this month has flown by...

and it's very hard to believe that it's almost march. i cannot wait for springtime to be here :) today i bought bright, pretty tank tops with the hope of warmer weather to come.

went to fayetteville this weekend for the simmons' annual dessert drop-in. back in high school, i would work at them and take coats and stuff, but this time, i was invited as a guest. mrs. simmons fixed about 15 different cheesecakes and 15 other desserts/cakes and everything is so delicious and even if you wanted to try them all, you couldn't. i was stuffed by the end of it, and i also enjoyed the company of maggie and her friends from winston-salem. thinkin' about going up to see her for "shag on the mag" again this year--and, of course, graduation! we'll see...

friday night, justin and i met up with his friend jon and gf sandy for dinner at starlight cafe. i had just been joking a couple of weeks ago about how i could never get him to go there cause it was so fancy. but there we were, only 2 weeks after my first trip to starlight with the girls from work. i had some excellent jambalaya, justin got a great steak, and to finish it off, i got to try the creme brulee topped with vermont maple sugar. soooo good. it was fun to visit with jon and sandy--very easy going and we all had a good time.

wednesday, we had book club at chico's and discussed another one of our fun, "chick lit" books. we had the craziest waitress who sounded like an overly perky flight attendant, and with the 9 of us there, it was a full table. last time our book had involved secrets, so we all told one of our "secrets" and had to guess whose secret was whose, etc. well, this time, to go along with the book about careers, we went around and talked about what jobs we would be interested in if we could start all over. we were allowed to choose one realistic one (that we could actually do with our degree or if we went back to school) and one over-the-top one. so there were a few interior decorators, wedding planners, chemists and architects in the first group, then lots of singers, actresses and rockstars in the second group. personally, i said "music therapist" for the first (since that was almost what i did in college) and then for the second one---

samantha brown. if i could go back and redirect my life to fulfill the shoes of anyone, it would be her. i mean, she's gotta get too old to do these shows eventually and then, the travel channel will need someone to take her place. i'm tempted to make a video in samantha brown style and send it in, just to let them know that i'm out there. i literally cannot imagine any better job--travel around, stay in fabulous hotels, eat amazing food, go to all the touristy spots and some undiscovered places in between, and capture it all on camera, being able to make people laugh and entertain them. yeah, i could do her job. now, if i could only figure out how to work it into my life plan... ;)

and i've got a semi-busy week ahead. conference on tuesday about "adhd and other disruptive behavioral disorders"--yeah, i know you're jealous. and then helping chaperone "pizza/bingo night" on friday. always a good time!

i think that's all for now. before i leave you, enjoy a west virginian mountain sunset...
later, y'all...

can we say cold?

so i am back from west virginia (in fact, only about an hour back) and have caught up with my digital life, as well as most of real life, too. the cats are happy and playing, clothes are in the washer waiting to be washed, and all of the e-mails have been checked. time for a post...

i would like to rant on UPS and how they have made my life difficult. i have a package from j.c. penney's where i ordered a couple of cocktail-type dresses for upcoming events where i need something like that. i can never be at home when they try to deliver, even when the first attempt takes place at 7 pm and they say they'll deliver after 5 pm the next day and i get home at 4:45 and they tried to deliver already. but how about this--after making their final attempt on wednesday, i end up having enough time to go pick it up at the big shipping place on thursday afternoon. i go in with my slip to pick it up--and the lady tells me they put it back on the truck today. "after they already made the final attempt to deliver yesterday?" i ask, slightly letting the sarcasm get in. "yes," she answered, "can i have them hold it for you for tomorrow?" argh... i'm going to go pick it up tomorrow afternoon... if it's not there, i will be upset.

so, the trip. well, we managed to get out of town thursday afternoon at 6:30--not quite when we planned, but good enough time to get us to warrenton, VA by 10:45, where we stopped for the night to break the trip up. back on the road friday morning, where we made it to morgantown, wv, by 1 pm without too much trouble. lunch with justin's grandma and some social time with her, and then on up the mountain to his dad's house. we went out to dinner in town that night and i got to see what a friday night was like with the locals... pretty quiet, to say the least, but we all had a good time.

