iPhone Bliss

So last week my Blackberry kicked the bucket. When my vowels and #2 key didn't work, it was hard to call AAA for help when my gear cable shifter snapped last weekend. Luckily someone let me borrow their phone, but what if I had been on the side of the road?

So Patrick finally said, "enough is enough."

After my car was dropped off at the shop, and Patrick had picked me up, we went straight to Verizon to get an iPhone 4. I had only been DREAMING of this day for 3 years, and it was finally happening. No more t-mobile. No more blackberry. No more gimp keys or slow website access. And so I came home with this beauty.

I'm new to the whole iPhone world, but I'll let you in on my favorite app right now (other than Words with Friends which if we're being honest was my sole reason for wanting this phone in the first place). It's called My Fitness Pal. I know that sounds lame, but it allows you to track every meal, snack, amount of water sipped, as well as every kind of exercise you can imagine. I put in my ideal weight, what I am now, and it gives me a goal caloric intake to shoot for each day. (I also learned that if you have to write everything down, you're more apt to stay healthier and lose weight quicker).

Last night I joined LA Fitness which was a long time coming, I just hadn't taken the plunge. And this morning I went to kickboxing and then did some weights. I plugged in all the machines, weights, and the class that I did, and My Fitness Pal gave me back a few calories for the day! Probably because I started off with -400+ because of my workout. I am trying to get into a habit of working out because if I don't have a routine or people to do it with, I will sit on my couch. ALL DAY.

So here is an example of what a food diary can look like on the app, and the kind of information My Fitness Pal gives you (this is not mine, but I would love for my goal to be 2010, and not 1650). I hope that this (and Fiona) will keep me motivated each week to stay on top of my fitness goals. Wish me luck!

Family Time

Last night Patrick and I got home from the beach. Going to the beach each summer has been a tradition in my family for 25 years. Each year we rent a house, put up a tent in the sand and spend hours and hours talking, laughing, singing, drinking, eating. It's been an incredible tradition because it has forced everyone to connect each year and to keep up with each other as we've all gotten older. There are 18 of us and each year it seems we get bigger and more diverse. We are so blessed to have each other and to get to go through life together.

Here are some highlights from past trips and family gatherings. I didn't take one picture from this trip so none of these are super current. But they still exemplify who we are in some way!

A group of cousins and Annie (on the far right) in the ocean.

Annie is the woman that makes it all happen. She turns the big 8-5 this year!

A pool-side shot, minus Libby Gray, Jill, Joe, and Walter.

In our family there is freedom to wear whatever you want...

to give age appropriate gifts for all birthdays (tattoo sleeves and drinking games for my dad)...

to write raps and make up songs for each other...

to singe your hair while trying to light your cigar in a fire pit....

to have potato guns and potatoes at a wedding shower just because you're in Idaho...

to eat LOTS of fresh foods and to try new recipes....

and to teach your grandmother (who is 84) how to play pool.

Here's a great tent shot.

And an old fave of Annie, my dad, Walter, Maggie and Sloan.

One picture that I wish I had was one from the year that we built a lady in a coffin out of sand.

I hope everyone gets to experience the same unconditional love, generosity, respect, culturing, artsy-ness, drinking habits, and fun that my family exhibits. I wouldn't know how to do life without these wonderful friends.

Quote from Diva Muffin

So I was reading my former roommate's blog (and normally I don't refer to her as a "former" roommate because I still feel like we are one in spirit but have separate bodies), and I discovered some delicious quoatables. Now, they might not be as wonderful to you as they are to me and I'm okay with that. I want you to read these things and come away feeling like it's okay if you don't have anything together. Because none of us really do and it's probably better for everyone if we just embrace that, rather than pretending.

In regards to her favorite things:

also...
reality tv. its like i would much rather get overly involved in people's lives on tv than make real life decisions for myself. its a bit avoidant, i admit, but its working for me right now

lykke li
and the decemberists

hot black coffee and nice earthy teas

sleeping way too late

re-reading malcolm gladwell. he inspires me to think more.


also, my apartment cannot seem to keep itself together.
i would think that you might walk in and say to yourself, "man! i bet she's working on something really great right now. i can't wait to see this project/experiment/writing masterpiece." false.
things are just a mess.
you would say that because there is just stuff all over the place. like i'm too wrapped up inside my brain to put stuff where it goes.

i keep toying with the idea of moving or not and so i can't seem to get comfortable in my space.
one of my least favorite things is to spend time doing something just to undo it or redo it. so i'd rather live in limbo.

this is a bad idea, everyone.

Love this girl. And wish we still lived a mere somersault away from each other. Or in a room with bunk beds and Obi. With her alarm going off for hours at a time. Lisa, George and John might also be tucked into the covers or in a palette on the floor for safe keeping (they're hot commodities). Black relatives on the wall. Surrounded by clothes that were washed 6 six weeks ago but never made it into the closet. And 10 cups of water.

