Wedding Planning FAIL

Most little girls have their wedding planned out from the time they realize what a “wedding” is…ummm, well, I was never really that girl.

Of course I have always dreamed a beautiful wedding, but my engineering brain needed to dream in sequence. It was impossible for me to dream about a wedding without first dreaming of the groom.

I can vividly remember lying in bed in elementary school dreaming about who my husband would be one day. Of course, at that age, he looked a lot like Jesse from Full House, and said things to me like “have mercy”….thankfully, we all grow up…and thankfully, through a series of events I can ONLY give credit to God for, I met and began dating Daniel.

Even after we had dated a few months, and I knew, I wouldn't allow myself to dream of a wedding. I daydreamed of life, being a mother, being a wife, but focusing on wedding details seemed silly and I was afraid thinking about it too much would change my focus from a marriage to a wedding before I was even engaged.

Regardless, here I am engaged with NO vision for a wedding besides what I have dreamed of all along- who the groom is.

I flipped through an old journal where I had a page dedicated to “Things for My Wedding” in which I had listed scriptures I want read, and songs I want sung…and while this helped, I still have no idea what color goes with what, or what color I even like. Its like I am all the sudden void of any opinion.

Its so sad, and embarrassing.

“So Katelyn, what are your wedding colors going to be? Whats the reception going to be like? Who will come?”

“Well, actually, see, I kind of, FAIL, at being a girl and have thought of NONE of this until now and I really, honestly, have NO idea."

Here is what I know; I KNOW I want the wedding to be Christ centered because oh how I can think of no other word than blessed to describe the past 2 years of my life with Daniel and what it has meant to have a Christ-centered relationship. I KNOW I want people who come to leave feeling blessed from being part of a beautiful celebration. I KNOW I want our campus minister to marry us and my sister to be my maid of honor. I KNOW the colors will not include pink or purple.

Thankfully, Daniel is a very hands-on groom and has spent several evenings flipping through websites and magazines to help me build a vision of a meaningful, elegant, and fun wedding.

It will be a celebration, I KNOW that, even if I don’t know the colors, place, time, or number of guests. ;)

Am I the only one who fails at wedding planning?

Adventures in….Life

Today we had a mother/daughter lunch with a heard (probably not the best word) of some of my closest friends from high school. We met at the Applebees in our hometown.

I feel like I’ve grown up in this Applebees. Dinners after dance practice in elementary school. First dates. Group dates. Shopping dates. I’ve spent a lot of time there, so I was kind of surprised when at high noon in the midst of shopping madness the parking lot was practically empty.

Buttt since we had a large party, I was kind of relieved to get in and quickly be seated…..

Right before we sat down, one of the girls happened to notice the food rating sign on the wall with a grade of 69….No I’m not dyslexic. Let me spell it: sixty-nine.

Um so the 9 of us, in 8 different cars stood there a second, and decided to just go with it….surely they would have brought that up??….haha….So it sounds a whole lot crazier while I type it….but no one has gotten sick yet…..yet. (and the food was actually really good so IDK)…Do you pay attention to the ratings? I know some people are pretty avid about checking those.

In other news, tonight I decided to start making a little excel sheet of possible guests. I must have been naive to say “Oh surely I will have no more than 100 people on mine”….WRONG….

Just my list of family/friends soley from MY life (and people I really cant cut) came to 160….We also still have to add  mutual friends and Daniels family/friends…

Oh goodness, how do you make cuts and not hurt feelings? 

so thankful for….

the semester being over…

girls night out with some great conversation…

atlanta bread company chicken salad….

my fiancée…..(thanks blogger for the nice little hyphen too)

grace.

I’m ENGAGED!!!!

Friday after an exam I was going to head straight home but my mom diverted me and convinced me to come meet her for lunch.

While I was at lunch, Daniel and my sister Zadie were planting clues all over my house.

I got home and began my hunt around the house for clues, starting with the first one at the door…

…and then leading me to a final one saying that I needed to be at the lake, but I couldn't leave my house until 4 pm….It was 2 pm. I was freaking out. Annnnd it is an hour drive to the lake. By myself. With just my thoughts. (supposedly they had planned 2 free hours so I would have time to get ready since they figured I would be coming from an exam in sweats and a ponytail, BUT because I knew I was meeting my mom for lunch, I had already gotten ready.)

I was so anxious…Even though I didn't know, I think I knew what was coming….

Finally I arrived at the lake. There were no cars in the driveway, but a final clue on the front door told me to come inside for my surprise. I also had to pee really really bad because I had been in the car for an hour drinking a large glass of water…(just keeping it real).

I walked in and…. (oh I didn't take this, Zadie did while he was practicing…)

There were candles and rose petals and he told me he had a song for me.

…a song HE HAD WRITTEN about our first date (to Bible study) how God has always been with us and had a plan for us, and when he knew he loved me etc. etc….and of course I was hysterical.

Then he made me stand up and he said a lot of nice things I was sniffling and snarling through, and got on one knee and asked me to marry him….

After, Zadie (who had called me earlier to tell me she was hanging out in Athens with all her friends and probably wouldn't be home till Saturday- LIAR)  popped out (she had been videoing) and asked if I was ready to eat.

My grandparents live on the other side of the lake so we were going to head to their house for dinner. They said it was just going to be my parents, grandparents, Zadie, Daniel, and me….

But when we got there- his entire family was there too…Along with my other set of grandparents and aunt/uncle/cousin. Omgosh it was SO special. Everyone was laughing and crying.

My grandmother had planned a beautiful meal for everyone with candles and her Christmas china…

 

 

 

 

My mom and me, and then the stereotypical engaged picture. I promise my mom and I did not plan the yellow- it was just a sunshiney kind of day I guess….

(The table Daniel and I sat at, the grandparents were all at the other table discussing grandparent-y things I’m sure….)

After dinner, I had ANOTHER surprise. My mom with the help of Daniels mom had planned a “Newly Engaged Game”….

(yes that is a scoreboard…..it was intense….)

It was kind of like a “Newlywed” game where we had to answer questions about eachother; “Biggest PetPeeves”, “He/She Never Travels Without…”, “Mother Maiden Name”, “Favorite Food”….but there were also little lessons and scriptures in there about family and marriage and the examples our parents have set…(both of our sets of parents have been married for 25 years.) There were a lot of laughs, but also a lot of tears. I’ll save you from the pictures of me boo-hoo-ing when we each had to explain what we loved most about the other.

