Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope that everyone had a magical Thanksgiving and ate until their stretchy pants declared, "no more!" 

I spent my second Thanksgiving ever a away from my family. (The first was in college when I was studying abroad in Italy.) I spent this year with B's family in the mountains of NC. We just did a day trip, so most of our time was spent in the car back and forth, but it was so nice to meet parts of his extended family that I hadn't had the opportunity to meet until now. 

We even drove through some falling snow on the way! B was much less excited than I was. 

B was even kind enough to stop for a picture in the snow at a rest area (even though he didn't look at the camera.)

Our first stop was at his Aunt and Uncle's house for lunch with his mother's side of the family. We had a great traditional meal. I met his grandparents, his Aunt and Uncle, and a handful of his cousins. His parents and sister (and her dog Joy) were also there. The food was delicious and his family was so nice. The visit was relatively short because most people had to get on the road to spend the rest of the day with other parts of their families. 

Joy was rotten, as usual, but a steadfast lap companion. 

We ate dinner with a few members of B's Dad's side of the family. That meal was much less traditional. We had shrimp, pizza, and various sides and pies. It was equally as delicious as lunch!  I had the opportunity to meet B's other Grandmother and another one of his Aunts. Again, his parents and sister (and Joy, Sunny, and Patches) joined us. The house was pretty full with 7 people and 3 eager and playful dogs! We did manage to snap a few pictures to commemorate the day. 

Obligatory selfie!

Sunny loves his B and just had to be in the picture. 

Sunny and Joy did some serious playing. Can you tell that even though she's much smaller, Joy is always the boss?

After a full day, Sunny was worn splat out!

I hope everyone had a great day and has a full belly!

Love,

Aw

My Jams

I've recently become a little obsessed with Jamberry nail wraps. They are these awesome stickers that you apply to your nails in lieu of traditional polish. They come in super cute designs that I'd never be able to mimic with normal nail polish. They seal to your nails with adhesive and are waterproof and super durable. I'm a total spaz when it comes to painting my nails and the polish always chips or peels off after about a day. My Jamberry nail wraps can last 10 days with no issues. (This post is not endorsed or sponsored and these opinions are entirely my own.)

Check out some of my recent jamicures!

The patterns are fun to mix and match!

I even mixed my Jams with some traditional polish and love the results!

This is my most recent one and I love it!

Check them out and I know you'll fall in love, too! Also let me know what you think!

Love,

A

Putting the "I" in "we"

I've noticed recently that I seem to have developed a habit that I never imagined I'd developed. I guess it happens to most people eventually. I've started to refer to myself as "we" in conversations, Facebook posts, and even here on my blog. I find myself thinking in terms of "we" (being me and B) instead of thinking in terms of "me". I guess that's an inevitable part of being in a long-term relationship. I'm by no means insinuating that that's a bad thing, just merely making an observation. 

Friends will ask me, "What are your plans for the holidays," or "What have you been up to lately," and I always seem to find myself answering about what we are doing for the holidays or what we have been up to lately. 

Being the perpetually single gal in my circle of friends, I always used to cringe when my best girl friends would transform into a "we". I asked about you, not you and your boyfriend. I used to see this transformation as a weakness, a sign that my friend's individual identity was fading off into oblivion. It always seemed as though my friend could no longer exist separate from her boyfriend. Perhaps that was just the cycinal single side of me thinking that. It always perturbed me that when I'd ask a friend to hang out or make plans, she'd tell me she'd have to check with him before she could commit. I was angry that she couldn't make plans without first clearing it with his schedule. (For the record, this isn't about just a single friend. I felt this way about all of my friends who were in relationships.) 

Over the past year and a half, I have unknowingly become one of those girls that I once judged and disliked. I am now the one that, before cementing plans with a friend, checks with him. I don't do this because I need his validation or permission. I do this because we share a life together, and I'm not always aware of what is on our social (or personal) calendar. Trust me, B is not a high maintainence guy or the least bit controlling of me, and for that I am thankful. I am a strong and independent woman who does not need permission from anyone to live my life in the way that I choose. I do, however, want to share my life with this man that I love so very much. I want to spend time with h and I want to do things as a couple. 

This transformation from a "me" to a "we" is actually something that I welcome. Shocking. I think it's just interesting and sometimes mind-blowing how our lives can transform into something we'd never imagined without us even realizing it. 

So to all of the other "we" people out there, I'm sorry I ever thought that being part of a "we" made you less of a "you." 

Love,

A

The new edition to our family

Well, she's not new by any means, but my kitty Princess Fiona finally came to live with us today! She's been living with my parents for quite sometime, but now she's finally home. When I moved to Charlotte last year, I chose to leave her with my parents to avoid paying the $300 non-refundable pet deposit at our apartment. Now, you're probably thinking that that makes me a terrible mama to my baby cat, but that was an expense that I just couldn't afford at the time. At the time, I was still driving back to Greenville every weekend to do my duties as the Director of Youth Ministries at my home church, so I got to spend every Sunday loving on Fiona. B and I always planned to take her back when we moved into the house and got settled, but my parents kept her a little longer than originally planned because of my surgery. Dad came and took me to my doctor appointment today (since I can't legally drive with my right foot in a cast) and he brought Fiona with him. She's spent most of the day sniffing around and cautiously exploring her new home. We've also caught up on some much needed snuggling. 

