Weekly Wishes #7

This Weekly Wishes post will be a place for me to share my goals for the week. Hopefully blogging about them will help them to actually happen!

This week the photo theme is "Happiness" and I am obviously most happy when I'm with my sweet little Lilo, so here we are looking excited!

Last week, I wanted to: Read more of The Light Between Oceans for the Busy Bloggers Book Club. I spent two hours at Starbucks just reading, and then I've been reading before bed, too! I'm loving this book.

Clean something. I just really don't do well with the household wishes........ Oops.
Go to Maggie's. I went to this store! It was cute.
Have fun on Saturday! I did have fun at the Pow Wow! Mostly because the person I went with was fun. We're going to do more stuff together, so yay!

This week I want to: 
Craft (and blog about it). I wanted to make my sister a t-shirt for her birthday but then I lost the t-shirt, so.. That didn't happen. But I'm still going to do it! Presents can come at any time, duh!
Find a good journal and get ready for Everyday Happy! So excited for the e-course!! It starts tomorrow, yay!! I know I've got some neglected notebooks somewhere in my room.... If you hurry and read this and it's still Monday, then you can still sign up! 

It's going to be a crazy week at work (I just tried about 5 different times to get those week and work words in the right spot.. Is it naptime yet?) so I'm only going to have those two goals. But I also want to get some reading done so I can pick out some new books soon for Megan's Semi-Charmed Autumn Book Challenge! Yay reading!

Wish me luck on my goals this week, and I hope you accomplish yours too! Don't forget to link up to Melyssa at The Nectar Collective to share with everyone else!

Sunshine Award!

Aimee at Dear Harper nominated me for the Sunshine Award! Which is really exciting because I'm pretty sure Aimee and I would be best friends if we ever met, even if she doesn't know it yet. She's such a sweetheart! 

The rules are:

• Acknowledge the blogger who nominated you. 

• Share 11 random facts about yourself.

• Answer 11 questions the nominating blogger has created for you.

• List 11 bloggers.

• Post 11 questions for the bloggers you nominate and let them know they have been nominated.

Eleven Random Facts about Me

1.  When I was 13, my family moved to Germany, where we lived for 5 years in a teeny town called Großlangheim (yeah, I know, that eszett, what?! You say it like "ss" so the town was like "Gross"), which means Big Long Home. 
2. Don't let the five-year stint in Germany fool you; I'm pretty one lingual. BUT I am hoping to move to Latin America soon so I might get to change that to bi! (Is that two random facts? I'm counting it as one.)
3. I'm living with my parents at the moment and I'm pretty sure I've been here so long that my mother and I have begun sharing a brain. We think the same things at the same time. It's so scary. 
4. I think Hershey's Drops are better than a Hershey bar.. Even though I really recognize that they taste exactly the same. 
5. I'm addicted to the Game Show Network. I will watch literally any game show that is ever developed. My favorite is probably still Jeopardy! I think Alex Trebek would be an awesome best friend.
6. Leap Day is my favorite day of the year. My feeling is that since it only happens once every four years, I can use February 29 to do pretty much whatever I want to do. Last year I skipped my 1:30 p.m. class and went out for margaritas. Leap Day is the ultimate YOLO for me. 
7. I'm really bad at getting my hair cut.. I never know what to tell the person, so for the last few years I've been using the same stylist because she just GETS me. (And by that I mean, I say, I think I want it shorter but you're the expert so whatever you think please help me, and she makes my hair look good without asking too many questions I don't know the answers to.) But now she's gone and I really need a hair cut but I don't know what to do without her so I'm freaking out! 
8. I will watch anything The Rock is in. That's not to say that I have seen every movie he's been in, because I haven't, but.. I want to. I'm pretty much in love, and I can't wait to see him be Hercules. 
9. I just got that big tattoo on my leg and now I'm afraid to shave it, so I currently have 1.5 legs shaved.. 
10. I am 23 and pretty sure I still have about four years left on my Seventeen magazine subscription. Really don't know what happened there.
11. I never liked coffee until I went to Italy with my Italian Art course. We stayed at a family-run hotel and the little old lady made me a cappuccino, and that was that.  

Now Aimee's questions!