After the game we had several gifts and cards to open; a picture frame, a 'proposal’ ornament, and of course WEDDING MAGAZINES!!!!

I am so excited. I feel so blessed and humbled to have met such an amazing man. The proposal itself was special but then followed by an evening with our families was just the icing on the cake!

Now I’m just going to try and keep my cool while planning….

(he did good, he picked it out on his own- we never looked at rings together---although after 2 years, he definitely knew exactly what I wanted…)

:)

step by step guide to procrastination

Step 1: Check your programming guide for ABC Family 25 Days of Christmas. See that a cute Christmas movie is coming on (with mario lopez, mr.AC slater himself no less!!!) and decide it is more important than studying.

Step 2: While studying (before the movie starts) check twitter every 5 minutes.

Step 3: Tap nails on desk and create a rhythm to dance to in computer chair for at least 3 minutes.

Step 4: Stare at clock.

Step 5: Yawn.

Step 6: Check time.

Step 7: Eat something.

Step 8: Have you still been checking twitter every 5 minutes?

Step 9: Text mom to see if anything new is going on.

Step 10: Catch up on reading forwards from grandparents. The political anecdotes and pictures of puppies and kittens become exponentially more entertaining depending on how bored you are.

Step 11: OOH YAY! Time for the movie. (and a blog post)

…..heres to hoping Step 12 isn’t failing the test tomorrow…but really I think it will be ok. I have actually gotten a lot of studying done but I am reaching burnout point!….

Hope everyone has a great weekend!!!

study love notes

this is the last week of classes for me. i dont really have tests, but i have a bunch of projects and presentations (which are kind of worse…) i cant wait for Christmas break when i can get back on my old lady schedule and go to bed before 12 (probably even before 11…haha)

anyway i feel like i havent seen daniel for 3 days. he has been busy with his projects and tests so he goes to his apartment and i go to mine…but we send little emails back and forth as study breaks which makes the work a little easier! haha.

today was a beautiful day! i actually walked outside and wasnt immediately chilled to the bone. its like a heat wave in GA….

however; it has been really windy! when my dad and i went to lunch i thought i was going to blow away! (my dad and i have “daddy/daughter” lunch dates every wednesday because he works close to my school.)

time to get back to work! <3

an open letter to diet coke…

dear diet coke,

thanks for helping me to wake up on cloudy, sleepy days especially like the one we are experiencing today.

thanks for giving me the caffeine high to be able to smile and nod at people that i don't really like (you know, like those diet pepsi drinkers and what not. seriously what are they thinking?)

thanks for not judging me when i drink two of you in one day- even though you and i both know i should really probably only drink one.

all in all, just thanks. you rock.

i’m a big fan.

yeah i bet you’re a big fan of me too. haha.

love,

katelyn

No Tree Left Behind

this year the earth shook and the ground quaked and a family tradition changed.

typically every year my mom, dad, sister, and I go together to pick out our Christmas tree…

until this year. since both zadie and I are in college our schedules just didn't work to be at home the same time and so my parents were forced to go get a tree on their own.

so without my sister and I there to protest, my parents picked a meager size tree for our living room corner.

(thats my little dog at the bottom!!)

my dad calls it the “No Tree Left Behind” act…in which every tree, even the small ones, deserve a home for Christmas! haha

I am sure with the economy many families will be participating but in the end a tree is a tree and I cant wait to go home to see ours in real life!

Merry Christmas!

things i love about christmas-time

in no particular order, and in list format….because who doesnt love a good list…..

(1) ABC Familys 25 Days of Christmas: Who doesnt love a good movie about santas daughter falling in love, a dog saving christmas, and reindeers with feelings.?? (did you raise your hand?)

(2) N’Sync Home For Christmas Album: Seriously. This. Is. Like. My. Favorite. Christmas. Album. EVER. (SheDaisy’s is a close second). I popped it in my CD player this afternoon and sang at the top of my lungs. Its that time of year, Christmastime is here, and with blessings from above- God sends you his love- and everythings OK- Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays!

(3) Real Trees: I know a lot of people are pretty thrilled about their fake trees and thats cool, but if I wanted a fake tree, I’d buy a ficus. For one month of the year, I need a real-live-green-foresty-prickly tree in my living room.

(4) Calling people Scrooge: For one month a year, instead of calling jerks a jerk- you can call them Scrooge lightheartedly and get away with it!

(5) Traditions: I love my familys christmas traditions. From the obvious ones (my sister and I place the wise men on the opposite side of the house of the nativity scene because historically they were traveling afar and not at the actual birth). To the yummy ones (varsity for dinner every Christmas eve). To the crazy ones (how we clean up christmas if not Christmas day then the day after…haha- my mom says when its over, its over)….

do you neti?

if not, then you should….

the neti pot looks like this:

and it is used like this:

in which the water (saline solution) flows through one nostril, all through your sinus cavity and out the other nostril….

yummy right?…no, not really.

effective, right?….YES, extremely.

i come from a long line of bad sinus’ (i cant really prove that past my parents but you get the point) and i have suffered with sinus headaches and infections all through my life UNTIL the neti pot.

i am not really sure how it works “medically speaking” besides that it rinses out all the gunk and makes you blow your nose a lot and *poof* headaches are gone and infections dont happen.

the point is, with the weather getting colder and yuckiness *read flu/cold* in the air, i have pulled out my neti pot to prepare.

at the sign of any headache/pressure i have used it and instantly felt better.

my other cold/flu combatants equal a multi vitamin every morning, a cup of V8 juice, and zicam on hand.

zicam is a whole other post. that stuff is awesome too.

stay healthy!!!! and happy december!

a letter

Dear Blog,

I’m sorry that I have had no time to write on you. I have been busy on a stupid group project.

The semester is winding down viciously. Isnt it amazing how quickly college students can go from cool and collected to stressed and crazy.

Most of them turn into jerks.

I’m trying to stay one of the nice ones.

Only a few more weeks and I’ll be enjoying Christmas break.

*mmmmm* Christmas!!! I cant wait!

I’ll write soon dear Blog. I promise!

Love,

Katelyn

Fall-ish Thoughts

So I know I spent most of the beginning of “Fall” complaining about cold- but now that I am in the swing of things (coldness, jackets, boots, etc), I thought a few things I like about Fall would be appropriate.

