30 Before 30 : #6 Have a Shaving Whipped Cream Fight

Back in mid-November, my dad's side of the family had a reunion in Jacksonville, FL. As we all get older and busier, it gets harder and harder to get all of the aunts, uncles and grandkids together, so it was lovely to have almost everyone in one place, even just for a few days. We did the typical family reunion stuff: ate too much, watched the Gamecocks whoop up on the Gators (a victory made even sweeter by the fact that we got to watch it with the Gator side of the family!), and had a little friendly family competition (wiffle ball). And, of course, the obligatory family photo shoot.


It was right about the time that we finished the 'grandparents with grandkids' pictures that I noticed some incredibly suspicious behavior going on. The adults (I say that as if I am not nearly 30 years old - apparently I still think of myself as a 'kid' when it comes to the family hierarchy!) were all huddled behind a big tree in the yard. No sooner where the words, 'What are you guys up to over there?' out of my mouth than they all attacked me with two dozen cans of whipped cream.






It turns out that these two had been plotting all day to help me achieve #6 on my 30 Before 30 list. And the rest of the family was all too eager to join in the fun.



It was an awesome surprise! And a wonderful memory that we'll all talk about for years to come. In the last few weeks, the list has definitely become less about accomplishing goals and more about making forever memories with the ones I love.

Sisters are one of God's best ideas

I was very blessed to have my mom, dad and my sister Amy come stay with us for Thanksgiving. They drove all night on Tuesday to surprise me at 6am on Wednesday morning, which gave us a whole extra day together!

We cooked....


And ate....

And molested a turkey....


And cuddled with puppies.....


And shopped....

And played games (I won!)....

And watched movies....

And cuddled some more with puppies....


And threw cupcakes all over the floor....


Okay, so maybe that last one wasn't on purpose, and maybe Amy didn't find it too funny, but how can you not laugh when someone drops a dozen half baked cupcakes on the floor? What else are sisters for?

What I've been up to while I was away....

Celebrating my Grandma's birthday in Florida:




Loving on a few of my favorite people....



Eating at the Big Ice Cream Cone....



Hanging with the extended family....



Visiting my sister-in-law in New York City:

Blasting out my eardrums at the Eminem/Jay Z Home and Home concert...



Enjoying every single second with my sister-in-law.....



Singing all the words in every Jay Z song, even the bad ones (sorry, Mom!)....



Trying not to geek out when I saw Brad Goreski from The Rachel Zoe Project at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week....



Meeting celebrity dogs.....


Tasting every single Baked by Melissa flavor and not feeling a single bit guilty about it....



Taking a weekend road trip to Knoxville to cheer on the Vols:

Inviting my sister on a last minute road trip....


Making flip cup a family affair.....


Eating gator stew for dessert....


To see the rest of our month-of-vacations pictures, check out my Flickr.

Happy Mother's Day

to the best whole world Mom a girl could ask for. I hope that some day I will share the same kind of relationship with my (future) daughters that you share with yours. Thank you for always being there to listen, support, pray and celebrate. I love you!

Love is....

Love is driving 22 hours round trip for a two day visit.


....saving every trophy and tiara....



....passing down keepsakes....


....visiting multiple grocery stores just to fuel your daughter's addiction...


....checking every Wal-mart you visit in the hopes of finding an out-of-stock item on her wish list...


....placing the deciding vote on the Great Furniture Debate of 2009...


....and then spending hours at Kirkland's and Hobby Lobby....


....and arranging flowers to make her smile!


Love is a visit with Mom & Dad. I love you guys!!

(My dad made these floral arrangements for me - he's like the flower whisperer! If you're really nice, I might pimp him out give you his number!)

Better late than never

I finally uploaded my pictures from Em's graduation. Sorry it took so long! Check them out on Flickr here.

Hero

When you thought I wasn't looking...

I saw you struggle to get sober, and I learned that there is no such thing as a lost cause.

I saw you leave your family behind to serve your country, and I learned the meaning of sacrifice.

I saw you lay down in the road with your head in the gutter to save a baby kitten, and I learned that even the smallest life matters.

I saw you slip and fall down the stairs while hot coffee rained down on your head, and I learned that sometimes laughing at yourself is the only thing you can do.

I saw you take fatherless children and love them like your own, and I learned that a loving heart has no limits.

I saw you make hard decisions, and I learned to do the right thing even when it hurts.

I saw you take the high road when you were wronged, and I learned the meaning of turning the other cheek.

