white blank page

I was going to try to be witty about the new year but decided against it. You're welcome.

If you've been following along for awhile, you'll probably remember seeing a string of posts related to my frustration with "the plan"...meaning the plan that God has for my life. Don't get me wrong, I like my life....heck, I even love it sometimes...but like most people, I have an idea of what I'd like my life to look like or what I want my life to be and needless to say, the current sitch isn't exactly what I wanted/expected/preferred.

But now I'm just getting annoyed with myself....

In less than 12 hours, we'll be in 2013. A new year. A fresh slate. A white blank page. And as "they" say, the perfect time to make a change.
Full disclosure: I usually hate New Years Resolutions.

What sort of change, you might ask? It's more of a mindset than anything else.
More like a decision.

The decision to be happy.
The decision to revel in all the good that is in the here and now.
The decision to just be.

Overall, I am a happy person. But have you ever had one of those days when you go to bed feeling whole, feeling complete, feeling totally satisfied? And you're thinking "wow. that was a GREAT day."
I want that every.single.day.

I know that not everyday will be perfect. I know that not everything goes perfectly all the time.
But I believe that every day, we have the chance to make the choice to have a good attitude. To embrace the good of today and not focus on what we wish tomorrow will bring.

And so, in 2013 I will choose happiness. I will choose to be content in the here and now. I will choose to love my life exactly as it is and trust God to put the rest of the pieces together.

Happy New Year! And congratulations to the Patton clan on their new arrival!

Do you have a resolution? I'd love to hear it :)

What I Wore on Christmas

coming out of my new clothes and chocolate littered cave to participate in Grace's Christmas link-up

The fam has been doing midnight mass for the past few years....which has turned semi-hazardous ever since I became "legal" and include deliciouso red moscato with dinner....if you think that midnight mass would be hard to stay awake through, try having a couple of glasses of red pre-mass. This year wasn't horrible, I maintained altertness thanks to the rowdy children (and adults!) in front and behind us who obviously haven't been to mass since last Christmas. Not that I'm judging....

 thanks to the sister for capturing all flattering pics

Christmas Day itself is pretty chill around here and as my mother says, you know you've got a house full of teens and older when the parents are the ones waking everyone up to open presents. Just so you can get an idea of what my apparel will consist of all day today:

Photo credit goes to the I'm-not-getting-out-of-this-chair-so-deal-with-the-awkward-angle sister and photo-bombing credit goes to mi padre. And they wonder where I got my skillz.

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

midnight mass
top: Old Navy
skirt: White House Black Market
scarf: Marshalls?
wine: Barefoot Red Moscato

christmas laziness
sweater: stolen from Dad's closet
flannels: brother hand-me-downs
slippers: Old Navy

Crafty Christmas: repurposed painting

My little sister is one of the most difficult people to shop for. Usually, I'd get her a scarf or maybe some earrings, but after years and years of getting the same types of gifts, I felt that we needed to shake it up a little.

And then I remembered something I saw on Pinterest which I'd been wanting to do and BAM!
Christmas present.

Most directions for this project say to use an old paint-by-number painting buuuuut I didn't have any of those just laying around...but what I did have was a canvas that I inherited from one of the girls who lived in my old apartment before I moved in and paint.

Thus, my makeshift paint-by-number. Dontcha love my skills?

I used a quote from her favorite TSwift song on Red...Then painted over it all with white paint...

...waited for 12ish hours and peeled off the letters...

voila!

one recommendation I have is that I painted the edges...I like that you can tell that the white was painted over it, but that's just me :)

So there you have it!

Hope your Christmas is full of love and joy!

Quick Takes (16)

if this is the end of the world, you should probably be doing something more important than reading this post...but if those dumbo Mayans were incorrect, read on....

[1] the world's ending! the world's ending! yeah yeah yeah...I've been hearing so much about this it makes me sick. My biggest issue with it is that aren't we supposed to be living each day like it's our last? Didn't Jesus say that we wouldn't know the day nor the hour? so...yeah. I'm not too concerned. The way I see it, if the world doesn't end, I have a great life ahead of me, but if it DOES end, I have a shot at heaven. win-win.

