Currently: not the way I saw this week going.

Wishing: it was time for vacation already. Caleb and I get to venture off to Hilton Head with my family once again! It's been way too long since we've all been able to get together and even though its only March right now, I'm so ready for July and the family time we all get to squeeze in during that one little week. We laugh so hard we cry, we swim until we're wrinkly, and we just have the best dang time together. Family is truly the best....and so is the island that is Hilton Head.

Craving: An upgraded camera. Caleb and I have our eyes on a couple new cameras and we're working crazy hard to get out of debt so we can save up and get those bad boys!!

Going: to the Auto Body shop to get an estimate on how much it will be to fix my car. Oh joy! Someone (with a Denali the size of my cubicle at work) hit me yesterday. Pretttyyy hard. She pulled out of a restaurant and wrecked into the passenger side of my car. Luckily she took full responsibility and it'll be covered in full, but it was still pretty scary! I've never been involved in an accident like this so I was a little shaken up. I'm just thankful we're both okay, other than a little stiff neck. I just can't wait to get my baby (aka my car) back!

Wearing: the comfiest work pants ever; my fav black skinnies! I feel like I'm cheating the system at work when I wear them. New York & Co for the win!

Learning: patience. Things don't always work out in OUR timing, but I'm realizing that its okay. God has a better plan for me than I could imagine for myself.

Our evenings at home have been super low key this week, and I pray it stays that way. If I'm being honest, I'm currently excited for this weekend! Not one single plan in the books, and I plan to spend a TON of time with my stud of a husband!

Happy Wednesday, friends!!
(Linking up today with Anne and Jenna for March's Currently series!)

My blog is beautified - again!

This post is about to be super random. Sorry bout it!

I got so wrapped up in the relaxation that was Thanksgiving break, then spilling the news that I'm going to be an aunt, that I forgot to mention my exciting BLOG MAKEOVER. Can we take a second to admire that perfect watercolor up there?! I'm biased, but its pretty stinkin' cute. Erin does great work, so if you're in the market, look no further!!!! I promise, you'll love anything she comes up with!

-In other news. I'm taking way too many polaroids lately. Just kidding. NO such thing as too many polaroids.

-At church recently, one of the gals from youth group came over to me with a few tasty treats. 6 cupcakes to be exact. What's even sweeter? She had no real reason to make these for me. She just wanted to be nice. Not to mention, these are SO festive!!! The world could use some more people like her :)

-Thanks for any and all prayers- my mom passed a HUGE test this week and will be starting her new job as a traveling nurse very shortly. She's so excited. Although she may not be home for Christmas, I know this is the right thing for her to do. We're so thankful for her new opportunity!

-Christmas shopping for my husband has been kinda difficult this year - normally I feel like I'm ON it with creativity and all that, but this year? I'm struggling a bit! I have a FEW cute ideas but really need to buckle down to figure out a BIG gift for him!

-At-home workouts rock. I also found some inexpensive kettle bell weights last weekend, so I can save a drive to the gym some mornings - which lets be honest, hasn't happened in a while.

-I'm so excited!! I found a dress for my Christmas party this weekend. Caleb also got a KILLER deal on 2 suits at JCPenney's (thanks to my brother for the mega-discount) and I do believe Caleb is going to show me up in the fancy department this year ;)

-I made this amazing "brunch bake" recently . I'll probably post this recipe sometime. It was so easy, and so, SO, amazing. We had leftovers for days #thankspinterest

and last but DEFINITELY not least. My girl, Becky just booked a plane ticket to come visit!!! I am out of my mind excited to squeeze this girl again. It truly is crazy to think about the friendships that can be formed through the internet. I'm glad Caleb doesn't think I'm crazy. Can't wait for February (so we can visit Skyline, Jungle Jims, and make as much french toast as our bellies can handle!).

I hope everyone has a fun, random Wednesday!

Surviving 9-5.

Don't get me wrong, I'm insanely grateful to have a full time job M-F...but its not always the easiest. Co-workers can stress me out, client calls continue to come in like crazy, my inbox gets flooded...some days are easy, some aren't... but no matter what, there are a few things I just NEED to get me through my week at work.

Morning chats with my favorite co worker!

