What Happened in April

Hey y'all,

I thought I would share a few things that happened in April since I have been pretty MIA over here. Also, beware that this is not in any particular order time-wise. Enjoy a peek into my crazy life.

I ran a 5K for Girls on the Run. Yes, as you can see it was actually 3.47 miles instead of 3.1 so it was a tough course on a particularly sunny day. I kept under a 12 min pace though and considering my training was all over and it was very hilly I am proud of that.

Tried on bridesmaid dresses for Jenn's wedding in August! No this is not the dress, I will reveal that later in the summer.

I attended my sorority's Formal. It was at a local country club. It was fun getting all dressed up for a nice dinner and yes, I bowed out of the dancing portion. I mean, who wants to dance with their advisor? I did receive a beautiful bouquet from the girls as a thank you. I am so blessed to serve with them and see the sisterhood grow!

At Formal with my Grandlittle, kBm!

I made the best barbeque thanks to Skinnytaste.com. You can find the recipe here along with the recipe for the BBQ sauce.

Yes, more bridesmaid dress trips. This is not the one either but it is similar. I must say it is hard trying on dresses without the bride since she is out of state but lots of pictures where texted and a bit of Facetime helped.

My grandlittle, kBm is now an alum member too!

 This past Wednesday was Senior Chapter and a great group of young women transitioned from active members to alumnae. Their words of advice to the current actives was wonderful and I agreed. It goes by fast but PBX is Your's For A Lifetime!

Also, last week I received a copy of Lilly thanks to Turner Publishing. I am so excited to learn more about the woman behind the iconic fashion brand. I started this Thursday evening and was very engrossed for the 30 minutes I read. Now I just need to find time this weekend to knock it out.

What have you been up to this month?

*Also I cut my hair short this weekend! Please excuse the bad selfie!

#summershorthair

Top 5 Tuesday

Hey y'all,

Yes, it's me. I know I have been absent most of April but it has been crazy busy over here between work, helping my sorority, pet sitting, visiting family, Easter and so much more that I would think of posts to write but would never have the time to sit down and write. I am glad that May is coming and I know I will have a lot more free time for the entire summer!

Anyhow, I am glad for your feedback from my giveaway and now have a bit more knowledge of what you want to see over here on my piece of the internet. Now I would love to fill you in on every detail I will just post a few pics in a post tomorrow. Now let's move on over to Rachel's link-up of the Top 5 Tuesday{What's in Your Bag} edition!

I'm currently using the Longchamp Le Pilage Large Tote Bag in black as my everyday bag. I am debating about getting the smaller version eventually but this bag has been going strong for almost 5 years(including lots of heavy college text books) with minimal wear showing. I even used this as my bag for my weekend at home with my parents this past weekend.

Longchamp Le Pilage

So I just cleaned out my bag because of it being my luggage. Here is what is currently in my bag.

1. My Planner. I purchased this Kate Spade New York planner from Lifeguard Press and I love it! You can read more about my love for this agenda from this post.

2. Wallet. I purchased this Hobo Lauren wallet from a RueLaLa sale a while back and I love this thing. I mean I can grab it, toss in my phone, and I am out the door with keys in hand. Perfect for quick trips to the grocery store or out to visit friends.

3. Pens & Highlighters. So I have to always have a pen on me. What if you have a brilliant idea for the future and you do not have a pen? I keep my collection of Sharpie pens for my agenda, Lilly Pulitzer highlighters, and a few random pens in a Vera Bradley small cosmetic case so that in case a pen explodes the rest of my items are ok. I also keep my Burt's Bees chapstick and a few hair ties in here.

4. A book. I am that girl that will not purchase a bag unless it can accommodate a book. I was raised to always have a book on me in case I was incredibly early to a location or to escape while on my way home in the back of my Mom's car. It is something I always have even on days I know I will not need it. Sometimes I have my nook Simple Touch instead of a physical book but reading material is essential.

5. My phone. It is not pictured since I took this lovely gem with my iPhone this morning on my desk at work. I love my phone and I try to remain a bit detached as I know some whose phone never leaves their hands. I don't have many apps on my phone for a reason but I love checking Instagram and feeling connected to friends and family.

