doneskies

He did it, y’all.

Five years and countless beers later, Mitch finally walked across that stage, shook hands with the dean, and graduated (diploma to be mailed at a later date…LAME). The ceremony was long and I guarantee there’s not a slower speaker to be found than the man who gave the commencement address this past Saturday. Kuykendall arrived early, three shotguns in and ready to do the damn thing (typical). Hogan, Mario and Trevor came still rocking the night before’s duds (typical). I was cranky because I was running late (atypical). The coliseum was a madhouse of family, friends and various other loved ones, and if there’s one thing I hate, it’s fighting my way through a crowd. By the time the last empty diploma tube had been handed out and the last hand shook, the alma mater sung and the caps tossed, everyone was ready to get the hell outta dodge.

But I couldn’t be more proud.

The new best picture of us because I can actually stand myself in it. I'm going to be cramming this down everyone's throats.
It’s true that I had a couple selfish, ridiculous reasons for being excited about Mitch graduating (ie. our age difference is now less creepy and I can stop saying my boyfriend is in college while feeling like a pedophile...holla!), but honestly I’m just happy for him and beyond impressed by everything he’s accomplished. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, you’ll never meet a harder worker than Mitch Baker. There’s never been a doubt in my mind that he’d finish school or anything like that, but regardless, Saturday was one of the most special days I’ve ever been a part of. And I’m just so thrilled. :)

Congratulations to Mitch and all the other spring graduates! You did it!

Forneytown. And Tommy.

hummingbirds

What's that?

Oh, THIS? It's just my new blog design. No big deal.

Lies. It's a very big deal. To me, at least. And I have to say, I'm a bit in love, if it's even possible to be in love with things like hummingbird backgrounds and Google directory fonts. Trevor is a magician, no? When we had our friend-date/hey-I-need-blog-design-help date on Friday night, the only specifics I brought to him were that I wanted my page to look clean and user-friendly. Vague. I know. But we spent a few hours trolling the internets together and trying out this and then testing out that until we (ahem, he) created the beautiful masterpiece you see before you.

And like I said, I'm quite smitten.

In case you're wondering about the hummingbirds, we chose them because while trying to think of a picture or pattern or what-have-you that best "represented" me, I confided to Trev that if I could be any animal, I would be a hummingbird. Why? Because they're flighty (in a good way, right?) and energetic and cheerful. Well, I've always thought of them as cheerful, anyway, and the point is that hummingbirds are darling and funny and they make me strangely happy.

And there you have it.

Hummingbirds.

Or, me in bird form. Same diff.

I hope y'all like it as much as I do! You'll also notice I added several new pages to the top, so feel free to peruse those at your leisure. They're terribly and not at all important. Although one does feature a picture of Mitch wearing a rain poncho and that always makes me laugh.

Later I'm hoping to write up a recap of a little thing called Warrior Dash in which I participated today, but until then I'll leave you with this picture:

I know you're distracted by the fact that I appear to not be wearing pants, but seriously, check out this dude's helmet.

Hope everyone had a happy weekend! Let's BTHO this week. A-whoop!

dinner of champions

Growing up I hated Red Bull.

You know, the energy drink? During middle school and the early years of my high school career, my mom worked for the promotional company in charge of getting people psyched about Red Bull. We had cases all over the house because, duh, they were free. I long to go back to a time filled with free Red Bull because, well, I'm addicted. I used to think it tasted like Sweet Tarts mixed with tin foil, but now? Now it tastes like everything that's right with the world.

Too much?

This week has been a particularly busy one, work-wise, and I ended up having three (practically) all day shoots in a row. You don't realize how physical photo shoots are until you find yourself setting up and then breaking down stand after stand after stand after stand, hauling heavy tripods to and from location, running back and forth between the gym and the cafeteria because the schedule is too tight (read: impossible) and you need to be in two places at once. Not to mention all the crowd control, posing, and screaming. It's just a lot of work, okay? You get in the car when the last light has been loaded and the day is finally done and you realize: oh my god, I could pass out right here, right now.

That's how I felt Thursday night after the second shoot of the week: totally and completely exhausted. However, for the better part of a year, I've had a standing Thursday night date with my friend Kelsey (and her fiancé - ahhhhhh! - Harrison) who lives in Uptown. It started out as just getting together to watch Jersey Shore (judge away, please), but even after season 2 ended, we kept on with what had become something of a weekly ritual. Now that Mitch has moved back to Dallas and season 3 of the Jerz is upon us, it's become more of a weekly double date. Beverages ranging from cocktails to Sangria to bags of Franzia (don't deny it, Kelsey) followed by casual conversation and ending with an hour of DVRed Jersey Shore goodness come together to make one of my favorite evenings of the week.

