Vacation!

Today is my Friday. It's so nice to think that while I woke up this morning in my bed, tonight I will fall asleep near the ocean!

{photo credit}

Corolla Beach, here I come!!

The Goat Man

I tend to get extremely wrapped up in the fall spirit, and one thing that I love doing is learning about local ghost stories and legends. My favorite past time lately has been sharing these stories through gchat with my friend Denise while we're supposed to be working. For example, yesterday we spent an entire 30 minutes talking about alien abductions and the day before that I was telling her about some hauntings I read about in Virginia. Our favorite subject: The Goat Man...

No matter what we start talking about, the conversation always comes back to this creepy figure. I first learned about him when we were visiting our friend Gina. She lives several miles from the site where he has been spotted {Cry Baby Bridge}, and even went there one night to find him herself. We huddled around her, cheap beer in hand, and she told us the tale of this beast - half goat and half man.

Nobody knows what he is or how he came to be, but people began reporting sitings in the 1950's. Believers of the legend claim that the Goat Man carries an axe and uses it to violently kill his prey, grunting and screaming like the devil himself. People have found dogs and other small animals in the area and credit their deaths to the Goat Man. Also, several hikers in the area have gone missing and many believe that this creature is to blame. He also preys on young couples in parked cars.

The Goat Man is probably the scariest thing I could ever imagine seeing. There's even a movie coming out that I must see -- check out the trailer here.

I don't know what it is about these stories, but I can't get enough of them! Do you have any creepy legends in your neck of the woods??



pictures aren't loading onto my blog... bummer.

umm... is it just me or is anyone else having a hard time with the new picture up-loader? ugh... maybe it's my work computer...

ANYWAY! I just wanted to share something with you that a friend e-mailed me this morning. It's a blog post that you can find here called "The Disease Called Perfection." Honestly, I have been having a really crummy week so far {i know, a little dramatic considering it's only Tuesday} and I was sitting here feeling sorry for myself when I read this -- Totally. Changed. My. Perspective. Seriously!

I hate how it's always super easy to list things that you'd like to change about yourself and then when it comes to thinking of things you like... well... that's a whole different story. I've been pretty hard on myself lately, especially my body, and I think a lightbulb just went off and I realized that life is too short and I have it too good to spend the majority of my time picking on myself.

On a different note, this weekend I was watching a TV Show about Alien Encounters. When I was little I used to hope and pray that I would be abducted by an alien and once I even went to school and pretended that a scar I had on my stomach was proof that I had been experimented on. Wow, I was a creepy kid. But for that day -- I was popular! Hah.. Anyway, last night I was laying in bed thinking about how badly I wanted that to happen and realized that being abducted and experimented on isn't really that cool, it's actually pretty damn scary and probably hurts really bad {one lady claims they shoved a 5 inch pole into her BELLY BUTTON!} Bottom line: I had alien nightmares last night. Not cool because now I am super tired at work.

I've been counting down since Sunday night....

it's finally here....Happy Friday!

What are you doing this weekend??

[i'm going on a mini-vacay next weekend... so looking forward to a 4 day work week!]

Sunshiney Day :)

Today I was awkwardly sitting in my office, eating popcorn with my office pet -Sebastian the Hermit Crab- [he loves popcorn and doritos] when I noticed something..... I was given my second blog award ever by the lovely Michele! Wow, thanks for such an awesome surprise! Check her out... she's pretty cool and just posted a hilarious story about a recent confrontation with a cockroach!!!



Here are the rules:

[one.] Show off your sunshiney award

[two.] Pass the love on to 12 special bloggers

[three.] Link the people, of course!

[four.] Let them know that they have been awarded with an awesome comment.

[five.] Share the love and link to the person you received the award from.

My picks include brand new bloggers that I simply cannot stop obsessing over.

[1] http://muchomuchobuenobueno.blogspot.com/ 

so many awesome things that I can barley get any boring office work done!

[2] http://joannagoddard.blogspot.com/

how can one look so flawless after just giving birth to one heck of an adorable baby?!

