Goodbye Adolescence!

I'm only going to be a teenager for a few more days and I feel oddly sentimental about it. I really am excited to not be a teenager anymore though, I feel older than that and being called a "teen" just doesn't sound right to me anymore.

But, it is kind of weird to think that I'm growing up. To people reading this who are in their 20's and on up, I bet this sounds really silly to you but, I'm just kind of a sentimental person! I can honestly say though, that I appreciated my teen years and soaked it all up. I learned those "pivotal" lessons (how to drive, how yelling & screaming will not make your parents let you go somewhere, how to pluck eyebrows...etc.) and I know I still have growing up to do...but now it's the BIG stuff. What career path should I take? Where should I move after college? How should I handle x/y/z?  

As much as I'm excited to grow up (I never really will though), there are times when I'm facing more "big girl" decisions where I wish my only worries were about who will ask me to Prom or who I'll hang out with next weekend.  

So, as a proper send off to my teen years, lets re-live some moments. The good, the bad and the ugly. 

Kind of hard to see but this was my 8th grade birthday party...

 

Me with my darling car when I was newly 16...

Me and my mom in NYC...

The beginning of my senior year of highschool...

Me and one of my dearest friends, Christine, at Senior Prom...

I graduated Highschool!...

Outside of my dorm at Mizzou (oh the horror, the HORROR!)...

Sarah and I at bid day this year! (she's the same redhead from the 1st picture) I'd say we have both grown up nicely...

And finally, this is (not) me now...

 

ahh, I love her 

 Toot-a-loo teens and hello twenties!

*Today I'm grateful for the smell of laundry fresh out of the dryer*

What Can I Say?

The Royal Wedding is over, I laughed, I cried, I did a little jig when Prince William said, "You look beautiful" to Kate and when Kate said, "I'm so happy!" to William after the ceremony.  

So far, these are the best pictures I've found.

My friend Sarah and I decided it was all we could think about today.

But now, finals are approaching and I have lots of studying to do this weekend. However, my birthday is in FOUR days and I'm going to see Arcade Fire in FIVE days!

*Today I'm grateful ABC streamed the Royal Wedding live online so I never had to get out of bed*

I've Succumbed to The Royal Wedding Hype.

Isn't it funny how many people (including me, most likely) will happily wake up at 4 am to watch the Royal Wedding, but if asked to wake up at 4 am for any other occasion would probably gripe?

I just think it's funny, but all in good fun!

I don't care if people don't "care" about the Royal Wedding. Despite the criticism, I'm excited about watching it! It is a small part of history, but I think many people can relate to their romance in a way. On top of that, who doesn't like a good wedding?? I'm sure it would be more cultured of me to be a cynic about all this but I honestly like all this Royal Wedding hype. Hey, at least this is a joyous event to look forward to when many other terrible things are happening in the world!

Also, if you were marrying into royalty wouldn't you want to have a kick-ass wedding too? I would.

So cousin Kate, I wish you and Wills a lovely wedding, I'll be in my dorm room, eating cereal bars and wearing pajama pants thousands of miles away, but I WILL be watching!

(Is it weird that I kinda hope she cries at her wedding?)

 

*Today I'm grateful for triscuits and cheddar cheese slices, yum*

Happy East-over (Easter/Passover)

I have absolutely no pictures but that is ok, for I feel very, very fat and do not want my chubby bod posted on the interweb. 

So this weekend at home has been glorious, lots of family & food...and then more food. 

I celebrated Passover on Saturday night and ate my weight in brisket & carrot mold (it's good, I swear). 

Then today I celebrated Easter for the first time! Growing up we had the "Passover Lamb" who brought us eggs but I've never had a traditional Easter before and it was so fun!  

I was lucky enough to spend both holidays with my favorite people. Today's Easter lunch was at a Lake house and it was so nice to be by the water. I threw the football around with Travis & then we rode the segway. 

This evening was spent watching Bravo and eating chocolate while a storm rumbled outside my house. I feel so very blubbery. I usually do not stress too much about weight, I've been there, done that, but my goodness, my arms feel like sausages hanging out of my shoulders and I've been pregnant with a food baby since Thursday night. I don't even remember what vegetables taste like. 

Enough of boring posts without real pictures. I hope everyone had a happy holiday weekend, no matter what religion, we are all blessed to be on this earth! 

*Today, I am grateful for love from friends & family*

I Really Hope I'm Related to Kate Middleton.

 

Image from People Magazine 

I'll admit it, I love Kate Middleton. Who doesn't? She's gorgeous, seems relatively normal and she's marrying a Prince! Here's the thing though, I think I may be related to her and I'm not even joking! 

You see, my Grandmother's maiden name is Middleton and her family came to the U.S from Great Britain so obviously, we must be cousins! 

And seriously, our resemblance is uncanny: 

This is me, on a windy day:

 
Image from the NY Daily News

Ok lame joke (that's not me for those of you who didn't get that) I know but I really do want to find out if we are distantly related. I will definitely be one of those people watching the live coverage of the Royal Wedding on TV. 