[2] all of my roommates have been gone this week and while I liked it for awhile, now at every creak and moan of the house, I jump. I was talking to my bff Carolyn last night and I'm pretty sure I popped her eardrum when the dishes on my drying rack shifted slightly and scared the begeegees out of me. Sorry Carol.

[3] WE HAVE SNOW! IT FINALLY FEELS LIKE CHRISTMAS!

[4] SPEAKING OF CHRISTMAS IT'S ALMOST CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm going home tonight for my two weeks off and am.so.excited.

[5] Look at my precious goddaughter. ohemgee.

[6] I checked out more than just the DVD section of the public library today and after venturing outside of my usual fiction/fantasy/utopian-society comfort zone and found myself lost in the non-fiction area. I was so scared. Especially when I found this gem:

[7] in other news, I watched the entire first season of Friends this week. don't judge me for also renting these:

hopefully Jen's still hosting this week...now THAT would be the end of the world!

Crafty Christmas: Paint Chip Coasters

I love giving gifts...I truly do get more joy out of giving a fabulous gift that the person recieving it loves.
And this is why one of my favorite gifts to gift is homemade coasters.

They're impressive, they're useful, and they're SUPER easy to make.

I've made coasters before, but wanted to do something different this time around....and thus came paint chip coasters!

I've seen other paint chip coasters on Pinterest, but honestly, I felt like I could do something a bit better than what I found on there...

I got the tiles [[$0.13 each!]] and paint chips [[free!!!]], and had decided upon the gradient theme with general colors being yellow, green, pink/purple, and orange.

Then came up with the designs for each coaster (really helpful as to allow things to go smoother throughout the actual putting-together phase)

The basic idea is to mod podge the paper to the tile and then spray with a moisture resistant sealant...when making photo coasters, I advise against mod podging the top of the pictures, but with these paint chips, I mod podged both sides and then sprayed.

Then adding felt to the four corners of the bottom of the tile to avoid scratching and voila! The perfect gift!

I gave these to my dear friend Claire and she loved them :)

Stay tuned for other Crafty Christmas gifts!

Quick Takes (15)

guess who's back, back again...let's just dive on into the craziness....

[1] hold up. it's Friday already?! where did this week go?! I seriously feel like the week JUST started. it probably went by quickly because all I've been doing this week is our Christmas mailing and frantically getting people to pay for the March for Life trip. #prolifeproblems

[2] I bought a new computer this week. ohhh yeah. it's cute and fast and I can use it while it's unplugged for 4+hours. it's pretty fantastic.

[3] my grandma is the cutest and she reads my blog, but doesn't know how to comment directly on the posts, so she emails me her comments...my favorite one from this week was:

"Confucius say: 'Having no husband, better than wrong husband!'"

hilarious. and veryvery true

[4] I LOVE CHRISTMASTIME.
it makes me sooooo happy to decorate and celebrate and bake cookies and watch Christmas movies and yeah. this time of the year is one of my absolute favorites. :)

[5] my boss tried to convince me to design his and his wife's very first Christmas card together...when he asked me what he would have to pay me to complete such a task, I replied "pay me in coffee...lots of coffee. or babies." because obviously lots of coffee and babies are equivalent.

[6] I'm tending the mocktail bar at the Newman Center's Winter Formal tonight....just a day in the life....

[7] I got nothing...check out Conversion Diary for manymanymany more exciting takes!

uber masculine

Back at ol' ISU, there were a fair number of people who drove around on what I think are called "crotch rockets"?
Their words, not mine.

And they're cool. Fast and loud.
And definitely manly.

So upon moving to CU and working on UIUC's campus, I was slightly shocked that there aren't alot of "vrooming" vehicles around. Actually, the only one that I ever saw was a Harley that one of the chaplains owned. Funny.

What's strange about that, you ask?