[3] http://crowleyparty.blogspot.com/

i love discovering other young married couples - she has a cute etsy shop too... check it out!

[4] http://racheldenbow.blogspot.com/

another ridiculously hot mom with a really cool sense of style!

[5] http://busybeelauren.blogspot.com/

another ridiculously cool married chick, check out her recent post showing off her awesome pad!

[6] http://aurajoon.blogspot.com/

this chick always has the best photos and i am forever envious of her humungo, rainforest-like garden

[7] http://amberandgang.blogspot.com/

this girl is the cutest... i love every single outfit in her closet!

[8] http://orchidgrey.blogspot.com/

i literally just found this blog several hours ago and ever since discovery, i cannot stop drooling over her clothes -- majority from the thrift store! teach me your ways!

[9] http://talk2thetrees.blogspot.com/

if you want to get in the mood for halloween, you have to read this blog! i think her obsession with creepy and scary things is just about the same as mine! not to mention, her hats are so comfortable that i practically live in mine!

[10] http://tallasgrass.blogspot.com/

i just really, really love this blog! she is amazingggg!

[11] http://emmyhermes.blogspot.com/

this awesome chicka just celebrated her birthday! give her some lovin'!

[12] http://tmango7.blogspot.com/

ask her about oliver.... cutest. story. ever.

Sebastian wanted to tell everyone congratulations, but his mouth is full of popcorn. Enjoy your award and I hope it brightened your day as much as it did mine!

to do list: fall style.

Technically, my calendar says that fall officially starts tomorrow...

...however, everyones posts about the start of the season are making it too hard to wait an extra 24 hours.

Here is my to do list for my absolute FAVORITE season ever, Fall:

1. Go Apple Picking here with her

2. Meet some local ghosts & goblins here

3. Drink plenty of this

4. Stock up on at LEAST 10 pumpkins here

5. Dress up for Halloween in this, this and this

6. Dress up my doggies in this and this 

7. Warm up in this

8. Get spooked out of my mind here

9. Snuggle, Snuggle, Snuggle with a cozy blanket, my sexy husband, and this

10. Feel the leaves crunch under my feet while wearing these 

Best season ever!!!

What will you do to celebrate fall?



Nature, Family & Food.

This weekend was relaxing {minus the 14 hour migraine Saturday & Sunday in which I wanted to D.I.E.}. When I got home from work on Friday I got into one of my "cleaning freak outs" and went around the loft with my bleach bottle for about 3 1/2 hours. This tends to happen every few weeks and for some reason I do it whenever I'm extremely stressed out - Sean knows by now to stay out of my way. I finished the night off with pizza and a movie in my pajamas. Perfect.

Sean's cousin and her family came into town from North Carolina, and we decided to get together and visit Maymont Park with their little baby, Elizabeth. We had so much fun talking and laughing that I almost didn't realize the exercise we were getting as we walked up and down hills for two hours. Mental Note: Should have left the cute boots at home.

Anyway, here are some pics I snapped on our little adventure:



trees are always my favorite subject.

the piggy's are my favorite!

Happy Girl!

Sean testing his wing span...pretty impressive!

We could not have asked for nicer weather!

Yesterday I was so bummed because I woke up and my head was still throbbing. All week I have been craving this Chicken Crescent Ring that my mom used to make us growing up and I was dying to share it with Sean and my in-laws. Luckily, my migraine finally went away and we called Sean's parent's over for a nice dinner --

I Cooked...



Can you believe how yummy this looks? I was so happy because everyone knows I'm not the best cook, and we all went back for seconds! You can find the recipe that I used here, and there are sooooo many different ways to make this.

So dang yummy!!!

{so proud I didn't burn the loft down or poison anyone!}

What did you do this weekend?

A Very Fall Friday :)

Payday always reminds me -without fail- that I am, indeed, a grown up. However, I still managed to treat myself to my very first Pumpkin Latte of the season. Oh, and I picked up an Apple Fritter for the hell of it... I deserve it!
 {wish I could transport this smell over the internet, to.die.for.}

I was reading one of my favorite blogs today, and Boho Girl mentioned an e-mail that she got this morning. It said:

When we say no, or when we follow our dreams or true callings - people might be "disappointed" in our choices.