What is your biggest fear?
Starting off with a hard question, woo! I think my biggest fear right now is that I will never make any good friends again. I don't have any right now (I mean, I do, but none that are living near me)! I don't know how to make them! I've just started hanging out with someone from work and she is awesome but she is in her late 30s and I am in my early 20s, so we're at different stages. I'm afraid I won't make any when I move to another country, and then when I move back to the States it will be even worse. 
If you could change your name, would you? To what? 
I kind of tried to do this.. I used to go by Katie (and with some people, I still do) but I changed my preference to Cat because I thought it was A. Less common and B. Slightly more mature. I think if I changed it again I would go with my full name, Catherine. Might do that at some point anyway. I like my middle name too, and wouldn't mind being called Jane! When I was younger I thought Lola would be the best name to have, as in "she was a show girl." Don't know what I was thinking, really. 
If you had to dress in only one color for a month, which would you choose?
I have a LOT of turquoise/teal/aqua. It's my favorite color. So probably that. Or green! I love green too.
What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
Ben and Jerry's Phish Food! Or if we're being normal, mint chocolate chip.
If you won the lottery would you still want to work or would you quit your job?
I think that would be the perfect opportunity for me to try all the jobs I've ever wanted to! (Because in this alternate reality where I win the lottery, I think I can have multiple jobs without being a hassle to employers.) I do like mine, but it's not going to be anything permanent, so I don't know if I can fully answer this question. I think I would definitely work LESS.  
Books or movies? 
Books, of course! I can go a lot longer without seeing a movie than I can without reading a book, I think. Plus, so many more choices! And if the question is about the book vs. the movie, the book is usually always better. 
What is your biggest pet peeve? 
When people want me to turn right on red and I don't want to so they get mad. When people don't understand that my car from 1991 can't go as fast as their car that came off the line 5 minutes ago. When people text and drive. Basically anything car-related. I pretty much yell at everyone all the time when I drive. It's not usually very mean, but I do use the word "dumbhead" a lot. 
If you could live in another era in time, which would you choose? 
Whatever time involves going on a date with a different guy every weekend until one of them wants to pin you. (Only I would be in control, of course.) 
What is the farthest you've ever been from home? 
The first time I ever flew by myself, I went from Germany to Florida to visit some friends that had already moved back from Germany. It's weird when your first time alone is when you're crossing an ocean. Or when I went to Italy a few years ago while my parents lived in VA. I guess that's roughly the same distance from home. 
What was your favorite board game growing up? 
Uhhhhh, great question since I LOVE board games. Don't even have to think about this one; it's Mall Madness! Don't judge. "There's a clearance at the electronics store! There's a sale at the shoe store, and at.."
If you could go back to high school for one day, knowing what you know now, would you? 
I don't think I would. It's not that I didn't like high school. I did, most of the time. It's just that I don't really have the desire to go back, knowledge or not. It's probably better if you do it when you know less, anyway!

I am nominating: 
Stephanie at Meet With a Smile
Megan at Semi-Charmed Kind of Life
Alex at Our Lives Are an Open Blog
Allie at Call Me Sassafras
Kayli at Kayli Wanders
Amber at Mr. Thomas and Me
Codi at The Art of Balance
Angela at The Clutter Box
Alyssa at Lyss & Loveliness
Casey at We Took the Road Less Traveled
Lena at This Lovely Little Day

Some of you will find it strange that I nominated you because you may not have ever heard from me! But I either like your blog or your tweets or your Instagram pictures or something or all of the above and I'd like to know more about you! My blogging friends are still few in number too so maybe I will make a few more with this, too :)

My questions are: 
What was your favorite movie when you were younger? Has it changed?
If you knew when you were going to die, what would be your last meal?
What's the best book you've read lately?
If you were a cupcake, what flavor would you be? Be creative :)
Do you have a mantra, or quote you love that you try to live by? If so, what is it?
If you could only wear one pair of shoes for the rest of your life, what pair would it be?
Name the first three people on your invite list to a dinner with anyone - dead, alive, stranger, friend, movie star, whoever!
What is your favorite thing about yourself?
What song can't you stop playing right now?
Tell me one random fact that you know that it might be weird for you to know.
What's your favorite alcoholic drink? (Or your favorite non-alcoholic if you don't drink!)

I'm excited to see what everyone has to say! If you are too busy to participate or don't want to or think it's weird that some random blogger tagged you in something, totally okay! Just thought I'd throw some sunshine your way :)

Weekly Wishes #6

This Weekly Wishes post will be a place for me to share my goals for the week. Hopefully blogging about them will help them to actually happen!

The photo theme for this week is "Innocence," and while this isn't exactly my innocent childhood bedroom, it's my current one and still looks a lot like it! 

