Listening to Old Alabama....

I don't think I've ever been as excited to go to back to Alabama as I am about my trip tomorrow. Don't get me wrong, I adore Tennessee. It's my home now. & I already miss Shawn like crazy (yes, he's only been gone since this morning), so I know I'll be ready to come back by the weekend.... but I need a little of the true south in my life again. I need country accents, boiled peanuts & good music... oh, & a little racing. Luckily. that's exactly what I'll get this weekend :)!

So, I'm off to Talladega. But I have to leave you with what I think is the cutest picture in the world. Sadie might be the sweetest dog ever.

Mickey Mouse? Yes, please!

So far this year has been such a whirlwind of traveling & moving that it's hard to keep up. We've gone to at least one different state each month & have more planned all the way through July! I'm not complaining at all, actually it's the opposite... I LOVE IT! But it makes my life a little chaotic :)

About a month ago, Shawn & I flew down to Orlando to be kids again for a few days with my family. In all the excitement we only took one picture, but at least it was a good one!

It was the first time for him to really be around my family, and thankfully he wasn't scared off by a few "rednecks" ;). I had a much better time than I thought I would. Contrary to what I thought, you're never too old for Disney! We did 4 parks in two days, which was exhausting, but completely worth it. We ended our last night with the gorgeous fireworks show at Epcot & a midnight ride on both Space Mountain and Thunder Mountain. If you go anytime soon, stick around to ride Thunder Mountain after dark. There's all kinds of extras that light up at night that we never knew existed! It really was a great little vacation.

Now I'm ready for the next random trip :)

Yankee Doodle Dandy...

I'm finally going to talk about my amazing trip to Boston in January! Shawn had a weekend gig with his old band (he lived in Boston for 10 years before coming to Nashville). After realizing that this southern girl had barely been north of Tennessee, he invited me to tag along. I'm not really sure what I expected the town to be like, but I definitely rode around with my mouth open for most of the trip in amazement. The city itself is so full of history that it's crazy. We rode around for most of the first day just looking at historical sites... & of course the amazing architecture! You can see in the pictures below how beautiful some of the buildings are. Shawn would point out these gorgeous faced buildings that he used to have an apartment in & I couldn't help but be a little jealous. It's like the perfect little city scene that I could dream up in my head :)

I was a little intimidated by certain aspects of the city though. The traffic was insane! We sat at one point for over half an hour before taking a back road (thankfully I was with someone that knew short-cuts!). & the snow was something I had never seen before. It was bitter cold to the point that it physically hurt to be outside and snow just hangs out all winter. It gets stacked up on the side of the roads like dirty ice mountains that you have to climb to pay the parking meters. It was up to the roofs of houses in most areas... & I'm told that really isn't all that fascinating to "yankees", but I couldn't get over it.

All in all, it was a fabulous trip! It was great to see a city with sites that are on my bucket list while getting a glimpse of where Shawn comes from too. I've put a few of the pictures from the trip below...

A heavy heart I bring...

I've gotten a little off with my 30 day challenge. Blame the spontaneous trip to Boston & then moving into my first house immediately after I returned. I promise I'll pick back up where I left off again very soon.

Tonight, there's something else laying heavy on my heart that seems more important to write about. The past few days have been filled with random tears & tears fall as I even type tonight. On Monday night a sweet sorority sister, Brittany Shepard Pugh, and her 15 month old son, Shep, were involved in a horrible car accident that claimed both of their lives. You can read about the accident here.

Although Brittany was two years ahead of me in Alpha Gam, you couldn't help but be drawn to her incredibly happy & loving personality. Every person I've talked with since Monday has spoken of Brittany's incredible love for life & how hard it is to grasp that this happened to someone like her. The memory that keeps replaying in my head is of the night that she shared the news of her engagement with all of us. I've never seen another girl so in love & so excited to have her dreams coming true.

It had been years since I had seen or spoken to Brittany, but I can only imagine that her life as a mother was even more full of joy & love than when I knew her.