It's not the lack of motocycles that shock me, I suppose...rather the extraordinary overflowing amount of mopeds that are found on this campus. I'm serious.

And it's not girls who are riding these dainty little things! It's GUYS!

And sometimes MORE THAN ONE BIG MAN!!!
It's actually quite funny because I've seen it happen more than once.
(and I actually almost ran over a couple of guys who were riding a bike like this....)

I mean, I have nothing against mopeds...but I just don't think I've ever seen more men riding them than I have here at UIUC...and actually, one of my friends used to have one (a girl) and during the summer a couple years ago, this actually happened:

This picture was taken a minute before they got pulled over by the cops. No, I am not joking.

Apparently, it's illegal to ride one of those with more than 2 people....whoops.

Aaaaanyway....I just think it's funny...because I know what it's like to be on one of those puppies and feeling really cool because you're cruising along, the wind is in your hair...and then you remember that you're on a freaking moped.
Not so cool.

Sorry to break it to you, dudes.

growing in virtue: vulnerability

I had a dream a few nights ago in which my husband was with me. He asked me to dance and I felt more loved and complete than I ever have. Just thinking about it now makes my heart flutter.

I know that I shouldn't wait around feeling like I'm missing a part of myself, and thinking that a man will make me feel "whole". And I assure you, I don't...for I know that only the Lord and being in full communion with The Church can bring that "wholeness". And I do believe that one should be content in who they are in their own before venturing into a new relationship because attempting to fill a God-sized hole in your heart with a human just won't work.

But all of this doesn't completely take away the longing for union with one's spouse. Receiving the sacraments and praying takes the edge off, but that nagging ache is still there. And its so hard because in my experience, people's advice has been to pray for your husband and offer up your suffering for him. And I do that, and it is fruitful.

But I have another solution.

Letting God into all of the hurt, the anger, the loneliness...our God is big enough to take it!
Yell, cry, beg, whatever it takes to SHOW Him how you truly feel.
So often, I think we don't say outright how we truly feel to the Lord because we either assume that He already knows (which He does), we think we can't be mad at him and show him our raw emotions (we can) or we believe that by opening up to our Savior and not pushing down those emotions, we're weak (we're not).

Yes, our Lord already knows how we feel, but I truly believe that He wants us to admit it to Him. Just like a wife might know that her husband loves her, she still wants to hear it from him.

Perhaps we shouldn't have a rage fest in Adoration, but telling Him "I'm mad at you" isn't a sin...as long as that doesn't cause you to turn away from Him...and in fact, I've found that only after I sob myself silly and tell Him that I'm frustrated with Him can I get over it. By identifying and declaring exactly what your problem is, you will be able to work on it and heal. Pushing your hurt under the rug isn't helping you to grow into the woman your husband deserves.

And being vulnerable with our Lord isn't at all a sign of weakness, but rather strength! Reaching out for help is not anything to be ashamed of, especially when our Lord is the greatest doctor of all! To think that asking for help is a sign of weakness is like saying that an alcoholic who is seeking treatment is weak! Of course not! In fact, most people would commend their strength in finding healing! So why is that not true with God?

Praying for others, especially your husband, is beautiful and selfless. However, if we don't seek to fix our own problems, if we don't seek to fill our own cups, how are we to ever be prepared to give to our husbands? I often have to remind myself that there's a reason why my husband and I haven't found one another yet. And the only logical explanation is that its because either he's not ready or I'm not ready. So why not make best of this time and prepare? Especially in this time of Advent, let us take the example of Joseph and Mary as they prepared for the coming of our Lord. And so too should we take on the mantle of our Mother and prepare our hearts for receiving our husbands.

What I Wore Sunday

My very first WIWS! I've been perusing the posts for a few weeks now and decided that it's about time that I join in on the fun :)

This weekend, I travelled to Warren and Lena, IL to give talks at some parishes up there about SFLI. The pastor of all three churches is my former pastor, Father Max. He's the reason that I got involved in the pro-life movement and it was so great to see him!

