A crafty life. (December 7)

Working on a project for someone I know. I'm giving it to this person as a gift. Since there is a SLIGHT chance that person will read my blog, I'm only posting a picture of part of the project. I will make an edit to this post with the finished project after I present it to my loved one.

If you have any guesses as to what it is, leave a comment!

Freeeeeeedom!!! (December 6)

One more test til freedom. Today was spent studying for this final exam. If you have any questions about the privatization of prison systems, just ask.

SOOOOOO much fun. Yes, sarcasm.

Things that make me sad. (December 5)

Two things I found today make me sad, and made me laugh a little.

That is what you think it is.

And THAT, is a Christmas ornament..... seriously.

Somedays I just miss him. (December 4)

That's all. I miss him. I'm so used to being around him, it's so weird to not see him everyday! It's even worse now that we don't have skype. I miss him, a lot. That's all.

Also, I know this is cheating since this picture wasn't taken today. But today was spent doing nothing other than this, so too bad!

I said I wanted a doggie! (December 3)

I want a puppy for Christmas. The problem: I don't really have a house to house a puppy. But that doesn't stop me from going "puppy shopping." A lot of shelters are putting pictures of their dogs online, and I found them!!!!

Here is the one I want. There is even a bigger problem with this one however, it's a version of a pit bull terrier and those aren't allowed in my boyfriend's apartment complex. Oh well, I still want her.

Time for a change! (December 2)

I have recently been wanting to change my look. Since a wardrobe makeover is expensive and cosmetic surgery is a little more permanent than I was thinking (plus, I would never get unnecessary cosmetic surgery), the hair it is!

My boyfriend has a thing for long hair, and a thing for brunettes. Well I'm a natural brunette but I don't like long hair. I told him a few months ago that I was going to grow my hair out so that he could see it long. I did that, well kinda. My hair is definitely longer than I like to keep it. Knowing that I wasn't a fan of my hair length, my boyfriend told me I should get it cut.

With that in mind, my mother and I decided to take a day to dye our hair. I picked a dye color called "medium golden chestnut brown." I assumed that the color would lighten my hair. Nope.
I love it, my boyfriend loves it AND I like it with my long hair! It was an excellent oops!

Before, during and after below:

Advent Season (December 1)

Since it is the first of December my mom and step-dad decided to bring two advent calendars over to my young cousins. John and Savannah are 5 and 4 years old respectively. The two of them were very excited to receive the chocolate behind door one! Hopefully they will continue to open only a door a day until Christmas!

There is a video uploaded on my facebook of the two dancing later in the evening.

Rusty with Savannah in all her cuteness.

A side note about the day. Don't you hate it when you finish all of the crossword puzzle but one freaking corner stumps you!?!?!?

Just call me Ms. Fix-it! (November 30)

The Christmas trees have been up in this house since the day after Thanksgiving. However, one of the trees is rather old and has dying lights and a completely dead light string. So, I spent an hour today replacing the dead lights. Yup, that was all I did today. Exciting!

I thought lying on the ground would create a greater dramatic effect. I was right!

Ah, Production! (November 29)

I don't know what to say about today other than, I'm awesome. The picture says it all.

Also, I very much like making lists.

Tres Leches Cake (November 28)

I hate cake. I really don't like it. It's dry and sugary and gross. That isn't sarcasm, I'm serious. So when discussing my wedding cake, I didn't really care, all I wanted was cheap (since I wasn't planning on eating it anyway).

But then, my mom saved the day, kinda. She was looking for ways to include my boyfriends heritage in our wedding and discovered the tres leches cake! [Tres leches means three milks]. This cake is moist and sweet and delicious!!!

We discovered a mexican bakery in Cary, not far from the wedding location that makes an amazing tres leches cake! He can do a three-tier verison of the cake for our wedding!!!! YAY! He let me take the sample home with me, soooooooo good!

As a side note, the peach was good too!

Black and White (November 27)

Ever since I got to North Carolina, I haven't stopped talking about my wedding! I'm not yet engaged, however my boyfriend and I have had several discussions about our future together. It has been decided that Ludwig and I will get married some day down the road. The benefit of knowing about the wedding far ahead of time is that I get all that time to PLAN!

I have to admit that my favorite part of any event is the planning and executing. However I think in the case of this event, I'm going to enjoy the result just as much, probably even more!!!

So in light of all this planning, my mother purchased a wedding planning notebook for me and I have filled it up with all my (and my mother's) wonderful ideas! The thing I have focused on the most is the budget, since I'm not planning on using credit to purchase anything for this wedding, I need to keep the price as low as possible.

Okay, okay, I can't detail all my plans here, plus I want most of you to be surprised!!

So all you get to see is the cover of the wedding planner!

Going Bowlin'!!! (November 26th)

For anyone who saw the State game this past weekend, you will appreciate the story that unfolds in the pictures below. For those who didn't see the game, I will provide captions.

I honestly thought this was going to be the best picture from the entire game. Can you find my brother Bryce?

This was the sad pathetic score at the half. I seriously wanted to cry. People left yelling obscenities at the field. It was humiliating.

