chair unless it's to take a nap in the hammock!

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Hope everyone has a great holiday!

...

Breakups are so so shitty.

I'm hurting in the worst way.

But this article, 15 Words To Remember When You're Going Through A Rough Time, is perfection.

Faith: "Believe in what you believe in, but do it wholeheartedly. God, love, the universe, people, destiny — sometimes you don’t have extra reassurance, leaving you with nothing but the strength of your own confidence. Faith is a trust fall, you’ve got to believe with the utmost conviction that everything is happening for a reason, and in the end all will be well."

Weekend Update ~ Food, Friends, Fall!

I had a pretty low-key weekend, but am considering it the calm before the storm, since I'll be out of town for the next three weekends.

Instagram snapshots:

1. Pumpkin coffee - so scrumptious | 2. Love the quote at The Velo Fellow (a bar in the West End) | 3. My 6-pack of pumpkin beers I scooped up at Total Wine (celebrating the first day of Fall in style!)

4. The intensity from watching the Clemson/FSU game | 5. My bestie Kyle was in town! |
6. Homemade pretzels and beer cheese at Mellow Mushroom - so yummy

Hope y'all celebrated the gorgeous weather this weekend! Only 3 more days of work and I'm off to Boston Thursday night! I'm so excited; productivity will be at an all-time low this week at work!

Weekend Update ~ A Whole Lot of Nothin'

Do you ever have one of those weekends that's the perfect amount of productivity and total laziness?

That's exactly how mine went down and I kind of want to repeat it over and over again.

But that's definitely not happening since football season starts IN SIX DAYS. We're off to Atlanta next weekend to see our Tigers kickoff against Auburn in the Georgia Dome. Cannot. Wait.

I'm almost 100% positive  I'm going to wake up in December and have no idea where fall went. It's my favorite time of year and I cannot be happier that it's on its way.

Back to the weekend...

Friday night we had a United Way event in Greenville. It was a typical young professional's gathering: mingling, bbq, beer and wine, and a band. I was home and in bed by 11:30 pm. #PostGradProblems.

Saturday included all the things great weekends are made of. A great run, cleaning, several loads of laundry, a patio lunch at the brewery downtown, a trip to Target and Trader Joe's, a pedicure, and a homemade dinner with a bottle of wine with my favorite person (Ryan, obviously).

Today, I made homemade bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches with my new egg poacher, spent hours on Pinterest, and took a nap while watching baseball. I'm heading out for my long run when it cools down a bit, and then Ryan and I are making pizza together!

See what I mean? This weekend made me happy.

I have a lot on the upcoming schedule, so it's easy to start wishing time away for things on the horizon.

I'm pretty sure I failed to mention that I'm going to Mexico in October with Ryan's family (3 days after we get back from Boston, eek)!!! While we were in Dallas, Ryan's mom asked us to go with the family to Cabo San Lucas. Who could pass up that trip? I've never been to Mexico, either! Cue excitement.

But I saw this on Pinterest today and I really loved it.

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Hope you all enjoyed your weekends and are taking advantage of every moment!

#SummerProblems

I'll be back with a weekend update tomorrow, but I just had to share this article from Thought Catalog. I just started following them on Twitter and I'm in love. Their articles make me laugh out loud. This one especially! Find yourself a body of water and enjoy the heat wave! :)

25 #SummerProblems

1. When you get into a car with vinyl seating and you immediately adhere to every surface accompanied by the soft sound of sizzling bacon, and you are reminded how much you hate everything.

2. Bugs deciding that every inch of your exposed skin is the perfect place to host their week-long music festival.

3. Having to pretend like you’re interested in purchasing various items in every other store you pass even though you have ~zero dollars in your account right now, simply so you can soak up that sweet, sweet AC.

4. Spending an entire morning doing your hair, only to have it meet the humidity at the door and poof up on all sides like some giant, fuzzy head-umbrella.

5. Rejecting 99 percent of your clothes simply because they cover more than the bare minimum amount of body parts to make you acceptable in society.