Trial Run

So in our household, we love animals and pets. Patrick and I have a sweet cat (Bailey) that we love very much. But since Patrick and I got married, he's practically been begging me to let us have a dog too. Our agreement was that we would have one of each, but being in a one bedroom apartment prevented us from getting a puppy. We knew we wanted a big dog so we decided it'd only be fair to wait until we moved into a house with more space.

Well, now we're in a house and have the opportunity to adopt this little beauty:

The unfortunate thing is that this lovely black lab is ALSO named Bailey. She is almost a year old, trained, and very calm. She doesn't jump or lick, and lets kiddos hang all over her. No we don't have kids to test that theory, but it is helpful for future reference. :)

Our good friends the Jacksons have had Bailey for several months, and are honestly just tired of taking care of her. Their kids are little and they have another one on the way, so they are obviously not much help with a mutt. I saw a post on facebook about them taking her to Petsmart to find her a home, so I figured...why not give her a trial run at our house? They're going to the beach for a week and a half, so its the perfect time to try our hand and lifestyle at a dog.

I've never had a dog and I told Patrick that I don't know how to talk to them, how to pet them, how to hold them or anything. He said "First of all, you don't hold them." Which I admit hurt my heart a little bit. Why have a pet you can't hold and carry around with you? If you've seen the youtube video of Debbie, then you understand how I feel about animals. Truly.

So starting Wednesday night, Bailey the dog will be at our house. If all goes well, we'll keep her forever! But are under no obligation to do so if it doesn't work out. Black labs are Patricks favorite dogs, and I have said all along that I want a dog that doesn't bark, jump, or lick...so this might be the perfect match for us. Yay for fun life changes! Just don't tell my mom.

More to come on Bailey and Bailey (this will get confusing at some point...).

The Beginner Decorater

So we made the big move last weekend! Finally. It was months and months in the making.

It was a tremendous amount of work, but everything is at least IN THE HOUSE now. For the love. I'm still exhausted 9 days later. I'm a compulsive shopper/spender so I was nervous that I'd blow this entire year's budget within the first 24 hours of moving in, but for some reason moving has had the opposite effect on me. All I've bought is two trash cans.

The hard thing about a house is that everything is so p.e.r.m.a.n.e.n.t. I'm terrified to buy something that I may or may not love, or to put a hole in a wall that I'll later decide against (which would then require spackle, sanding and re-painting to correct said mistake). The only thing I HAVE decided on is the color palette for our formal living room and dining room (which is another tough project because it will clash with the other current colors in the house until I find time to fix those).

Our dining room is the first room I'm attempting to envision and decorate. It will be grey and white for the most part, with silver accents. My goal is to have some bright pink or yellow flowers on the table, but I'm not quite there yet (mainly because I only have the chairs, not the table - which would obviously hinder my ability to decorate the table).

This is the material that I have covered the seats of each chair with (and by I, I mean my grandmother). It has creamy white, grey, and taupe in it. The chairs and table are dark brown, so my hope is that they'll blend with everything. (sorry this picture is not great - its from my phone)

These are my dream curtains from West Elm. I'd like to go see them in person at some point before I buy them, but that might not be a possibility. I might spend all of my birthday money on them. WHY ARE CURTAINS SO FLIPPIN' EXPENSIVE?

I am painting the dining room walls this shade of grey. The bottom half of the dining room is white beadboard, so my hope is that the grey won't feel so dark. I love the grey and white combination.

I haven't decided on the wall decor, but here are some ideas or accents I'm open to incorporating somehow:

Birthdays

So yesterday I turned the big 2-6. The downside to turning 26 is that nothing really remarkable happens or changes. I think 25 is a milestone because you can rent a car, and 30 is a milestone because you are no longer in your 20s (which albeit can be somewhat depressing). But apparently 30 is the new 20 so maybe it'll be better than I think. :)

I'm pretty sensitive about birthdays. In high school birthdays were fine because May 26 usually happened while school was still in session. But then I got to college and would spend hours and days celebrating friends, then classes would end, everyone would leave, and I'd have my birthday all alone. It's hard to feel important and valued when none of your friends want to celebrate you in the same way you celebrated them. I'd still get a call, but none of them would send cards or gifts, or even come out with me for dinner.

But this year was the first year that people actually said "What do YOU want to do?" and insisted on creating an evite for a gathering. I've always done that stuff myself because I've never had someone want to do it for me, so it made me feel HUGELY special. People say that birthdays aren't a big deal, but I think everyone wants to still feel loved and celebrated at the end of the day. And I certainly felt celebrated last night.

It wasn't a huge group, but it was a fun group that really made every effort to make me feel important. And I admit I was really upset going into it because Patrick was traveling and supposed to be home mid-afternoon (which I was already frustrated with), then his flight got delayed, then because of the weather in Atlanta they had to land in Augusta and re-fuel. So I went to and celebrated my birthday without the most important person by my side. (I was secretly glad that everyone on Facebook tells you happy birthday because I was very sad for a majority of the day...but every few minutes I'd get another wall posting or another message from a friend I haven't spoken to in awhile, and it just really helped me enjoy my day so much more).