(1) Scarves. I love them. I went to a private school with a strict dress code limiting us to black, red, or white polos with khakis. The only way to demonstrate our “style” was essentially accessories---ESPECIALLY scarves. In fall, the girls would wear a different scarf just about every day. I got really used it- and now as soon as it gets cold,  it seems like I need one to hold my head on.

(2) Candles. I’m a candle freak anyway, but when it is cold, there is NOTHING like having a bunch of candles lit with “vanilla sugar” and “pumpkin spice” scents surrounding the room.

(3) Pumpkin Spice Doughnuts from Krispy Kreme/Dunkin Doughnuts. I dont have much to say about these, except that if I continue to eat them like they are necessary in my diet, I will have enough flubber to sell all my jackets.

(4) TV. This is kind of iffy because so many networks have summer series now that I am obsessed with as well. Army Wives much???? But it is still nice to have Greys back!

(5) Thanksgiving….orrr except not really, my family kind of skips Thanksgiving and goes on a trip---but thats a different post!

What are your fall favorites?

gateway blogs…

So they say that there are certain drugs that will eventually lead into other drugs, which lead into other drugs, which lead into other drugs….and so on, and so on. They call these drugs ‘gateway drugs’….

Lately, I’ve been thinking of my ‘gateway blogs’……

The first blog I ever read was about a little girl named Harper and her sweet mom Kelly. One of my friends had posted a status asking prayers for Harper, along with a link. I clicked there and I was enthralled in the life of Kellys Korner. I sat up most of the night reading through her blog.

While reading through Kelly’s blog, I saw a button on the side asking for Prayers for Stellan. I was curios. My curiosity lead me to MckMama. Again, I fell in love with her pictures, her kids, and baby Stellan.

On MckMamas, I read about Audrey Caroline. I was lead to Angie Smiths blog to read the story of her daughter Audrey who had died after only 2 hours of life. Angie is an amazing writer and also the wife of Todd Smith of Selah.

Just recently, Angie highlighted on her twitter about “NIE-NIE being on Oprah”….Who was “Nie-Nie”??? Once again, my curiosity lead me to her blog. I spent most of Saturday and Sunday reading from start to finish the NieNie Dialogues. If you do not know her story---go now, dont wait. She is an amazing woman- and her blog is so fun!

Sooo after I recognized all these ‘gateway blogs’- I realized ALL of them were Mommy blogs. Seriously? I am 21 years old and I all read are Mommy  Blogs.

After this I registered for 20 Something Bloggers and I’m so happy to be reading blogs now (along still with all the ones above) about people my age! haha.

What were your gateway blogs?

tricky tricky

I will now sum up my past few days in only a few paragraphs. GO.

I didnt do halloween. the original plans we had fell through and so we were kind of stuck with…nothing…We ended up hanging out with some friends. No one was dressed up, and we had no trick or treaters----but we played Apples to Apples until like 3 am.

Sunday was our “anniversary”. We went to church Sunday morning. It was a our second time visiting this particular church and we really really like it.

After church, we went back to my apartment to cook lunch and had a conversation similar to this:

Me: “Man, I’d really like to take my car to a car wash. Its growing toxic mold so nasty.”

Daniel: “It would be so much cheaper if we just washed it ourselves. I have soap and stuff.”

Me: “But if we wash it ourselves we wont have time for me to spend the afternoon watching movies and reading blogs to go to Microcenter*. Wouldnt you like to go up there?”

Daniel: “Ooooh yeah, I guess we will just run it through the car wash and then go to Microcenter.”

**Microcenter=nerd heaven of where computer parts and technology go to die.

Soooo that is how good my reverse psychology is. It was way too cold for us to wash my car ourselves anyway- and the drive thru did just fine!

2 years

technically halloween night is the 2 year anniversary of when daniel asked me to be his girlfriend. i was up late studying and he had gone to the BCM costume party, because baptists dont celebrate halloween ;) , and then he came by my apartment to say hello….

we had only been dating a month but it had been so easy. i was praying and i knew he was praying and everything was just…good.

so that halloween night, he arrived at my apartment shockingly dressed as a cowboy and asked if i would be his girlfriend. i said yes…and then realized it was still halloween which seemed like a weird day for a romantic event…..so we just waited till after midnight to put it on facebook because that makes everything official anyway. regardless, i say our anniversary is november 1st.

the past 2 years have by far not been easy. but i am thankful for that.

it is the moments when we have fought together, sobbed together, been on our knees praying together, and faced tremendous challenges and struggles as a couple when i have seen him for the amazing man he is. its those times i’ve been challenged and God has molded me into the woman i am today.

tonight as we headed to dinner and a movie i said, “i’m glad to be going on a date with you. you are my favorite boyfriend!”

he said “really? i’m your favorite….its for my good looks and money right?”

and as we went to get our $3.00 a piece slice of pizza---i said, “yes, its totally for your money.”

i love you daniel! happy anniversary!

an obsession confession

So I have a little thing for Target.

I could walk up and down the aisles for hours—which is exactly what Daniel and I did tonight.

I head for the womens clothing and he heads to mens clothing, then we wonder aimlessly through the entire store and usually find each other around the kitchen gear. No aisle is left un-strode.

I also fulfilled my one fall craving for a pumpkin spice doughnut from Krisy Kreme. I made yummy noises the whole time I ate it.

 

P.S. Target online is equally addicting. Since it has been raining like we were in Noah's time here lately in Georgia- I decided it was time to purchase some rain boots- and I found some adorable ones on target.com!!! I heart online shopping!

ridiculous, right?

So last week I had to go people watch for a paper in my communication class. My professor didn't really give us much direction except to watch people, and give 5 examples of specific interactions.

So. I did just that. I went to Chick-Fil-A, got some dinner, and started watching. I got my 5 examples and with intro and conclusion the paper ended up being about 6 pages.

She gave our papers back yesterday. I flipped through page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. There were no comments. No corrections. NOTHING—until the very last page where at the bottom, in small print was “100”.

I glanced around and the papers around me had marks, comments, and corrections- and lower grades.

Am I crazy for feeling jipped? I’m the type of person who desires feedback—so I was kind of upset I didnt get any….not even a correction to grammatical errors I KNOW were in there.

When I was in high school, all my teachers refused to give “100’s” on papers because they felt there was no such thing as a perfect paper. Theres always room for improvement or some crap thing like that….

