5 days later....

...here I am. I feel like I fell off the face of the earth a little bit because I barely had time to get on facebook or check my e-mail this past week. After my lovely weekend off, it was back to the daily grind, and boy did it kick my butt. However, it kicked my butt in a good way, cuz I love the feeling you get after working your little tush off and knowing you did a good job, too. I got to pick up extra hours at the store and am back at it serving at the restaurant, but after a 10-hour work day between both jobs on Thursday, and a 13-hour day yesterday, I am pooped! Not to mention, my little feetsies hurt! Thankfully, my fiancé is the best and gave me a foot rub last night while I sat there almost half asleep watching Lost, hahaha.

After getting about 10 hours of sleep last night, I'm feeling better today. I have to go back to work at 5:30 tonight, but since I closed last night, I don't have to tonight! Which means (hopefully) 3 or so super busy hours of running around like a madwoman because I know we have a lot of parties on the books tonight, lots more cash earned, and then rewarding myself with a great night kicking back with my buddies at SAE for their annual Beach Bash, even though I am no longer a college student (and hopefully rewarding myself later in the week with said cash earned by getting a pedicure!).

So no, this post is nothing of great interest, but it's just what's going on in this little life of mine, and I know a few people out there read this and care to know what's going on with me, even if it is boring :) Thanks for reading! Have a great weekend, and hopefully I'll have more interesting posts in the coming week!

My weekend...

Involved a lot of this:

 

And the discovery of this:

 

Both wonderful things. I got hooked on Lost when we watched some episodes on the bus ride back from New York and quickly got Nick hooked after that. The entire series is on Netflix and we have a free trial, so.... you can imagine what we do with our spare time.

Also, that ice cream is unreal. I love cake and I love ice cream, but cake flavored ice cream is almost better, especially when there are huge chunks of oreo in it. Go eat some. Now.

Since I always work Saturdays and the restaurant isn't open on Mondays, my weekends are always from Sunday to Monday. Yesterday, I finally had time to clean my room (it was disgusting) and actually finish the mound of laundry that had piled up instead of making a dent, only to have to stop because I have other things to do, like work and sleep and everything else. I even had time to finally plan a recipe and cook it for dinner! This may not seem like a big deal, but since I work during dinnertime the majority of the week, it's nice to be able to enjoy that time myself! It was even better to be able to enjoy that time while watching Lost, too :) Ah, the little things in life - they really are what makes it all worthwhile!

.

Cobalt & Gold.

[Shorts: Target // Top, cuff, and earrings: The Limited // Shoes: Stolen from my Mama's closet (vintage Nordstrom) // Bag: Coach]

So I've been a little obsessed with cobalt blue as of late. One of the Limited's newest lines has a ton of navy and cobalt pieces, and this top was one I had to have! It's a nice change from my usual neutrals and blush/pink tones that I like to wear, and it looks great paired with gold accessories. This outfit, however, is not good for traipsing across a disc golf course, but nonetheless it's what I happened to be wearing during the "looking for Nick's phone" incident, hahaha. It was perfect for the lovely spring day, though!

The unfortunate (and hilarious) event of the week.

So remember on Wednesday when I mentioned that Nick and I were going to order food and have a picnic???

Well, we did go and get food to go, BUT at the same time we were trying to figure out where Nick's phone was. He knew he had set it down while texting me during his frisbee golf game (aka "frolfing"), and it wasn't in the car of the person he rode out to the course with, so we decided to take our picnic of First Wok out to the disc golf course.

What followed was a wild goose chase over the entire course, looking and listening for his phone while I called it non-stop. Nick ran ahead and looked at all the holes and I followed behind, struggling to catch up in my flats while carrying my purse. Let me tell you, flats are not good for grassy hills. Yikes. We checked the entire first part of the course probably twice but we couldn't find it! This sucked because not only was Nick grumpy because he couldn't find his phone, but I was grumpy because Nick kept calling back to me, "Are you calling it?" and I kept saying, "YES!" because I literally would call again every time it went to his voicemail, yet he still had to ask me every single time. Add that and the fact that it was hard to keep up with him in said oufit.