A cute necklace...something about a cute necklace (or any adorable accessory, really) makes me feel more professional...which in turn makes me work a little better. So maybe Caleb should start letting me buy ALL the cute necklaces?! ;)

Texts from my cute husband.

Emails with my soulmate. Seriously, Erin & I email daily. I'm glad I have someone like her...how is it possible to talk to someone every day and never run out of crap to talk about/update each other on?!

Hot tea in my favorite mug.

My lunch breaks. Seriously, I'm lucky to get a full hour for lunch and while I mostly stay at work and edit photos on my break, my favorite thing to do is to take a lil trip to Target and marvel at all the things I can't buy.

Swagbucks. If you are looking to make extra cash while you are already working? Click this. It's legit, real cash... I take surveys, mini polls and watch videos and get "Swagbucks" that you can redeem for gift cards/cash.

this made me LOL...fellow SBers will get it.

My mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks...seriously, I think I eat all day.

Pinterest...lately I've been on a "digital organization" kick.



My brain is kind of mush right now... we have a very exciting weekend ahead of us and my brain is in total "anniversary/getaway" mode!! Can you blame me?! ;) happy hump day, friends.

A few last things.

Thank goodness its Wednesday, the day we celebrate that we made it halfway through the work week. Ohh what I would do to have one random day through the week off! Who had the bright idea of working 40 hours a week anyway!!?

Onto happier (and less grumpy) things...I stumbled across this blog this week and found a post I quite liked. I thought I'd try it out...and I give full credit to miss Danielle for this post idea.

From top left to bottom right...row by row :)

Last thing you cooked; This Cheesy Caprese Quinoa Bake. Holy yum. I mean honestly, you'd better click that link instead of finishing this blog post! Its so so yummy, and I'm proud to say it turned out perfect!! YAY!

Last thing that made you smile; Obviously my husband...but other than that, a giraffe had her sweet baby at our local Zoo yesterday! She's so darn precious, and I think she looks like a Cece. Agreed?!

Last place you vacationed to; Punta Cana with our best friends! Trip of a lifetime, lemme tell ya!!

Last gift you received; Other than the incredible vintage camera's my grandpa's wife recently gifted me after he passed... I'd have to say the Disney plush characters from my man as an extra V-Day present! He knows me so well (yeah, were 7 years old...I won't apologize)!

Last song you listened to; Difference Maker by my favorite, Needtobreathe. I'm 900% serious when I say they are better live in person than on their CD. This video of them performing in Austin is just amazing.

Last thing you splurged on; I don't know if I'd call $20 "splurging", but I bought new running leggings for my first half marathon this weekend (excuse my work top)! 

Last time you were moved to tears; having to say goodbye to my Grandpa last week (that picture is from back in January, though). He was absolutely unresponsive, but being able to say goodbye to him, and squeezing his hand one last time meant the world to me.

Last person you texted; My soulmate. I mean, isn't she the sweetest? I got this after a horrible day, and I'm so happy she sent it. Little things like that mean the world to me.

Last voicemail; my friend (who is also planning a gorgeous wedding!!) Renee left me the sweetest voicemail yesterday. She absolutely made my entire week just with her sweet words. I cannot thank this blog world for bringing her and I together. I was lucky enough to meet this gal last fall and I am happy to say my life is brighter because of it :)

What are your "last things"? Happy Wednesday, friends!

ITS WEDNESDAY!

You know what that means? RANDOMNESS. My favorite time of the week...(except Friday, and Saturday...and, well Sunday too. BUT you get the picture...)

- The wedding countdown is now in the 30's!!

-That I got to facetime with my swweeeeet sweet Alexaaaa on Saturday. I love her 17x more now, and we thought that wasn't possible? ;)

-Even though I'm not moved into the apartment yet, Caleb and I wanted to have "our better halves" over... don't act like you don't know who that is... DUH! Erin and her hubs!! They are our FIRST dinner guests!

-I am over halfway on my running goal for the month... 22.3 miles in to be exact!

-It is crazy that the time above included 5 minutes of a "cool down walk" at the end and I STILL beat my only official 5K time ever from last May. Makes me a happy girl!

-How God is moving in our lives. Volunteering with our church's youth group has been SUCH a blessing. & we get to show them how you really play ball ;)

-THAT A FRIEND GOT ENGAGED LAST NIGHT!!!! (I'm not sure if I'm allowed to announce who just yet, sorry!)