I always thought they were crazy, and I remember being annoyed when I would get papers back that looked like someone had bled out on them…..and now, I experience the complete opposite and I’m annoyed too.

I am crazy right?

I mean, really, I should just be thrilled with a 100.

I’ll just move on….

…..but like, she could have at least written “good”…..

Mr.Loud Talker

So there is this guy who is in my major. We have had several classes together and I always see him in the classroom building where all of our major classes are.

Typically when I see him he is pacing the hallway talking on his cell-phone LOUDLY.

He is obnoxious.

Several times when I have overheard his conversations, they have been drug or alcohol related. “dude I got so wasted”, “dude I was high all through class”….etc. etc.

However; today took the cake---he was talking to his girlfriend and having a very very private natured phone call. I was astounded that he would STILL talk LOUDLY while talking about that AROUND SEVERAL people.

Do people have no dignity anymore?

american girl insanity

so apparently it is almost christmas. not really but close enough because my parents house has been flooded with catalogs promising delivery by christmas if ordered soon or whatever…

anyway i was flipping through some and came to the “American Girl” catalog. when i was a tween (or even um now) i was completely obsessed with American Girl dolls. i have 3. Samantha (the Victorian era doll), Meghan (created to look like me), and Rose (she had red hair and Titanic had just come out- what can i say).

so anyway i’m flipping through this magazine and realize Samantha is not in there. when i went online to see what the deal was---she has been RETIRED, or as they tried to eloquently put it; archived.

ummm seriously American Girl???? you retired the classiest and prettiest doll in that entire series???

what american girl doll were you?

college moment #1

this afternoon i am walking across campus with my eyes glued to my blackberry reading twitter updates when i hear a heavily Indian accented voice say “um sorry excuse me…sorry…mam?”

i look up and around- and wow- hes talking to me. i say “yeah hey?”

“um yeah sorry to bother you. this is stupid but sorry can I ask you a question?”

“Ok,” I smile and wait for him to continue….

“see well um this is my first day in atlanta” (he holds open his arms demonstrating the “atlanta-ness”) “and well my girlfriend isnt here”

--->Oh. Crap. What is he about to ask me? *crazy thoughts run through head* but I didnt see any kind of video camera---so even though run was flashing in my brain, I waited. *Inhale*.

“See, but, um, she is coming here though”

--->Phew. annnnnd exhale.

“And, well um I want to teach her driving. But she can not try it on the highway” (he chuckles, because that was funny) “so where should I go?”

I began babbling about empty parking lots and yada yada and he nodded while listening. It was a good question—idk a lot of places where you would take people to practice driving, and the racetrack was definitely irrational.

I ended by saying “sorry, I just dont really know any good places…”

he smiled and said “Dont be sorry, youre awesome!” (still with heavily thick accent)

it made my day.

and now i’m remembering the hours of reading ahead of me…..but why should i worry… “i’m awesome”….haha….in a totally non-conceited kind of way.

just tuesday stuff

one of my professors got his hair colored…..poorly….and obviously. he went from salt and pepper black and gray---to browny auburn purply almost….idk it was weird. it totally distracted me through class.

i met with my advisor today. everything is on track to graduate fall 2010---unless the state of georgia runs completely out of money and limited classes are offered next summer….meaning i wouldnt be able to get the classes i need and graduation would be pushed to the following spring. if this happens i will try to not march the steps of the capitol building in protest….or something irrational like that.

today i realized i hardly ever walk on the sidewalks around my campus. maybe its because the sidewalks never seem to go in the direction i’m going---or maybe i’m just rebellious like that.

its 6:30. i’ve been through 3 classes…and yet i have another one at 7:30….followed by hours of reading for human resource management. yay!

i’ve already had my diet coke for the day. i try to keep it to one. it makes me feel healthier. but this might be a double diet coke day. woah- two rebellions in one day…

confessions #1

i guess this could kind of be like “not me monday” by mckmama, but mine are not the same as hers because i dont have 4 adorable little children…..so more or less like usher, these are my confessions….

(1) i paid exactly zero attention in human resource management this morning. i followed social cues by looking at the people talking, and making “thinking” faces---but i was really just thinking about how i needed a haircut, and waiting for my professor to face the other direction so i could check my vibrating blackberry.

(2) i got chick-fil-a for lunch….even though i had brought a weight watchers smart one to heat and eat. i just couldnt do it. the chick-fil-a magnet was too strong.

(3) i was healthy and got a fruit cup from cfa…..BUT i dipped all the apples in chick-fil-a sauce. its actually quite a yummy “fruit-sauce”….dont judge.

ummmmm so yeah like i said----definitely not usher worthy but confessions of my day none the less.

the mountains.

this past weekend my family and daniel went to the mountains to visit my grandparents.

it was freezing. somehow over the period of a few days, we ended up with freezing temperatures.

we stayed in a cabin which is older and doesnt have the greatest insulation. we had a fire going the entire time, but i still slept in flannel pants, an undershirt, long sleeve t-shirt, and hoodie.

we ventured out to various mountain festivals and even though it was cold and drizzly, we had a lot of fun eating boiled peanuts, funnel cakes, and kettle corn (even though i skipped out on the latter 2).

hope everyone else had a great weekend and youre staying warm!

an open letter to shonda rhimes:

Dear Ms.Rhimes,

You know, OH how you know that I am in fact obsessed with your show.

I never miss an episode- all 6 seasons.

I watch re-runs on Lifetime.

I use the words “seriously”, “dark and twisty”, and “mcdreamy” in every day conversation.

However; I’m not sure about this whole “merger” deal- it is seriously stressful.

I guess it is making for some interesting drama, but seriously I can NOT STAND the Mercy West people. I thought I was going to jump through the TV and punch the guy who was messing with Izzy.

Seriously, Shonda- I dont know how much more of this I can take.

Please dont turn my dear Greys Anatomy into a glorified version of “ER” with better looking actors.

Overall though- um, ya know, keep it up!

Sincerely,

A Concerned Fan

i didnt get sick!!!

this past weekend daniel and i went to fripp island, sc with his family for a long weekend.

we left thursday night and after a flat tire on the side of 75 outside atlanta, stopping to eat, stopping to pee (twice), and traffic….we finally made it about 11:30 pm.

we waited up for his parents- and everyone got to bed about 12:30 am.

but we were up in time to see the sun rise….

because we were going deep sea fishing!!!!

when daniel told me that we would be doing this- i kind of started freaking out.

yes i was raised on the lake. i can swim like a fish. and i’ve even caught several fish in my day….but the ocean is a different story.

i was afraid of 2 things:

(1) i would get sea sick, be miserable, and turn green like a cartoon character.