Not sure how it happened, but the WolfPack came out of that locker room with a ferocity that no one had ever seen. This was the team the beat Clemson! This is the team I love!

See how I love them! 5 touchdowns in the 4th quarter. Seriously, if you missed this game, you missed the game of the decade!

Wolfpack for life baby!

TICKETS!!! (November 25th)

Normally Black Friday is a big day for me. Lots of shopping, lots of waiting in line, lots of running around like a chicken without a head. I found it exciting and even good exercise. My mother, sister and I would write what we wanted on note cards, send one person to hold a place in the line and the others would scour the store for our items. We thought we KNEW how to do it. This year however, I had all of my Christmas shopping done and my sister is the GM of a Gamestop (so of course she had to work). So instead of trying to get doorbusters alone, my mom went to bed and went shopping in the afternoon. As it turns out, NOT going Black Friday shopping is the way to do it! My mom even mentioned how shopping in the afternoon was so much better than fighting the crowds.

So, all that to say that all I did on Black Friday was ride to Apex with my mom to pick up three free tickets for the NCSU/Maryland game on Saturday. WOOOOO WHOOOO!

Read them and weep!

Turkey Day! (November 24th)

I have always loved Thanksgiving. (1) There is no other day of the year where it is socially accepted to get 5 plates of food. (2) It reminds me how blessed I am! And how thankful I am for this amazing life that I live! (3) It brings my WHOLE family together, and with a family as big as mine, that is hard to do!

I am just going to let the pictures speak for themselves.

We also got a huge announcement on Turkey Day. I am now going to be an aunt x2! Both Bailey AND Brianna are pregnant!

Pre-Thanksgiving Cooking (November 23rd)

Today I actually learned something (unlike all those days that I do school work on)! I learned how to cook the world's best Macaroni and Cheese as well as two different types of sweet potatoes (sweet and spicy). I took extensive notes on what to do while I watched (and tried to help) Jon Kremer cook like a master! Below are a few prep shots.

Spring Cleaning... a little early? (November 22)

So I couldn't sleep last night. I'm really not sure why, but I couldn't. After talking to my boyfriend for several hours after he got of work, I just could NOT go to sleep. So, I did a little cleaning. Here are before and after shots of my handi-work in my parents kitchen!

Fridge before:

Fridge after:

Pantry before:

Pantry after:

Bed of Nails (November 21st)

Nope, I'm not joking. Well maybe just a little. Ever since I got here (that being NC) I have had a lot of back pain. Eventually it got so bad I was willing to try anything to get rid of the pain. Sitting hurt, standing hurt, lying down hurt, bending over REALLY hurt. So while I was talking to my mom about it, she put on her, "ohhhhhh I know what will help, but you aren't gonna like it" look. Yes, she has one of those.

She brought the bed of nails into my bedroom and told me to lay down on it. It felt weird but really wasn't that painful. When I got up, HUGE relief. The pain wasn't gone but it was definitely better. Below is a picture of the "nails," there are over 6,000 of those little spikes on the mat, but totally worth it!

After feeling the relief, I purchased one from Amazon and sent it to my boyfriend. He has a slipped disk in his back and deals with horrible back pain on a daily basis. He never complains about it (he is one tough cookie!) but any possible relief is worth a shot. Just heard that it helped him quite a bit too! So thankful for that little miracle mat!

Is Increased Incarceration Worth the Cost? (November 20th)

Sunday, the day ALL of my school work is due and of course I don't start until the day it's due, or close to it. This week, a paper on increased incarceration rates; exciting, I know.

I won't post my paper here for two reasons. (1)You never know when someone is going to accuse you of allowing someone to cheat off of you. (2) It's really boring.
If for some reason you would actually like to read the paper (I got a 94% on it!) let me know and I will e-mail it to you.

Love Actually (November 19th)

Tonight was a Christmas/Romantic movie night at my friend Sarah's. I had never seen the movie Love Actually, so we rented it for only 52 cents at Blockbuster (that's a Friday and Saturday deal through the holidays, might want to check it out!) I enjoyed the movie, but it was not my favorite as it is Sarah's.

Yes, I have Twilight fever. (November 17th-18th)

It's true. However, I do want to qualify that statement. Not because I want to say I don't have it, I most definitely do, but I do not much enjoy the movies. I saw the first movie in theaters at least 10 times with my sister when my first boyfriend broke up with me. Shortly after seeing it, my sister and I both realized it was a book series and got hooked immediately! I very much enjoy the books and have re-read them a few times (minus the boring parts in New Moon). However, I don't own any of the movies and probably won't watch them again. I will finish the movie series, out of principle.

The best part about this night however is that I got to see the movie with my good friend Sarah Sugg! We cracked jokes and made comments throughout the movie and even went to enjoy a cookout milkshake afterwards. It was definitely worth the 10 bucks for the experience.

I'm honestly not sure what Sarah is doing....

Also, we were NOT the only ones who took a picture with the poster!

My first cook-out run since being back in NC!