4 masses and 530 miles later, I'm happy to be home.

This was my view this morning.

In a place without cell reception and more country radio stations than one could ever listen to, I was happy as a clam. Oh, and you know how whenever you go somewhere, whether it be for one night or five, you ALWAYS forget something? Well, this time I forgot my makeup bag.
Good job dummy.
Now, I'm not one of those I-can't-leave-the-house-without-my-face-on people...but when you're giving fundraising talks post-mass, its usually a good idea to be able to cover-up dark circles and draw on some eyelashes. Good thing I had my trusty compact which helped a whole lot...that combined with some 8 year old mascara I found in my purse helped my face perk right up.
Not.

Thus why the pic is headless. Believe me, you're welcome.

The deets
dress: ROSS ($12!!!!)
cardigan: Old Navy (duh)
belt: no idea...came with a shirt I don't wear...
boots: JustFab.com (19.95!!!)

Check out other linker-uppers at Fine Linen and Purple!

Quick Takes (14)

back once again for another round of Quick Takes....let's just jump right on in.

[1] After my mother and dear sister had aneurysms over the amount of sugar I put into my coffee over tgiving break, I've been trying to cut out my daily intake of sugar, which for some reason has resulted in me taking on a relatively vegetarian-looking diet. Don't ask me why. I get lunch for free at work, which is pretty quality dorm-food but at home I've been living on eggs, butternut squash, and cheese. I'm easy to please. Obvi.

[2] While I'm on the topic of food, lately, I've been the worst judge of ripe fruit.

After a run in with these apparent "dino eggs", a couple too many under-ripe peaches, and several not-ready pears, I became wary of fruit that wasn't squishy (because hard = not ripe, soft = ripe...am I right?). But this theory proved to be hazardous for a friend who had one of my peaches (that I conveniently leave on my desk because who doesn't store their ripening fruit at work?!) and upon biting into it, declared that it was, and I quote, "horrible".

Whoops.

BUT this week, I've struck fruit gold and have had 3 consecutive days of good pears and oranges! Success!

[3] Obviously my life is super exciting since the highlight of my week was ripe fruit. But just to keep the embarrassing train going, the other highlight of my week was my absolute favorite blogger and internet celebrity, Grace Marie Patton (is it creepy that I know her middle name? probably.), commented on one of my posts. 

Of course, now I'm convinced that we're BFF&E&E even though it was her link-up so she probably has to comment on all of the contributing posts by the laws of link-ups.

But I'll live in my fantasty, thank you very much :)

[4] Should I be worried that vampirestat.com is one of my referring URLs?

[5] I'm going to have to buy a new computer soon. Ugggggh. I've had my current one since HS graduation and to be honest, I haven't been super nice to it, I'm actually shocked it's lasted this long...

It's really frustrating that I'm having to replace things: first my car and now a new laptop. Urgh. If you have any suggestions on brands, please do share...but I'm probably going to go with either this one or this one.

[6] If you have any soup recipes, please pass them along? kthanks.

[7] Heading to Warren/Lena, IL this weekend for some parish talks! Please pray for me!!!

Head over to Jen's for más diversión (more fun for those who aren't as cultured as I ;)

growing in virtue: patience

I think I've mentioned a time or two that I struggle with patience.
And it's not just with waiting for people or food or whatever...it's with EVERYTHING.
Legit.

But lately, mostly with my husband.

Oh, you didn't know that I have a husband?
Well, I do.
We're just not married yet, aaaaand I don't know who he is.
Bummer.

I know that I should be enjoying my "single years"....full of freedom and independence and yaddahyaddah
And, in some ways, I am...I mean, I love life, and my life is pretty good.
But I struggle a lot with enjoying the "right now" and not focusing on "someday"....

I think this is something that we as a culture struggle with - not seeing what's right in front of us - but it's so difficult to stop searching and just let God do His thing.
And I think one of my problems is that I've done the novenas and the dating fasts and the "think of every man you encounter simply as a brother in Christ" and it all helps...but there's still that ever-present yearning, aching, desiring to be united with him. I know that in some cases, my intentions with the aforementioned "cures" were just that: I would do all of these things and THEN God would say "Well done, my good and faithful servant....here's your hubby!"