(2) a co-worker of mine told me that when she went deep sea fishing; after they caught a fish- the deck hand took out a bat and beat the fish to death---i was mortified. O.M.G.---i knew i would not be able to handle that. and would probably jump off the boat and swim back to shore if that happened. really.

THANKFULLY though---neither happened.

and i even got to reel in a fish:

overall we had a blast! it was a super relaxing and fun weekend!

workin it out

today marked a pretty momentous day in my pretty monotonous life of school/work/school/work.

(1) for once, i had no pressing homework this evening. and by pressing- i mean anything due tomorrow.

(2) this meant, i worked out.

when you are in school- it is easy to excuse away working out….which i have become a pro at….

today though- as i scrolled through my blackberry calendar events and realized i really did have a semi-free evening---i decided to do it. i’m not really aiming to lose weight- as much as i’m trying to just get back into shape and get toned for my big bridesmaid appearance come next may….

i walked to my apartments gym and jumped on the stationary bike.

pros of the stationary bike: you get to sit making it feel like “semi-lazy” exercising, and power ballad= “the climb”-miley cyrus.

cons: butt sweat (hey whats a blog if you cant be honest), stairs afterward, and less-than-polite words my legs had to say to me afterward.

who knows when the next workout will happen so the 20 minutes and 173 calories (according to the machine) burned today will have to do for a while…..

i’m dramatic.

God has a reason for everything. There is a reason the grass is green. There is a reason the sky is blue. There are reasons that seasons change, as are there reasons that things in life change.

With that said—sometimes I wonder the purpose of the season “cold”…..There is no difference between fall and winter because they are both just cold.

Everyone is all like “ohhhh cooler weather- I LOVE IT- YAY”.

I am not part of that “everyone”….

I miss summer. 2 weeks into “cool-ness” and all I can think about is swimming and laying out.

This past weekend, my family went to the lake to get one last “hoo-rah” before it would be too cold to even do that.

This was me on the boat:

dramatic? of course.

It was sunny. The high was 75 degrees. It was winter.

Yes, there is a reason for everything. And a reason that God placed me in the south---because my blood is thinner than a model from Project Runway…and I can barely handle the cold. He knew this, so if He had to give me the season of Winter---at least he put me in a place where I wouldn't have to deal with it for long.

It will be a long winter…..But on the bright side, I’m looking forward to fires in my fireplace, and large hoodies to hide winter flubber and ghostly paleness. I also have an overly large size of flannel pajama pants that I would love to be able to just live in during the months of “cold”.

What about you? How do you deal with the cold?

really?

do you know what is annoying?...besides really loud TVs, and skinny jeans...

70 question multiple choice accounting II take home tests.

yeah. beat that one.

king curtis

every now and then, daniel and i will have immensely mature grown up evenings and watch hours tons upon tons of youtube videos.

its kind of like facebook. you just keep clicking from one to the next and before you know it you are watching cats dance to disco music…

anyway…somehow we came across this little gem;

meet curtis. his family was on an episode of wifeswap. he thinks he is a king. and he loves chicken nuggets.

none of that sounds funny. but oh how we have quoted it over and over again. but we are kind of goofy anyway so i dont know…..

if you dont think its funny. let me know and i will figure out how to get you 3 minutes and 21 seconds of your life back.

…but no promises.

how to be a bridesmaid.....

so you may remember, a few months ago (right here) i went out with my fabulous friend whitney to catch up on life, love, and all those other mysteries. we chatted the night away and i heard the beautiful story of a new boy in her life named JD....

as it turns out, he was more than just 'a boy'....he was 'the boy'....or i guess you could say 'the man' of her dreams. i am sooooo excited to say that last wednesday night he proposed and they are getting married in may!!!

ANNNNNND to top it all off, she has given me the honor of being a bridesmaid.

to say i am excited is an understatement. i can not wait to watch one of my closest friends get married. to get to be a part of her unfolding love story is such a blessing.

SOOOO this is going to be my first bridesmaid rodeo---and i need some advice because i want to be nothing less than a fabulous bridesmaid...because, i mean.....

....just look how fabulous she is.....she deserves nothing less than the best!!! (pardon the photo quality- i had to jack this picture off facebook and it doesnt convert well)....

love you whitney!! and sooooo excited for you.

a medium crush

So thanks to lifetime being dedicated and determined to cause procrastination in my life-- they now show back to back episodes of ‘greys anatomy’ AND then ‘medium’ every weeknight.

i had never watched ‘medium’ but since it immediately follows ‘greys’ and since i’m not that fast with my remote, i was sucked in one day and now my tv ends up staying on lifetime from 5-11 every day….or uh, a timeframe less pathetic than that….

many of the story lines absolutely creep me out and patricia arquettes character can drain my nerves and i think one of the little girls looks like a boy…

so why do i keep watching…mostly because i think the tv husband joe (aka jake weber) is such a cutey.

maybe its because hes an engineer in the show and a great supportive dad/husband who deals nicely with all of his wifes issues but i dont know, i just think hes adorable.

 credits

my crush is actually kind of a big deal because typically i am not a fan of the shaggy hair. but i think he wears it quite nicely.

so are you with me? isnt he cute?

over it

you know that katherine mcphee song "over it"....well the song is about being completely and utterly over the mistreatings of some stupid boy, but for right now- lets imagine the song is about school. i'm over it.

right now at this current moment i have zero motivation. zero because it feels like i will never ever be done. and i am so ready to be done.

16 hours was stupid.

tuesdays where i have 4 classes in a row was stupid.

i know the work will pay off and come december i will look back on these months and smile....er something.

sigh....

back to writing my "creeper" paper on all the people i observed for my communications class.

adios.

sleeping is good.

Since Saturday, I have had trouble sleeping just thinking and absorbing the fact that my neighbor was dead. Since yesterday was the funeral, last night the exhaustion finally hit me. Daniel dropped me off at my apartment at 9:00, I walked in, crashed on my bed and fell asleep. I woke up about 10 realizing I should put on my pajamas and brush my teeth....and then I slept....I slept till 8 this morning...and that is just because I had set my alarm for 8.