Allowing people their disappointment sets us free.

I really, really needed to hear this. Funny how this made me feel a little more confident this morning. You can't control people's emotions... you can't make them happy or excited just because you are. But that can't keep you from feeling that way.

I'm a people pleaser. If you're also a bit of a push over, you can relate. I've made some decisions lately for my family that others have been less than thrilled at.... but it's time to let it go. They are allowed to be disappointed, and I am allowed to be free. Plus, I'm starting to be totally convinced that some people aren't happy unless others are unhappy...

Happy Friday, hope you find a way to treat yourself today - you deserve it!



Date Night!

I know, I know... married couples are supposed to set aside one day of the week for a "date night." I'll be honest... Sean & I don't do this. We go out during the week, but it's always with our group of friends. I love my groups of friends, but it was really fun hanging out together by ourselves {it also helps that he payed!}. It was also a really great night because I ate wings for the very first time in my entire life!!!

I had so much fun looking at all the flavors and choosing which ones we wanted! We tried Spicy Garlic, Medium, Teriyaki, and Honey BBQ. The obvious favorites were the Spicy Garlic & Medium {those were the ones we were fighting over, anyway!} but final verdict? Too messy for my taste, and way too much sauce.

I'm pretty sure I looked like a freak last night. Desperate to keep my hands clean, I was constantly licking my fingers and wiping them on a growing pile of dirty napkins - using ice cubes as a make-shift sink. Oh, and I was also "cleaning off" the wings with too much sauce by wiping them down with a napkin. Pretty sure there were more than several evil stares. But, nevertheless we had so much fun - looks like there will be many more date nights in the future!



Trekkie At Heart!

Things have been quiet around here on the blog. And trust me, I am not complaining! I am enjoying this quiet week, with nothing whatsoever going on in my life. A friend sent me this and I had to share it -- I am a die hard Star Trek fan and think it's hilarious!!!

I think it's so funny to watch old TV shows and movies because the effects are so dated! We've really come a long way! What shows did you watch growing up?



in love with fall.

Fall is my favorite season, and Halloween is *by far* my most favorite holiday. We don't have any windows in our loft, only sky lights... and it's mornings like today where I wish I could lie in bed with the windows open. I want to curl up with a Pumpkin Latte while listening to a cool breeze and leaves blowing around. I can't wait for the air to get a little cooler, and for cardigans to be a must everywhere I go -- not that we haven't worn them all summer in our house... we love cardigans! Here is a little fall inspiration, I know I need it this morning!

{so excited for homecoming next month, i miss the mountains this time of year!}

all photos found at weheartit.com

'don't ask, don't tell'

I need to stop reading the comments about this. It's ruining my perfect dream of a perfect world that is probably never going to exist anywhere except for inside my imagination. A world where people love without conditions, and where fear doesn't breed hate but only a cause for a deep conversation which leads to deeper understanding. Every time I hear a racist or homophobic slur I literally feel my heart breaking a little bit more. I feel physical pain and nausea. And I wonder, why are we doing this to one another. Why are we moving three steps backwards before even taking one step forward.

I don't think I will ever be able to understand why we as human beings are so afraid of others who are living different paths. Because that's what this is: heated, overwhelming, ugly fear. And I think to myself, over and over and over and over, trying to make sense of it all, but I can't. Should we really punish people for loving. And how can we dictate to another person who is okay and not okay to spend their lives with. How are there so many rules, and who is really in charge here? Forcing the paths we must all blindly follow. No questions asked.

This morning my husband told me that the 'don't ask, don't tell' law had finally been ruled unconstitutional. I felt a very large, uncomfortable lump in my throat. So many things wanted to be said... but I couldn't form the words to make a sentence which reflects what I feel. But I did feel very sick, because the first thought that came into my mind was what if now there are more hate crimes. What if. Taking one step forward, three steps back. Because it's not always safe to be yourself when you're surrounded by blood thirsy animals, craving to feast on anything different or unique.