Sidenote: you know what's awesome? Having couples friends. WHO KNEW. Don't get me wrong (and this is mostly directed to Mitch and I's single friends who I know secretly read my blog -- I'm on to y'all), I love my friends. Remember how bangin' I said they are? And I love Mitch's friends. I might even love Mitch's friends more than he does (shoutout to the Forneytown Boys, HEY-OH! and Trevor, too!). But having friends who are also a couple and who are also awesome has been a badass experience for us. It just had to be said.

End sidenote.

Basically all that's to say that this past Thursday I was tired, maybe a little too tired to make the forty minute drive out to Uptown. But when I texted Mitch saying, heyyyyy, sooooo, I don't want to bail on tonight, but..., his reply? Stick it out. Just drink a Red Bull.

Oh, hitting me in my weak spot. Well-played.

I couldn't very well bail after that. ALL I NEEDED WAS A RED BULL. OF COURSE. But you know what I also needed? Dinner. And, parents, since I also know y'all read this from time to time, can y'all PLEASE go grocery shopping soon? I really hate those granola protein bars and they're all we have to eat. I'LL STARVE FIRST. But instead of starving on Thursday, however, I decided the smart move was just to take some vitamins. Well, eat some vitamins.

Well, gummy vitamins.

Hello, beautiful.

I stuck the whole bottle in my purse and drove to Kelsey's apartment, chugging the aforementinoed Red Bull and eating handfuls of gummy vitamins. At one point I remember thinking, hey, maybe I should ration these, like, only eat one every mile? But then I realized that would be thirty vitamins and also, I'd only driven three miles and eaten eleven, so...that clearly wasn't going to happen.

Needless to say, I didn't restrain myself. I ate almost the entire bottle (they're 200% Vitamin D!) and had a great night. So great, in fact, that when I woke up at the crack of dawn the next morning for the next shoot and wanted to kill myself? I did the same thing.

Red Bull and a bottle of gummy vitamins. The new Wheaties?

a collection of facts & feelings

If I lived alone, I'd probably spend less time wearing pants.

Being a middle school photographer makes me feel like a rockstar when the kids are excited to see me and remember my name.

I wish I could eat Taco Bueno party burritos like, all day, every day.

This absolutely cracks me up.

Sometimes I resent my dogs. And by my dogs, I mostly mean Pete. And that makes me feel like a bad person.

I like that I like beer.

To paraphrase Mandy Moore in License to Wed, I'd marry Mitch Baker tomorrow in a potato sack dress in the middle of a rainstorm if it meant spending the rest of my life with him.

And on that note, I have an inexplicable fascination with all things Mandy Moore.

I really believe in this.

If there's a Law & Order SVU marathon on somewhere, I can kiss all thoughts of productivity goodbye.

Yum. To both.

I wish I took myself more seriously and gave myself more credit.

I waste a lot of time here. And here. And here. And I never get tired of reading this.

My friends are so effortlessly cool and hot at the same time that it makes me feel a lot cooler and hotter just being known and loved by them. Not that looks are the most important thing in the world; I just happen to have really bangin' friends.

Briarwood. My bad for ruining this picture.

Which reminds me of the time in ninth grade athletics that our teacher asked us what was the most important thing to look for in friends and I answered ummmm...they have to be good looking? No one laughed and I was sent to the principal's office. I went to private school where no one was funny. IT WAS A JOKE, BITCHES. Whatev. I'm over it.

Anyway, it's Tuesday. I love Tuesdays. Happy Tuesday, y'all.

twenty-ten, over & out

Two thousand and ten, you were quite the challenge when it came to life post-grad. I turned 23, fell in love, tried my hand at accounting (wtf?), dealt with unemployment, terrible employment, and unemployment once again, spent a lot of money enjoying a summer I didn't expect to have, thankfully attended more weddings than funerals, got a tattoo, watched too much Jersey Shore while drinking too much wine, made new friendships while rekindling the old, became the proud mother of two (count 'em, TWO) dogs and kissed my sanity goodbye.

Thanks for the ups, let's forget the downs, and here's to a fantastic year ahead of us all!

BRING IT ON, 2011.

mishmash: november

In the spirit of echoing everyone else in the world, it's November!

Can you even believe it?

There's something always strangely exciting about starting a new month; perhaps it's the thought of a new beginning, the possibility of a fresh start. Whatever it is, it's already put a spring in my step.

I mentioned a couple weeks ago that I ordered these earrings from an Etsy shop called Milk Money. They arrived early last week and, yes, they are perfect! I thought about taking a picture of them on my ear(s?) but, to be frank, was too lazy. Anyway, they look just as lovely in person as they did in the picture and I am beyond pleased. Seriously, Milk Money is a ridiculously fabulous little shop. This was my second time ordering from Bethany, the creator, and she was sweet enough to give me a 15% off discount for being a repeat customer. Yes! Even without such a thoughtful gesture, Bethany genuinely seems (from the little information shared via her Etsy profile) like she has a love of people and creating (something I really respect). Oh, and she's speedy -- I got the earrings only a few days after I placed my order! As someone who's notoriously impatient, I love this.