saturday was skiing, and we had been waiting to see what the weather was like before we decided where to go. when i woke up saturday morning, it was snowing and there was already an inch and a half on the ground. predicted temperatures for the moutains? highs in the teens, lows in the single digits with wind chill in the negatives. let me just say that short of the trip to cleveland where the great lake up there was frozen over, i have rarely been exposed to temperatures like that, and certainly not for long periods of time outside. but we bundled up and headed towards wisp in maryland. along the way, snow continued to fall along the backroads, and though i felt very safe in justin's dad's four-wheel drive jeep, i told both of them, "where i'm from, if we see snow like this, we put a pot of soup on and call it a day." but not the case here--we made it to the resort by 10:15 and were on the slopes by 11. i did great on the greens, had one bad run down a blue and made it for it with one decent run down the blue, and then finished out the day with some more easy greens. by 4:30, my hands were numb and the battery in my phone was about frozen. i did get a few pictures in before my camera batteries went dead, and they revived themselves enough to get some sunset shots on the way home. pardon the blurriness, they were taken from the car.

my new favorite family member? river, the seven month-old son of mandy, one of justin's stepsisters. she was about to pop in august when we were up there, and this time i got to meet the little guy. i must admit, i was smitten and he did enjoy being infront of the camera. we got to spend time with the family all saturday night and sunday, which was nice since we were definitely sore from the skiing (i've still got a few spots where i'm trying to work out the kinks). and today--yeah, it was 10 hours straight on the road, with stops all along the way. it's a long trip, but after a good weekend like this one, i know it was worth it.

the surprise i got when i got home? alan, who had been taking care of the cats while i was gone, cleaned my apartment. and my car. seriously, i know it was a little cluttered, but was it really that bad? anyways, i am appreciative and i suppose i will make sure it's in better condition next time before i leave and put him in charge...

this was a great trip for me and justin, again. just when i think we can't get closer or understand each other better, it happens. gotta love that--and i certainly love him.

alright, that's all for now. time to get ready for bed and see what the weather's going to be like tomorrow... i'm thinking cold...

later, y'all!

take me home, country roads...

off to west virginia tomorrow afternoon for some family time, some skiing and a wonderful looooooong weekend with my valentine.

be back sometime monday! call me if you need me..

countdown to v-day

wow--so it's been a busy week. work has been crazy with lots of drama, a few big developments in cases, and a few giant steps forward for some long-term cases that i've been working on for the past couple of months. give and take--yup.

there was one final performance for the colorguard (went well, even though i actually messed up a small sections--whoops!) and at young adults monday night, i got a cake, singing and yes, candles. so i did get to blow out some candles! birthday wish issue averted :)

valentine's day dance at school friday night. i had used most of the day to catch up on my un-scheduled cases and then got started helping them decorate in the afternoon. i had worked on painting a background for pictures that i would take--very valentines-ish with hearts and swirls and stuff like that. we hung up the fabric for the stage, had hearts and lights and flowers everywhere, and had my picture booth set up for business. i went home to get cleaned up, then came back to school to go with hallie and shona and her daughter skylar out to dinner to finally use our starlight cafe gift certificates. we had all gotten them from students through out the year, and since our significant others certainly wouldn't do well with that kind of restaurant, we went and had a girl's dinner out with fancy food and lots of laughs.

came back for the dance and though i had a great time, the night couldn't go by without a little bit of drama. i'm waiting to see how i'm going to deal with it tomorrow. pictures were awesome, though. can't wait to see the kids' reactions tomorrow when i deliver them to homerooms. my favorite picture? the one with my friends. man, i know i'm in the right place. and as i was dealing with drama on friday night, i was reminded by a parent, "atleast you know you'll always have a job here!" ha--in some twisted way, i know it's true and i'm happy for it.

got to see my girl linda saturday for lunch, and we sat around talking for a couple hours afterwards. it was so wonderful to see her, and i loved being able to talk about everything with her, just like we used to when we were getting ready in the morning or late at night before we went to sleep. it's hard to believe how far we've come and how much we've grown up just in the past 6 months since we moved out of our apartment, but it's always nice to have a reminder of how close we were--and how close we still are--when we get back together.

excited about tuesday... and thursday, when we leave for west virginia for the long weekend. ski slopes, here we come!

that's all for now. later, y'all.

and before i go to bed...

let's all say one last "happy birthday" to me!

it's been a good one. but you know what i just realized? i never blew out a candle. plenty of people sang to me, plenty of cake/pie was eaten, but i never got the opportunity to blow out a candle. does this mean no birthday wish for me?

quick update on the rest of my birthday activities--saturday really was all errands and productivity. however, it was good productivity, like going shopping for iPod accesories and returning extra colorguard shirts and trying out multiple office chairs at staples. also, i'm keeping my fingers crossed that in a short time, some bonus money will be coming to me by way of jewelry consignment. i finally found a store that would take care of the selling part for me, and i jumped at the opportunity. here's to letting go, reaping the rewards, and looking to the future...