Last week, I wanted to: Call a friend. I called a sorority sister that I've been close to since my freshman year and who I miss a lot! She always knows what to say and we got to talk for a half hour this week. It was so great, and even though we haven't seen each other since May, we both randomly had been thinking about the same stuff lately and the conversation was great. It was as if we had had coffee that morning and were just continuing the talk. Our Delta Pi spirit was strong! I highly recommend adding this to your Weekly Wishes. It made both of our days. 

Update my calendar. I haven't gotten to this yet! But I will probably do that after I finish this post. 
Go 5 miles. Guess what? NAILED IT. I actually almost doubled it because my mom and I went to my sister's school for Family Weekend and walked ALL DAY. And MapMyRun is really nice about sending emails that "may cause spontaneous fist pumps." So inspirational!

This week I want to: 

Read more of The Light Between Oceans for the Busy Bloggers Book Club. I haven't gotten very far yet! The "busy" in the book club title is really accurate.
Clean something. I haven't figured out what yet, but.. I'm sure I will.
Go to Maggie's. I really want to visit this store I haven't gotten to but keep hearing about. I think they probably have something I want, haha.
Have fun on Saturday! I think we all know that I don't have many friends that I hang out with at the moment (what? you didn't notice that whenever I do something, it's with my mom or dad?) BUT someone from work and I are going to the Chickahominy Pow Wow this weekend! She says it will be really fun, so I hope so! It will be the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Hehe.

Wish me luck on my goals this week, and I hope you accomplish yours too! Don't forget to link up to Melyssa at The Nectar Collective to share with everyone else!

The Sunday Currently...

I love the idea of a simple post sharing what I'm doing, so when I found siddathornton's The Sunday Currently, I wanted to link up!

Currently... 

Reading Two things. I keep one book upstairs and one downstairs. For before bed, The Scorch Trials by James Dashner. For during the day, The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman with The Busy Blogger's Book Club!

Writing to-do lists! Okay, I wrote one yesterday. Really not doing that much writing. 

Listening to The Emmys!

Thinking about what I will miss in my friends' lives while I am off in another country for two+ years. Also that my feet hurt from working all day! 

Smelling the wine I have sitting next to me. It's pink and yummy. 

Wishing I could be in one of my best friends' weddings, and that I would find out my placement soon so I can think about the good part of the future instead of the sad part of it. 

Hoping for that placement email! Wishing and hoping and thinking and praying.. 

Wearing comfy shorts and a college sweatshirt.

Loving my puppy when she's quiet.. Now is not that time. 

Wanting the dog to shuttie. And a donut. And a nap, even though it's closer to bedtime. 

Needing to go to bed, since I have to work early tomorrow too :(

Clicking competitive word searches.

What are you doing right now?

5 Things I Love Right Now

I haven't been posting too often here; really I'm lucky if I make it to Weekly Wishes on time (and for the past two weeks, I haven't!) so I thought I'd actually sit down and write about something. As I am a Cat on the wall, I don't have much of a direction for my posts so I decided to tell you about 5 things I am loving right now. Now, some of these things aren't just a "right now" love, but so what?!

1. Sweatpants
If you don't like sweatpants, I don't like you. Just kidding! But seriously, they are so comfortable that I don't know WHY anyone wouldn't like them. I mean, it doesn't even make sense. I like mine to be really big so I can basically swim in them. Now, I try very hard to never wear sweatpants out of the house, but when I'm in my house... Let's just say it's sweatpants, shorts, or nothing. The ones I'm currently rocking all the time are the ones my sister sent me for my birthday, shown above.



2. Pretty wine glasses!
I love my wine, and while boxed wine could make this into a list of 6, I decided to make it seem like I didn't drink constantly (I don't!) and just do one alcohol-related love. A few years ago, my friend Katherine got me a wine glass decorated for the birthday girl, which you may have seen on another post of mine. I didn't use it for a long time, thinking I could only drink out of it on my birthday, and always forgetting to do so.. But then this year I brought it out of hiding! Then on my birthday I found a Lolita on sale for $2.60 (they are normally $26!!), so I HAD to buy it! It's got all these dresses on it and says "Always a Bridesmaid." Cute and accurate! Haha. We sell them where I work but I hadn't bought any until recently.. Now I want to grow my collection.