*Today I'm grateful for homemade gnat traps*

Attack of the Gnats.

For some reason or another, I am having a gnat "issue" in my place. 

It started out as a few annoying little buggers but now, I see as many as six of them in my room. 

It was time to take action. 

I tried a couple of things like putting honey on the rim of a bottle to attract them to it and then drown. But, no, no luck was had. So now I've pulled out the big guns. I haven't taken a picture of it but basically, I filled a cup with apple cider vinegar and some dish-soap. Then I covered the cup with cling wrap and poked holes in it so the gnats can fly in but not out. They will hopefully drop into the vinegar-soap pool where the gooey soap will trap them and the vinegar will singe them. I. Can't. Wait.   

Then, I poured bleach down my drains and let it sit for about 20 minutes (this is safe, I looked it up) just in case they laid eggs in mah sink. EWWWWW.

All of this was found on the internet by the way. I don't want to use chemicals so lets all cross our fingers and say a prayer (because gnats are very annoying) that in the morning, I will wake up to floating dead gnats. It will just start my day off right. 

*Today I'm grateful for a good cheeseburger and curly fries from "Fatburger"* 

Countdowns.

49 days until I start summer school classes. 

23 days until summer.  

15 days until I go see Arcade Fire.

14 days until my birthday. 

3 days until I go home for the weekend!  
5 hours until I get to give math-major-man-friend a hug.
4 hours until I get to see friends at Chapter.
0 hours until I will eat peanut butter (now).

Those are some good countdowns if you ask me. I've got some great things to look forward too!

Side-note: I will never get tired of flower pictures.

*Today I am grateful for...everything*

Pajama Queen.

We are all Queens of something, my mother was the "Sonic Queen"in high school. Arguably, my mother and I both share the title of "JD's Queen"...we wear many crowns. Alright, enough with that analogy, I love pajamas!

I'm currently wearing these(don't my abs look fab?):

 

From Target 

And I'm also not afraid to wear flannel sets in the winter time as seen here... 

Exhibit A:

 

(yes, I am 5 years old) 

I think pajama-wearing greatly improves quality of life and I will always be a supporter of days when you never get out of your pajamas. Target has the best PJ's by the way. 

Step One: Go to Target and buy PJ's (along with some socks from the $1 bin, my favorite!) 

Step Two: Go home, put them on and sit. 

Step Three: Continue to sit. If food is somehow involved that is a major plus.

Yes, this is actually my life. 

*Today, I'm grateful for a good nights sleep*

Tina+Erin=BFFeaeaeaea...

Right now, I am reading THIS: 

 

That's right, Tina Fey wrote a memoir. If you are a fan of her humor, have spent the majority of your life experiencing awkward moments and think the cover is funny, then read this book! I can't stop laughing.I feel like this book is my life story, so far she has talked about growing up as a theater geek, high school boyfriends who dropped her like a hot cake for the "pretty girls" and how her father is a badass... and I'm not even halfway through it yet! This is a great, fun read.

My Friday is off to a grand start, I started my 3-day weekend by doing nothing but sleeping and watching shows on hulu. Please do the same. 

*Today I'm grateful for Tina Fey*

Can't Think of a Good Title.

So I was looking through the pictures I have on my iPhone from this school year and thought I'd share a few.

I laughed about this for a good long while...

 

My wig from when I dressed up as Mia Wallace...

Marie holding up the kite that we made, look at that grin...

After exams were over last semester, Travis and I went out to dinner, he was very excited...

 

This one just plain cracks me up, I love my brother!

 

My future roommate, scary right? Nah, she's a good egg...

 

Well, that's about all I have for you today! I'll keep takin' pictures if you 4 readers keep reading! 

*Today I'm grateful for the guy at old navy who forgot to charge me for one of the shirts I bought, thanks guy!*

Nom Nom Nom.

As I have mentioned in an earlier post, I think nutrition and all that wacky super healthy stuff is really interesting. I'm no vegan/vegetarian or any "an" for that matter. I just try to eat well and most of the time I'm pretty good at it. 

Ok, so long story short, look what I tried today! 

 

Image courtesy of thebalancedbroad.com 

I tried the top one, "Luscious Lemon Poppyseed Cookie" it was delicious!! It was soft but not too soft, it tasted like a lemon poppyseed muffin but in cookie form. And guess what friends! It was vegan! Don't stop reading yet! I honestly couldn't taste the difference between a regular cookie and this one. It has no eggs, no cholesterol, no dairy, no honey, no refined sugar, no animal products and no trans fats. 

Now, it is still not the healthiest option but it sure is better then all the processed crap! Read about Alternative Baking Company here. There are a bunch of yummy looking flavors. 

And for my College Station friends, I got this at Hastings on Texas Ave. 

*Today I'm grateful for Professors who cancel Friday class, thus giving me a 3-day weekend* 

WHY am I awake at 3:15 am?!

The answer to this question? I have no clue. 

