Success!

Being the end of the month, I wanted to review the progress that I made on the goals I set. I must say, I am pretty proud of myself.

• Get back on track with working out. I have gotten a better routine this month and have even found the motivation to work out before work!
• 
  Paint my bathroom. OK haven't done this one yet, but I am going to do it next weekend! So at least it's planned.
• 
  Finish some books. I finished one and working on another! My list of what I want to read is growing though...
• 
  Catch up on my scrapbooking. I have one more page to finish and I am done with my book for senior year! Then I can start this year's...
• 
  Reorganize my closets and cabinets. Check! My pantry looks amazing :) LOVE alphabetized spices!
• 
  Make a trip to Lexington. Just came back from such a fun weekend of spending time with some of my best friends. I love these girls so much and I hate that I don't get to see them as much as I used to. We went to a fun dinner and then hit the town like we used to (literally, and then woke up this morning saying how out of practice we are!) I wish it could have been a longer trip!

Well for the most part, I did everything I wanted to this month! I really like this new method of organizing my life...now for a new set of goals for next month.

The Prayer List

Last night I got to play hostess while my mom and her friends (who happen to be my old cheerleading coaches and moms of cheerleading friends growing up) brought me dinner and came to see my new place. In other words: more housewarming gifts! I enjoyed the conversation, but it was also nice to just sit and watch them carry about like they would do on any other monthly dinner.

I can definitely say over the past few months I have grown up a lot because I never realized how many difficult things people go through. I always knew they were there, but they seem to be happening more often, and I credit my observation of that to being an ‘adult’. While they were talking about some real world adult things that I like to pretend never happen, Mrs. P (old coach) told us about her prayer list. She makes a short list each month or week or whatever of what she needs to pray about. And she has seen it work!

I thought this concept was so interesting. I know as I get ready to say my prayers before I go to bed, I get overwhelmed because there are so many things I want to include: my family, friends, health, soldiers overseas, my coworker who was just diagnosed with cancer, finding my way through life, the people in Haiti, just to name a few. I think it is helpful to pick just a few to concentrate on for a period of time and then move on to the others. I am definitely going to try this!

Real Simple, Real Silly

With all of the wedding buzz going around these days with big bro's wedding coming up and having many of my friends planning weddings, I was inspired to pick up a wedding magazine at the store the other day. Now, before you go thinking, "You're rushing things a bit, Southern Charm. When was the last time you went on a date?" remember that it is my dream to be a wedding planner, so I am looking at things from that perspective, not my own wedding (yet).

As I was looking through my new mag, I saw that I got a free year subscription of Real Simple for purchasing this mag. I cannot begin to explain how excited I was, because my aunt had previously gotten me a subscription to Real Simple and I just loved it! I was so sad when my subscription ended and I was feeling a little too cheap to buy it for myself. Immediately, I filled out the post card and put it in the mail.

Well, this past week I received a catalog of wedding invitations in the mail. I thought it was a little strange to get that, but I don't discriminate against mail that is not a bill or meant for someone else. Then Saturday, I went to get the mail again and I had a single post card. It read:

"Dear Ms. Southern Charm,
Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials!...You are going to love your year subscription to Real Simple Weddings..."

First of all, I thought I was getting Real Simple, not Real Simple Weddings. Secondly, I am not getting married!!!! So I guess I can look forward to a year of getting fun wedding things in the mail for my fake upcoming wedding. I am actually really excited about it because I love reading about weddings and seeing what the latest trends are. I just felt rather silly because I was expecting another mag in the mail. Just call me The Wedding Planner :)

The First Valentine :)

Just as I thought it was going to be the end of another ordinary Valentine's Day, I got a very sweet phone call.

'A' called me from the land where it is forever warm and the first thing he says to me is "I came to a realization today that you are going to be my first Valentine, and my Valentine from now on because you will always be there- you are always going to be my best friend."

Although I was already having a pretty good day, that put the icing on the cake! Of course that started to be too much of a sentimental moment for us so we had to talk about some embarrassing stories from the past.