today was church in the morning, brunch afterwards with everyone, some two-hand tag football (where, by the way, i continue to show off how little i actually know about playing football though i have been spectator to countless games) and chili cook-off/superbowl party at church, with the second half spent at justin's place watching the end of the game.

can i take a moment to point out that the steelers have just won their first superbowl in twenty-some years on my birthday and that my boyfriend is a huge steelers fan and could easily see this as superstitious (hence the reason his favorite black hoodie hasn't been washed since play-offs began. yes, that's gross.) i'm like the ultimate good luck charm. go me!

watching the steelers win was exciting, and i easily fell back into the feelings of last april, watching UNC win the NCAA championship. being so excited but not wanting to get too certain of things, even when they were up and only a few minutes were left. tonight, i sat there with 3 seconds left saying, "can't get too excited yet, the game still isn't over" even though the steelers were ahead by 11 points and it essentially was over.

i had a great birthday. i love all of the friends and family members that i got to see, and even more that i got to talk to on the phone or online. i am so blessed, and this past year has only shown me how wonderful things can be. here's to 23--may it be as good as 22 (or better!)

later, y'all.

happy lauren's early birthday!

i've always been one to drag out my birthday celebrations for a week at a time. start one weekend, continue on through to the next weekend--that's just the way it is. and this year, the main celebrating has been going on beforehand just because i happen to have to share the day with some big football game. go figure ;)

but let me tell ya, it's been a great birthday so far. i know it's been a while since i've posted, so let me try to catch up a little bit.

i loved "beauty and the beast" last weekend--the CFRT did such a great job and really worked hard to bring the details of the broadway version to a smaller stage. it also reminded me of how much i enjoy that soundtrack and, in particular, "home" and "if i can't love her." two songs that were written for the broadway version that are just amazing. ("home" made me think of matthew playing it on the piano at the top of the stairs in jarvis and me singing along with him) and justin enjoyed it as well, although it didn't hurt that it was based on an animated cartoon and featured dancing flatware. nothing too heavy for his first venture into the world of musical theater.

busy week with many more referrals, new students, and catching up with old students. my work needs me, and i love my work. doesn't get much better than that.

COLORGUARD performance on wednesday--went sooooo well. they looked adorable, they didn't drop a flag, they acted as though they were having a good time, and got sooo many compliments. we perform again on monday, and i have a feeling it will go just as well. yay for a fun opening performance! click on "my pictures" to see a picture of them.

yesterday, i got my "birthday button" from the front office which meant for the rest of the day, i had many people wishing me happy birthday. my seventh grade classes made signs that they put on my door, they sang to me, and the faculty members gave me a card while hallie brought in a pie. so very nice to have so many people involved. we went out to dinner with mom, grandma, alan and rachel last night before alan's first concert with the wind ensemble. skipped out on the concert, though, because matthew called me to tell me he was in town and was going to hang out with the scholars group and for me to come with him. he said they were going to this party for a guy that john knows and that i should meet them there since it was over near the hospital and at first, i said, "i really feel weird about just showing up at a party for a guy i don't know and you don't know and we don't know what the scene is like there." so then once they got there, they called back and insisted it was fine, very laid-back, so i went over to visit for a while and apparently i made the right decision. not only did i get to see all of the scholars people (matthew, katrin, rachel, luke, john, his new gf) but then i saw caleb, who was long ago friends with crystal (my first roommate) and then i saw heather, megan's friend who apparently also knew matthew, and then megan came (who has a birthday sunday, too) and her justin was with her (who is long time friends with linda) and as we all sat around talking and joking around, we came to the conclusion that it really is a small world after all.

(by the way, this party was in celebration of the guy's divorce getting finalized. who knew that was worthy of celebration?)

so now it's my early-birthday day where i've been told i get to choose whatever i want to do for the day. and surprisingly enough, it's been difficult for me to make that decision. the furthest i've gotten is that i want boulevard bagels for breakfast. i'll go from there ;)

justin gave me his gift last night, and i had been speculating with everyone for a while about what it might be. my guesses had been either an iPod of some sort or maybe a necklace or earrings. i was correct on the iPod side--a nano. i've already started playing with it and getting it all set up and i'm very excited about the many uses this could have. i'm equally nervous that the cats are going to see it as a playtoy and bat it under the couch. here's hoping to not losing it.