After about half an hour of looking (true love right there), we finally went to the end of the course and had 2 holes left to check. If it wasn't here, we had no idea where it would be. As we're reaching the 17th hole, I call it and Nick is up ahead of me. All of a sudden he stops, perks up, and says, "I hear it!" HALLELUJIA. He ran around in a circle frantically looking until his eyes found it and he triumphantly picked it up. Let me tell you, that sight was hilarious! We were both so happy that he found it, and I was mostly happy because I knew he wouldn't be grumpy anymore!

So, the event was very unfortunate, but ended up to be a fortunate event, because we found his phone (he had 55 missed calls from me haha) and got to enjoy our takeout by the lake. All in all, a good day. I hope he never loses his phone again!

Black & Blue.

[Pants: The Limited // Top and belt: Target // Flats: Report at Von Maur]

Just another way to wear these blue pants that I'm obsessed with. Please excuse my hair being up in a lamezor low ponytail - my hair was beyond salvageable at this point in the day after sleeping on it wet... I hope you're having a happy Hump Day! It's beautiful here in Decatur, and Nick and I are about to order some food to go and have a picnic in the park! Yippee!

Music Monday (on Tuesday???)

Sorry about the hiatus. I meant to post yesterday. but I never got around to it. The last two days (Sunday and Monday) were my only days off I've really had in over a week and I still had to wake up early on Sunday to sing at church and a voice lesson yesterday. The rest of my time was spent napping and filing my taxes, something I decided to wait to do until the last minute. Woops!

That being said, I didn't get to post my "Music Monday" segment on Monday, but I still thought it was worth sharing....

Sunday night I had the privilege of watching my roomie and wonderful friend, Taryn, sing her senior recital/commercial music senior project! She sang a few of her own original songs and also covers of Adele, Carrie Underwood, and Lady Gaga. Let me tell you, she rocked it, and she is one talented lady! Her dream is to be a country star, and she's definitely got the twang and the sass! Not only that, but she is a proven musician by the fact that she writes her own songs and has a great way with words. As a classical singer, I definitely envy the ability to groove on a commercial track but especially to be able to put words togeether with a catchy hook and create a song. Songwriting is not my strong point, but it is one of Taryn's! 

So for this "Music.... Tuesday" I encourage you to check out her page on facebook and listen to her tracks HERE.

My favorites are "Small Town Fate" and "Heartache Lullaby". Her EP, "Ordinary Girl", is also available on iTunes, so support an up-and-coming artist by buying a couple of your favorite tracks!

So here's to some country music and my wonderful roommate and friend, Taryn.. congrats on a successful senior project! :) Love you!

Unfortunate and Fortunate.

[Maxi-dress and sandals: Target // Denim jacket and necklace: The Limited // Ring: Forever 21]

Unfortunate:

1. Going to make a deposit in the drive-through at the bank, putting my money in the little box, and then having to chase down a $5 bill because of the wind. Yeah, I'm pretty sure the guy in the bank laughed his ass off after I left. It was kind of ridiculous.

2. Taxes. Normally I don't mind, but this year I have to fill out different forms. Which I didn't know about til 2 days ago. Taxes are due next week. Commence anxiety attack.

3. Being freezing in the morning! I refuse to turn on the heat at night so it's been 58 in my house in the mornings. Yikes!

4. Blowing up at Nick over realllllly stupid reasons. I felt terrible :(

5. The Easter pie disaster.... as I mentioned, the directions were misleading. It said mix the pudding with everything else for the filling... so I made the pudding first and put it in. Yeah, I wasn't supposed to do that - just put the mix in. Woops. Proooobably why it never set...

Fortunate:

 

1. Sushi date night!

2. Easter potluck - I had so much fun!

3. 50% off Easter candy! Woohoo!!! I'm totally stocking up on mini Cadbury eggs (my new addiction)

4. This denim jacket - we got it later than the other stores, but I'm so glad we finally did! I think the last time I had a denim jacket was in middle school and high school and it was dark wash and I wore it with khakis... yikes. I'm excited to have this as a jacket to throw on over dresses and pretty much wear with everything... it's so versatile! And I love that it's cropped.

5. Homemade pizza made twice this week, with goat cheese and artichoke hearts. Favorite.

6. Though the mornings have been chilly, the days have been beautiful! This is spring weather.

7. The tiramisu martini I had last night. YUM.

Happy Birthday, Michelle!