Thanks for making my day, A, and for being my Valentine! (I am expecting flowers :))

My Favorite Things:Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day! Be sure to share your love with those you care about :) Some people think it is depressing to be single on Valentine's Day, but the optimist in me says you don't need that someone special to make this holiday fun!

It's a great excuse to watch rom-coms! I can't wait to see Valentine's Day.

In elementary school, I LOVED the Valentine's Day Party. Remember when we decorated shoe boxes and dropped Valentine's into our classmates' boxes (and it was a REALLY big deal if you had a crush on someone)? The silly things I remember from those years...And you know my box was always decorated to a tee :)

You are practically expected to indulge in lots of chocolate! Who wouldn't like that? Valentine's cookies are a highlight as well.

My favorite Valentine's Day gift I received was this huge stuffed monkey my parents got me when I was in the 3rd grade. I used to sleep on it like a pillow...for some reason I was going through a monkey phase.

My favorite recent tradition was our sorority's Valentine's Date Party- Pick a Mister for your Sister. It was always so much fun to go not knowing (or knowing) who your date was going to be. I loved getting to pick dates for my friends and to see who they picked for me!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful day, and that you get to spend it with those you love! Happy Valentine's Day!

BUNKO!!!

Last night, my mom asked me to sub in her Bunko group. She was hosting and one of the ladies couldnt make it.

You wouldn't think that hanging out with 11 other women all 20-40+ years older than me would be a blast, but it was! I had so much fun and learned a lot from these women. From sharing recipes to listening to them talk about married lives, I was just amazed by them all.

My mother is a wonderful party planner and hostess (wonder where I get it :) ) and she had every little detail perfect! Since it is close to Valentine's day, we had a pj party. Everyone was to wear their pjs- so comf comf! So you have to have pizza at a pj party, so we had pepperoni pinwheels...my personal fav...along with all of the other appetizers and snacks. Next is popcorn, so each table had homemade caramel corn. And a pj party would not be complete without tons of chocolate! We had chocolate martinis, tons of M&Ms, and this chocolate/strawberry lemon tart dessert.

It was also one lady's birthday and since she decided to spend it playing Bunko, they all made sure to celebrate. She had a special birthday martini glass and when they brought out her Blizzard birthday cake (YUM), I think I saw tears fill her eyes. It was so thoughtful!

It was so nice to see this group of women, my mom's friends, having a wonderful time. We had the music TV channel on, and at one point, they had it turned up and were all dancing in the family room! I am not sure if it made me so happy because I saw my mom with her friends, which I never got to see much growing up since it was always me with my friends, or if it reminded me of all the times I spent with my friends knowing that no matter how old we get we will always act the same as we do now. Last night I was reminded that we can always be young at heart. Even though our lives take us in different directions, we get married, have kids, we always have each other and the special bond that women share.

Just Keep Spinning...

Since I am working on getting back on a workout sched. this month, I am trying to get back into spinning (thanks to the motivation from T-Bird). Tonight our instructor was INTENSE! He told us so much information and was telling us these advanced spinner things to do. He said he was going to correct our form if we weren't doing it right- which would have been so embarrassing because I was in the front row! He kept looking at my feet, but luckily never came over...whew!

I am now one of those really into it people who has a heart rate monitor (thanks Dad), which has been really helpful. I found that I used to push myself way too hard so I wasn't getting the best benefit from the class. Now I feel like I am getting a better workout.

Let's see if I can keep it up this week. I just tell myself to just keep spinning....(think of Dory from Finding Nemo).

PS MORE snow is supposed to come tonight. Have I mentioned that I am SICK of this? I don't think I can take much more....

Hope everyone is having a great start to the week!

Monday Already???

The weekends seem to be getting shorter. I cant believe it is time to start another work week. I didn't even do much this weekend and I feel like I haven't recovered from last week!

I did help my mom decorate valentine's day cookies for the nursing home (good deed of the day) and helped her get ready for a get-together she is having this week. I did spend a lot of time relaxing after that being lazy, but I don't necessarily feel ready for another crazy week. Of course I blame the snow/cold (miserable) weather for my lack of motivation in all areas of my life (no social life, letting things slack around the house, the extra effort it takes to go to work every day, etc).