3. The Mindy Project
I was really obsessed with New Girl when it first came on (I mean, I still am. Love me some New Girl). When Mindy started a year later, I had to see what that was about, too. My friend and I now compare ourselves to the leads of the two shows (she's Mindy, I'm Jess) because we are so similar to them it's scary. Both shows had their season premieres this week, but my mother was not caught up on them, so we binge-watched The Mindy Project season 1, which was a GREAT time. You guys, I haven't told you this yet, but.. I'm in love. And it's with Danny Castellano (on right). I'm also in love with the fact that I need them to get together soon. Just a kiss, that's all I'm asking for. Forget Pastor Casey, adorable as he is.

4. Take It Easy
This was a free app from Starbucks earlier this month, so you can probably still get it! (Actually the SB app still has the code up if you've got that.) It is so much fun. You have to line up matching panels, and it's really addicting. It's great because games can be quick or you can take a while to think about your moves. I really like the puzzle mode because you have to get things in a certain order and it really makes you think!

5. Lilo
Duh, I always love my little puppy! What an angel she is. Today a man insisted to me that she had some pit in her. I mean, okay, sir. I have no idea, but I believe you! I don't care what dogs she's mixed with, because I know she's made up of perfect and wonderful, so... There's that!

So there you have it! My list. What are you loving right now? What are you obsessed with? Please tell me so I can find more things to love. And if you're reading this, you're probably on my list too! 

Weekly Wishes #5

This Weekly Wishes post will be a place for me to share my goals for the week. Hopefully blogging about them will help them to actually happen!

Last week, I wanted to: Call a friend. Okay, this is the one I failed at. But I'm going to leave it on my list! 

Get my cards together. This one I did! I got all my September birthday cards written. I still have two to mail, because I didn't want end-of-September birthdays to get theirs so early. I bought a variety pack of cards to use (embarrassing, as I work at a card store).. I know I should have chosen a card for each person but I figure if I personalized the inside, it would be almost as good! It's really the thought that counts.
Walk Lilo! I did take Lilo on a walk (right after doing the cards, actually!) and I plan to take her on another today. She loved it, of course!

This week I want to: Call a friend. I even know who I want to call. I just haven't gotten around to it. So lame. 
Update my calendar. A few years ago, I made this perpetual calendar out of index cards and pretty paper. Every day, I write something notable that happened or one thing I did that day. For instance, I can tell you that last year on September 17, I skipped much of my printmaking class to go to Dairy Queen with my best friend. I'm behind on it, though, and have not written anything since August 16! So I really need to work on that.
Go 5 miles. I really like the MapMyRun/Ride apps, because it makes me feel like I've accomplished something. My goal for this week is to run/ride a total of 5 miles. This is something I think I can easily do if I actually get out of the house. Lilo can help!

Wish me luck on my goals this week, and I hope you accomplish yours too! Don't forget to link up to Melyssa at The Nectar Collective to share with everyone else!

Weekly Wishes #4

This Weekly Wishes post will be a place for me to share my goals for the week. Hopefully blogging about them will help them to actually happen!

Godiva; jewelry shopping; Galaxy sundae; Carytown Cupcakes; Science Museum; Moon at Science Museum; Mexican!; new tattoo (technically after my birthday.. Whatever!)

Last week, my only goal was to have a fun 23rd birthday! I did this! It was the first birthday I hadn't been 300 miles away from my mother for in 5 years, so we went up to Richmond for gallivanting. We did some shopping (mostly window, but we also found some cute jewelry and trinkets! Actually most of the real shopping we did involved treats: Godiva and cupcakes, to be exact). We had lunch at this cute place called Galaxy Diner. She asked our waiter if they did anything there for birthdays, and he said, "No, but I'm kinda bored, so I'll make you a sundae if you want." Of course I wanted. It was awesome. Then we went to the IMAX at the Science Museum and saw a movie about the Grand Canyon and Colorado River. For dinner my mom and dad and I went out for Mexican (aka we went out for margaritas and also some food). They brought me a sombrero and sang "Feliz Cumpleaños" a mi! There was also fried ice cream.. WHICH WAS AWESOME. 
My subgoal was  to schedule my tattoo appointment. Not only did I schedule it, but I got it! The appointment was only 2 days after my birthday and I was really nervous. I had to go by myself so I texted my friends from afar and read people's blogs to try to not focus on the pain.. Didn't work so well, as it still hurt SO MUCH for SO LONG.. But the result is pretty great, I think. 