Typical.

The day we joined Tri-Delta. We've taken this picture on every Bid Day since!

 

Today I would like to wish a very happy birthday to my wonderful, beautiful, smart, and hilarious friend, Miss Michelle Thompson! Michelle and I both transferred to Millikin Fall 2009, both had boyfriends in SAE that were our highschool sweethearts, and both went through Informal Recruitment and became Deltas together that fall. I saw her at transfer orientation and at SAE before recruitment, but when we were put in the same group for house tours and officially met, we basically became best friends right away. There was seriously no awkward getting to know you thing, we just became friends. Since then we've been roommates every year and I honestly can't imagine life without her in it! She's been there for me in good and in bad, countless Target runs, nights spent at SAE, and there is always laughter when we're together. She is such a fun and spirited girl and I am happy to say she is also one of my bridesmaids! We may have only know each other for not even 3 full years, but she's one of those people you meet and feel like you've known all your life. I love you Michelle, and I hope you have a fabulous Princess day!!! :)

Pretty soon they're going to know us by name....

[Pullover: J. Crew // Skinny jeans: Gap // Boots: Vince Camuto // Pendant necklace: Forever 21 // Bag: taken from my Mama]

Isn't he adorable???

Fuji dragon roll, super crunchy roll, and black dragon roll [Before]

[After]

So. Full.

In return for helping with the Tudor Voices CD recording (mentioned previously in this post), Nick was given a gift card to Fuji! Woohoo! Not only were we excited about getting to go out and eat sushi, but we were ecstatic about not having to cook! Especially since I was dog-tired yesterday - there was no way I was going to be making anything. After my 5 pm nap (totally acceptable), I pulled myself out of bed, we both got dressed into something besides sweats, and drove our little butts to Fuji. And we ate. A lot (as per usual). Our first few times we figured out our 2 must-have special rolls: The Black Dragon and Super Crunchy. Our last couple times we have been getting those 2 first, finishing them in about 3 minutes, and realizing we still have room for another roll. Each time, we've gotten something different for that third roll. This time, we ordered 3 from the start (who are we kdding? 2 rolls is not enough sushi!) and our third choice was one similar to our favorite Black Dragon but with SHRIMP TEMPURA. Yeah, it was really good, as you can see from our cleaned plate. I think it's safe to say we've tried all the ones we want to try and from now on, we're going with these 3. I'm ok with this.

After dinner we rented War Horse and relaxed the rest of the evening while munching on leftover bird's nest cookies (after our huge dinner was finally digested). It was so nice to have time with just Nick and I again and to also not do much of anything. And the good news is, we still have a little bit left on the gift card! I foresee another sushi night in the near future....

Annnnnd a big thank you goes out to Dr. Carberg and Dr. Leese for sponsoring this date night :)

Easter Potluck.

So, I meant to post these pictures earlier (like right after work at 2), but I got side-tracked with errands after work, and by the time I got home and finally ate some lunch it was almost 4 and I was super exhausted from 2 nights in a row of not enough sleep - last night I was up til past 1 with a 7:30 am wake-up call this morning. Yuck.

But here they are! Pictures from the lovely Easter dinner potluck shindig that was planned by my good friend (and Delta Sig little) Dan Shaw and hosted at my house! We had a great turn-out, tons of delicious food was brought, and there was plenty to drink. It was a super relaxed evening and so much fun!

My Easter outfit:

[Pants and top: The Limited // Flats: Steven by Steve Madden]

Easter bird's nest cookies from Pinterest

The spread of food. So much deliciousness!

The pie from Pinterest that would have been so good if I had not misread the directions....  woops!

The lovely Deltas that came.

He refused to make a normal face. Typical.

Me and Dan.

Dan photo-bombing my outfit pic. I think he makes the picture, don't you?

My creation.

Kathryn.

I hope your Easter weekend was a good one!

Music Monday.