I feel so much better after my long good night of sleep. The funeral was mixed with laughter and tears as many friends and family stood up to share stories they had of Gib. I learned a lot more about my neighbor than I had known before--making me want him alive even more to give him a hard time about the new things I had learned. haha. His son even went up to the podium and spoke of his father so eloquently that I forgot he was only 12 years old.

I am still not sure if Gib had accepted Christ in his life, and it is not my position to judge or question but the whole experience has even more so affirmed my faith. I am so thankful to be covered by grace and free from my sins. I am so thankful to not have a fear of death because I trust in the ultimate giver of life.

Well now it is time to go to sleep again. Coming soon to a blog near you (mine) will be an interview with a crazy girl (me) on her upcoming fall semester. It will be enthralling and intense, but most of all- fascinating.....so stay tuned.

Rough Weekend

This past weekend was expected to be one of some sadness as we prepared to move my sister away to college. I knew there would be a lot of mixed emotions....but in the midst of packing and preparing, we recieved a phone call.

Our next door neighbor and close friend at my familys lake home had been killed very suddenly. He had been driving around the neighborhood on a friends scooter (having his wife and kids follow him in their van because he didnt want to be out there alone). As he was riding, the scooter stalled out. He sat and played with it a minute trying to get it to start again- when all of the sudden it took off and carried him into a tree, breaking his neck, and killing him instantly---as his wife, 12 year old son, and 9 year old daughter watched.

I have trouble writing this without tearing up. It makes absolutely no sense, and no one quite knows what happened and why...

We dropped everything and headed straight there as soon as we heard. Our community of neighbors there are quite close and just stood outside hugging, crying, talking, and consoling the family. Friends of the family came flooding in, but his family lives in Minnesota, and hers is all in Japan.

If youve ever watched Home Improvement, then you know of neighbor Wilson----the guy who knew each one of the Taylor family differently, and was always up to something different. Gib reminded me so much of that. I always gave him a hard time for different projects he was working on, or weird foods he was cooking. He gave me a hard time about how he thought I was permanently glued to our porch swing since for the first 3 months he lived there- everytime he came outside, I always seemed to be there. He would always bring us samples of stuff he had BBQ'd and sit and shoot the breeze with us.

My family and our neighborhood will miss him terribly. But I know nothing compares to how much his family will feel his absence. They were so close. Just last weekend they set up a picnic out in the grass eating watermelon. His daughter adored him, and his son was his spitting image.

Oh, please pray for this family. The funeral is Tuesday.

Pray for me and my family as well. I cant stop thinking about it. I know God has a purpose and plan for everything---and I belive in his sovreignty over every situation, but this was...is extremely difficult-and happened so quick. It really made me realize how instantly life can change.

Lets pretend….

….like it hasnt been oh, idk, a month since i last posted….k?

Today I want to tell you about this amazing hair product that I have my hairdresser has discovered. It is called “MoroccanOil”.

                                credito

About a year ago, I went on Accutane (another blog post all together) for my skin to help improve acne. It did wonders for my skin, but not so much for my hair. I was left with a beautiful complexion but really dry/brittle hair.

Even since Ive been off Accutane though, my hair has still not completely recovered so I lay products on thick every time I blow-dry hoping to soften it out.

MoroccanOil is pretty much the end all/beat all of products. It makes my hair sooooo soft- almost like it is straight from the salon and it smells beautifully!

I highly recommend it even if you dont have really dry hair. It just makes your hair have a great sheen and softness.

Thats all! <3

Dead Bug…

A few days ago, I was looking through a stack of mail and noticed a local community magazine sort of deal. I thought it might be interesting, so I flipped through it. It wasn't interesting. It basically just profiled several businesses and contained coupons and offers for places around town.

One coupon especially caught my eye. A coupon for free admission to a local skating rink. Score. Actually it was two coupons for free admission. Double Score.

Today boyfriend and I had planned to wash our cars or go ride bikes or do something fun since we both had free afternoons. It started raining, and so I remembered my coupons.

So we went to this skating rink, and can I just say I felt like I had stepped back into 1995 at elementary school skate night. I was the skating queen, young and sweet, only….7.

We had so much fun skating around with the funky lights and disco ball. I did miss one thing though---at my elementary school skate night we played “Dead Bug”. Cheesy music would play and then as soon as it stopped you had to hit the floor and play dead. Morbid? Maybe….Did I win the game as being the most realistic looking dead bug? Yes!!!

Tomorrow I will be paying for this skating day…as I already am having trouble walking up stairs….Supposedly you can burn like 1200 calories in 2 hours of skating. Awesome!…too bad we went out for pizza afterwards which probably put me back into negative calories burned…fail.

Hope everyone has a great Friday and weekend!

Old Friends and The Heimlich

Is it really Wednesday and I am just now writing about my weekend? Yes. haha.

Friday night I went out with one of my dear friends from highschool, Whitney, it had been forever since I had seen her and yet we still chatted the night away into wee hours of the morning. We went to a small private highschool so we even flipped through the yearbook of everyones picture and discussed where they were today….our source?---excellent facebook stalking skills of course! haha.

Saturday, boyfriend, his family and I went to visit his sister at the camp she is working at this summer. Saturday night we went out to dinner to one of those backwoods BBQ places. Right as we walked in the door, there was a woman who had just started choking. Not “cough cough” choking but literally “turning red, could not breathe, making the choking sign around her neck” choking. People were going up to her trying to help and someone yelled “Call 911”. Finally a nurse at the other side of the restaurant realized the commotion and went over to perform the Heimlich, and the lady coughed up whatever she had choked on. Everyone stood kind of in amazement for a minute, but thankfully the lady was ok…..

It made me want to learn the Heimlich because I felt so helpless. I realize it seems easy enough but I wouldnt have (and definitely wasnt confident) known where to hold her or hit her or whatever has to be done to help.

I havent learned it yet…hopefully I can get to that, ya know, when classes finally end.

actually, i am still alive

school has been consuming my life lately, unfortunately. but summer classes end july 23rd with 2 big presentations. excellent. and then i will have a month to sit and ponder on the actual insanity that is my fall schedule.

in other news. this past weekend was awesome. we spent the weekend at the lake for the fourth which was so much fun with lots of good food and good times. my sister got to be there since she had the weekend off from the camp she has been working at.