Buuuut that's not how these things work.
And I know that....but it's still sooooo hard to just be and allow Him to lead me.

One thing that He has given me that has helped a bit is theveilofchastity.com ...finally! A blog that is FOR SINGLE PEOPLE! I lovelovelove the mommy and wifey blogs that I read...truly, I do. But sometimes, I get so caught up in their stories, in their lives, that I find myself hoping that my story is half as cool as theirs.
Well, what the heck?! It's MY story! It's going to be perfect for ME!
Which brings me to another post that helped me a lot, called Dating Tip #1: You Don't Have to Date
oh.
my.
gosh.

This post clarified everything that I've been questioning:
"why am I single? what's wrong with me?"
"why am I the only one of my friends who doesn't have a boyfriend/fiance/husband?"
"so-and-so got married at my age and I'm not even dating anyone?! OMG!!!!!!"

But what I have to realize is that I'm not THEM.
I have my own story, my own life. And no matter what happens, no matter when I meet Mr. Right and get married and have children, it will be perfect for ME. And that is what matters most.

It's definitely a struggle, but I have confidence that with every passing day, I'm one step closer to meeting "him"...would you join me in praying for him? And me too if you wouldn't mind ;)

What I wore Thanksgiving

Now that I've finally recovered from my "break" in which the fam and I drove to and from Chicago to Pittsburgh to be with my brotha who attends PITT, I'm getting around to posting this little number. Thank God Grace gave me a million years to get it together. Many thanks.

I'm going to go slightly off the beaten trail and post the majority of the outfits I wore throughout the trip to make up for my tardiness...lucky you.

Let's start with what I wore TO PTown.

Yes, that's a whole lot of monochrome action going on.
Lucky, what you can't see is what's underneath...a striped peplum top with that scarf! My mother was horrified that I'd mix THAT MUCH into one outfit. Oiy.

Also, the lighting is slightly off...the pants are more of an orchid color while the jacket is magenta. HUGE difference, people.

Moving right along....we spent the majority of Thanksgiving day walking around the campus.
Everyone was oo-ing and ahh-ing over the gorgeous weather and greenery while I was failing at teaching my sister how to take a decent photo of me.

She hateshateshates that picture of herself, but I don't care.

For dinner, we got all schnazzyed up for my brother's roommate's family's party...you follow?

I love tights. And cardigans.

Friday, we walked around the city of Pittsburgh and froze our tooshies off...but it was fun and at some point I'll have to post some of the craycray pics that we took. It is impossible to take a serious picture in this fam. forreals.

Simple, comfy, and def not weather opprop.

And so there you have it. Hope all of your ever-needing-to-know-what-I'm-wearing needs are fulfilled.

the deets

monochrome magic
pants: Kohls
jacket: TJMaxx
scarf: ROSS
shoes: Target

Tara (L) (these are all assumptions...)
pants: Kohls
top: Kohls
scarf: Walmart
boots: Kohls?
hair: God

moi (R)
cardigan: Old Navy
top: American Eagle (thrifted)
jeans: Old Navy
shoes: Target

thanksgiving night
cardigan: Old Navy
top: Old Navy
skirt: ROSS
boots: Kohls

touristing
top: Old Navy
jeans: Old Navy
scarf: TJMaxx
shoes: Target

...just realized that most of my wardrobe is from ON clearance racks...

I am alive

oh hey out there....and yes, I'm still here.

I also have about 7 posts in the making, I'm just too lazy to finish any of them. lo siento. maybe later in the week.

But while I'm out here being the worst blogger known to blog-kind, check out a video or two.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDgh14043dA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1VAC5bFN-E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKL4fgWW6Kk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JtLlf5jwJk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbwSKN__tV0

you're welcome.

t-swizzle

I'm a big Taylor Swift fan. I have no shame in that, I've been a fan since the beginning and expect to always love her tunes.