6. Public transportation taking on the general conditions of a terrarium.

7. Makeup melting down your face, making you look something like a sad clown from a velvet painting.

8. Having to decide between an ice-cold drink which promptly turns into a soup of ice-water and whatever your drink was supposed to be, or a lukewarm drink that keeps its taste but has none of the essential ice.

9. Enjoying about 10 minutes of outdoor exposure before becoming a giant abstract painting of sweat stains and unintentionally see-through clothing.

10. A forehead shiny enough to down passing commercial jets.

11. Debating sticking your head in the freezer or taking the 4th cold shower of the day, and it’s not even noon yet.

12. All of the extra empty calories you are inevitably taking in now that your liquid diet is 70 percent margaritas, daiquiris, and mojitos.

13. When you think you have that sexy summer glow going on while dancing at a party, but then you catch a glimpse of yourself in a reflective surface and are like, jk, I look like a swamp creature.

14. Farmer’s tan, which unless accompanied by a dozen acres of actual farmland, just makes you look like an asshole.

15. Cutting the corners of your mouth open on ice pops, the facial equivalent of stepping on a Lego.

16. Sticky sheets from sweating on yourself in the evening — yeah, you can’t even blame these on hot sex, you’re just gross.

17. Every bad smell being multiplied at least ten-fold.

18. “Summer jams” being overplayed until the opening notes of them make you want to kill yourself right where you’re standing.

19. Not being able to eat anything served over room temperature.

20. The unbelievable people who actually seem to look good and somewhat sexy in jungle-like heat, while you’re standing on the street like a melting wax statue, just waiting for the heat to kill you already.

21. When it’s too hot to even have sex, and someone trying to spoon with you makes you feel like you’re being suffocated by a thousand molten-hot pillows.

22. The nights when thinking of something to do makes you too hot, so you all just sit there and kind of turn into puddles on the curb, waiting for something to do.

23. Hangovers somehow being turned up to 11.

24. When you step outside at 8 a.m. and it already feels like the inside of a locker room and you’re like, damn, this does not bode well for 

the rest of the day.

25. When you remember, lol jk I have zero pride, and would totally sleep with someone for even temporary access to a pool. 

What I'm Loving...

What a wonderful weekend! Cinco de Mayo is probably a favorite holiday for two reasons: it combines my love of all Mexican foods (and drinks) and an excuse to spend a day by the pool. This holiday in college usually marked the end of exams, so everyone was relaxed and happy, sipping margaritas by the pool. This year was no different, even though we're in the "real world" now. Ryan was playing golf yesterday, so I saved our Mexican fiesta for today instead. And the sun is actually shining today! Next post will be filled with glorious new Mexican-themed recipes!

I've been meaning to do a post about some of my recent finds! But first things first:

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This trilogy has consumed me for the past week. The first book was off to a rocky start. These books were not something I would originally pick up off the shelf, given the content and genre, but it's been sweeping the nation, and I wanted to find out what the buzz was all about. While I couldn't decide if I loved or hated the first book, I was engrossed and had to keep reading. I finished all three books in a week (Lauren is convinced I should quit my job and become a speed reader so I can appear on Jeopardy...we'll see about this theory). I'm glad I kept reading. The books got so much better as the story developed (and got less creepy). The main character drove me nuts and the writing wasn't the greatest, but it wasn't like I invested my life into these books. I don't think I'd run out and tell everyone they HAVE to read these, because they're hard to swallow at some points. But I can understand the fascination! I'm so excited to have time to read again. I'm looking forward to some books that have been on my "to-read" list for quite some time (and a vacation in a few short weeks so I can indulge)!

Now for some fashion! I went shopping a few weeks ago, at J.Crew and at the outlets. After a few days of wearing some pretty drab outfits (black, tan, grey, white), I felt like I needed a little color in my wardrobe. I used to work in a Lilly Pulitzer store, so for years, my closet was full of nothing but brightly patterned sundresses. Once I started working as an accountant, most of my wardrobe was inappropriate for an office environment. I've dialed it down quite a bit, and actually haven't bought anything from Lilly in SO long. I still try to put some sass into my outfits every now and then. 