If I am not on the boat, you can typically find me on this swing….I love it…

 

Boyfriend and I enjoyed riding on the boat on the way to see the fireworks. He was channeling my dad with the bandana. He had just buzzed his head so he was scared of getting sunburn. My dad also has very little hair so he wears a bandana too. They kind of matched. Haha….

This is also another place I frequented this past weekend…. I am reading “The Scarlet Thread” by Francine Rivers. I love her writing. She wrote “Redeeming Love” which is one of the most powerful books I think I’ve ever read. I HIGHLY recommend it.

And finally, my mom, dad, boyfriend and i went to see Transformers 2….a total guy flick, and also 2 hours and 24 minutes of my life I will never get back. My dad and boyfriend enjoyed it---but my mom sat and played on our blackberries the whole time….haha

Anyway…now its back to school work and studying. blah!!!

like i said, just a girl….

inability to focus…………………………..check

forgetfulness…………………………………check

clumsiness……………………………………check

waking up tired…………………………….check

crying at commercials……………………check

10 pounds heavier from water…………check

“GET OUT OF MY FREAKING WAY”…….check

“Is it 293287038 degrees in here or is that just me?”..……check

general “blah”ness…………………………..check

Inopportune time of 3 tests this week………triple check

 

yeppp…….the gangs all here….

sometimes it stinks being a girl….haha.

Keith Urban/Taylor Swift

I am on a blog roll….I am trying to catch up with everything going on---so I have to fill you in on the Keith Urban concert.

We had a blast. Our seats were nose-bleed-ish, but luckily my moms camera has a good zoom- and they really werent that bad.

Boyfriend absolutely loved it! He air guitared quite a bit, and I just danced in my seat. haha…..and I use the term “danced” loosely.

I love Taylor Swift. I think she is a great girl and her music speaks directly to all those teenage girls in awkward middle school and early high school years. We were actually sitting behind two such girls, there with their parents. It was so cute watching them scream the lyrics to “Picture to Burn.”

Then Keith Urban came out…and he is just so talented. I’m not very music savvy but I know the boy can play a guitar. Boyfriend was mostly impressed with how he walked through the audience still playing his guitar while people were like grabbing him and touching him.

I know its kind of blurry but you can see him right there-----> with his bodyguard and he is still holding his guitar.

 

This picture is when he came to play in the center….I like the lighting and how everyone's arms are up….It makes me feel like a photographer….haha. 

I really like this one because of the lighting…and well its Keith Urban….

It was a fun night!

neighborhoods.

When I was growing up, my family lived on a cul-de-sac  which was really nice because we were back in the neighborhood and that meant it was a little bit quieter of a street with plenty of room to ride bikes, drive Barbie cars, and rollerblade (a lost art form btw).

I don't remember anything too specific about playing in the street except that EVERY time before I walked out the door, my mother saying “If a car comes, GET OUT OF THE ROAD---COMPLETLEY, move all your stuff over---QUICKLY”…..

As I type it, it seems so obvious. Car coming. Move out of road. Easy…..NOT.

My boyfriend just moved. He was in one neighborhood and now he is in another. Both neighborhoods are full of kids who have missed this message.

I will be driving through…slowly because its a curvy road and I am always on the look out for kids. They are easy to spot though because they are typically RIGHT in the middle of the road. When they see me, they look annoyed because well- they realize my Camry will not fit between them, and a mailbox. Then ever so slowly, they roll their bikes out of the way.

I have even had kids stay on their bikes in the middle of the road, and I’ve followed them until I finally reach boyfriends house.

Crazy. Has anyone else noticed this rude neighborhood kid trend? Or other things that this upcoming generation just doesn't understand?

tomorrow

tomorrow (saturday june 13th, 2009) will be the fulfillment of a gift given almost 4 months ago…..

february 14th, 2009

 

yes boyfriend…i’m serious...keith urban tickets.

and a little something for me since taylor swift is opening for him….oh how i love her.

we’re so excited. it should be a great weekend!

babies. toddlers. teenagers. adults.

my roommate, among her many attributes, is an aunt to a beautiful little 2 month-ish old baby. last night her entire family was at our apartment celebrating her birthday, and i got to sit and hold baby benjamin for at least an hour as he rested peacefully in my lap smelling of all the yummy things babies smell of. it was wonderful- especially the fact that i got a nice little baby fix and didnt have to change a diaper or stay up all night. :)

and since i’m on the subject of babies- let me move to toddlers. there is a toddler who lives right above me. i assume he is a toddler—but with the amount he runs back and forth across the apartment at all hours of the day and night- you would think he was a robot, because the kid seemingly never stops. tonight he was especially awake and i believe his parents must make him run laps around the apartment before they feed him or something. i dont know but he is loud. i’m thinking about buying them one of those kid leashes and telling them to take him outside to run.

now teenagers. there were swarms of them on my campus today for freshman orientation- bright eyed and ready to go. it has definitely made me think a lot about how college has changed me since i was at my own freshman orientation. i have learned and grown so much and i know this is only the beginning.

i know i am not a baby, toddler, or teenager anymore…but its hard to look in the mirror and call myself an adult. what a big word. you think they would have come up with a transition word for 20-something's; kind of like 12 year olds are “tweens”. phew- just the word is awkward.

i’m not sure when i will officially feel like an adult but i definitely dont feel like any of the above….haha.

I caved….

I had a really busy past few days because the boy moved into a new house and I was basically his moving assistant. haha. After we got through most of the moving, we headed to the lake to relax and hang out with my family.

Anyway….the point of this post is that I caved….For weeks, I have strolled by maxi dresses and scrolled through other blogs singing their praises because I had it set in my mind that a maxi dress does not work on a girl who tops out at 5 foot nothing.

But tonight at target I saw one and I thought…”why not”…i tried it on, and OMGOSH it actually looked really cute, and draped to my feet just as it should.

I could have bought one in every color but I stuck to buying just one….I have a feeling though it will be my favorite dress of the summer….

Anyway, I’m glad I finally got over my fear of maxi dresses and tried one on.

hmm…..

here was my morning:

10:12- arrived on campus and parked in student center parking                                                                 10:15- quick meeting with my advisor
10:25- went to student center and got a parking pass for the summer.                                                           10:27- walked out of student center
10:28- ran frantically through the parking lot screaming at the girl writing/placing a ticket on my car.
10:30- she agreed to void the ticket for "failure to display proper sticker" since i had parked to *uh-hum* "just go in and get my sticker"
10:31- she laughed at me for sprinting across campus while yelling and waving my arms
10:35- drove car over to presidents office (where i work on campus) to park
10:45- dad calls to go to lunch
10:55- walk out to my car
10:56- cussed because i had a ticket for "parking in undesignated area" under my windshield.

apparently i am only allowed to park in the commuter lot.

i guess you win some and you lose some.

