A 757 Weekend

Happy Monday! Hope y'all had a great weekend :). I know I did!

I headed out to Charlottesville Thursday night and spent some time with Stuart, which is always a mood booster. I cannot wait until we live in the same town! I got up pretty early Friday morning, grabbed some Bodo's (if you ever are around Charlottesville, go to Bodo's... best bagels ever!!) and hit the road. I arrived just in time to visit with my grandmother and headed to a doctors appointment.

I then met up with Heather, got my eyebrows waxed and spend some time in Target and headed out to Mexican with the fam... my favorite. I spent the rest of the night chatting with my parents and went to bed pretty early because I knew I needed to get up for a nice run.

Saturday started with that run and got more exciting from there. Heather and I headed to her church's rummage sale and then hit the road for Norfolk for some tailgating. The weather was absolutely perfect and we found a great parking spot before heading to my parent's tailgate spot!

Here is our setup. Even for CAA football we put up a tent! And yes, that is my padre standing there with his hands on his hips!

Hev and I :)

It wouldn't be a tailgate without some Hokie representation (or Coors and Chick-fil-a, haha!)

After tailgating with the 'rents and some family friends, we headed off to find Kylee! We have known each other f.o.r.e.v.e.r. (literally since birth) and I was so excited to see her. You made it on the blog, Ky!

And here are all three of us girls. These girls are two of my favorite people and best friends. P.S. We were all wearing white because it was homecoming and the white out game!

After a few beers we headed into the stadium for the game! They were handing out some sweet sunglasses and towels, and y'all know what a sucker I am for free stuff. Here is Hev and I with our sweet glasses!

And here are the mighty Monarchs taking the field!

We headed out shortly after halftime because Hev had a going away party to attend and I needed to get home in time to see my Hokies play! The first quarter was a nailbiter but after that my parents showed up after staying for the end of the ODU game along with their bff's the Johnsons and we all settled in with some pizza for a Hokie win!

We got up Sunday morning, headed to church and had lunch at Chili's with our pastor and his wife who are like second parents to me (side note: we don't have a Chili's anywhere out here and I am obsessed with their chips and salsa!!). Mama and I spent some time at Michael's looking for some craft stuff and I hit the road to Charlottesville for the night. Stuart and I had a nice dinner at Mellow Mushroom and then settled in to watch some movies with his roommates :) I finally headed back to the 'burg this morning pretty sad after such a great weekend filled with all kinds of people I love! At least the drive was beautiful... Virginia Octobers are the BEST!!!

Hope you all had a great weekend. I know I did :)

P.S. I don't eat out ALL the time, I just happen to do it more at home and in Charlottesville when I can have things I don't normally have!

Y'all Can Call Me A Lotta Things...

But vain isn't one of them!

Here is what I look like currently:

I know. So attractive! I swear I should have been a model...haha. But, the important part isn't what I look like, but what I'm repping. St. Jude oh hollaaa! Received this in the mail last week for raising the first part of my fundraising goal and I love love love running in it. A. It was raining when I ran and it is made to repel moisture and B. I just love that people look at me when I'm running by and think about St. Jude. Just call me your running billboard.

I have been having a hard time with running lately, between stress, side stiches and just daily life, but tonight (after a nap) I made myself get up and run. In the rain. Through the hills of Charlottesville. And the traffic, which scares the pee outta me (not literally, but people do not pay attention to pedestrians!) And I finally feel like I got my groove back. Just call me Stella (as in Got Her Groove Back and not Streetcar Named Desire).

I have been so stressed over the future lately and you all have been such a blessing. I need to remember that running is good for me, it helps me clear my head and I feel awesome afterward. (Side note: apparently I wasn't breathing correctly, which caused the side stiches. Once I corrected that I felt SO MUCH better!) So lets just say I feel great right now!

I have a packed but fun weekend ahead of me :). I'm currently in Charlottesville and I am gonna go hop in the shower and then wait for Stuart to get home so we can grab some dinner. Then it is back to the 757 tomorrow for a doctors appointment, some family time, the ODU homecoming game, spending some time with my bff Heather, home to watch the Tech game and then church Sunday morning. I don't go home a whole lot, but I love it when I do. Happy Thursday!!

