The last...

Yesterday, Katie did a post like this, and I just loved it! So naturally, I'm 'borrowing' it! Thanks, girl!

The last...

recipe I made... the fact that I can't answer this shows how terrible of a 'house-wife' I am. But I do plan on making this again soon!! NOM!

good decision I made...when Caleb and I decided we're finallyyy going to get a JOINT bank account this weekend...that's right people, moving up in the world. It will make budgets/bill paying a heck of a lot easier.

cool place I went too...The Sara Bareilles concert on Tuesday! An awesome friend from work took me as an early birthday present. Most of you know who Sara Bareilles is, but seriously? Girlfriend is even more incredible live. She did a cover of Sia's "Chandelier" and holy crap, I had chills for the entire 3-4 minutes. See it here. Seriously, you need to watch this right now!

show that I watched... 30 Rock. Caleb and I just started it last week and are loving it. It's not exactly on par with The Office, but its a different kind of funny...and I LOVE Kenneth!

awesome thing that happened...finding a 'free lunch combo' for Applebees on the employee cork board at work! No other purchase necessary. I love FREE!!

thing I bought for myself... am umbrella (that broke), and then another umbrella (that also broke). I feel like that's really bad luck or something?!

good photo of Caleb and I... was last week at our photographers house. We were doing a quick, laid back, mini-photo shoot to update our website (post on that to come later)!

bad decision I made... over the weekend, I think I had a total of 1 double decker vanilla moon pie, and a couple donuts. When will I learn!? I promise, I usually work out like 4x/week (but its been a while), and eat relatively healthy most of the time...but lately I've just been so happy with the thought of "no plans", its screwing me up! Gotta get back in my groove!!

time I was really excited... just a minute ago while thinking about this coming Friday night. We're finally going to be reunited with our best friends, a low-key game night just the four of us! The past few months have been pretty lonely, which is ironic, because we've never been busier or surrounded more frequently. But it really stinks not being able to see your favorite people on your time, in the midst of it all!

time I had a free weekend? That's right, just last weekend...and again this weekend. Eek! I can't believe my luck ;)

Enjoy your day guys! It's almost Friday!!

The thrill seekers ultimate bucket list.

I don't know about you guys, but I seriously love the thrill of a new adventure. I love doing something that terrifies me, because I know I'm about to have an amazing time and make an "I can't believe I did that" kind of memory.

I've got lots of "crazy" things I want to do with this life of mine...so I thought I'd make myself a bucket list of them all.

Yep, that's me!

Skydive. Check!

Swim with dolphins. Check!

Bungee jump.

Swim with sharks (with, or without the cage. I'm not picky!)

Go on a hot air balloon ride. Preferably with my hot date, but I don't know if he'd enjoy the heights!

Cliff diving.

Learn to surf, or at least try.

Edgewalk the CN Tower in Toronto.

Hang gliding. I can't imagine what it feels like to "fly" with the wind under you.

Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb. It's a dream of ours to make it to Australia, but this is one think I'd be doing solo...but still, looks so worth it.

Zipline over a huge mountain, like this one.

White water rafting.

Ride at a race track at high speeds with my love!

Great Barrier Reef Dive. (in Australia)

Hang out in zero gravity. I don't know that I think its worth the nearly $5,000/person to do it, but hey, if I had the chance, I'd do this in a heartbeat!

What about you guys? What's the ONE crazy thing you want to do in your life? It doesn't even have to be something that adrenaline filled...it could be starting your own business (another goal of mine), writing a book, or maybe even pursuing your biggest passion. HAPPY HUMP DAY!

What weekends are made of.

First of all, can we take a second to celebrate the fact that this is my 400th post?! Eek! Okay, back to business! This weekend was marvelous, ABSOLUTELY marvelous. Instead of hanging out on Friday night, Erin and I each went home and have a "me night" (since our husbands were out all-night-fishing). I think we each needed it, so instead...I decided to be her 'moral support' when she got her hair CHOPPED the next morning! Guys, can I take a second to brag on my HOT sister-in-love?! I meaaaan....

before//after

Like I said on Friday, I had NO concrete plans this week. I knew I'd be in Dayton early Saturday, but other than that - no plans. We truly needed it. I had to say "no" to a few things to make it work, but I'm learning that that's okay. My social calendar can wait, if it means uninterrupted time with my man! So when I got home, Caleb and I had the ENTIRE day ahead of us. We didn't even know what to do with ourselves! So we decided to hit up our local library, and go from there...