Music is and always has been a huge part of my life. I woke my parents up most mornings by singing in my crib, I rifled through and liastened to much of my dad's extensive CD collection of rock and blues all throughout my childhood (my dad even played msuic loudly in the front roomto serve as an alarm clock for my sister and I in grade school), and I began playing violin at the age of 7. I always loved classical music, even as a youngster (and now of course that's my specialty), but I have always loved pretty much any and all type of music. If it has a good beat, a catchy hook, beautiful lyrics, or it's fun to dance to, I'm all for it (yes, even mainstream pop).

I love relatively unknown bands and top 40; I love classical and I love rap and hip-hop; I love country and I also love blues and rock. Honestly, there's not a whole lot I don't like, and even if I think I'm not going to like something, I listen to it first before making an opinion of it - so yes, I can still appreciate seemingly mindless pop music as some sort of tribute to the art of music :)

That being said, I had the idea to make Mondays on my blog a day to share with you the music that is inspiring me at the moment, whether that be one single song or a whole CD. I know, my title is really clever, but I'm ok with simplciity :)

So without further ado, my first "Music Monday"!

This week is dedicated toooooo.....

Bluegrass.

Whether it's bluegrass a la Alison Krauss and Union Station or music played with bluegrass instruments, I'm in love. There's just something about what's been called the "high and lonesome sound" that just gets me. I also realllly dig the banjo and mandolin.

While I was baking treats for the Easter dinner potluck that was at my house last night, I decided to open spotify and listen to The Civil Wars, Chris Thile (from Nickel Creek), the Punch Brothers (fronted by Chris Thile), and Mumford and Sons. While not all of these groups are strictly bluegrass, they are definitely influenced by bluegrass and folk.

My absolute favorite is definitely Nickel Creek, whose first albums were very "bluegrass-y" (is that a word? haha), but their third album Why Should the Fire Die? was definitely a melding of traditional bluegrass tracks with more pop tracks played with bluegrass instruments and influenced by bluegrass. So. Good. Chris Thile was the frontman for the most part, and has come out wiht 5 of his own albums. Nickel Creek as a group was very inventive, and Chris Thile is as well - more like genius, really. He's a great songwriter and plays a wicked mandolin solo.

The Civil Wars are newer to the music world and to me (I heard them first perform at the Grammys), but they are a group I am excited to hear more of - I listened to their CD Barton Hollow in its entirety, and I really enjoyed it. They are definitely a mix of mainstream country, bluegrass, and folk, and I love all three. And I absolutely love their voices.

I know people have been on the Mumford train for awhile, but I was a little slower to get on- I just didn't know much about them til last Spring. Their frontman has such a distinct voice, and their style appeals to so many different people and genres of music - whether it's rock, folk, bluegrass, or alternative. Whatever they're doing, it's great. Sigh No More is such a delicious treat for the ear and you will find yourself listening to it on repeat.

And though I didn't listen to it yesterday, a must-listen for you folks is the Dixie Chicks' third album, Home. After 2 pop-country CDs, they went in a completely different direction for their third album by going all out acoustic. At first it wasn't my favorite because it wasn't what I was used to coming from them, but since I've had it for a while and have listened to it more and more (and my musical tastes change now and then), it's become my favorite of their 4 albums. Which says a lot, because I freaking love the Dixie Chicks. Now those are some freakin' talented women. I'm still sad they aren't together anymore.... *Moment of silence*

So there ya have it, the music that's on my mind at the moment. Go on Spotify or iTunes or youtube or wherever and listen to these people! I guarantee you will like at least some of the songs. Do it, I dare you.

My picks:

Chris Thile - "On Ice" from his album Deceiver

The Civil Wars - "20 Years" and "Barton Hollow"  from their album Barton Hollow

The entire Mumford album Sigh no More

Dixie Chicks - Home, but definitely listen to Long Time Gone, Tortured, Tangled Hearts, and Traveling Soldier. But really listen to the whole thing because it is SO GOOD.

Nickel Creek - "When You Come Back Down"  and "Sweet Afton" from their self-titled album; "Beauty and the Mess: from This Side; "Jealous of the Moon", "Can't Complain", and "Helena" from Why Should the Fire Die? Honestly, any and all of their songs are good, but that's just my opinion, haha.

Go forth and listen! And stay posted for pictures of yesterday's Easter potluck :)

 

 

Unfortunate and Fortunate.