It's Tuesday. So clearly I did not get to this yesterday. It's not that I was really busy, but it sort of felt like I was. I don't know what happened really. I thought about it during the day and couldn't really come up with what I wanted my goals to be. But I've thought some more and here they are:

Call a friend. I don't have anyone here to hang out with; that's just a fact. But that doesn't mean I don't miss people. So I want to call someone, not text. To say hi and catch up and whatnot. 
Get my cards together. I made a list in August of people I wanted to send birthday cards to. I haven't bought or sent any. I work in a card shop, how embarrassing! My favorite college roommate's birthday is this month, and so is one of my favorite cousins' (should you not have favorite cousins? Oops) so I should really send them a birthday card! 
Walk Lilo! I snuggle her all the freakin' time, but walking the dog is another thing. Today I did take her to the park for a little bit and she got to splash around in the river, but I think she would probably enjoy a walk or two.

Wish me luck on my goals this week, and I hope you accomplish yours too! Don't forget to link up to Melyssa at The Nectar Collective to share with everyone else!

Everyday Happy

I'm so excited about Melyssa and Erika's e-course, Everyday Happy. I can't wait until October! Want to sign up? Here are 10 reasons why you should. 

Birthweek Continues!

Yay, presents! Can't wait 'til the big present gets here. I know what it is already and I'm pretty excited. Woo hoo, 23!

Weekly Wishes #3

This Weekly Wishes post will be a place for me to share my goals for the week. Hopefully blogging about them will help them to actually happen!

Work on my Spanish. I actually did more of this than I thought I would! The app really helps.

Finish a book. I finished the first book in A Series of Unfortunate Events, which I decided I want to reread for some reason. 

Unpack. Yeah, this one didn't happen. In my defense, I had some stuff come up this week that I'm really excited about (it has to do with the reason I'm working on Spanish). I had to take some time to work on some important documents for that. So I'm not too upset about not having unpacked! 

This week, pretty much my only goal is to have a fun 23rd birthday! It's on Wednesday and my mother and I both have the day off so we are going to Richmond to do fun things! Although, we haven't exactly decided what those things are yet, so if anyone has any advice, feel free to share. A subgoal for that is to schedule my tattoo appointment. I found a place in Richmond where I think I want to get it, so hopefully when we're up there I don't chicken out!

Wish me luck on my goals this week, and I hope you accomplish yours too! Don't forget to link up to Melyssa at The Nectar Collective to share with everyone else!

My Birthday Week!

I haven't been home for my birthday in four years, because it's right after Labor Day so I was always at school. So my younger sister likes to do this thing she calls my Birthweek, where she sends me a present for the whole week of my birthday! This year my birthday is on Wednesday (September 4!) so she decided, somehow, that the week would begin on Saturday.

(I like to celebrate it for as long as I possibly can. For example, I've been drinking out of this glass since Wednesday. Usually water, but last night I discovered that it's also fantastic for wine, being that it's a wine glass and all.)

So I got her packages yesterday and have been instructed to open 2 of them so far - here they are!

 So far, so cute! More to come - when I'm allowed to open them, that is.

Snail Mail Under the Sea!

The main motivator for me to start actually writing my blog was hearing about this Snail Mail Collective with Melyssa. I wanted to write, but the question on the form to sign up that said, do you have a blog? made me think, oh no, what if my partner has this great blog and I've got nothing?! So I started writing.

And then I met Stephanie from Meet With A Smile! Well, okay. Met is a strong word, since really we just emailed and commented. But we were a perfect pair! We aren't in the same stage of life at all, but we ended up having a lot in common and I looked forward to getting emails from her. I'm currently in constant wait for an important email from a job, and I don't know when it will come. So I obsess over my inbox, and whenever my phone makes the email noise, I jump at it, hoping for some news. But during August, I found myself waiting to hear from Stephanie instead!

We are both blogging beginners and I think we've been learning from each other! Visit her at her blog! She sent me the cutest package and I was so excited to get it! It was like my first birthday present (more on that later)! And everything was even more perfect than I thought it would be.

She somehow managed to have verses from my favorite chapter without even knowing what it was.

She sent some candy, a mud mask that I can't wait to use, a beach ball, a picture her baby colored on her phone (so cute!), a sweet letter, cards with scripture for encouragement (which would have been great anyway, but then she put pictures of manatees on them and they became amazing!), and the cutest stationery I've probably ever seen - and I work in a card store!

It has gold shiny seahorses and the cards are my favorite color - SO PERFECT. 

I can't wait to sign up for September's Snail Mail Collective. In fact, I think I'll go do that right now!