So with that, I am now mentally preparing myself for this next week. May it be as productive as it can be!

I'ma a Diva

For those of you who didn’t know me in high school, this may come as a shock to you. All of my friends considered me a soccer mom in training, which is pretty realistic considering my mother is like the ultimate mom. They said that I would be the one who would always have my kids’ friends over with snacks and treats after school, be the PTA mom, field trip chaperone, etc… I was perceived as being this future domestic diva and at one point, I thought I could live up to all the hype. My best friend and I wanted to be just like our moms- they were both stay-at-home moms who worked so hard to make sure their kids had everything they needed. And once they finished all their chores around the house- fun projects, shopping trips, social groups, and lunches were always on the calendar. Well once I college hit, that all changed! My friend is now married and well on her way to living our dream, and I feel off the wagon.

I had never been too talented in the kitchen, nor did I enjoy it except for baking. I also became so career focused and ambitious that I lost sight of anything other than pushing myself to be the best. I began to think that I was going to be the ultimate career woman where being successful was all I needed- husband would be nice if it would ever happen, not so sure I even wanted kids. (9 months of being pregnant sounded so uncomfortable and miserable to me) I mean, so many women choose that path these days. Then I realized I was turning into Miranda, when deep down I am truly Charlotte.

I am not sure if it is the fact that the working world is not what I expected it to be, or that I am finally seeing what is important in life, but I am now back to my original dreams of raising a family and running a household. (So I guess being House Manager was a sign right girls?) I think it has always been my dream, it was just hidden by everything else I wanted to do in college. And I have figured out how I could even incorporate a part-time career as well. So since I have much more time to myself these days, I am becoming so domestic! I am (slowly) learning my way around the kitchen and not just the microwave. I am actually enjoying cooking- which has never been the case before. I used to HATE the grocery store, but as I learn my way around, it is not so bad. I LOVE the new Kroger Marketplace by my house and Costco is amazing. Laundry, ironing, and cleaning, all have to be done, but I am looking for ways to make it fun and not just a (dreaded) chore. I have painted and even learned to Spackle a wall! I am always open for entertaining guests- I like to keep an open invitation policy where my friends can come over any time (as long as it is clean). Just say when! Also, I have been spending a lot more time with my mom which has shown me how special a mother really is. Now all that is left is working on that whole dating/husband thing...I think I need to have a little more training before I can get married, so I am in no rush there!

I guess all of these changes I have been going through the past 8 months have changed me. Usually we notice we have changed long after the fact, but I actually feel it happening, and so many more changes are yet to come. For now I will just focus on the future and work on my skills around the house! Ill keep you updated on my progress!

Starting the Day Off Right

“When God puts a dream in your heart, when he brings opportunities across your path, step out boldly in faith, expect the best, move forward with confidence knowing that you are well able to do what God wants you to do.”

For the longest time, I have wanted to get a daily devotional book to start (or end) each day. Well this year was my year! I finally bought a book to start off my day right. The first thing I do when I get in the office is read the devotion while my computer starts up. (How about that for multi-tasking?) It has been such a great way to start out my day, especially ones that I am not so keen on going to work (like today). I wish I was journaling while I do this because I am sure these thoughts will apply to my life differently next year. Maybe that can be a goal soon.

That quote was from today’s devotion and I just really liked it. Hopefully it inspires you as well!

You let me down, Phil...

6 more weeks of winter?!?!?! UGH!!!

February started off great until that news...I am well on my way to accomplishing those goals :) I have worked out both days, even though the gym is still crazy! I have finished one book, as you saw in the previous post and have another to start.

I am ready and waiting for warmer weather to come. At least the sun has been shining the past couple of days and when I go to work, it is not pitch black out (which is nice since I work next to a 3rd-shift bar and a strip club and there are always randoms out at all hours).

Let's just hope for no more snow and wish spring to come soon!