I pray that God wraps His arms around Clint during this terrible time. I cannot even begin to imagine what he is going through having lost both his wife & child in the blink of an eye. It's a loss that an entire community is mourning, not just in the geographical sense but all over the map in our sorority. Please keep this family in your prayers....

Snapshots of Life

Sevier Park + 68 degree weather + a cute boy & the most precious dog = amazing day :)

p.s.- I'm going to Boston on Friday. I might be just a little excited. Maybe.

30 Days of Photos- Day 6

Day 6: A picture of a person you would love to trade places with for a day-

Jennifer Nettles. I've said for years that I would kill for the chance to be her for a day. There's something about her energy, both on & off the stage that I absolutely love. Not only is she a great vocalist, but she has a magnetic stage presence & a knowledge of the industry to go with that. Sugarland was one of the first bands to really explore the boundaries of social media & they're still at the forefront of innovation with it today. I think a day in the life of Jennifer Nettles would be a blast :)

30 Days of Photos- Day 5

Day 5: A picture of your favorite memory

This one was really hard for me, but I have to go with my last spring break of college. Ana, Erin & I packed up & headed to Nashville for a few days of fun... and I can't even think about that trip without smiling. Each of us was a little down with life situations going into the trip, but it turned out to be the most fun we've ever had. It was simple with lower broadway both night & a little time at the park & shopping during the day... but the time together was exactly what each of us needed.

30 Days of Photos- Day 4

Day 4: A picture of your night-

Since I'll completely forget about this later tonight, I'm going to do pictures of last night. And well, let's be honest here.... I forgot to take any pictures last night so these are internet pictures of my night :)

Shawn & I had a super lazy, low key Sunday night. The highlight for me was going to one of my favorite restaurants in my neighborhood, Burger Up. I've only been a few times, but I just love the food & the atmosphere. It's a very modern feel with candles & these amazing wooden tables that have stolen my heart (I seriously want one in my kitchen!). And the food is killer. They have really unique burgers and even sweet potato fries :). Burger Up is always a good choice in my opinion.

After dinner we decided to hit redbox & be lazy. Somehow we ended up with The Hurt Locker, probably because it was almost the only thing that we hadn't seen. It wasn't my favorite movie of all time, but it definitely wasn't awful either. It keeps you on edge the entire time & paints a pretty sad picture of military life. It's worth watching for the $1 that redbox costs.

All in all, I'd say it was a pretty perfect Sunday night :)

30 Days of Photos- Day 3

I forgot to post yesterday, so it's a double dose today. Enjoy :)

Day 3: A picture of the cast from your favorite tv show-

Yes, I'm being a cliche girl here. But Sex & The City has to be my all time favorite tv show. Sure, I have others (Greys, Gilmore Girls, Private Practice, Parenthood) that I watch a lot... but nothing comes close to SATC. I literally own every episode ever created & no mater what is going on in my life, a little Carrie Bradshaw always seems to make it better. & who doesn't love the fashion?

30 Days of Photos- Day 2

A picture of you and the person you have been closest with the longest:

Hayden's wedding in December 2001.

Hayden & I after my high school graduation in May of 2006.

Hayden & I on Christmas in 2008.

Hayden, her little girl Libby, & I on Christmas 2006.

Obviously, this has to be my cousin Hayden (or as I more often refer to her, my "sister" Hayden). She's 9 & 1/2 years older than me & honestly like the sister I don't have. She's been there for every part of my life & I couldn't imagine not having her to count on. Hayden is such a great mom, wife & doctor, for all of which I really admire her. I'm so blessed to have her in my life.

snapshots of life.

Sometimes I like pictures more than words. So I'm going to start doing little snapshots of life every now & then. No words (other than this little description on the first one), just pictures of my day.

30 Days of Photos- Day 1 :)

A picture of yourself & 5 facts:

1- I'm a caffeine addict. There's no way around it. Coffee, soft drinks, anything. I get terribly cranky when I go a day without it.