-I'm on Amanda's blog today, go check it out!

-That I wore a dress to work this week. Spring is finally hereeee! 

-I also can't believe how YELLOW my bathroom lights are at home. ?!?!?!?

 

-That my FIFTEEN year old brother cooked himself dinner the other night. We're talking baked chicken, steamed broccoli and a baked potato. What?!??

That is my "baby" brother in the middle. :)

-All the new faces around this blog. You guys are amazing. PLEASEEE please please say hi to me :) I love getting to know you all.

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!

Random fun!

I CAN'T BELIEVE...

...that I forgot to tell you guys the SAME day I found out my dress fit me perfect, was the SAME day my passport came in. Woo woo! Now we are just waiting on Caleb's or it looks like I may be going to Mexico solo.

Jkkk.

...how much time snap-chat takes up of my day. 

...that Caleb is still keeping me motivated to run. Last night I completed 4.03 miles!

...that I get married in 45 days. FORTY. FIVE!

...how obsessed I have been with Kelle Hampton's blog the past few years. I just remember when Erin & I would talk about her and her adorable life about 98% of the time, all the time. ;)

...that come August we get to go on A ROAD TRIP! One of Caleb's best friends is getting married in Memphis to his beautiful bride-to-be, and Caleb is a groomsmen (the pic above is from an amazing road trip to another wedding we drove 9 hours for...that is dedication, my friends).

...how badly I want to chop my hair again! Not even funny.

...how much fun photobooth on macs are. All day entertainment right there people.

...that we're halfway through the work week! ROCK ON.

Have a great day, friends!

Random Wednesday!

Happy hump day! Hopefully for all of you who may be drowning in work (me), that you can see the light at the end of the tunnel, that is Friday. I'm ready for the weekend already. Then again, when am I not??

ANYWAY! Thought I would let you guys know that I am SO appreciative of all of you who keep coming back to read my little corner of the internet on a daily basis. It took me for EVER to even get the nerve to make my own blog, because I honestly thought  "who would want to read what I have to say?!" and as it turns out -- a lot of you were in the same boat before you took the plunge.

I have a few friends I've met over this blog-land that I consider my real friends. If you ever talk to a non-blogger about your "blogger friends", its somewhat like explaining to them what your imaginary friend is like from 2nd grade. My family probably thinks I'm crazy... but I do have plans to meet some of you this year, and I cannot wait!

Call me crazy, but I get so giddy every time I get a new follower, because I genuinely want to get to know you, and not only keep you as a reader, but make a new friend, too!

So here are some (you guessed it) random facts about myself;

-Camera in hand, I kiiiind of feel like I can take on the world
 -I absolutely hate cottage cheese.
-Caleb and I dream of going on an African safari (can you say 5 year anniversary trip!?)
-My uncle baptized me on my 18th birthday, I am so thankful for him.

-I work in finance, but surprisingly hate math. Doesn't mean I hate my job, I surprisingly love it! My job is just more in the stock market and retirement planning than math (thank goodness).
-Caleb and I just finished day 10 of Insanity last night. We are 1/6 of the way there! WOO!
-I could drink my weight in sweet tea. No, I'm not southern.
-Same with Mountain Dew, you with me soulmate?
-When I feel cute at work, I work better.
-I believe in wearing dresses all year round.
-My go-to appetizer is spinach and artichoke dip. Or warm crab dip... yummm.
-I suck at doing my own hair. Seriously, I can barely curl it.
-My nails are painted probably 10 times a year. If I'm lucky.
-I'm a girly girl, but I love all things sports.
-I think bow ties are cool.
-My MOH returns for Spring Break from her last semester of college Friday. YAY!! Can't wait to see her.

-Back in high school (and probably once a year...) I eat marshmallow fluff straight out of the jar.
-I SO badly want to go on the show Amazing Race. Caleb won't do it, though. Erin, you down? ;)
-Bubble baths are my favorite things ever.
-I used to work at Bath & Body Works. I miss my Victoria's Secret discount every day.
-My faith has never been stronger.
-I've never been out of the country.
-I am obsessed with Target...but, who isn't?
Whewww.... that was fun. I know, you're dying to know more.... ;)

That's what I like to call a Random Wednesday!
Thanks Shanna!

If its not Friday, dance anyway.