& yes, we're in the "teen fiction" section. #dontjudgeme

After that we headed home for a little down time, then spiffied up to use a couple gift cards that were burning a hole in our wallets. PF Changs and a movie it was!!

Sunday after church, my in laws decided to treat the family to an early birthday celebration for me (even though its a little early!)...so Mexican it was! Is this not the BIGGEST sombrero you've ever seen!?

Then the guy then put whipped cream all over my face, annnnd those pictures are too embarrassing for the blog ;)

Hope you all enjoyed your weekend as much as I did mine! I love free time!!

New design! HOLLA!

Guess what's blue, yellow, and freaking adorable all over?!! That's right...my new blog design. You know, it really pays to have the best sister-in-love designing your blog. I'm borderline obsessed with it. What do you guys think?!

Speaking of that cutie...I get to hang out with her tonight. It's been a rough couple of months, if I'm being honest. Typically, Caleb and I are able to get together with Jared and Erin at least a couple times a MONTH for a low key game night, Mexican dinner night out, or just a cheap seat movie...but since we took our AMAZING vacation in April - life has been a serious whirlwind. So to say I'm looking forward to some time with them coming up makes me extremely happy would be an understatement!!

Typical soulmate fashion.

Anyway, its FRIDAY. Which means I'm at work, not focusing on anything relevant. Actually, I'm still trying to pick my jaw up off the floor, cause I have no huge commitments this weekend. Can we talk about that for a second?! Caleb and I are the busiest people I know most of the time...and WE have ZERO concrete plans all weekend. Aside from an early birthday celebration his side of the family is throwing for me on Sunday afternoon, we are free as birds. I can't even begin to explain how HAPPY this makes me! I intend to make fun plans, be silly, and probably not be productive at all, & I can't wait one bit.

Have a happy day!

I wanna see you be brave!

Today my blog post is all about our beauty, as women. Today is also this gorgeous gals birthday. Lyndsie was my Maid of Honor in my wedding! She's the spoon to my jar of marshmallow fluff :) this girl is truly one of the most beautiful (inside and out) people I know. She has a flipping heart of gold, and I just don't know what I'd do without her!

Lyndsie and I have been friends for about 11 years now, which blows my mind. But it really made me think about how far we've each individually come as young women, since we've met. I've been really inspired lately by all of these beauty awareness campaigns that numerous companies have started. The obvious is Dove, but another favorite of mine now is Always' "Hit Like a Girl", which you can see the video here. 

I used to be very self conscious, I had terrible acne, glasses and braces at the same time, and very, very dry skin. I was the 'pudgiest', and didn't understand why I didn't have "cute, bony wrists" like all of my friends. I know the things people said about me in middle school and my transition into high school, well, it just wasn't pretty. As I got older though, I kinda said screw it. I wore tank tops, even though my shoulders were sprinkled with acne every season of the year...I wore my glasses even when I didn't feel like putting my contacts in, and I learned to rock my ever-peeling nose on picture day due to my dry skin (and the nosebleed I got on that same day).

It's campaigns like this that make me so proud to be a woman. Thankfully, meeting Caleb helped me with my confidence a lot. I used to worry about him ever seeing me without my make up caked on, or in the Winter when I'm more pale than a vampire.. but he's somehow learned to deal with me even when I wake up like this... and also learned to make me feel beautiful, and loved.

Hiiii Caleb. I took this today!

We're all beautiful in our own ways...and it makes me sad to think about the young girls who tear themselves down because they aren't a size 0, or because they don't have perfect skin. As women, these girls need role models who LOVE themselves.

 I've realized to just get over it, when Im tagged in a picture that doesn't flatter me... why should I let it bother me? I need to be happy in the skin God put me in, because this is the only life I get to live! I know its like the most famous quote now, but comparison truly is the thief of joy. We can't let it do that to us, ladies! So WHAT if my nose is bigger than hers, or my acne flared up the night before my wedding?! Or if my ankles aren't super skinny, or if my double chin always sneaks its way out when I take my snapchats... I am ME, and I'm happy with it.