I headed to J.Crew, knowing that their spring/summer collection was full of bright colors. I picked up just a few things, but have already received compliments on my new items. Why is it so fun to buy new clothes? Here's my purchases, all from J.Crew

The pants are a cream linen, with a tiny herringbone pattern. I'm in LOVE. The red shirt is also linen, and has button detailing on the shoulders. I haven't had a chance to wear the pink top yet, but it will probably make an appearance in the very near future.

Another purchase I made for summer, are these TOMS:



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They're an exclusive color from Nordstrom. I have a grey pair of TOMS that I wear all the time, so much so that I've already worn a hole in the toe. I wanted to replace those, but know I won't be wearing a ton of closed-toe shoes over the summer, so I'll wait until the fall to buy a new pair. 

I coveted this crochet pair last year, but they only came in cream and black. My knack for getting white things dirty made me shy away from the cream, even though I loved them. When I saw these online, I knew they were going to be a winner. They've shipped and should be arriving on my doorstep soon. I can't wait! AND they're in my new favorite color!!

I'm also lusting after these earrings from Anthropologie

They're just so simple and pretty! 

On a happy note, I wanted to leave you with Lululemon's manifesto, which I saw on someone else's blog and loved enough to save it to my desktop. Enjoy!





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Thankful Things Thursday

Hello there! I've been a bit MIA this week, but for good reason. Bobby's dad's funeral was on Tuesday in Aberdeen, MS, and I wouldn't have missed it for the world. The trip was a whirlwind. Jordan, Michael, Ryan, and I pulled out of Greenville at 10 pm Monday night. We drove 5 hours to Jasper, AL to crash at a hotel. We slept about 3 hours and were back up again to shower and hit the road. We got to the church about 2 hours before the funeral. We spent some time with the family and it was great to see them and hug them all. The funeral was a great testament to Mr. Dale's life and what a great man he was (I, of course, bawled through the entire thing). After the burial, we joined the family for lunch. I'm so happy we got to give everyone a big hug and express our love and sympathy for them. We were back on the road by 2 pm and pulled back into Greenville 24 hours after we had left. I've been catching up on sleep ever since!

But on to regularly scheduled blog programming (which will probably be a very short post)!

I'm thankful for birddogs. For everyone wondering what the heck a birddog is, let me explain. It's one of the best foods ever. There's a restaurant in Anderson called JC's which makes the ultimate birddog. A chicken tender in a hotdog bun, toasted with cheese and bacon, and covered in honey mustard. Y.U.M. In case you're having a hard time picturing this, don't worry, I managed to get a picture before I scarfed it down.

I'm thankful for thunderstorms. We've had lots of rain showers in the afternoon this week, and it's given me a perfect excuse to climb in bed when I get home from work. Which reminds me...

I'm thankful for my bed. From Thursday to Tuesday, I slept in a different bed every single night. Insane. I was so exhausted from not sleeping before the funeral, I climbed in bed last night at 8:30 and I'm not ashamed to say I was in my pajamas by 6 tonight. 

I'm thankful for weekends. And this weekend can't come soon enough. It's also Easter! I'm going to enjoy the Masters on tv and take naps and sleep in on Saturday! During busy season, the weekend was just another opportunity to work (yuck) so I'm back to taking full advantage of my Saturdays! 

I'm thankful for quotes. I love them actually. I have a word document on my computer where I save all my favorites. Just when I needed something uplifting on Tuesday, I saw this on Facebook: "I was sure by now, God, you would have reached down, wiped our tears away, stepped in and saved the day. But once again, I say 'Amen' and it's still raining. And as your mercy falls, I raise my hand and praise the God who gives and takes away."

I'm also 100% thankful for my friends and family. I'd be lost without them. There has been such an outpouring of love and support this week and it reminds me just how lucky I am. God blessed me with an incredible support system when things are tough.

I'm glad you hung around for this semi-sad post today. Hopefully recharging my batteries this weekend will have me back to normal! Until next time!