In the Belly of the Beast (November 16th)

While this might sound like a really interesting title for a blog. It really isn't. All I did today was work on school work. Another one of those days. I will note here though that the book I am reading for my American Prisons class is interesting. In the Belly of the Beast by Jack Henry Abbott is not for the faint of heart, but it definitely provides a new perspective on the life inside prison. Jack Henry Abbott is a convict that has spent all but 6 weeks of his adult life in the prison system. He started his criminal career in his youth and hasn't seen much of the American public other than the 6 weeks he escaped from prison.

Like I said, not for the faint of heart, the author does not use a filter in his writing, but if you are looking for an interesting or challenging read, pick this one up.
(I also want to note that Abbott does not speak well of the 'pigs'. He is referring to the prison staff, particularly the guards. I do not subscribe to his beliefs and this book should be read with a discerning eye.)

Happy Birthday Savannah! (November 15)

Today contained an interesting surprise. Rusty's brother and his wife have two young children who attend a daycare/school during the day till about 3pm. I think that's a pretty normal situation in most families, what was interesting today was that on her way to pick up her children, Amy's (the mother) van had a tire rod break. Obviously she couldn't drive with a broken tire rod, so several missed phone calls later, someone finally got ahold of my mother and I and we jumped to the rescue. Well, I jumped, my mom stood up like a normal person.

Anyway, the added surprise today was that it was the little girl's birthday! She is now 4! Below is a picture of her with her new dolly!

Happy 4th Birthday Savannah!

Don't you love the smell of perm in the morning? (November 14)

Well it wasn't exactly morning, in fact it was the opposite, but that didn't make for a catchy title. Over the years my mother, sister and I have all gotten perms. All of us have flat, straight, fine and thin hair so it helps to give us a boost. Also, I just love curls. I'm not sure when I first started doing my mom's perms, but I have given her several over the past few years. Obviously, it is difficult to give someone a perm when you live 3000 miles away from them, so on my 2-month stint here, it was a requirement.

The idea was that I would give my mom a perm and she would give me one. The only problem with said plan is that my boyfriend has a thing for straight hair. While he very explicitly told me that it's my hair and I can do what I want with it, I decided to keep it straight. Aren't I a good girlfriend?

Below are the during and post perm pictures, all pre-color (that will come another day).

Champagne colored Sperrys anyone? (November 13)

Today was an awesome day! I got to spend it with my favorites from college, Dana Miller and Sarah Sugg. Oh how I missed them. I won't confuse you with the details of our day here, but suffice it to say, I love those gals!

Dana is getting married at the end of March 2012. I get the supreme honor of being one of her bridesmaids. Sarah is going to be her maid of honor! So while we were spending time together today, we decided to do a little shoe shopping for the big day! As Dana was laying out the guidelines for our champagne colored shoes, Sarah and I were, let's just say, not being helpful. We made a joke about wearing Uggs as a wedding prank and then another about champagne colored Sperrys (hey! it works under the color guidelines!) We did not realize however that the Sperrys we laughed about actually exist AND they were on clearance (probably because no one bought them).

We exhausted our shoe options and decided to do a little other shopping. Somehow we ended up in a Hallmark looking for earrings? While the Hallmark did not have the jewelry we were looking for, it did have a source of entertainment for us. Below you can see Sarah and Dana turning around all UNC emblazoned decorations as well as a Ram that is no longer with us...
All I have to say is Go Pack! The three of us most definitely bleed red!

Again I shall say, oh how I miss these girls!

In need of a yard sale! (November 12)

For those of you that have never visited my mother's yard sales, you are missing out. She had seven children, none of which live in her house anymore. This means that everything we left behind, is hers to sell. And let me tell you, there is a LOT of it!

I managed to get a before shot:

And a shot of our progress, all those boxes are full of yard sale items!

Organization Extravaganza! (November 11)

Today might have been lots of work just like yesterday, but this kind of work, I enjoy. I'm really thinking I should be a professional organizer. Whether I'm good at organizing or not, I sure do love it! We started on the mountain of papers that stacks up in everyone's "To Do" pile.
Here is our box system.

After we put a size-able dent in the stack of To Do's, we went to Red Robin and I celebrated with a Mint Brownie milkshake. Insider Tip: Get the gingerbread shake instead... too much brownie in this one. Plus the gingerbread will rock your socks off!

You gotta do what you gotta do. (November 10)

Some days aren't so much of an adventure. Today, is one of those days. I spent all day and most of the night doing homework. Really, I'm not kidding. That's it. Well, I guess I ate in there to, but probably next to my computer or textbook doing more homework. Here is my exciting picture of today!

Thrilling, huh?

Dancing with the stars! (November 9)

Today I spent the day with my sister and brother-in-law. They both had the day off, so we thought some time together would be nice. Our adventure for the day was by far one of the funniest I have had (yes, I know I have only been doing this for a few days). We played baseball, tennis, darts and even had a dance competition. I caught quite a bit of this on video, but a certain someone in a few of the videos, won't let me post them here.

Here are a few of the best pictures. (I really need a good camera, my phone can't take a decent picture when light or movement are involved).

Baseball with Jon, tie game due to the world's most amazing fake catch.

Shake it momma!