that's all for now---go steelers!

and it's here!

man, this has been a long week. first full week since december--seriously. yes, i know i'm spoiled.

so work has been busy busy busy and i've gotten tons of referrals for new cases as well as some boiling points for my old cases. good to know that i'm needed :)

social life has been busy, too. going to the gym, hanging out with friends, and our monthly book club dinner. so much fun--and of course, i blushed like 500 times and realized that i have really loud friends. but it was still great, and i can't wait for the next one.

and tomorrow, it's off to fayetteville for the night for early birthday celebration with the family and seeing CFRT's "beauty and the beast." i'm excited. justin's being a good boyfriend.

that's all for now :) later, y'all.

i get by with a little help from my friends...

i love being a social person and having multiple groups of friends. i especially love that i have made such great friends at work, and that i continue to have great friends at church, and most specifically, that i have a wonderful, amazing boyfriend.

but...


i miss these girls sometimes more than i can even explain. i talked to both of them yesterday, and i think it made me realize how much i miss having these two friends around for those moments when i just need to hang out with my girls. yes, i have amazing friends here in greenville still, but there's something about how well ashley and linda know me and how close we were and how i miss them terribly. we're scattered around now, but it is nice to know that they're a phone call away.

love ya, chicas.

sunday again...

hello, sunday :)

milo loves to nap. and he just looks quite adorable doing it. so i thought i'd share this picture with you

it's been a lazy week, especially with the middle/upper school taking exams. we did get to have casino day on friday afternoon, where the kids celebrate the end of exams by playing poker, roulette and craps. i contributed by having a "glamour photo" booth, where the kids dressed up in fancy clothes and i took digital photos and printed them out. it was a lot of fun and i had the best time setting up and helping the kids relax. once i got home, then i relaxed and justin came over so we could continue our new obsession with "the office." justin bought the whole first season and most of the second on iTunes and we've been making our way through it. and with the local NBC station failing to show the lastest episode on thursday night and replacing it with some lawyer show, i had to see what was going to happen between jim and pam. i am completely addicted to this style of show--documentary-like, with these hilarious interviews and situations and they'll just look right at the camera and i crack up from just the facial expressions. so it was a great way to spend the evening.

saturday, we finally made it to beaufort. we'd been planning this trip for about two or three weeks since i got a gift certificate to buy some artwork from a gallery there, but had to put it off the past couple of weekends until we had time to make a day of it. we got down there in time to buy the art, browse in some shops, eat lunch at clawson's and make our way downeast to the beach. rather than going over to atlantic beach like we always do, i took him through all the tiny little towns past beaufort and we finally got out to enjoy an almost private beach at the cedar island ferry. i had the best time taking some pictures, and you can check out the rest at my flickr site where i've uploaded all of them.


my new favorite picture of justin? this one--so natural, and very very handsome :)
and finally, the artwork that i bought. all by alan cheek. this first one is "lookout night."then there's "change of tide"--with cape lookout again, but more focusing on the water.
and finally, "summertime shoals," complete with dolphins, wild ponies and sea gulls. reminds me of shackleford banks.
now it's time to watch football, do grocery shopping and the like.

later, y'all!

middle of the week bump

and it's a short week--i know, again, yes, again.

monday was all about relaxing and getting ready to host young adults. i LOVE hosting people. however, the past couple of times, there's always been a concern about setting off my smoke alarm. the food turns out fantastic, everyone gives me tons of compliments--but during the cooking process, something bubbles over, something drips to the bottom of the oven, and it just ends up smoky and smelling like burnt grease. lovely, i know.

i wish i had more room when i'm hosting people. i'm always worried that it'll get too crowded and people will be uncomfortable. in a perfect world, i could have enough space to host about 15-20 people comfortably, with a couple of different rooms and twice as much counter space for food. but without at doubt, i can cook. i have had atleast 5 or 6 people tell me that my lasagna was some of the best they've ever tasted. gotta love that :)

it's exam week. my middle/upper schoolers leave at noon, and are taking exams all morning. this means my life is has a lot less drama, and i get to focus on my elementary school kids for a week. it's actually a nice change of pace, and it's given a few of us plenty of time to prepare for casino day on friday afternoon (where the kids celebrate the end of exams by playing poker and roulette for tickets). i'm running the "photo booth" with some fancy dress-up costumes and a digital camera. perfect!

i have my colorguard's outfits--school colors, cute, hip and works for everyone's body types. first performance is in two weeks. keep your fingers crossed (and yes, i'll take pictures).

