I'm pulling out my hair!

Brooklyn is driving me crazy! She won't stop barking. Spanking her just doesn't work. She continues to bark and I'm not a big fan of hitting dogs anyway. But her bark collar doesn't seem to work either. I'm at the end of my rapidly-fraying rope!!! Puppies like her are the reason shaking-baby-syndrome exists, for real. It's seriously like a phase she is going through. Brook hasn't always been like this. When will it come to an end? Will it? Anyone with puppies want to offer some advice? Please???

Today's Burdens

Besides the fact that I just love to write, my blog serves me in that it helps me to clear my head and just get certain burdens off my chest. For this, I am extremely thankful.

I was so incredibly stressed out today! It was just one of those days at work where I felt behind from the get-go and it wasn't until about 4:45 p.m. that I felt like I had kind of caught up. Even now, I know that tomorrow is going to be just as busy. I'm praying that I can keep up with this crazy pace and still give every task 100% of me. I absolutely love my job, but today it won.

Another cause of stress in my life today was my apartment complex. Last Friday, I put down a deposit for a 2B/2B at the same complex that I'm currently living in. Right now I'm in a 1B/1B, my lease is up at the end of March, and my apt complex wants a 60-day notice as to whether or not I'm staying or moving out. Knowing that the next place I move into will be the "home" that Luke moves into once we're married made the decision to stay or leave very difficult. But he and I decided to stay at my apartment complex and just move into a larger unit. I then received an email on Saturday morning that said my apt complex accidentally leased me an apartment last Friday that was actually not available. It was the most perfect apartment and I was so bummed! It has now worked out that (because my apt feels guilty for not being more thorough) I will be moving into an even larger 2B/2B than before, it is costing me $30 less than they were originally asking, this new apt has upgraded floors, and I can more in next week without having to pay out my current lease. Sounds like a great deal, right? Well, it is except for the fact that I'm freaking out!!! Move out of my apartment in a week instead of at the end of March?!?! Does anyone remember I work 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. M-F and have set plans the next two weekends? Why do I do this to myself...

On top of these daily stresses, I'm thinking about how I will need to buy a new car soon. I'd really like to lease one. Where is the down payment going to come from, you ask? Good question. I have no clue. I'd also really need a new mattress. The one I have right now is super old and again, eventually Luke will have an opinion about this as well. This must be why God tells us,

"No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

Matthew 6:24

Blah. These are my stresses of the day. And I hate that most of them have to do with figuring out finances (can I at this point afford a bigger apartment, a new car, a new mattress, etc?) and just organizing my grown-up life. It feels good to get them off of my chest, but it doesn't make them go away. Tonight, I am laying my silly worries and burdens at His feet. As small or simple as these stresses may sound, they weigh on me and I cannot carry them all. As I was driving home from work today, I found myself tearing up to this song. I don't know what it is about this song, but it gets to me every time. Selah's version is my favorite. I love this hymn. It will get me through the next few weeks of decision making and work in general. 

P.S. I'm sorry if this blog post doesn't flow or make much sense. I feel like I'm rambling. I guess I'm just tired. Goodnight friends.

Roommates, Friends, and Sisters

At 3:30 p.m. I will be leaving work early to go to Marble Falls to spend the weekend with my college roomies and best friends. The amount of excitement and joy in my heart cannot even be explained. There are no words strong enough to explain my love and obsession with these girls and the memories we made in college. We're so much like family, in fact, that we take vacations together. We've been to Tampa, Houston, Marble Falls, New York, etc. together. This weekend we will be at Cat's lakehouse. We'll eat at the famous Blue Bonnett Cafe, we'll talk about current life adventures and reminisce about college life, and you better believe there will be margaritas!

These girls have changed my life for the better and I wouldn't be who I am today without them. I miss them in my daily life something fierce. I can't wait to be reunited with these sisters. *happy tear*

Save-the-Dates and Our Honeymoon!

Last Friday, I ordered save-the-dates for mine and Luke's upcoming wedding and they came in the mail today. I'm so excited! They turned out really cute. I couldn't be more pleased. Thanks Wedding Paper Divas!

{I'm excited to get these guys sent out!}

And now for even more exciting news! Luke and I booked our honeymoon! After throwing around many beach destination ideas, we decided to go in another direction and we're headed to...

Disney World!!!

Booking our honeymoon couldn't have worked out any better. We have some very dear friends that both Luke and I have worked with at Camp Zephyr for years. They are travel consultants with MouseEarVacations.com. I trust them way more than I would just any ol' travel consultant and I know that they will put together a fabulous itinerary for my adventurous husband-to-be and me! I never in a million years would have thought that I'd be honeymooning in Disney World. But after talking about it, Luke and I realized that we can go to the beach, surf, para sail, etc. any day. Yes, it's not as blue as the Caribbean, but after a couple of days on the beach, we would have gotten bored. I can't wait to ride roller coasters and watch fireworks on top of The Contemporary with my man! We'll be staying at The Wilderness Lodge and so far, I've heard nothing but wonderful things about this place. Magic Kingdom is literally feet away from our hotel and it's just a short drive or tram ride to anywhere else. And the best part is, we can register our honeymoon and fun extras just like normal wedding registries. How cool is that?? Watch out Disney, we're headed your way!

{Disney's Wilderness Lodge}

Sweet little details

I'm such a details girl! When it comes to my wedding, I want to make sure that there are small, memorable details that catch my guests eyes and make that day even more meaningful. Because of this, I would love to share with you the first of many items I will use (not ALL will be bought) to fulfill my desire for sweet wedding details. I can't wait for them to come in the mail!