So What Wednesday :)

First of all, thank you thank you thank you for the sweet comments yesterday :) Y'all are too sweet and it is nice to know I am not alone in what I have been going through. You girls are the best!

To lighten the mood a little bit, I thought I'd link up with Shannon's So What Wednesday!

So what if I...

• Slept in until around 9 this morning and I am still craving some kind of caffeine!
• Unintentionally kicked my Diet Coke habit, but replaced it with coffee... I'm still avoiding aspartame right?
• Pin so much on Pinterest on my wedding board that a girl I went to high school with FB messaged me last night assuming I am close to a ring, which will not be happening for at least another year or so!
• Turn the heat off and then cover myself with sweats and blankets. It saves on our heating bill and I love the feeling of being cold and then getting cozy!
• Love the day after I grocery shop because I forget I went to the store and find all kinds of delicious goodies in my cabinets (healthy ones... this girl has got to get back on track and have more energy for 1/2 marathon training!
• Ate Goldfish, an orange pepper and Special K Chocolately Delight. It's college and I figure I should get in eating on a whim as much as I can before I have to cook for a husband!
• Only know how to cook tacos, spaghetti and variations of both? I love Mexican and Italian!!

Happy Wednesday Y'all!

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight
 -Proverbs 3:5-6

Y'all, I have been struggling with this a lot lately. I want to know RIGHT NOW what my life is going to be and what the next few years are going to hold. I know that I want to become a child life specialist, and I know that I want to spend my life with Stuart. What I don't know is when, where, and how this will all happen and it is K.I.L.L.I.N.G. me.

I am so type-A. So very type-A. I make lists of everything. I plan everything. In fact, one of my biggest flaws is over-planning. Right now I am really struggling with getting everything in on a time table. I feel like all of these obstacles in my career course keep getting thrown at me and I am not quite sure what to do. I thought I had this all planned out, and yet, maternity leaves and programs hesitant to accept undergrads have my plans all in a tailspin. I don't know where Stuart is going to get a job, and as much as I know that at twenty-two I should have a career focus, that doesn't mean I am not ready to live in the same city as him!

I know God has a plan for me. And despite that, I still find myself stressing out over this entire situation. I want things to be settled down. I want to help people. And the fact that it is going to take me until 2013 almost is freaking me out. I am ready to be an adult, to take care of myself, to stop being a burden on my parents. Fortunately, they have the means to support me and I am so entirely thankful to them for doing that. I know not everyone is spoiled the way I am. But I am ready to be out of school. And I am ready to start the next chapter, wherever that may be. I just need to know when and where that is.

So right now, I am trying to trust in the plan. I am trying to take a deep breath, take things day by day and not over-plan. But I am definitely going to need some prayers to do that. So, if you are the prayin' kind, I would love to make it on your prayer list. 

Sorry for the heavy post. It has been laying on my heart lately and since this is my record, I want to be able to look back on this when all is said and done and see how I was feeling.

Happy Tuesday (almost Wednesday) y'all!

No Voice :)

Hope y'all had a great weekend! I know I did, I didn't pick up my computer once :) Sadly, I didn't really pick up my camera either, haha. But oh my goodness. If y'all follow college football, I hope you caught our game yesterday. It was definitely a nail biter, and absolutely the reason why I follow college football!

We played Miami, known as the "U" yesterday, and I would be willing to say we have one of the nastiest rivalries with them that goes unrecognized in college football. We were powerhouses in the Big East and came into the ACC at the same time. My biased opinion would say they play pretty nasty, and they have recently come into a whole mess load of citations by the NCAA; if you want more info you can read here. But I doubt y'all wanna hear my full opinion on this topic, haha.

Anyways, the 'canes came to town and were ready to play. Stuart came up this weekend, as well as some of Nicole's friends, so we had a full house this weekend (eight people!). We spent Friday night tearing up downtown and were all thankful for a 3:30 start time on Saturday afternoon :)

We ended up heading out to tailgate around 10:30 or so and thus discovered we didn't have a folding table. So, we ended up bringing our dining room table and beer pong table... I am not kidding. It worked perfectly though :) Here is Nicole with our set up!