and last night, as we watched "american idol" (just to see the crazy bad auditions), i folded laundry and justin checked his website feeds and it was just a lazy, relaxed evening. and i realized that i liked the feeling of it. not exactly exciting, but just comfortable.

this weekend--beaufort (finally!) to buy some artwork and enjoy the beautiful weather. until then....

end of the week

thank goodness!

i have to say that this past week has been one of the craziest and most stressful so far. it's testing me, but i'm making it. it's just not an easy process. i won't go into details online, but if you're curious, just ask.

finished up a long post i've been working on for a while. scroll down to check out my "year in review."

have had a nice relaxing weekend involving lots of laziness and a little bit of productiveness. dad came up yesterday to return his christmas present and we had lunch and watched the unc basketball game.

church today, and then i've been cleaning up and getting ready for hosting young adults tomorrow night. menu is lasagna, salad, garlic bread and some sort of dessert. i'll have all day tomorrow to plan and prepare :)

watching the steelers play at the moment. i'm keeping my fingers crossed, though having to share my birthday with the steelers at the super bowl is not my first choice. we'll see what happens...

later!

back into the week...

the weekend was terribly relaxing. we did absolutely nothing all saturday afternoon and left only to get the stuff to make a fabulous dinner and watch a movie saturday night. so great... :)

sunday--some excellent shopping after church. great to see everyone for the first time in a while, and also some great sales.

work's keeping me busy--i'm never quite sure what i'll get during the day, but it's fun and keeps me on my toes.

and i'm not really in a blogging mood tonight. sorry--but i'll update again when i have more to say :)

and we're back...

so glad that it's a short week this week and that friday will be here before i know it. and that next week is also short cause of our half day on friday. and the next week is MLK holiday on monday and exams for middle/upper school which means my schedule will be totally thrown off. and we might get back to normal sometime by the end of january, but let's face it--things are just more fun when they're not normal.

i feel confident putting this on here cause i'm positive no one will know this student and if you do, it's actually a very positive comment. i am learning that at independent schools, you play many different roles and they don't necessarily correspond with your actual degree or what you were officially trained in, but a lot of times just draws on your own skills and interests. i've seen that in tutoring a student in spanish twice a week. he'd never had it before, and even though we were trying to put him in the lowest level possible, he really needed that individual attention to catch up so that next year, he'll be ready to join the rest of his class. so we meet twice a week and have been working on basics like colors, numbers and small talk stuff. well, i decided on tuesday that we'd try conjugating a verb but was sure to be patient. when i had helped him while he was still in the class, conjugating a verb sounded very much like a rendition of "who's on first?" with him totally confused by pronouns, verb endings and everything else. we would go around in circles because i didn't want to give him the answer, and yet he'd guess at everything and would eventually guess correctly, but had no clue why it was right. but tuesday, as i wrote out the steps and helped him follow along, we conjugated a regular, present tense -ar verb and you could physically see the light turn on in his brain. it was one of the most rewarding experiences i have had all year. wish i could say that it came from a counseling situation, but i now understand the utter frustration and simultaneous joy that is being a teacher. and this morning, we did a stem-changing verb. i've never been so proud :)

in the meantime, the kindergarten class is my favorite place to hang out during the day. here, you're confronted by much more amusing issues like who drew pictures on their legs last night with magic marker (he proudly explained that it was an anaconda) and whose overactive imagination is getting her in trouble (in art, the teacher was talking about cave drawings that were found about 60 years ago and she said, "i saw that!" and when told that she couldn't have, it was 60 years ago, she said, "then my great-great-great-grandmother did!") gotta love it.

been to the gym 6 out of the 7 last days. and i'm feeling good :)

alright, gonna enjoy the evening with justin. later!

the classic do-it-yourself couple portrait. but oh so cute :) do i look happy? i think so...

year in review

alright, so i know that 2006 is already here and a year in review blog might seem a little past due. but humor me as i count down why 2005 has been one of my best years ever...

my friends and i, in many of our countless conversations, have talked before about our "favorite year." for a long time, it was 10th grade. or maybe it was 6th grade. it probably all depends on when the conversation occurred. but now, i know that 2005 was the year of lauren. there were so many thing that happened that have made me grow up, realize my future and turned me into such a strong person. i think it goes without saying that i can't wait to see what 2006 brings, but here's why 2005 was such an awesome year (with pictures when applicable)

in no particular order....