P.S. my mom almost got a ticket today too. must be genetic or something.

Jon and Kate

Dear Jon and Kate,

Please grow up and figure out all your little problems. Your 8 need you and it made me sad to see yall all pouty and whiny on your show.

Thanks,

Katelyn

Oh Mr.Sun

Dear Rain,

Since I am better at writing my feelings than discussing them AND since you are a weather element and not an actual person, I felt it necessary to address a few grievances with you in letter format.

This weekend was Memorial Day. Aside from what it means when it comes to remembering the men and women who fight for our country; it is also, in essence, opening weekend for summer!

Your messenger, the weatherman, informed us you would be coming but I hoped you would at least be polite about it.

Friday you came in the afternoon as promised and then the skies cleared. The family grilled hamburgers and watched the skies convinced of your absence. We prepared the outdoor table and chairs and all sat down to enjoy a meal on the deck with a nice view of the lake.

I can only assume you were jealous of our fine meal and that is why you decided to open your flood gates right as we were midway into the meal, thus forcing us to not just grab our food; but grab the entire table and carry it into the basement before we were drenched.

Saturday we pulled out the boat to clean and prepare for the rest of the summer with the promise and hope, yet again, from Mr.Weatherman that you would stay at bay until the afternoon. Unfortunately, mid-boat-clean you came, and apparently tried to “help” us clean the boat, soaking us all in the process.

Sunday was no different, in your on-again, off-again appearances.

But the most frustrating part of it all is how today, Monday, the day we had to pack up and head home, you were no where to be found and allowed the sun to shine down on us all day long…..*giant sigh*

We are going to have to come to some sort of agreement, Mr.Rain or this is going to be a very long summer.

Sincerely,

Katelyn

A view of all the clouds rolling in…

Don't worry though, we did have some sunshine, and had a great time at the lake!

We were even able to go ride around on the boat a little bit.

 

 

 

This is our dog Charlie. He loves going out on the lake and riding up front with my sister and me….until he hears the motor get loud and he knows he better jump in one of our laps quick!

oh and P.S…..

if ever down the road I get married and ultimately become pregnant….you will never see me in one of these:

i’m bad at thinking of titles….

today i slum-dogged it to class and wore jeans and a t-shirt. and then i saw this girl all dressed up in a little cute sun dress (a dress which i also own) and i was like “man, i should really have put a little more effort into myself today” lol.

buttttt i wore this shirt…so my cool points went back up a little bit….

it was kind of sad though because there is one other girl in my class today and she was old and could not appreciate the antiquity and cuteness of my american girl t-shirt. and there were of course no guys who came up to me and said “oh wow- i have an american girl doll too. lets play together”…..

anyway this weekend i plan to:

(1) get to sleep before 2 am. (it has not happened this week).

(2) not sit around and eat all day…..lol.

i’m so ready to get to the lake. daniel still isnt off work yet and then we have our small group bible study before we can leave….we wont get there till like 11:30 late.

i want chipotle.

this entry is very spastic.

its my life.

today was good. i dont have class till 6:00 pm on mondays and wednesdays which is weird because…well i dont know why its weird..but it is….so anyway i worked in the presidents office then went back to the apartment for a little bit before i headed out on a date with myself to chick-fil-a. i hadnt been there in like 6 days and i was having withdrawals. it was yummy. i sat in my car and listened to podcasts on my ipod while i ate. (after i read back over the past few sentences it makes me feel like a fatty loser…but…well…haha)

class was long…and boring…but my management professor is like the cutest old man i have ever seen. he has this gray wirey comb-over thing going on and he wears a suit and tie every day. it makes me smile. he seems to like me ever since he found out i co-oped at shaw. every thing that comes up in class he somehow finds a way to ask me “how shaw does it…” haha.

after i went to daniels and we hung out for a little bit and caught up on the day. he finally found a place to live and what seems to be a really nice guy to live with. i am so thankful. God is so good in working things out in his perfect timing…

now i’m just sitting in my apartment, perusing facebook, and avoiding doing laundry….lol.

my cute roommate is obsessed with older music and this is her song of the day….so its in my head which kind of makes it my song of the day….

lake this weekend!!!! YAY!

 

<3

so much

this weekend was great. zadie graduated and turned 18 all in one day!!! we had a lot of fun and then headed to the lake where we saw a snake eating a squirrel…(YUCK) and then had a neighbor party. we met so many neighbors we did not know and i might even be babysitting for one family who has 2 cute little boys.

zadie leaves for camp glisson next weekend to stay for like 5 weeks….i’m excited for her but i’m dreading it…idk if i can stand for her to be gone that long!!!!

a wonderful wednesday

so this morning when i stepped outside i learned two things:

(1) the cute summer dress i was wearing was entirely inappropriate for the “unseasonably” cool day we were having.

(2) the 10% chance of rain provided by the weatherman was missing a “0” on the end.

i went and got my haircut! and i love it. i also bought a new unreasonably expensive hair dryer but i believe it will be completely worth it. sometimes you do get what you pay for and this thing rocks. i wish i had a “before/after” shot but i’ll give a “before” description instead: dry, brittle, stringy hair. and then below is the “after” shot.

tonight me and the boyfriend hung out, cooked some dinner, and i watched him play with his new bike.

and well….thats pretty much it!

 

<3

new at this

Thoughts on Today:

(1) I saw a women single handedly fill up a landfill as she pulled like 10 paper towels to dry her hands. No wonder places are replacing paper towels with hand dryers. (totally frustrating because my hands dont feel clean if I cant dry them with a paper towel.)

(2) I am so happy my cute room mate is home so I dont have to stay in the apartment all alone---even though I am mad at her because she is nice and tan.

(3) I’m kind of excited about classes starting…which makes me a total lame-o. Even more so I am excited about my IE classes….

(4) I feel gross because I ate taco bell for dinner…even if it was really good.

(5) I cant wait to get my hair cut tomorrow.

(6) Today I am reminded that I am thankful that God is never-changing even through my ups and downs….He is still faithful and in control.