I'm lucky enough to be alive, have legs that run, and a heart that beats. I don't ever want to take it for granted. So remember friends, you are SERIOUSLY beautiful.

We're turning a new leaf!

Today, I'm really excited.

Last night, Caleb and I made the decision to fully commit ourselves to a better lifestyle overall, in every aspect. It was just a productive evening, and finally an evening at home just to ourselves (almost never happens with our crazy schedules!). We cleaned the whole apartment, did a TON of groceries for an insanely low price, and even made our new budget.

Obligatory photo for blog post ;)

Caleb and I have taken Dave Ramsey's financial peace course 3 times.... THREE TIMES! You'd think it would be drilled in our head by now. However, our whole first year (and 2 months) of our marriage we weren't really living by the principals we knew we should be. We paid the minimum on our debt, or maybe a few bucks over, but not trying hard to get rid of it. We used the cash (envelope) system on and off again, and just were so-so with our savings. Since starting our new budget last night, Caleb and I are back to using cash, hanging up our debit cards on the fridge so we aren't tempted and paying off our nasty debt as fast as possible!! More on that to come.

Exercise...ohhhh exercise. We've been slacking like crazy at the gym (especially me). Correction, to slack at the gym, one must actually BE at the gym...and I hadn't been in weeks. After getting over 8 hours of sleep last night (which never happens), I woke up at 5:45 this morning, and got in 2.5 quick miles. It felt amazing, and I wondered why it took me so long to get back?! We're excited to do something active almost every day. Even if its just a walk after dinner together, its something!

We also agreed we need to eat better. After spoiling our tummy's on vacation with yummy crab legs, lasagna, fruit loops and ice cream bars, we decided it's time to home cook more often. We're committed to doing the best we can to make home cooked meals in our own house. Obviously there will be the occasional treat and pizza night in, cause you need those to stay sane, in my opinion ;)

This is definitely the start of a "new us". After we finished our budget, we even high fived afterward! ;) I can't tell you guys how excited I am. Sure, we'd been doing all of these things before...but I don't think being just alright in these things is okay for us, I want to thrive. We want to thrive! I'm so excited to see where this all takes us. Stay tuned!

A crazy wedding filled weekend!

This is where I tell you all about my weekend...are bullet points fine? Cool.

-Friday, Caleb and I went to a wedding for a high school friend of mine. It was awesome to see a few old faces, I love my friends!

-Saturday, we had a wedding to shoot. The bride really wanted a few shots at a higher angle, and as I'm the shortest person you'll probably ever meet, Caleb volunteered to put me on his shoulders. I don't think that's ever happened in our relationship... we just took trust to a whole new level. ;) The Bride started crying from laughter at how terrified I was of "breaking" my husband, that she snapped this shot of us. It cracks me up, but those are two REAL smiles, people. I kiiiinda love that man of mine.

-Thriller happened... "THIS IS MY JAM!!!" *Caleb steals camera from me. "...make me look decent, these will probably end up on the blog"

Focused eyes.

-This happened when "I Like Big Butts" came on. A groomsmen snagged my camera like it was his job (and I carefully put the camera strap around his neck, you never know!!) and snapped these shots of us.

-Saturday night. Unfortunately, I've been getting severe migraines again, and they aren't fun to deal with. It's to the point that I don't want to open my eyes, or do anything at all really. I used to take medicine for them, so I'm hoping it doesn't get much worse. Feel free to send any good vibes my way!

-Sunday. Lead worship in children's church, had an impromptu Skyline date, then met this cute couple Downtown and spent some time capturing their adorable personalities for their engagement pictures. I love, love.

Hope everyone enjoyed their weekends!

Last days in Hilton Head!

Happy "finally, its the end of the week" day ;) I'm here to finish my 2nd, and final vacation recap post.

Thursday, we took a late lunch due to some schedule differences that morning. We went to the AMAZING Salty Dog Cafe. Our best friends got us a gift card to use there for our 1st anniversary, so we were pretty excited. We scored 2 shirts and I got myself a peach colored hat. I'm obsessed.

I actually really think Caleb should've bought that hat! ;)

Wishing I had purchased every one of these now.