2- My brain is like a country music dictionary. It's borderline ridiculous. Play a song 90s through now that had at least mediocre success & 90% of the time I'll be able to tell you who is singing it & maybe even who wrote it.

3- I'm a southern girl inside & out. There are days I'd love nothing more than to be back in Alabama on my lake in cut off jean shorts, a swim suit top & boiled peanuts in my hand :)

4- By the end of the month, I'm going to be a first time homeowner & self employed business owner.

5- My favorite sport unofficially opens the season tomorrow... & officially starts in 9 days. I'll let you figure out what it is.

30 Days of Photos

Yup, you guessed it. I'm going to try to do another one of these. But, this time I really am going to stick to it. I promise. Now that we have reliable internet again & I'm no longer working at Dreamcatcher, I'm determined to get back in the habit of blogging daily... so here it goes.

I'm stealing this from my friend Ashley (you can check out her blog here).

Each day for the next 30 days I will be posting a picture and following these topics:

Day 1: A picture of yourself with five facts
Day 2: A picture of you and the person you have been closest with the longest
Day 3: A picture of the cast from your favorite tv show
Day 4: A picture of your night
Day 5: A picture of your favorite memory
Day 6: A picture of a person you would love to trade places with for a day
Day 7: A picture of your most treasured item
Day 8: A picture that makes you laugh
Day 9: A picture of the person who has gotten you through the most
Day 10: A picture of a person you would do the craziest things with
Day 11: A picture of something you hate
Day 12: A picture of something you love
Day 13: A picture of your favorite band or artist
Day 14: A picture of someone you could never imagine your life without
Day 15: A picture of something you want to do before you die
Day 16: A picture of someone who inspires you
Day 17: A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently
Day 18: A picture of your biggest insecurity
Day 19: A picture and a letter
Day 20: A picture of somewhere you would love to travel
Day 21: A picture of something you wish you could forget
Day 22: A picture of something you wish you were better at
Day 23: A picture of your favorite book
Day 24: A picture of something you wish you could change
Day 25: A picture of your day
Day 26: A picture of something that means a lot to you
Day 27: A picture of you and a family member
Day 28: A picture of something your afraid of
Day 29: A picture of something that always makes you smile
Day 30: A picture of someone you miss

living in the midst of "waithood"...

In my scouring of the internet for jobs in the Nashville area that could provide me with a bit of stability as I work to get my company off the ground, I stumbled upon a very interesting business week article on what they term "waithood". You can check it out here.

Just from my own personal experience & following that of my friends, I've long felt that the most ignored problem in this awful economy is that of the recent college graduate. It lately seems that college is just an expensive holding place after which you end up with a job requiring nothing more than a GED that pays very little, if any, above minimum wage. I can't even begin to count how many friends I have with undergraduate degrees in Business, Public Relations, Biology, Marketing, etc that feel stuck. We were all told to attend college in order to secure an "adult" job that would allow for a comfortable life, but that seems to have just been an illusion. Job openings are few & far between these days, and when an entry level position does become available a recent grad is no longer competing solely against other inexperienced grads. No, you're now forced into a pool with those who have been laid off after 3-5 years of work and are willing to take a pay cut just to get back in the game. Well, if you were an employer & got to choose between a candidate with no experience & one with 3-5 years for the same pay, which would you choose?

It's a generation in borderline crisis, and a problem that is basically being completely ignored. We see stories about the moms that lose jobs & struggle to feed families, and we see stories about the middle-aged man who gets laid off after being with a company for 25 years, yet there's nothing in the news concerning the state of the generation that people often reference when talking about the "future of our country". Sure, it doesn't seem like a problem right now because most recent grads don't have a family to support just yet, and they even might be lucky enough to still be able to depend on their own parents for support. But that can only last for so long. The situation now is crippling the future of our workforce and a majority of the population is completely blinded to it...