I saw you drive a crappy car so that your children could drive a safe one, and I learned about selflessness.

I saw you get up early and read your Bible, and I learned that we make time for the things that are important to us.

I saw you work for hours in the garage to build the World's Greatest Dorm Room Loft, and I learned that spending time means more than spending money.

I saw you work quietly at church, without recognition, and I learned what it means to be a servant.

I saw you smile at me through your tears as you walked me down the aisle, and I learned what it means to be loved beyond measure.

When you thought I wasn't looking, you taught me how to live and how to laugh and how to love.

I love you, Daddy! Happy Father's Day.

Little girl all grown up

Today is my baby sister Emily's 18th birthday. Sigh. It's hard to believe there are no more babies in our family. She's a high school graduate, a legal adult. And a pretty cool kid woman.

I know this post is supposed to be about Emily, and trust me, I could tell stories about her for days, but mostly what I've been thinking about all day is being a big sister. I am one, three times over and it's the best thing in the world. I was blessed to be allowed to watch these three amazing girls women grow up, to share in their memories, to stay up talking late into the night, to text advice when Mom and Dad are being parents unreasonable, to share shoes and clothes and makeup and purses. It makes me tear up to think how much each of them means to me and how grateful I am to be not only sisters, but also friends. They are each special to me in their own way and I can't imagine my life without them in it.

So thanks, Mom and Dad, for breeding like rabbits blessing me with sisters. Thanks, Katie, Amy and Emily for being the best sisters a girl could ever ask or hope for.

And Emily, no matter how big you get or how far away you go, you'll always be one of the 'little girls' to me. I love you, kid.

Miss me?

My, oh my, it's looking a little dusty and desolate around this place. I know I've been neglecting you, but I've been busy living unwrapping life. That is what this blog is supposed to be about, right? Well, when I actually make the time to blog about it, that is.

It's been a busy week for me, so I'm going to do something I swore I'd never do - the dreaded bullet point post. Hopefully that doesn't mean this blog is jumping the shark. I swear I'll go another 300 posts before I use bullet points again.

• My baby sister Emily came to visit last Monday. The trip was her graduation/birthday gift from us.
• We worked on a super-top-secret Father's and Mother's Day gift for our parents.
  
• Indy had a ridiculous hail storm and damaged Nate's brand new car to the tune of $4500. Nice.
• Mani for Em, pedi for me. Very happy feet.
• Flew to SC for Emily's graduation. Scored two crack rocks espresso brownies a the Chicago airport.
  
• Stayed up until the wee hours every night we were in SC. Exhausting? Yes. Worth every minute? Absolutely.
• Drank my weight in Cheerwine and Sonic Cherry Limeade.
  
• Went to my dad's softball game. I did this weekly as a kid so it was super fun to do it again as an adult.

• Managed not to yell obscenities at the idiot who was standing up and talking on his cell phone during the graduation ceremony.
  
• Climbed a fence in a dress and 4 inch heels at Emily's graduation.

• Stuffed myself full of Bermuda Triangles at Red Bone Alley, all in celebration of Em's accomplishments, of course.
• Showed my Aunt Jo that it is indeed possible to take a decent (albeit cheesy), centered picture of yourself with your own camera.

• Learned that I totally suck at the spelling game Third of a Ghost, despite the fact that I'm an excellent speller. Long story short - if you score three points, you're out. I never made it further than four rounds....
• Stuffed myself full of Stuffed French Toast at IHOP. Realized that I have a thing for pastry stuffed with stuff.

By the time we hit the airport to come home on Sunday afternoon, I was tired. Just how tired, you ask? As we're making our way to our gate, I noticed a girl coming toward us wearing a really cute top. I started to point her out to Nate when I realized we were walking towards a mirrored column. The girl in the cute top? Me.

Sweet Carolina

Two weeks from today, I will be kicking it here

where I plan to stuff myself full of this

and drink copious amounts of this

and this

all while spending quality time with these people

in the only place that you can find signs as klassy as this

And I can't wait!

ETA - And yes, that is an actual sign posted in front of the local museum the last time I was home.

Dear Mom

Thank you, Mom, for staying with my Dad even when it looked like he was a lost cause. I am blessed to say my parents are still together after 29 years.

Thank you, Mom, for staying at home with us even though the extra money would have been nice.

Thank you, Mom, for taking me to Busch Gardens despite the fact that I broke out in chicken pox the same morning.