We walked in to Lane pumped up and ready to play after the nasty loss to Clemson last week. And play we did. I don't think I stopped screaming for four quarters and we only sat down during halftime (it's a huge deal in the student section if you sit... you will get ridiculed until you stand!). I even have a shirt that says "you can sit when you graduate!"

We took an early lead and played balls to the wall for three quarters solid. Then the Miami O started to wear down our D and things got ugly in the 4th quarter. However, we pulled it out. There is a video that is going around and you can hear the announcers say "these people are going out of their minds" cause we were so loud and so into what was happening. I don't think I took a breath for two minutes. Here is the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blzftASduNc. (It wouldn't embed for some reason). Even people that aren't Tech fans seem to get chills from it. It was amazing. Trust me. You'll see how the game ended :)

Side note: we jump up and down to Enter Sandman at the beginning of the game when the team runs in. So it tends to get us pumped up!


Here is the picture I sent to my mom since she and my dad were at a wedding. Before this, they hadn't missed a home Virginia Tech game in over ten years!

I know this is getting long, and for those of you that don't care about football, it was probably pretttyyy boring. But this would rank up there with my top three favorite games and I wanted this for my records :)

Stuart and I finished the evening by going on a little date to one of our favorite Mexican restaurants and spent the rest of the night watching the Auburn-Arkansas game :) Perfect little Saturday. Now I am off to babysit and then study for an exam. Have a happy Sunday!!!

Thirsty Thursday

Not really. I have had water, diet coke and coffee today, but the T in thirsty just goes so well with the T in Thursday, don't you think? Haha.

This is the best Thursday I have had in a while. I got up and went to class, went on a b-e-a-u-tiful run downtown and then spent the rest of the day with my roomie. :) Side note: does anyone else get side stitches in the same spot every time they run? Cause I have been having them in the exact same spot on my side for the past two or three weeks. They cause me to have to stop and stretch and are killing my times!


I am currently in the middle of mountains of laundry (but seriously, I have a huge hill of it in my dining room currenty), watching a frightening movie with my roommate and waiting on Stuart to arrive. I am such a rager, I know.

I found an adorable tribal print skirt at a store in the mall today. It is totally the opposite of my style... it is tight and kind of short, but I think it will look adorable with a black top. Plus, it was thirteen dollars. I want a black top with wide sleeves that I will tuck in and then wear with heels. Seriously, it is so different than anything I own, but when I walked out in it my roommate demanded that I buy it. Here it is:

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Just fyi, it is not THAT short on me, and it comes up a little higher. Also, I will wear a shirt. I will however take that perfectly flat stomach that the model has. Oh, and her thighs, haha.

Here's a question. Is my option only black with this, or can I use it as a neutral and play it up with some color? I am definitely someone who has a classic style and being trendy scares me! Haha.

Have a great night!

What I'm Wearing Wednesday

Sorry y'all, this is going to be a quick one (not that you necessarily love my rambling posts, haha). I'm about to bop out the door and head to campus for a full day of midterms and work. I did take a quick outfit picture this morning, although it was in photobooth so it is a little blurry! You can however see through the blur to my messy closet and bathroom, haha.

Cardigan- Target (it has this really awesome crochet back that I love)

Tunic- My roommate. No seriously, she gave it to me and said I thought this was more your style than mine. She's awesome.

Jeans- Ann Taylor Loft Skinnies

Shoes- Platinum Jack Rogers (love love love, I have worn these things into the ground)

Jewelry- Michael Kors watch, Pandora bracelet, class ring, pearl anniversary ring, Ann Taylor gold drop earrings.

The reason I chose to document this is my hair is washed and I am wearing "real" clothes instead of just a pair of jeans and a longsleeved tee, with my hair dry shampooed and pulled back. Clearly I needed to remind myself that people appreciate when I shower, haha.

Happy Hump Day!

A Quick Tuesday Post

Happy Tuesday y'all... is it Thursday yet?

I am currently taking a few minutes to blog that I probably should be running. To be fair, it would take me a lot longer to drive to McComas, run and drive back than it will for me to write this blog post. I am currently in the middle of studying for two midterms I have tomorrow... blech. I am not a studier. Give me a prompt and I can give you a paper, and a pretty darn good one at that. But tests are not for me. At all.

In other news, Stuart will be heading to Bburg this weekend and I could not be more excited. I hate long distance so much. One day we might end up in the same town. I keep praying for it!