I think these will be my next two purchases (and very soon...I just can't help myself):


Czech glass bead stud earrings - I actually bought these for my friend Kelley's birthday back in May, but I like them so much, I want a pair of my own.

We Make A Great Pear locket ring - ummmmmm...LOVE this.

Oh, Milk Money, you are so adorable that I don't even mind spending the little money I have on your pretty things that make me feel pretty in turn. :)

I hope everyone had a fun Halloween weekend! Mine was spent in Nacogdoches with Mitch and some friends, tailgating (Saturday) and recovering (Sunday). Neither Mitch nor I could come up with any great costume ideas, so we were pretty lame. To be fair, however, our friend Hogan was dressed as a male hula dancer and there was really no way anyone was going to top that.

Currently I'm trying to find a way to get the pictures off this camera. Halfway to Nac I realized I had forgotten mine, but luckily I was able to borrow Hogan's...which means I don't have the right cord(s) for uploading. Damnit. Don't worry, I haven't given up yet. I'm really hoping I can figure this out myself without having to drive (an hour away) to Hogan's.

Oh, and I wanted to share a link I saw yesterday on a blog I read, My Teacups in Peony. Apparently The Animal Rescue Site is having trouble getting enough people to click/donate daily so they can get enough free food donated for all the abused and neglected animals they take in. All you do is head over to their website and click on the purple box that says, "Click Here to Give - it's FREE!" One click provides roughly enough food for six animals, and you can visit/click every day! Anyway, I'm totally an animal (read: dog) person, and this really broke my heart. I've already visited yesterday and today! I'm so glad Nicole posted this for others to see.

All right, back to the task at hand: figuring out a way to get these damn pictures uploaded to my computer. Happy Monday, y'all, and happy first day of November!

twitterpated

Well, 'ello, Monday!

This weekend turned out to be muchhh better than I expected. Many thanks to sweetboyfriendpants Mitchell for coming into town and going on a super fun Friday night date with me. :) We grabbed delicious pizza at Grapevine's own Palio's Pizza Cafe (yum) followed by Chill Sports Bar on Main St. for beers and watching the Rangers win their spot in the WORLD SERIES. Perfection? Yes.

Saturday we worked out together at the Grapevine rec (oh, small-ish town, you are adorable) and then vegged out on the couches during the impromptu and very scary thunderstorms that took over the afternoon (there was even a tornado about six miles from my house!). In the evening, we ventured back to Mitch's mom's in Forney, spent time with his besties watching Inglorious Basterds, and crashed early in preparation for church in the morning. I was able to (accidentally) bond with Morgan, Mitch's little sister (well, she's a senior in high school, so not THAT little), on Sunday afternoon when we took the dogs for a walk and ended up having some heavy heart-to-hearts. I'll never say it to her face, but I love her to death and am really happy we've been growing close as of late.

I'm already excited for Friday when I'll head down to Nacogdoches for Stephen F. Austin's homecoming weekend! Last year's was so fun (Mitch and his roommates had a huge party at their place, complete with bounce house!) and I can't wait for the good times that are sure to be had this year.

All that stands in the way is this very lazy week, but I think I can handle that. First up? Heading to a middle school nearby to shoot their football team pictures! Cute. And, yikes, I have to leave in twenty minutes. Happy Monday, everyone!

the land of eternal youth

I'm leaving for College Station late this afternoon/early this evening and I'm so excited, I may vomit. I haven't been back since my brother's wedding which, I know, wasn't a long time ago, but the purpose of that trip wasn't to see my friends. And so I didn't really get to. Whereas...now I get to!

Things I'm Ecstatic About:

• LA. BO. DE. GA. Peach shakers!!
• Girlygirlfraaands (such as sweet Alex and silly Jordan!)
• The two bottles of wine in Jordan's fridge (and, let's be serious, probably some Mad Dog Bling Bling Blue Raspberry & blue Gatorade, my personal favorite)
• Northgate. Duh.
• Pool + margs + trashy gossip magazines
• Mostly drinking-related activities and adventures
• Hopefully spotting some 2014-ers and laughing at them (while secretly feeling old)

I'm trying to hurry and get all my tasks wrapped up here in Grapevine so I can be on my way as soon as possible. Ahhhhhhhh! I have got to get a grip, but seriously...being up in Dallas can feel so isolating sometimes, and I'm really just thankful to have the opportunity to spend time with my girls.

Oh, but the one thing I'm Not Ecstatic About Because I'm Missing Out On: Guys' Weekend in Nac.

Right, it would make sense I'm not participating in this since, well, I'm not a guy. But Mitch's friend Trevor dubbed me an honorary dude and I think that should count for something. Homeboy peed in front of me as I was putting on mascara in the bathroom. And chatted with me the entire time. I'm in the club for life.

things that (always) make me happy

My friends being trashclasstastic always brightens my day. Kisses!