getting to see many sunsets--and a few sunrises--and being able to capture them on my camera. my love for digital photography really came alive.
joining the oakwood family, and bravely chaperoning my 8th graders to camp cheerio

spending my last few months living with this girl--and, of course, still getting to see her every so often. it was a big step for us to move off and live on our own after spending the past two years together. and i don't know that we ever got emotional about it--that's just not how we are. but there are times where i seriously miss having her there, whether it's going out for some ice cream, wandering around the mall, or tell her about my latest adventure at school or who i ran into while i was out. she's currently traveling around the country and has a fabulous apartment in virginia beach that she spends too little time in--but i know she's always just a phone call away! love ya, linda :)welcoming a couple of babies into this world--including seth...
and joseph...

continuing a great friendship with my friends and trying out my first organized sport--church-league softball :)spending time with my family...it was one of my first full years of really being on my own, and when i get to spend time with my family, it's special. also spent a good length of time with my dad for the first time in a while as he recovered from his cancer treatments and surgery. that will always be something i remember in 2005---a scary, stressful time that made me strong and also brought me closer to my dad and that side of the family.
lots of time at the beach. i mean LOTS of time.

especially with this guy. of all my 2005 moments, this has to be the best. the first year of a relationship that has many more years to come. did i mention the sunsets? and the water?

road trips. we traveled everywhere this year. across the state, halfway across the country, short trips to the coast, to raleigh, to fayetteville. but i think the most exciting trip had to be cedar point. a dream come true--and one of the most amazing experiences i've ever had :)
before oakwood, there was st. mary's, and i had about 150 kids that i saw every week. my internship kept me busy, taught me a lot, and it was hard to leave.

but it was also great to graduate! two degrees in four years--it's actually nice to have a break now :)

april fool's day. i think it's always been well known that i am A) gullible B) jumpy and C) amusing when you pull off one of those two. these guys pulled off an april fool's joke that no one bothered to tell me was over after everyone else found out (and i wasn't there) and so it continued on for about a week or so before i found out and they didn't KNOW that i KNEW and i decided to plan my own joke back. i made them t-shirts (just in case they ever forgot) that read "i pulled an april fool's joke, forgot to tell someone it was over, she got revenge and all she gave me was this lousy t-shirt" plans for this april fool's are in work...
milo came into my life. he's grown a lot over the past year and is no longer the tiny kitten but is now quite the crazy tomcat. yet with all of this idiosyncracies, he's made himself fit in with me and grace (and secretly, i think justin likes him more than he'll admit)
i still keep up with these amazing friends from high school. whether it be visiting maggie up at wake forest for "shag on the mag," meeting up with megan at moe's here in greenville or visiting elizabeth in NYC over spring break and having her show me around the brooklyn bridge, there are some wonderful people who stay in my life no matter how many months pass between our last visit or how many years i can say i've known them.
this was just a fun picture. from my birthday last year. ribs and karaoke. doesn't take much to please me :)
continuation of the road trips. i love that i've found someone who enjoys traveling and that we can find things to do on our trips that both of us appreciate. "big historic houses" and "amusement parks" were the themes this year. coming up, we're talking about skiing, a big interest in charleston, and by the time summer gets here--you know we'll be at the beach again! these trips are important to us because it shows that we can handle the planning, the hours of driving, the many many hours just being together and coming through it without disagreeing or getting tired of each other. even when things don't work out (i didn't remember that the corn maze was having a paintball day!), we're able to improvise and keep on going.
ahh, NYC. this was my last spring break trip in college, and i have some amazing memories from it. seeing a broadway show, doing all the touristy stuff like the statue of liberty and the empire state building, and even attending a taping of a show in the NBC studios. but of course, nothing beats the simple pleasures--like a piece of new york cheesecake and a cup of coffee.
and my MSW crew. we bonded as a group over our year together and shared many memorable experiences--through braving exams, working on group projects together, many afternoons at moe's and coldstone, and then supporting each other with everything after graduation--new jobs, new houses, engagements and marriages. i might not see y'all as much as i used to, but i always know that you're there for me and how important you were in helping me get through one heck of a year.


and that's it for now... what a year, and i'm excited to see what'll happen in 2006 :) take care, everyone, and let me know if i forgot anything!

happy new year :)

happy 2006. and i've had a great time ringing in the new year.

it was wonderful to visit seth and leigh the other day and help her out with calming him down and giving her some free time. seth was about a month old and is a hefty 12 pound baby. he's got a set of lungs, some active arms and legs, and the beginnings of some killer blue eyes. can't wait to see how this kid grows up... (by the way, this is a picture of jennifer and seth, not leigh and seth--but it's a cute one!)