Why are people so hell bent on fighting for the sanctity of marriage when in reality we don't seem to cherrish marriage at all. People get married, divorced, cheat, lie, steal. No big deal, if you're straight. And are we really ready to look another person in the eye and say "You can't be with that person, and if you do it anyway you will most surely burn in hell." Is that even a sane?

I can't wrap my mind around the reality that some people really believe that if a person is openly gay and in the military soldiers will suffer and all hell will break loose. Oh, and transgendered people... forget about it. No way. They hide beind their computer screens and their bibles and their fear and hate pours out of their mouths like lava. And this community still wants to risk their lives so that you and I can enjoy our freedom. The freedom that we have so wrongly taken from them. In my opinion, these are the heros -- they protect us, even though we hate them and condem them to hell. They leave their families and fight for our country, even though we mock them and spit on them and beat them down until they are nothing.

Enough is enough.

ughhh my puppy won't stop peeing in the house!!!

Look at this face. Such a cute, innocent looking puppy... right?

PETE WILL NOT STOP PEEING AND POOPING IN THE HOUSE!!!!!

It's absolutley driving me nuts. We previously lived in an apartment and have since moved to a much bigger loft, which has an upstairs and a downstairs. Mr. Pete {Princess, as we like to call him - for obvious reasons} thinks it's cute to sneak downstairs in the middle of the night and poop all over the floor -- the floor that I have to bleach and mop and scrub every.single.day! It's disgusting and annoys the crap out of me... this morning I even told him I was giving him back, then of course felt bad and appologized. Has anyone else dealt with this? He's 2 years old and just started doing this about 6 months ago.

Then, there's my 70 pound boxer Samson. He likes to pee on the door every time I leave to get the mail or let some one in from downstairs....... I used to think it was cute, like awww Samson gets so upset when I leave that he pees. No longer cute. But that's an entirely different rant...

We crate our dogs during the day, and I was hoping to experiment with leaving them out. But no way am I doing that if my beautiful loft is going to turn into a giant toilet!!!

Happy Birthday....

...to the best dad in the universe!!!

Sometimes I'm convinces that my dad is the best dad.

Crab Tree Falls..

I feel like I haven't blogged in a while. I love long weekends, but I often miss the opportunity to sit in front of my computer screen and spill my emotions. This weekend I went camping, and it was literally the breath of fresh air that I so badly needed. As I drove in between and up and back down the mountains, I reached for my little iphone to snap a memory. I went to college in the mountains, and I didn't realize how much I missed being surrounded by them. This whole weekend made me think about how badly it feels to be so far away from nature when I'm living in the city. I need to make more of an effort.

I left for Crab Tree Falls in a bit of a funk. I have been dealing with a lot of drama lately that has made it hard for me to focus on much else, and the further away I got from home it seemed like the further I got away from that negative energy. Sean and I really needed a weekend away from it, and this trip came at the perfect moment. On a side note, I also deleted my facebook account and created one specifically for keeping in touch with college friends and friends who live out of town. Sometimes I think that facebook makes it easy for people to hide behind their computer screens and say some things that they may not be so inclined to say in person. Needless to say, I feel as if a weight has been lifted from my shoulders. I'm getting tired of social media networks, and deleting that account meant erasing a forum which takes away from face to face contact.

Crab Tree Falls was a tiny little campsite in the middle of the woods. Our tent was set up next to a small creek and I miss waking up to the sound of water trickling and leaves blowing together in the wind. I miss being that far from civilization. I fantacized a little about moving to the mountains, but then I remembered how badly I would miss interacting with my friends on a daily basis and the thought of driving 30 minutes to the nearest grocery store made me cringe. I'll settle for the suburbs and a fenced in back yard for our pups. At least that's my fantacy for today.

I am so thankful for this weekend because it has allowed me to return to my routine refreshed. Last night Sean and I listened to music and drank wine, and I felt content. I feel like everything will turn out okay in the end, and me worrying about it isn't going to do any good anyway. Most of all, I feel a stronger connection and appreciation for my marriage and the life we are slowly building together.

Here are some pictures of our amazing weekend in the woods --