Thank you, Mom, for shuttling me to a million dance classes, recitals and performances even though you knew I wouldn't use a lick of it as an adult.

Thank you, Mom, for letting me quit piano to take more dance lessons, even though you knew I would regret it later in life.

Thank you, Mom, for holding down the fort while Dad served our country overseas. You are every bit the hero that he is, too.

Thank you, Mom, for teaching me that coffee is best drunk black and by the pot.

Thank you, Mom, for letting me run away to college even though it hurt your heart to see me go. It was the best four years of my life.

Thank you, Mom, for not protesting when I said I was getting married at the tender age of 22. It was the best thing I ever did.

Thank you, Mom, for always sending birthday cards late; it makes me feel not so bad about having your birthday card from February in a drawer in my kitchen.

Thank you, Mom, for always picking up the phone to listen, whether I am laughing, crying, celebrating or whining.

Thank you, Mom, for being not only my mother, but for becoming my friend.

Good, Better, Best

Good: Grilled corn on the cob for dinner. Yum.

Better: Scored a third interview (next Tuesday) for the part-time marketing gig.

Best: Just bought our plane tickets to SC for my baby sister's high school graduation.

{My crazy family at Em's high school pageant in January}

Just in the nick of time

Who has the best parents in the whole entire world?

Me, me, me! That's who.

Not only did they get me exactly what I wanted for my birthday, but they somehow knew I was not going to make it another two weeks until my birthday before I bought it for myself.

I am now the proud owner of a year-long subscription to Netflix! Suh-weet!

Thanks, Mom and Dad! You're the best whole world.

Sparkle on

Many thanks to Nessa from Sparkles of Serendipity for passing on the Kreativ Blogger award to me. Nessa always finds the funniest, cutest stuff like this Mr. Rogers tee which inspired my own little Mr. Rogers moment the other day.

The Rules:

As an award recipient, I must do the following:

List seven things that I love and then pass the award on to seven bloggers that I love!

Easy peasy, cause I love a lot of stuff! So let's skip the obvious (God, family, Starbucks, shopping) and get to the stuff you might not already know.

1. Prague
Nate and I went there for a few days during our junior year of college. I thought it was going to be the crappiest place out of the 20 European cities we visited but it actually turned out to be my favorite. I would love to go back some day.

{image via guide-prague}

2. Organizing

I can spend hours organizing desks, closets, clothes, the pantry, whatever. I love for things to be neat and tidy and organized. I spent a recent Sunday reorganizing my closet, including hanging my scarves by one of my favorite organizing methods - ROY G BIV. Sad, but true.

3. Wine
Specifically Schmitt Sohne. I tried it once on the recommendation of a waitress and it has become my favorite of all time.

{image via locowine.com}

4. South Carolina

{image via printfection}

There's nothing quite like going home to the South - seeing that palmetto tree on every flat surface, waving hello to perfect strangers, monograms and polka dots on every girl, black eyed peas and corn bread for dinner. Don't you just love the way the word 'y'all' rolls around in your mouth? Sigh. I love South Carolina.

5. Scrapbooking
I've been doing it for years, way before it was popular. I love memories and reminiscing. I also like my pictures to be organized (see #2).

6. My Garmin, Gigi
The best $300 I ever spent. I am severely directionally challenge. As in, my parents have lived in my hometown since I was 16 (and also from 10-14) and I still get lost on a regular basis. It's pathetic really. But Gigi makes me brave. I can go anywhere and do anything as long as she's with me.

{image via gpslodge.com}

7. My grandparents


I am blessed to have one set still in my life. As a kid, they spoiled me rotten. As an adult, they have become my friends. They're just really cool people. Love you guys!

Let's see, I will tag:

• Jennifer - She's a new blog friend and I want to get to know her better.
• Cole - Well, I was going to tag her but someone else beat me to it. Check her out anyway!
• Mrs. Realife - Eats her pets, sort of. If you want to know the whole story, you'll just have to visit her.
• Mrs. Jetplane - She always has the cutest puggie pictures. And we all know I'm a sucker for a cute puppy face.
• Andrea - She and I would totally be friends in real life. She loves shopping, doggies, Starbucks and South Carolina - now who does that sound like?
• Miss Musing - This chic always sees the glass as half full. I thought I was a positive person but this girl puts me to shame.
• Puttin' on the GRITS - Another Southern gal. 'We don't become Southern; we're born that way.' Love it!