So, naturally, when her new cd was released, I wanted it. Bad.

Aaaand it's good.
I think it might take me a little while to warm up to these new songs since I don't know all of the words yet, etc...but after seeing a bunch of reviews (which aren't all very kind) I felt like I wanted to put my own viewpoint out there.

First of all, I think it's important that before listening to this new record to understand that Taylor's sound has changed a lot since her first album. Just like other artists, as she has matured and changed, so has her music....AND she's only 22, people! Just keep that in mind. Like other artists, such as The All-American Rejects, her sound has changed...she doesn't sound like the 16 year old she was when she became popular. And if you don't like it, stick to her first couple albums.

But I digress.
Here's my take on each song on this new album, entitled "Red". With 16 tracks, I do believe that this is her longest album.
Disclaimer: I'm only giving my take on the sound of her album, because giving my opinion on the words and meanings, etc of her songs would be more than 12 posts themselves.

State of Grace - this first song sounds like some of her older tracks, think "Long Live" but after listening to it 10+ times, it's pretty catchy

Red - I like this one a lot...there are little banjo-twangy sounds but slightly more poppy than the first song.

Treacherous - meh. slow, not a big fan....and for some reason it just annoys me.

I Knew You Were Trouble. - LIKE. poppy and slightly angry...but I like it.

All Too Well - another slow one...more of a country feel, but I get bored and move on to the next track.

22 - I don't hate this song, but it reminds me of a cleaner, more girly version of Pink's Raise Your Glass

I Almost Do - I really like this one...it's slower, but the sound is nice and clean.

We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together - definitely a dancing-in-the-car song. a huge high-school feel, but it's fun.

Stay Stay Stay - LOVE. It's poppy and cute and potentially annoying. But I like it. A lot.

The Last Time - I hate the beginning of this song...it's whiny and almost off-key. But if you stick with it until the middle of the song, it's fab.

Holy Ground - gross. don't like.

Sad Beautiful Tragic - slow. I'll be honest, I haven't listened to the entire song because it annoys me.

The Lucky One - LIKE LIKE LIIIIIKE. doesn't sound like anything Taylor has ever written before. and I like that.

Everything Has Changed - I LOVE THIS SONG. LOVE IT.

Starlight - ugh. no. again, haven't listened to the entire song so maybe it's not fair, but I don't like what I've heard.

Begin Again - again, like The Last Time, the beginning is annoying but if you wait until the chorus, I really like it.

Overall, I only really like 10 of the 16 tracks on this new album. Meh.
I mean, I don't expect to like EVERY song...although there are some artists whose albums I can listen to from beginning to end and love every song (think OK Go)...but at the end of the day, I'm happy with this album.
Is it very different from what you might expect from Taylor Swift? Yes.
But does that make it a bad album? nononono

So TS, no worries, you've still got me hooked. Now and forever :)

surprise! rodents.

I think squirrels are cute.
I like how they pounce around in the grass and nibble on whatever it is they eat.
I like the chattering noises that they make.

just look at that little guy! so cuuuuute!

But I recently had an epiphany, and it wasn't a good one.

Squirrels are just rats with bushy tails.

Imposters!

Now, I don't hate rats. In fact, I did my senior lab with white lab rats who I trained to complete obstacle courses through operant conditioning. And they were cute and smart and funny.
But they lived in cages and the only time they roamed free was when they were in the 2'X3' training pods.

Squirrels ROAM free EVERYWHERE.
AND they're bigger than the 8 oz rats I worked with.

Sick.

Yet, despite my horror at this realization, I can't help but think they're cute. Especially this little one that lives by the convent near work...he only has half a tail and we call him Stumpy. And he's adorable.

what's the point?
I don't know.
just observations... :)

happy day to you!
...watch out for all of those rodents...

music critic, reporting for duty.

I don't claim to know everything about anything.
But I would claim to know something about everything.
.......well, I know something about a lot of things.

