happy friday

1. I am currently obsessed with buying a new macbook pro and shopping for jewelry online. I haven't actually purchased anything, but I have spent lots of time looking. That's how I roll. :)

2. Today I am feelin' good. I have the day off and all to myself. Too bad tomorrow starts the work-weekend, which stinks. Reason #1 why I need a real job.

3. The age I am is 23 and the age I feel is sometimes 23 and sometimes a lot older. I guess I shouldn't associate my lameness with being older. I actually enjoy being lame. Lame.

4. My favorite place is the public library, Target, or downtown Lawrence. On my days off I like the visit the first 2 and the third is where I reside.

5. Something I have been procrastinating is giving this apartment a good cleaning!! Neither me or my roomie spend a significant amount of time here, so when we are home...we don't spend a lot of time cleaning. And so it goes.

6. The last thing I purchased was a latte and breakfast with my honey.

7. The thing I love most about my home is being surrounded by all of my favorite things and the comfort of familiarity.


Baby Giovanni has arrived! Mama & baby are doing great! He's got a head full of dark hair and the cutest little face. Can't wait to kiss him!!

filled-in friday

1. I am feelin' the burn this morning. And I'm getting sick--loaded up on emergen-c, zinc & echinacea tea. Go away, sickness.

2. The bravest thing I've ever done was go away for college. After having the same BFFs all my life and knowing they were staying at KU, it was a pretty bold move (for me) to go away for school.

3. I feel prettiest when I take a minute to put a little effort into it. I've got my favorite go-to outfits that make me feel good and come to think of it, I feel pretty post-workout too.

4. Something that keeps me awake at night is nightmares about work! They are the WORST! So chaotic and terrible.


5. My favorite meal in the entire world is probably mac & cheese. I'm a connoissuer of sorts & always will be! Even though my tastebuds have grown to love a large variety of foods (I used to be super picky), I will never outgrow my mac & cheese.

6. The way to my heart is through food, thoughtful gestures & lots of cuddles!


7. I would like to travel more. I want some roadtrips in my future! I want some adventures.

ain't nothin' gonna break my stride

Experiencing a strange funk today. Needed a quick reminder for myself that life is so, so good:
I am a college graduate.
I am employed!!!
I live on my own.
I am blessed with really amazing friends.
My family rocks. Hard.
And my boyfriend is an absolute dream.
I am so gosh darn lucky.

Feeling much better after a great workout, hanging with my parents for a bit, and talking to Aaron from the road.

In other news, this week has been a lot of fun! Saw Quixotic Fusion perform, went to the Umphrey's McGee concert, & had an awesome date night--sushi & Blue Valentine. If you plan on seeing Blue Valentine, the acting is really good but MAN is the story depressing. Left me feeling a little defeated!

Aaron (bf) and Chelsea (roomie) are on the road for work the next few days, so I'm trying to occupy my time. So far, so good! In the works: trip to Kansas City to see Val, feathers in my hair, Apple store, library, finishing my DVR marathon & cleaning up before my peeps get back. How much of this will actually happen is TBD.

Count your blessings, y'all.

guilty pleasures

1. The TV show/website that I watch/read that I would be embarrassed to tell anyone about is Real Housewives (all of them), Teen Mom, Say Yes to the Dress, Pretty Little Liars, Glee...you name it.

2. An item of clothing that is worn and torn but that I love far to much to throw away is my favorite hoodie. The front pocket is even hanging off a little bit, but I love it!

3. My grocery store impulse buy is ice cream, doughnuts or any kind of dessert. Trying to stop that habit.

4. Something I do at work to pass time that I wouldn't want my co-workers to know about is make many to-do lists. I always make a rough draft & then make a pretty one once I've got it all mapped out. After a year, I think everyone is pretty much aware of my list-making tendencies.

5. One thing in my life that I could give up, but never will is carbs. Can't do it. Won't do it.

6. A little indulgence that I have is a chai latte in the morning...if I allow enough time before work. So warm and wonderful.