So in the end it was a really light-hearted and fun night. Mexican at La Parrilla then drinks and dessert at my apartment afterwards. I got some really sweet and special gifts, and love that my friends know me so well. So thank you everyone for making my birthday wonderful!

Looking forward to celebrating all of you in return!

Love love.

Bachelorette Love

Ashley, The Bachelorette

So last night was the first night of this season's Bachelorette. And that means that I am one happy camper. This is one of my favorite seasons in all of television, and I don't have any problems secluding myself from the world in order to fully engage in this wonderful show. If anyone has any interest in reading my favorite Bachelorette blogger thoughout the season, check out I Hate Greenbeans. It's hilarious and fun, and I love her oh-so-wise comments on each and every move, comment, and fail of all the candidates. It's the people like her that make me love this show so much. Well, her and Natalie, Anna, Katie, Jamie, and Natalie (yes two Natalies).

I'm just sad Jessica can't also be with me each week to commemorate each episode.

Here are some of the candidates (a random sampling if you will):

William - very handsome AND very nice

Ryan P- noteworthy because he got the first impression rose midway through the night.

Jeff - He has also been wearing a Zorro mask so far this season, so no one has actually seen his face. And yes, he's unfortunately for real.

Constantine (yep that's his real name) - really down to earth guy from Alpharetta

And this winner, got so drunk last night on the premiere, that he passed out and had to be carried to the car. without a rose. Classy. Very very classy.

So it looks like this season is shaping up to be a lively one. Nevermind the guy that has already said he wishes Emily were the Bachelorette over Ashley. Or the guy that called his mom WITH Ashley, and his mom instructed them on how to use protection for their overnight dates. Really? Was that necessary?!?! I wanted to cry. Or wet my pants. Or do something that wouldn't make me feel as uncomfortable with the situation. Im sure wetting my pants would have done the job.

Yay for one of my greatest love languages- watching reality tv with friends. Amen.

Favorites

I probably show you my current favorite things once a week, so I'm sorry about that. But I'd hate for you to miss something fabulous because I didn't post it (I know I am your sole source of inspiration). So ahead of time, I'd just like to say you're welcome.

These are paper towel rolls- cheap and very fun.

And these are 3 of the new pairs of TOMS for the summer, and they are to. die. for.

In closing, I'd just like to remind everyone to:

Home Sweet Home

Well folks, good news. We FINALLY bought a house! Now, we won't officially be homeowners until June 15, but we WILL be homeowners nevertheless. I can't tell if it is surreal, or just feels natural. And I guess I feel a little bit of both, which is a good thing I think. We're ready for more space, we're ready to have a dining room and an office and a guest bedroom, rather than have all those rolled into one tiny apartment. We've been blessed to live in a great apartment complex, but it's time to step into the next phase of life. Its bittersweet.

I want to still be in the "newlywed" stage but buying a house quickly ushers you into the burdens of "adulthood." And again, that's not necessarily bad, but I'm wondering....who in the world would trust me with a house? I don't even keep up with our little 2 bedroom apartment! I am terrible at keeping up with wash, and once I actually do the wash, it insists on piling itself on all the furniture in crumpled piles. The coffee table stays messy, the bedroom floor on my side of the bed is always stacked with clean clothes I can't seem to put away, and dirty clothes that can't quite find their way to the hamper. I have books stacked in 6 different places and shoes in all corners of every room. My life screams "irresponsibility."

But I have high hopes of turning over a new leaf. A more responsible leaf. I love to decorate and write and do art, but none of those things happen because I'm just plain messy. And have Facebook stalking to do. And America's Next Top Model marathons to watch. And more clothes to buy and snacks to eat. And books to read and nails to paint. Who am I kidding? This new leaf might not actually get turned over anytime soon.

In other news, I maxed out how many someecards I could send in one day. All because I sent 26 to my boss while at work. Ok not really 26, but I did max out how many I could send without being a member. So on that note, I'll leave you with this one- while I watch tv and read blogs and stare at my laundry piled on the couch:

Again, this blog comes with a "no judgement" policy. Thanks.

College Roommate Love

Follow the sound of my keys. - Brett

At the Brew and Bowl

After every football game, we'd go to Ty's and grill out and make s'mores.

The Black Relatives.

Downtown in workout clothes. We were probably judged for this.

No explanation needed. Thanks Benji.

Groundhog Day Formal at Club 80

Mel, Evie and I borrowed Grant, Brian, and Jordan's clothes one night while they were out.

We had an inflatable turkey in the yard for Thanksgiving.

We played Twister every night after we went out in Athens. Patrick's the reigning champion.

Disco Night at the skating rink: "Can I pay extra for speed skates?" - Grant

Jessica's least favorite picture. Sweating and waiting to get our football tickets.

John Cena and George Bush

Our band. The Brothel.

The night we had a prank war with the neighbors we made a palette on the floor with Lisa.

167. The Apartment of Dreams.

These are some of my greatest memories, even though the pictures hardly do justice to how wonderful these friends are.