I was scanning through radio stations today when I stumbled upon the alternative station.
Score.

And I was happy with the first couple songs, including Chalk Outline, which is the kind of music I associate with the alternative genre.

But then I heard Let's Go and I was like whaaaa? This isn't alternative!!!

AND THEN the DJ announced that after the break, they'd be back with Florence and the Machine. Wha to the whaaaa?! Freaking Florence and the Machine is not alternative.

So when I got home, just out of curiosity, I looked up the current Top 20 Alternative Songs.
And I. am. appalled.

What passes for "Alternative" these days is not what it was back in the day.

Madness by Muse is the #1 Alternative song...which, ok, that's legit. I would consider Muse "alternative".

BUT the #2 song is I Will Wait by Mumford and Sons. ohhhh no. nope. nuh-uh. Mumford IS NOT alternative.

Other artists featured on the top 20 list are The Black Keys (almost alt. but no), The Lumineers (um. no.), Alex Clare (are you kidding me?!), fun. (NO NO NO), and Of Monsters and Men (what the freak?!).

The only artists on the list that I would agree with them being alternative are Green Day, Linkin Park, and Rise Against.

You see, I was a huge alternative aficionado in high school, so I know a thing or two about what alternative music sounds like. When I think about alternative music, I think OK Go, Foo Fighters, Goo Goo Dolls, Jimmy Eat World, and Paramore.

Maybe I'm just stuck in my ways and can't deal with genres evolving, but I don't care.
What the heck.

That's all. Anyone else have thoughts on the subject?

quick takes: things I love

welcome back to the laziest blog in the world.
I'm your host...the topic today is "things I love"
let's get this show started.....

[1]

dressing Abe up.

[2]

Christmas-themed EVERYTHING.

coffee, music, decorations, cookies, etc.

EVERYTHING.

[3]

this video.

and this one.

[4]

leftovers that my roomie left behind.

[5]

PAPER SNOWFLAKES.

did I mention that I love Christmas?

[6]

The Office.

And Parks and Rec.

[7]

ice cream.

duh.

good luck finding better QTs over at Jen's

quick takes (12)

...in which I give you a [not so] rare peek into the life of moi

[1]

Not much upsets me. In truth, I'm a pretty easy-going person and I can let things roll off of my shoulders.

Usually.

But having an interview/debate published IN THE UNIVERSITY PAPER without my consent irked me slightly.

Read if you must.

[2]

NOBAMA.

I'm honestly worried for our country and the liberties we hold so dear to our hearts...but yet have hope that the courts will rule in the Church's favor on the Religious Liberty issue.

Also, it's nice to be able to concentrate on things other than the election once again.

[3]

Today is a sad day...my parents are taking our beloved dog to be put down this evening.

Murphy's been such a loving, sweet, and honestly, perfect dog and he will be dearly missed.

[4]

I keep watching this video and am getting suuuper pumped to go to the 2013 SFLA Conference.

yayyy babies!

[5]

This week has gone by surprisingly fast, but I was able to make it out with some of my favorite ladies on Wednesday night to an Irish pub with live Gaelic music. What a blast! Good beer, good music, and cute old women staying out wayyyy past their bedtimes ;)

Also, Grandma, there were a couple of accordion players there, and I thought of you :)

[6]

I don't know if Veronica will ever post about this, but I just have to share this picture.

Apparently, Anne (pictured) needed to be labelled with permanent marker by her older sister.

Hilarious.

[7]

And finally, I have a prayer request.

I got a call yesterday afternoon from my chaplain at ISU about the need for pregnancy resources for a couple out in BloNo. They're students and she is 6 weeks pregnant...her parents are pressuring her into having an abortion this weekend (at home) and despite both the girl and her boyfriend's desire to not have an abortion, the young woman feels that she has no other options.

Please join me in praying that everyone involved is spared the heartache and pain of abortion!

St. Gianna Molla, pray for us!

Have a fab weekend! I'll be in Peoria for our banquet...check out Jen for some more quickies!