A little update on 1/2 marathon training:
1. I am not running near as much as I should be. In fact, I haven't run since Friday. I knew this week would be a mess. I might be able to slip a run in tomorrow, at least a short one.
2. At least I am making all of my long runs. Last week was 5 miles. This week is 6. I'm planning on getting that done on Thursday.
3. My times are getting better too. I never knew that I could run two miles under 17 minutes.
4. After reading a ton of running blogs, I feel like I should be running 8 minute miles. I think I might be able to run one mile in a little over 8 minutes. I know I just started, but I keep putting this crazy pressure on myself.
5. We have surpassed our halfway goal! Less than 8 weeks to race day!
6. That scares me. Only 8 weeks. Ahhhhhh.

Anyone have any running encouragement for me? Everything I've read says not to place a time goal for your first 1/2, but this is my first race period beyond a 5K I ran two years ago for the victims of April 16th (I wanted to run last year but it got rained out).

Have a great night! This girl needs to get back to Family Financial Management and Family Law and Public Policy... woooo.

Lazy Monday (Morning)

Y'all, my alarm went off about 9 this morning (I know, so not early) and I could not bring myself to get out of bed. In fact, I am still in my pj's in bed, but I will be getting up soon to make it to my three classes and work this afternoon. It is just so chilly in our apartment and my bed seemed like a much better option this morning after a late night :)

I forgot to mention the funniest part of this weekend during my weekend recap last night. My mom is famous 'round these parts for her trash recipe. Some of y'all might call it puppy chow and I am pretty sure there are some other names for it, but in my house it is called trash. She made it especially for my friend Jim this weekend and it was a hit, as always. We decided that we wanted to bring some of the trash into the stadium. Insert a pair of jeans that are a little too big and a puffy vest, and we had the perfect smuggling attire.

I went into the bathroom and placed the bag between my long sleeved shirt and sweater and tucked it behind my vest and into my jeans. We all decided I looked about four or five months pregnant and we laughed about it all the way to the stadium. After finishing a few drinks (with some funny looks from people, as I looked pregnant) we decided to head into the stadium. Jim then decided to take this opportunity to stop an older man and ask him if he would take a picture of "him and his pregnant girlfriend." Y'all, I about died. Literally. Check out my face.

I could not stop laughing. This poor old man was so confused and I almost peed in my pants I was laughing so hard. Our entire group was dyinnnggg. Oh my word.

I realize that was far longer than it needed to be. Oh well.

Am I the only one who sees temperatures creeping back up into the mid-70's this week and is disappointed about it? I would just like to feel the cool crispness that comes along wth 65 degrees.

Speaking of fall, and I know y'all are probably sick of me talking about it, but one of my favorite things is stalking engagement pictures. And I have decided ones with a background of orange and yellow and red are the prettiest. Especially with swirling leaves. Check these out:

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This is probably the most random post ever. Thus is life. Have a great Monday y'all!

October is Here!

First of all, welcome to October, my favorite month of the year! Full of pumpkin patches, scary movies (kid friendly ones for me, I am such a scaredy cat!), apple spice smells and comfy outfits with boots!

We had a bittersweet weekend here in the 'burg. Two of my favorites (plus my fam jam) made their way to Blacksburg for our Saturday evening matchup against Clemson. It was U-G-L-Y y'all. And raining. But I was with some of my favorite people in the world, so that totally helped :) I may or may not have teared up leaving the stadium, as this season was Tech's last chance to make it to the national championship while I am in school here. Oh well, c'est la vie.

We managed to tailgate hard and took a few girl pictures before we dove into the hot chocolate and Kahlua (okay, so I had already had a cup or two that may or may not have caused the stink eye in a picture or two. Regardless, it was still afternoon!) We didn't get any of the pictures of the guys, but I got two of my besties in them, and that's all that matters anyways, right?

Heidi and I!

Rooms and I :)

The three girls :)

So thankful for these girls. Don't know what I would do without them! So glad we got to spend time together this weekend and I can't wait to see Heidi again (hopefully) next month for the Georgia Tech game in Atlanta!

Hope the rest of y'all had a great weekend. Anyone else have a heart breaking Saturday with their team?