Princess Fiona was a birthday/Chrisas gift from my BFFAE back in 2009. At the time, I had just moved into an apartment by myself and I was single and lonely. I'd always had cats growing up and BFFAE thought that I needed a companion to come home to everyday. She adopted her from the Greenville Humane Society and surprised me with her on November 15, 2009. She was barely 3 weeks old, and the Humane Society had named her Juanita. My first order of business was to change her name. (I just couldn't imagine myself saying things like "Get off the counter, Juanita!") I had a list of potential names for her. BFFAE and I sat on the floor with her and I started testing out some of the names. When I called out "Princess Fiona", she meowed and came right to me. (Yes, I named her after the ogre Princess from the Shrek movies and it truly suits her personality. She can be quite the ogre at times.) 

She is a Maine Coon cat, which means she's quite large. She has long hair and and a fluffy tail and the softest, fuzziest belly in the world. She's awkward just like her mama. She growls like a dog when she's scared, and she loves cheese almost as much as I do. She loves playing in boxes and shopping bags and will shamelessly beg for treats. 

Happy (belated) 5th birthday, baby cat! Mama loves you and is so happy to finally have you home!

Love,

A

Fiesta time!

I'm back! I felt like my last few posts that I've blogged about how I never blog anymore were way too meta and I needed to remedy that ASAP!

On Saturday, B and I hosted a housewarming party at our new place. We did a fiesta theme (since our street name is in Spanish). We ordered catering from Moe's Southwest Grill (make-your-own fajitas with all of the fixings) and served red and white sangria. Our new house quickly turned into a home when we were joined by 22 amazing friends and family member and one super cute dog! We are so thankful for all of the love and support that we have received and continue to receive from these amazing people. B's college roommate even drove all the way from Arizona to NC to join us!  

My very dear friend Katie and her wonderful husband also joined us and spent the night in our newly refurnished guest room. (Check out Katie's blog, Farm to Fête at http://www.farmtofete.com!) She is one of the most incredible and genuine people on the planet, beautiful both inside and out, and I firmly believe that I'd be utterly lost without her in my life. 

B's sister and her husband brought their adorable dog, Joy, who was the life of the party. My BFF surprised me by bringing her sweet baby, Mia, who is just one month old! Mia was born a week before my surgery, on the day we moved into our house, so this was the first time I got to meet my "niece" and I was over the moon. She's the most perfect tiny baby and I am so in love! This was her first party ever, so I'm glad we could start her out on the right foot. 

After all of our guests left, B and I spent some quality time with his college roommate, Katie, and her husband. We drank champagne and played Cards Against Humanity and laughed until our sides ached. It was the most fun I've had in ages. 

The next morning, we went to brunch (and stuffed our faces) and said our goodbyes. It was the perfect ending to the perfect weekend. 

Needless to say, I was having such a good time at our Fiesta that I completely forgot to take pictures. I did manage to snap a couple, but didn't get any of the party in action. 

Some shots of our newly decorated living room, just before our guests arrived. 

Katie and Joy enjoying the Fiesta. 

B FaceTiming with a friend who wasn't able to make it in person. 

Sweet Mia rocking out at her very first Fiesta. Olé!

Enjoying a magnificent brunch at The Flying Biscuit with Katie and her husband!

All in all, it was a magical weekend and I hated to see it end. 

Love,

A

Remember me?

Yes, I'm back. I didn't forget about you. I wish I had a good excuse for neglecting this blog, but all I really have is a bunch of lame excuses that no one wants to hear. So here we go again...another one of my infamous posts about how I'm going start posting more often. And yes, I realize this is the worst possible kind of post. And yes, I know that I post more about how I'm going to be better about posting than I do actually posting. (And yes, I fully realize how terrible that last sentence sounded.)

I've had a lot happen in my life since I last updated you, and to be honest, I can't really remember where I left off. Since then, I've lost my job, moved into our perfect new house with B (the absolute love of my life), and had a third foot surgery. (If you've been with me since my old blog, A is for Awkward, then you know the whole foot saga. And if you are new here, I'll spare you those details but feel free to check it all out on the old blog. There is a link to it in my very first post on this new blog.)

Jesus, how many more times am I going to use the word "blog" in this post?

My dear friend, Christie, just started a blog of her own (and crap, I said it again) and encouraged me to start writing again. So here I am. I'd like to sit here and tell you that I'm going to do a better job this time around, but we are all very aware of my terrible track record of breaking that promise. Let's see how it goes. 

And on that note (if anyone still reads this), what do you want to read about? Do you want love stories, want updates on the house, want to hear about my surgery saga, want general stories of my awkwardness, want trips down Memory Lane...? Let me know and I'll get started. 

Love,

A