But first things first, I have been sleeping horribly for the past week. So, in response, I am not having any coffee this week. At all...ok well except maybe Wednesday before my test. 

Tommorrow,er,today, I'm going to do laundry and study. Also, I am craavvvinnggg a Jamba Juice smoothie so I think that is happening. 

Off to dreamland. There's no way this post won't be weird when I look at it again tomorrow. 

Terrence is Stealing My Heart.

 

Terrence Malick is starting to climb up my list of favorite directors, we just watched his 1978 film "Days of Heaven" with Richard Gere and I realized this was the same director of the film whose trailer I've been drooling over for months, "The Tree of Life" 

But first, some background. 

Terrence Malick is a native Texan! He was raised in Waco, TX working on oil fields. He has a real tie to his roots and has filmed many of his movies (including "The Tree of Life") in Texas. This guy films in the exact way I wish I could. His shots are stunning and so well composed. He also really knows how to use a good score to his advantage. On top of that, he is known to be elusive because he wants the audience to create their own opinion on his work. He doesn't want to defend and answer it in interviews. I love this about him, so dedicated to his art. We need more directors like him. 

I could go on and on but I'll let this trailer speak for itself. Every time I watch it, my heart races a little! I'm not ashamed to admit, I teared up a little when I first saw it in theaters, and this is just the trailer! I sure hope it lives up to the hype I've created.

*Today I'm grateful for films that inspire me*

Giggin' It!

Today's post is dedicated to the Aggie Women's Basketball Team! 

In case you've been hiding under a rock, they won the finals last night in a really close game against Notre Dame making it the first Women's championship for A&M! 

And if you want to see Coach Blair teaching the world how to dougie... 

*Today I am grateful I go to such a great school!*

Find the Positive.

I, like most humans have failed at various points in my life. 

I have failed a test, failed to be my best self, failed to be a good friend/daughter/girlfriend, failed to act like an adult...and so on and so forth. 

However, something I forget, along with a heaping load of people, is that there is always positivity in failure. I have many examples of this but most recently, I was trumped by Math 142 and had to drop the course. Not a huge blow to most, but to me, it really hurt because I have never failed in a class so much as I did in Math. I had people tutor me, I stayed up late studying, I talked to my teacher, but ultimately I failed. And when you can't logically place the blame on anyone but yourself, that hurts the most.  

But the positive, is that I failed while trying my hardest. I know for a fact that I SUCKED at that class, I don't have to think about the "what if's" at all. I also have decided that to fill that extra chunk of time, I should really try to keep up with this blog, not to make it some huge site but because it's fun! Now I can blog, volunteer and do really well in my other classes. I'm in no way saying that its easy for me to find the positive in everything but boy is it a great feeling when I do!

Anyways, I know this is a stressful point in the semester as it is winding down. Decisions are being made, grades are going up or down etc. But I hope everyone (including me) remembers to always look at the positive even when it's a struggle, it is there! 

*Today I am grateful for cookies...cause they're just good*

  

Weekend Recap.

*Warning: Picture Heavy Post!*

What a fabulous weekend this has been! 

It came at the perfect time too, just after I found out I have to drop my Math 142 class. I couldn't have stayed bummed for long after this fun weekend. 

First, Pike's Pit!! I got to eat yummy BBQ and hang out with some of my favorites. 

And I had to throw this last one in, because it cracks me up!

 

Then, I got to see a great band, Best Coast, for free!! It was a small show, but it got kinda crazy! Cops were involved and I caught some of the madness on video, which I will add.  Listen to her tunes here.

But wait, there's a little more! Tonight I went to an open mic poetry reading! It takes place at a hidden little bar in downtown Bryan and I will definitely be going back. Every person that got up and read a poem spoke from their hearts, actually this may deserve it's own post :) 

Well, I am pooped after doing all of this, I need a good nights sleep! 

*Today, I'm grateful at least a few people "get" me*

Foolishness.

I am not the biggest fan of April fools day. Why? Well it's because I am so gullible. I believe a lot of things...wait, that sounded weird. Let me re-phrase, when someone delivers a completely inaccurate story/fact in a convincing way, I fall for it every time. 

This is a good example that happened to me my senior year of high school (shout-out Stephen Houghton who probably doesn't remember this!) 

Stephen:(with a totally straight face) Erin, did you hear about how FedEx and UPS are like, merging together? 

Me: uhh..no, but I mean thats cool! 

Stephen: Yeah, it's actually a really big deal, they are trying to come up with a whole new image. 

Me: Wow thats actually kinda weird 

Stephen: I know, and guess what their new name is? 

Me: What? 

Stephen: FedUP!! 

Me: Hm, thats cool, kinda evenly combining the old names 

Stephen: (dropped jaw, obviously realizing I totally fell for it) 

Me: OOOOHHH!!! Oh my gosh I'm so gullible!  

That's usually what I say every time. Happy April fools day, but don't forget to cut some slack for us gullible people, cause it ain't fun to become the butt of a joke.

*Today, I'm grateful no one pulled a prank on me...or maybe they did?*