I once received a mini- index notecard spiral from two of my best friends, Lyndsie and Angie at random. The first page inside said;

 "Let this be a whole notebook of encouragement. Write verses, quotes, lyrics, ideas, whatever it is that makes you happy. Take this book out at random and remember why you were put on this Earth. You have a purpose."

I kept it in my purse for a while, sometimes taking it out and dwelling on the awesome truth inside, and then stuck it inside of my desk at home... today I remembered how awesome this little booklet really was, and so I pulled it out. Lucky for me, some of the pages had been filled in by them already. My favorite quote being; 

"spend time with God for the pure purpose of being in His company. He can brighten the dullest of gray days. He can add sparkle to the routines of daily life".

I sit here today, finding myself fumbling through old pins I once saved on Pinterest, to fill this book up with my own inspiration.

So if you are needing some encouragement today, maybe a laugh, a good quote, or a funny picture... you have come to the right place! 

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- If its not Friday, dance anyway. (I may or may not have just made that up, and yep... I love it)

- Always be kinder than you feel.

- Do something good, just for the heck of it.

- If your dreams don't scare you, they aren't big enough!

- There is more mercy in Christ, than sin in us.

- Let your past make you better, not bitter.

Oh Zooey Deschanel, I love you.

- The Lord will fight for you, you need only to be still. Exodus 14:14

- A smile is the most BEAUTIFUL curve on a woman's body.

- A smooth sea never made a skillful sailor.

- A person who is nice to you, but not nice to the waiter, is not a nice person. (words to live by, ladies, words to live by.)

- No one is in charge of your happiness but YOU.

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SO there you have it. I hope I could make you smile on this random Wednesday, ladies. I love you all and am SO happy to have each and every one of you come back daily to read what I have to ramble about. 

Stay classy!
Linking up today with gorgeous miss Shanna;

Wednesday funnnn!

Waaddduppp ladies? So, yesterday I got to have a half day off work since I had my annual doctors appointment, and my doctor surprised me by sticking a needle in my arm. YAY! ...... not. It's not like I'm scared of needles, but I can't say I'm a fan of something breaking through the surface of my skin and injecting what feels like a bee stinger inside of me. & now I have another appointment in February, gotta love em. Ahh the joys of womanhood...

ANYWAY-- I got way off topic there, sorry guys! So, it's Wednesday morning, and my funny friend Amanda wanted to do a blog swap/guest post. So, after reading below about her and all of her awesomeness... head on over to her blog, and read my guest post. You never know what new things you could learn about me? ;) I'm full of interesting facts................. promise.

Meet, Amanda.

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Hi guys, I am Amanda from this IS my real hair!

I know that we just met, and this is crazy? but I am a very honest person,

so I feel like I have to share this with you right from the beginning:

I hate it when people say that guest posts suck!

"oh I know guest posts suck... but I'm going to write one anyway"

listen dude, if your guest posts suck, stop writing them!

mine is about to be awesome, and we are about to become BFFs.

[also... the pictures in this post have nothing to do with what I'm writing about. don't judge me.]

Kayla and I recently met through this little blog world we find ourselves in.

I can only imagine that she had been stalking me for awhile before making contact.

she seemed to know an awful lot about my life when she first reached out to me.

which hey, can you blame her? probably not at all. I'm a good person to stalk.

why? because my blog is completely random. for real.

the only thing you can really count on is Ticked Off Tuesday and some cuss words.

I am working on the swearing... but life long habits are hard to break!!

anyway, Kayla is wonderful, but we... well we are not very similar at all.

she is cute, polite, and positive. and of course her blog reflects all that.

I, on the other hand, am not sure anyone has ever used those words to discribe me...

my blog is sometimes negative, but don't panic, it is always entertaining!

we do have some things in common:

1. we are working out hardcore to get healthy and feel good about ourselves. um also we want to be skinny...
2. our posts are always honest and reflect our true selves. we don't try to change to get more readers.
3. we rock a sexy pair of fake lashes
4. we both have amazing men in our lives, and we aren't scared to admit, that we would be lost without them!

alright, I will wrap this up now before my guest post does suck.

I hope to see you guys over in my neck of the woods!

[blog] [twitter] [instagram]

XXO Amanda

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 See? She's pretty awesome, eh? Go follow her! ;)