[Earrings: Top Shop // Bracelet: Betsey Johnson // Blazer: H&M // T-Shirt: Target // Jeans: The Limited // Flats: Steven by Steve Madden]

Unfortunate:

1. Being cranky all weekend..... and most of this week.

2. Still not feeling caught up on sleep from my NY trip and working all the time.... mayyyybe why I'm cranky....

3. Nick being taken away from me almost every evening because of SAE's I-week, even though he is no longer a student here. Really?? I thought I was done getting woken up at all hours of the morning by a drunky carrying McDonald's..... hahahahah ;)

4. Being a girl.... once a month... cramps.... you get the idea. Not fun.

5. The stress of looking for a new place.

6. Finding out we our application was accepted for the adorable duplex, only to find that the people who filled their apps out before us were also accepted... and they took it :(

7. Having a meltdown about this whole apartment hunting thing in the car this morning. I think I need some anxiety meds...

8. Not working out a single day this week. Yikes. This is probably another reason why I've been cranky.

Fortunate:

1. FINALLY catching an episode of Animal Planet's "Too Cute: Kittens". This show was seriously made for me. I already spend tons of time on youtube watching videos of baby animals, now there is a whole show devoted to chronicling the first few months of puppies' and kittens' lives. I am overjoyed.

2. The fun little get-together we had at our house Monday night for all of the girls who's boyfriends were occupied by SAE's I-week. Gotta love girl time and wine!

3. It's the week I get paid. I loving getting paid Tuesday from one job and waking up Friday morning, checking my bank account, and seeing my direct deposit from my other job. Yay for money! Even though it will be gone after bills are paid...

4. Baking Betty Crocker spring party chip cupcakes with spring party chip frosting. Yum!

5. Getting to watch a new episode of Grey's Anatomy tonight with my man! FINALLY, a new one came on!

6. I finally bought two necklaces from The Limited that have been on sale and that I've been wanting forever, I was just waiting for the store to make everything 40% off (We can't use our discount on sale stuff)! So pretty!

7. While it's stressful, it's also very exciting looking for a new place to live. I am so so eager to have my own space and to share it with Nick and have it be just our place.

What are your unfortunates and fortunates this week?

Apartment Hunting.

[Top: H&M // Belt/Sunnies/Earrings: Target // Skirt: The Limited // Heels: Forever 21 // Bag: Coach]

So as of Monday, Nick and I have officially started looking for a new place to live for the next year! Woohoo! Unfortunately, we aren't moving out of Decatur just yet, but there are some benefits to this. First of all, rent is super cheap here. Yes, please! Second, we can both still take voice lessons at Millikin and get ourselves ready for grad school auditions this coming year. Third, we still have friends living here this summer and we can still hang out with our friends that will still be in school! Not to mention, we'll be able to make it to homecoming for sure in the fall :)

We could move to a town with more to do, like Champaign, but we really have all we need at the moment right here in this stinky little soy town. Plus, we both have steady jobs, and I love where I work!

Looking at apartments and places is fun, but a little stressful. I looked at a 2-bedroom apartment on Monday that is really nice, but the only problem is that it's just a bit too far outside of where we work. Mostly, where Nick works. We only have one car right now, and he has a bike, so it's imperative that he be able to bike safely to work. That man can bike 50 miles at a time, but I don't really think it's fair to make him bike 10 miles to and from work everyday, don't you think? haha. Yeah, way too far. Luckily, we have many other options that we can still look at, and yesterday, we looked at a 2-bedroom duplex literally down the street (the next block over) from my current hosue! It is absolutely perfect and the rent is a great deal for all of the space we get! It's pretty big! Large entryway into a living area, wide doorway into a large dining room (all hardwood floors), large kitchen space so we could fit more tables and chairs if we wanted, and 2 nice-sized bedrooms. The closets are good too! We don't need a 2-bedroom, but if we can afford it (and this one, we can), it would be nice to have the extra space for Nick's piano (practice room!), more closet space, and a place for people to stay if they come visit us!