friday night was spent hanging out with the church crew for the first time since the middle of december. i had spent enough time on my own at the apartment and was ready to be social again. so we met at bear rock for some dinner and then headed back to my apartment to watch football and play some games. i had asked for some board games for christmas and had gotten scattergories and pictionary. so after playing a couple of rounds of scattergories, everyone else headed home and i got ready for new year's eve.


honestly, new year's eve was pretty calm. justin and i had waited until the last minute to make any plans because we were waiting to see if anything would work out with his friend kenny or if the young adults group would do something. young adults ended up coming through and was much more low key, which is what we needed since we were traveling to raleigh at way too early in the morning on new year's day. so we went over to kenny and jennifer's for tacos, more football (isn't it over yet?) and video games. the guys had a great time with joe's new xbox 360 while the girls stayed occupied with seth, gracie and cara.



but that didn't keep me from trying it out, too. i'm always the girl who's willing to give it a shot, even if the guys beat up on me. and as you can see, i give it my full concentration....







sunday morning, we hit the road bright and way too early for north raleigh united methodist for baby joseph's baptism. i hadn't seen my cousin in about 2 or 3 months, and he has grown quite a bit since then. i must admit that i am absolutely smitten by this kid. he has the longest lashes that shouldn't be allowed on a baby and the most laid-back, easy going personality. made it through the entire service without getting fussy, can be passed around from person to person with no problem, and is woken up from naps smiling and cooing. justin said he should get a little onesie that says, "yeah, i'm cool with that."
afterwards, there was a drop-in reception at billy and maryanne's where we got to meet lots of their friends and also do a little belated christmas. i'll be taking a trip to beaufort next weekend to pick out some artwork from the alan cheek galleries--very nice! i also got lots of great pictures of joseph and the rest of the family, which i'll add here at the end. i love the ones of him with my grandfather, the older joseph william. there is definitely an uncanny resemblace going on...

now it's just a matter of getting ready to go back to work after two weeks off, which involves laundry, dishes, taking the christmas tree down and all sorts of fun stuff. it's been a great break and i'm ready for the new year :) hope everyone else's vacations went well, too! later...

ahh, vacation

so fun little tidbits about the past couple of days...

i love working in a school and having two weeks off. however, there is this whole summer thing coming up in a few months that makes me think i'll enjoy the first few weeks of it and go crazy by the middle of july. the idea of getting a job has occurred to me, but then i like the flexibility of being able to just pick up and go to the beach for the day when the whim hits me. however, just me and the cats hanging out at the apartment is not going to cut it. hmmm...

met up with jennifer last night to catch up and to do christmas. we went to o'charley's, where we met a month ago and had the same waiter we had last time. funny story--jennifer ordered a shrimp dish that was no longer on the menu, but they still made it for her and the couple in the table across from us was eyeing the dish when it came out. the man (who, by the looks of the glasses on the table, had had a few) tells her that the dinner looks good asks her as the server is putting the plate on the table IF HE COULD HAVE ONE OF HER SHRIMP. we don't know this guy, we hadn't had a conversation with them, and he asks for a shrimp. the waiter remembered us after jennifer mentioned the story and he said he's still telling people about that very odd encounter. haha, we're an o' charley's story!

i was sitting around this morning, working on a new knitting project and my phone rang with an unrecognizable greenville number. the woman identified herself as jewel from viquest and asked if i was ready to come down and get started on my new year's resolution. i then remembered that i had filled out some info to enter a contest to win a viquest t-shirt and the opportunity to join viquest with a waived registration fee. she asked if i could come down right then, which i could cause i wasn't doing anything else, and so i drove over and took a tour and yes, got signed up. i had been toying with the idea of joining a health club and this is by far the closest and most convenient for me with where i work and live. it's about a mile down the road and is easy to get to from work, too. and it's a huge, hospital-run place like healthplex back in fayetteville, where it's quiet, everyone has their headphones on, everyone is there to work out and you don't feel like you have to dress up or worry about being picked up. and the whole waived registration fee is worth $99 and my first payment isn't until february. so now that i've got a pretty good feel for my budget, i'm excited about this. i need a reason to stay with something, and this just may be it :)

about to go visit leigh and baby seth. yay for that! i feel like i haven't seen church people in forever (though i did run into jennifer at target yesterday). i spent the better part of the day cleaning up and putting stuff up around here so it actually feels organized. oh, and milo's new bad habit is trying to eat the couch. yes, there are little teeth marks all along the cushions. frustrating does not begin to describe this.