Then it was time to walk over and grab a late lunch..finally!

Once we got home, I went for a quick run! It had been WEEKS since I'd hit the pavement, and it was awesome. It wasn't that fantastic of a run, but it sure felt fantastic to run under the beautiful "spanish moss" on those trees! ALSO, can we talk about my dream home?! Yeah...I'm still drooling. I had to stop and snap a shot on my run.

That night, Caleb told me his hear had really been bothering him. Poor thing, he seems to get some kind of horrible thing each vacation (last vacay he got horrible food poisoning that put him out for two days) and this time? Ear infection. Luckily we got him to see a doctor immediately and she got him a prescription written within minutes. He's finally beginning to feel better!

Once we got home we had yummy homemade creamy seafood lasagna. Do yourself a favor and make it right now! Friday was spent literally all day at the outlet malls buying pretty things for great prices, stuffing our faces with Chickfila (duh), and a late night trip to Kroger with my favorite Grandma.

Saturday morning it was time to leave, and we booked our hotel on the way home right in the heart of Gatlinburg, so we got to do some exploring!

To be honest, I love Ben & Jerry's - even though its overpriced, so we splurged at the store. Everyone else got milkshakes (and didn't exactly love them). Me? I stuck w/ regular vanilla with cotton candy crumbles, and yep...I could eat that every day and be happy as a peach.

We truly had such a great trip. It was awesome not having to set an alarm, to eat whatever I want, and to totally unplug for 7 days. I didn't even take as many pictures as normal...I guess unplugging can be good for the soul. Who knew?! ;)

Thanks for reading, friends. Have a fun weekend!!

Left my heart in the Carolina's!

It's no secret that I'd up and move my entire life to Hilton Head the second I had the chance. Not only did most of my vacations growing up consist of that place, but its also the spot Caleb chose to propose to me...and some of my happiest memories began on that little beach. So to say I was looking forward to this vacation was an understatement. The whole week was fun, and so relaxing. Just spending time with some of my favorite people was all I needed to get away from real life for a bit!

Sunday was amazing... I even got to meet an amazing long-time blog friend (Hiiiii Anna! More on that to come later!!). Later that day we left for dinner at my favorite place ever. Not only am I crazy about their crab legs, but they have the best hush puppies on the planet! If you've never had Crazy Crab...run, don't walk, there!!

Monday & Tuesday we woke up, headed to the beach, and flopped like beach bums pretty much the whole day. Tuesday for lunch though, we headed to our FAVORITE wing joint; Wild Wing Cafe...but not before a little family photo shoot action.

My amazing grandparents.

Aunt, Uncle, and cousins!

Might be my new favorite picture of us!

We HAD to stop by our favorite fudge shop on the island... I'd do just about anything to get my hands on their peanut butter fudge. & don't worry guys, the "TON of fudge" was on sale for only $12,000 instead of the usual $15,000 that week.

That evening, I tried Mellow Mushroom for the first time! We got all kinds of specially pizzas, and really liked them all.

Wednesday was also spent at the pool and ocean...all dayyyy! My aunt woke up early and made everyone french toast...are you jealous, Becky!?? ;)

My brother. He's almost 7 years younger than me, crazy huh!?

Thankfully none of us burned all week! (typically, its one of the 3 of us!)

After soaking it up on the beach, we headed back for lunch and I stayed at the pool outside all by myself for a solid hour. It was awesome. Funny back story, LAST 4th of July (yes, 2013) I bought a book...and it took me an entire year to finish. I'm happy to say I finally finished it that day. It was AMAZING. Also this dragon floatie was creeping on me all week... ;)

Then my family came out to join me!

That evening, Caleb and I had our very own date night out on the town...everyone went out to dinner together, and while we waited for them to return so we could take a car, I started my NEW book (its my first Jodi Picoult book...yes, I said first. I'm obsessed!). Once they got back, we dolled up and hit the town! {side note, Caleb definitely left his razor at home that week! Whoops!}

Since this post is already extremely long, I'm going to cut it off here, and talk about our awesome last few days tomorrow. The gist of this post though? Hilton Head completes me... its a serious struggle not to pack our bags and hit the road every month to get there. Now what are you waiting for, book your next getaway!! ;)