7. The junk drawer/area in my house is full of my roommates coozie collection! It's pretty impressive.

rise & grind

I have been trying & trying to get myself to clean this room of mine. It's a hot mess. Instead, I've done everything but! I curled my hair, I found some new music, I wrote some snail mail to friends, and I talked to my roomie from the road. At least I have tomorrow off of work also, so maybe...just maybe, I can reserve Friday morning for some productivity. Here's what I'm workin' with (ahh!!!):

I went to the gym again yesterday! 3 days in a row. Woot!!! I even went completely solo and it wasn't nearly as scary as I thought. And I got a compliment on my high knees form, ha. I'm taking the day off today to let my body recover--my back is all sorts of sore, but I'm back at it today. In fact, I woke up before 8 so I could eat breakfast before class...what has gotten into me?

In the spirit of Valentine's Day, I have a guilty pleasure that I'd like to share: watching vintage super 8 videography. Try searching "8mm wedding" on Vimeo. I might, possibly, occassionally, sometimes shed a tear or 2 due to this romantic eye candy & as a bonus: the music is pretty awesome too.

In other awesomeness, I got the new OPI Katy Perry Black Shatter nail polish and I think I'm in love. The store I bought it from said that their first shipment sold out in 2 hours! I can see why. I, for one, certainly geeked out. So close to the weekend. Happy Thursday!

chugging along

Today was not the best of days. I'll spare you the details, but I will say that the workday was long & very trying. One thing after a-freakin'-nother. I'm usually able to keep my spirits high, but I am not looking forward to going back in the morning. Such is life. Suck it up & get on over it.

On a brighter note, I went to the gym after work. Two days in a row--score!!! Today we gave the step class a try and it was kind of hilarious. 75% of the time I was going the wrong way or was one step behind and the other 25% of the time I stood there completely dumbfounded and lost. I'll give myself a little credit because I was genuinely concerned that I would trip over my step at some point, but I'm proud to say that was not the case. I cannot say the same for the girl in front of me, however. Whoops. The teacher even came up to me to give me some words of encouragement afterwards, which wasn't nearly as mortifying as it sounds. It was actually very sweet. Chipping away at the anxiety...little by little.

So today wasn't the best of days, but I do have some things to look forward to. Thursdays & Fridays are my days off. Val is coming to visit Thursday and Friday is the Quixotic Fusion show & my honey and my roomie return from their mini Texas tour. Saturday after work I'm headed to KC for a fiesta themed girls' night. Keeping my head up. Tomorrow is another (snowy) day and overall, life is pretty dang good y'all.

better late than never

I've never been good with New Year's resolutions and come to think of it, I've been known to run on "Claire Time" (translation: 5 minutes late) also. But folks, I'm gonna give it a go. I've got a few things up my sleeve and this late in the game & with my track record, instead of resolutions we'll just call them my plans.

I've been obsessing over what this stupid thing looks like all day, completely forgetting that the whole purpose was to write more. I l-o-v-e to write, but I never do it. So, my plan is to commit to writing here more frequently...even if it's just a little somethin'-somethin', I will write and I will do it often.

Another plan, which is so AWESOMELY cliche, is to get myself into shape! I got a gym membership a couple of months ago, but I've been thinking of every excuse in the book not to go--you know how it goes (too busy, too tired, "I'll start tomorrow..."). My sister, Lauren, is a member of the same gym and I would go with her, but she usually goes in the wee hours of the morning when I am still in Snoozetown (excuse). To be honest, for whatever reason I have a lot of anxiety about being unfamiliar with the gym/attending class alone. I was on Facebook yesterday & saw that a friend of my lovely boyfriend goes to the same gym. Long story short, we went to a class today & have plans to go to several more this week. Fingers crossed that I can jump on the fitness bandwagon. During the workout I certainly had moments where I thought I might pass out, but I must admit that I felt pretty dang good afterward. Maybe I can get into this.

Next, I plan to take more photos. This one shouldn't be as difficult to accomplish. I just need to learn to always bring my camera and to spend time learning about it everyday. I would also like to become accustomed to taking shots of everyday happenings and I can't think of a better time to figure out how to do so.

I have a longer list of other little plans, but I'll just leave it at the 3 big dudes for now. Work comes early and my bed is looking mighty comfy. And so, my dearest readers that I don't have, I leave you with a photo of the world's cutest pupster, miss Riley. Goodnight all!