{Thanks Darline with thefrontporchshoppe!}

After the wedding, it's my plan to hang these somewhere in our apartment. I can't decide if I'll keep these signs on the lime string, or if I'll put hooks on the back of them. But I mean, I do have 5 more months to decide. :)

Bookin' and Cookin'!

Needless to say, I was shocked when my mom told me on Friday night that she was headed to Corpus in the morning to spend the day wedding planning with me. For those of you who don't know this, my mom and dad own two franchises of Jackson Hewitt Tax Service in South Texas, so during tax season [January-April], my sisters and I consider ourselves orphans (just kidding momma!!). With my parents dedicating themselves to working so hard for the family for those select months, I knew that I'd be doing a bit of the initial wedding planning solo. You can imagine how thrilled I was when I found out I'd get my mom, the ultimate party planner, to myself for the entire day, let alone two days after the IRS opened. My mom is the best!

 {My momma and I at my college graduation. She looks great here, but I must let you know that she's lost about 20 pounds in getting ready for the sexy mother-of-the-bride dress she's gonna buy. She's so beautiful and such an inspiration to me!!}

We spent all of Saturday researching and marking items off of our to-do list. As of today, we are a couple of hours away from putting a deposit down on the wedding cake, we are about 75% sure we've found a caterer, we're waiting on quotes from the decorator and florist, I've ordered new save-the-dates (well, there is a new date after all!), and we've researched the heck out of wedding invitations. I'm super excited for the progress we've made this weekend!

This afternoon I'm headed to the wedding fair at the American Bank Center with my friend Sarah, a.k.a. Kubal who, by the way, is getting married almost one month after me. We talk weddings pretty much all the time. :) We're excited to go talk to all of our vendors and to meet new ones this afternoon. Our good friend Aubrey (the wedding planner for both of our weddings, ha!) will have a booth set up at the fair for her venue, The Ortiz Center. This will be a fun wedding-detail-filled afternoon!!!

{Sarah, Aubrey, and me}

One year ago today...

...I began my first day of work as an intern for CBS News in New York, New York. 

I woke up extra early that morning and felt so extremely relieved to have warm clothes to wear to work on my first day. You see, the airlines had lost my luggage the night before and I had to go BACK to the airport at 11 p.m. the same day I arrived in New York to pick it up. What a day that had been... But anyway, back to January 11th...

I picked out a purple dress from Urban Outfitters and black tights with a gray floral pattern on them. I wore my brand new black leather slouchy boots, a black scarf, black leather gloves, and a black pea coat. I know, it was a lot of black, but I was trying to fit in! I was lucky to have another girl in my same BU in NY program to ride the subway with that morning, so I was pretty confident I'd find my way to 57th street. I took the 2/3 and hopped over to the 1 train. So far, so good.


I'll never forget the first time I stepped out of that subway car and walked up the steps to the streets of midtown. Columbus Circle. God, how I miss it. There were people everywhere. No one cared who I was or where I was headed. They all had their own agendas and every one of them was late, or so it seemed. I have never seen so many people walking at such a speed in so many different directions. My travel buddy and I happened to be a little early for our first day of internship (and overly anxious!), so of course, a cup of Starbucks was needed.



I was so nervous to walk into CBS News that morning. I remember standing across the street from the entrance, looking up at a huge picture of Katie Couric on the side of the building and reminding myself to breathe. After all, this was real and I was really about to do this! After my soon-to-be boss was called to confirm that I was allowed upstairs, I walked through the turnstile (which I would eventually get my own swipy tag for). I'll never forget that first trip up the elevator to the CBS Press Office on the 6th floor. I was so excited!


That morning I met the VP of Communications for CBS news, who was to be my immediate supervisor. I also met the publicists for 60 Minutes, 48 Hours, The Early Show, CBS Evening News, and the SVP of Communications, all of whose offices where in the same area as mine. Crazy stuff. I also met Mrs. Stephanie Walker, who to me at the time was Miss Stevie Bittner. My, how much we grow and change in just one short year! {This beautiful lady is now a married woman, but she interned with me at CBS News and this internship would not have been the same without her. My sweet friend, Faith, also interned with us and I'm so jealous of her life, as she continues to live in the Big Apple. I miss these girls!}

And so it began...the best semester of my life.

I learned so much that semester. I learned how to be a professional. I learned how to work in the media. My skin was made much tougher through my many experiences with people who didn't care who I was or where I was from, but rather yet, expected me to get the job done, no matter the circumstances. I grew a lot as a young woman that semester as well. I learned a lot about myself. I learned how tough I was and what resilience really is. I lived on my own, without Luke, without my family, without my friends. Yes, I made friends. Friends that I will share a common bond with forever! But this wasn't the case when I stepped off of the plane that first day in New York.

I made so many incredible memories that semester. I saw 8 Broadway shows. I perfected sitting in a cafe drinking wine with girlfriends for hours at a time. I ran the Brooklyn Bridge on a regular basis. I dominated the subway system. I shopped on Canal Street. I bought my wedding dress at Kleinfeld. I went to the top of the Empire State Building with my fiance and explored the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island with Ashley. My best college friends spent their spring break in New York with me, my best childhood friend visited, my sisters visited once, my mother visited twice. Nothing in this world will ever be able to steal away my love of that incredible city. I left a piece of my heart in New York.

 

I can't wait to get back there!!!

Bling bling!

{My new bling!}

Check out this fun guy! Luke bought this blue topaz ring for me today. It was half off and just too good of a deal to pass up! I've been wanting a fun ring with my birth stone and when I saw this one, I fell in love. My actual birth store is an aquamarine, but they are such a light blue you sometimes can't tell if they are an aquamarine or a dirty diamond. This blue topaz is light enough to pass for an aquamarine. Done and done! :)