We applied right away yesterday, and we should know if we get it for sure sometime today! I'm so excited, and a little nervous. It's always a litle scary to sign a lease and put a huge chunk of money down, and the one little downside to this place is that we'd probably have to sign the lease ASAP in order to get it. This means paying a deposit and first month's rent right away, and then having to pay one more month of rent and bills at my current house in addition to the duplex rent :/ Yikes! I was super anxious about this yesterday, but Nick was able to think clearly about the situation and assured me that everything would be alright. He also made the brilliant point that, even if we start the lease a little later, we're still paying the same amount of money, it just seems like more because we're having to pay a lot of it at the same time. That man. This is why we are getting married. He always knows how to talk me out of an anxiety attack and make me feel calm! I am so well taken care of and know I will be for the rest of my life :)

So, I'm off to work, and hopefully Nick will know something for sure in the next few hours! Wish us luck!

Best pasta salad EVER

Seriously, though, it really is the best pasta salad ever.

Also, it's super easy and SO DELICOUS. And by no means in any way is this healthy. So if that's what you were hoping for, I'd stop reading now haha.

Here's what you'll need:

• 1 box of tri-color rotini pasta
• marinated artichoke hearts
• black olives, cut in half
• cheddar cheese, cubed
• salami
• 1 bottle Italian dressing
• grated parmesan cheese

First, cook and drain your pasta and transfer it to a large mixing bowl.

 Add in desired amounts of artichoke hearts, cut up olives, cheese cubes, and cut up salami. I put a LOT of cheese and artichoke hearts in my version, but if you like olives more, you can of course put more in! It's really up to you. 

 Mix everything up, then add desired amount of dressing - I used about half of the bottle. Finally, add parmesan cheese and toss once more so everything is coated with deliciousness!

Store in the refregerator in plastic containers or in the same large bowl covered with saran wrap or foil.

I love this recipe because there's no measuring; it's all about how much of each ingredient you want in it. I also love this because it combines lots of yummy flavors and is great as a side dish OR as the main event of your meal. Nick and I definitely used this as more of an entrée and ate it in about 2 days. Woops :) My mom made this a lot in the summertime, and it was something cool, light, but filling when it was super hot out and you didn't feel like eating much!

Some suggestions:

- The Italian dressing can be a regular Italian, but I've used a three-cheese Italian dressing as well and it was super yummy!

- My Mama always gets special salami from the deli that has parmesan around the outside of it. It's amazing. I was just too lazy to find it so I used regular salami (cuz, y'know, there's not already enough cheese in it haha)

- You can use regular canned artichoke hearts, but the marinated ones taste best!

- Sharp cheddar cheese gives a really good flavor

Enjoy!

Light and Airy.

[Tank and Sunglasses: Target // Skirt: H & M // Heels: Topshop // Necklace: J. Crew // Bangles: Nordstrom // Lips: Revlon "Fuchsia Fusion"]

Yesterday was HOT. It got into the 80s - perfect skirt weather! I love skirts, I have a bajillion. I could probably do almost 2 weeks of outfit posts of all my skirts. It's kind of a problem. When the weather is warm or hot, I would much rather wear skirts than shorts. I do have a couple pairs of shorts that I really like, but skirts are just so easy and you can look dressed up without trying too hard. I dressed this one up more with the heels, but before and after the picture I was definitely wearing ballet flats.

Thankfully I never got called into work yesterday, so besides singing at church in the morning, I had the day off! I only washed one pair of jeans out of the whole pile of laundry I still have to do but I did get some practicing in and called and talked to my Dad for an hour. I had mentioned at some point that I couldn't remember the last time I talked to my parents on the phone.... terrible, I know! I still haven't talked to my Mama, but I'm planning on that soon.

The rest of my weekend consisted of work, working out, and lounging around. Unfortunately I didn't get a whole lot of sleep, so I am one tired lady this morning, but at least I have an apartment viewing at 3 to look forward to! Woohoo! Adult-hood! Oh, something else from this weekend: 

Oh yeah, it's official, Nick and I are no longer students and we had to get an actual gym membership!!! What is this???? Luckily, we qualified for the family plan :) Our info hadn't been ready even though we signed up a couple of weeks ago, but we went in on Saturday and finally got to sign and get our cards. But that also meant taking a picture. Right there. Bedhead and all, No makeup, Lookin' hot. I just think these photos are hilarious. We were so not ready for this hahahahahaa. Such gems.

Happy Monday!