i pulled out my clarinet and played for about half an hour yesterday. thinking of joining the tar river community band. i need some weaker reeds (long gone are the days where i could play vandoren 4's with no problem) and the cats ran under the bed at the sound of the first note. oh well...

alright, off to visit. later!

sticking around...

so due to unforeseen weather circumstances and difficulties with vacation time, we've decided to put off the trip to WV until sometime in january. i did come on back to greenville and am enjoying spending time with justin and his family. yesterday, we went ice skating with his mom, sister, her bf, and then his grandma took us out to dinner. lots of fun :)

christmas in fayetteville was fun, as always. i got my new digital camera and i absolutely love love love it. it takes wonderful pictures and has so many options that i'm still getting the hang of. i love the way it works with natural light and i'm also having a good time messing with shutter speeds and aperture and stuff like that. i'll tack on a couple at the end. my cousins were amusing, of course, and it was nice to see all of the family. and in a couple of days, we'll see the mason side of the family at my baby cousin's christening.

as for now, i'm just enjoying my time off. later...

and so i'm offering this simple phrase...

it's christmas eve in fayetteville, and everything is pretty much as it should be. we've taken the presents over to my grandma's, have packed up overnight bags to stay there this evening, and my aunt and cousins are coming down in the morning.

as usual, we're going to the christmas eve service at hay street, though this is the 2nd or 3rd year (i can't remember which) that they haven't done the 11 pm candlelight service. it kinda makes me sad, because i always remember playing handbells to "silent night" and then putting them down, walking to the edge of the balcony and looking down on the congregation as they sang a capella, the tiny candles lighting up everyone's faces. it's one of those great moments that gives you chill bumps, that lets you know that christmas is really here. and sadly, with the new preacher there who has three young children, he has gone to only doing a 5:30 service (which we had before and held specifically for those families with young children). lots of changes, and unfortunately, that's one of those things that i really miss.

i did get to see the fabulous elizabeth young for brunch the other morning. hard to believe that she's turning down offers to play at carnegie hall so she can come back to fayetteville for the holidays. but she is and it's always wonderful to see her, whether it be in north carolina or new york (where i saw her last march). with all of my "fayetteville friends" that i see when i'm home, it's so nice to be able to pick up with them right where we left off. it's like very little has changed during the three or four months since i've seen them, and though i update them on how much has actually gone on, the intimacy and closeness of friendship is still there. like megan helping herself to a bite of my sandwich, laughing in the car with maggie, or elizabeth sharing stories with me about her new boyfriend--these girls are wonderful and after our visit is over, i feel as close to them as i did when we walked the halls of terry sanford. crazy, huh?

the next couple of days will fly by and i apologize ahead of time if i'm not online or don't return e-mails. after christmas day, i'll drive to greenville monday morning where i'll change a few key pieces of clothing (take out light long-sleeve shirts, replace with heavy wool sweaters and ski clothes) and then continue on with justin, heather and wylie to west virginia. potential 11 hours on the road total between my driving in the morning and the rest of the trip. with snow. whoopee. no, in all seriousness, it will be a fun trip and i'm looking forward to spending 5 days straight with justin and getting to try out my skiing skills for the first time in a while (atleast 2 or 3 years). however, i'm fully aware that this trip will most likely convince me that i am an eastern carolina girl through and through and that my blood is too thin for that much cold at that altitude. call my cell phone about wednesday or thursday if you want a good laugh ;)

alright, to everyone--stay safe, have fun, be cheerful, show love to everyone, and of course...

merry christmas to you :)

oh there's no place like home for the holidays...

so i've been home for a few days and have gotten into all of the friends and family holiday celebration things.

have lunch with megan (and her justin) and catch up on old times? check

go shopping with mom and brave the crowds at the mall? check

evening of fun with maggie and further corrupting her? check

dinner and movie with dad and alan and some "fun with dick and jane"? check

finding my ski clothes and getting ready to brave wild and wonderful WV? check

still on my list--
a couple more presents, some more family dinners, and all that christmas eve/christmas day stuff.... and before you know it, i'll be heading for my "mountain mama" with my very own mountain man. and then new year's eve, new year's day with the mason clan and then i'll be back at work--hey, where'd my break go?

so if you happen to be in fayetteville and want to get together, drop me a line. we'll catch up and i can put you on my list (and check you off). later!