Honorable Mentions: my work id (I mean how else could I get into the parking garage or my office), my prayer partner's card (each week at small group we pick a name and pray for that person specifically that week), my keys (kind of essential), and my notebook filled with to-do lists, food journaling, and much more.

What is in your bag?

Congratulations!

Hey y'all,

As usual my life has been crazy busy so my blog has fallen to the wayside. Anyhow, I hope to be back to the swing of things in the next few days but in the mean time I have over 200 blogposts to read on Bloglovin and a package to ship since Laura won my 200 follower giveaway!

Congrats Laura!

I hope everyone had a Happy Easter!

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Hey y'all,

It has been a strange day so I am just getting around to post this but today is my mom's birthday!! I think my Mom is the best. She constantly encourages and inspires me and I know for a fact without her my life would be completely different. I mean, I doubt I would have a love for reading if it wasn't for her taking me and my siblings to the library every week when we were young and always encouraging us to imagine, be creative, and live in this world but have adventures through reading, music, and dance. Pretty much she is one amazing lady and I can't wait to celebrate with her on Tuesday! 

Happy Birthday MOM!

ps. celebrate my Mom's birthday by entering my 200 follower giveaway HERE! 

pps. Have a wonderful start to your week!

200 Follower Giveaway!

Hey y'all,

I just wanted to thank all of you for being my followers with a little gift of some of my favorite things! I wish I could gift all of you or give out Jack Rogers but this girl is on a budget and student loans make that impossible. So to brighten your day, one of you will win a lovely necklace from Caroline G Shop. I think this turquoise color is gorgeous! Plus, there will also be a $20 gift card to Barnes and Noble so you can grab a book or two since we all know I am a huge reader! Also, my two favorite spring OPI colors Strawberry Margarita and A Rose at Dawn...Broke by Noon. And last but not least, who doesn't love some eos lip balm. That is a prize worth over $70!

Thank you all so much for reading along on my daily life/struggles and good luck! Enter below through the Rafflecopter until 12am on 4/10!

200 Follower Giveaway by postgradprep featuring gift sets & kits

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck & thank you for following!

Getting to Know YOU, Getting to Know All About You

Hey y'all,

I hope that I didn't just make this song get stuck in your head but after reading Carly's post yesterday I thought, what a great idea to get to know all of your followers and since tomorrow I am posting my 200 follower giveaway why not get to know all of you today. *Don't worry, Top 5 Tuesday will be up later today as well so YAY for two posts today.

So Carly's questions were the following and I thought I would share my answers:

How old are you?

Where do you live and/or where do you go to school?

What's something that you've always wanted to learn?

If you had to pick one word to characterize yourself, what would that word be?

Who in your life inspires you the most?

If you had to wear one thing for the rest of your life, what would you choose?

Favorite & least favorite food?

Early bird or night owl?

Favorite book, movie, and TV show?

Do you have any weird "quirks"?

... anything else you feel like sharing!

*I'm 24!
*I can't believe I graduated from UNC (almost) two years ago but I stuck around the area (Durham, NC) working.
*As far as something I always wanted to learn it would probably be finance/actually sticking to a budget for a full year. It's my struggle but I am trying.
*My one word will probably be "bookworm" since I think everyone knows me as the girl who always has at least one book on me.
*My mom will always be my inspiration. She is just someone who loves unconditionally, is always looking to help/volunteer her time, raised 4 kids but knows who she is, and is also always reading/learning. She is pretty fantastic.
*If I only had one thing to wear I think it would have to be a little black dress. I mean it would work in almost every situation: fancy, casual, work. Other than that I would say PJs if they were socially acceptable to wear 24/7.
*Favorite food: My mom's Beef Stroganoff (It is a tomato cream sauce and not a gravy) Least favorite food: cooked vegetables
*Night Owl. I am slowly converting to an early bird with my work schedule but if I could choose I would always stay up reading until 2am and sleeping until 11am.
*Favorite Book: Too many to count. Movie: Pride and Prejudice (2005) TV Show: Right now I am loving House of Cards & Reign
*Weird Quirks: Hmmm....I think a lot of my quirks are food related. I really do not want my food to touch on the plate. I zone it all.

So here are my questions:

1. How old are you?

2. What has been your favorite place you have ever lived?

3. If you could eat any food without any consequences what would  you order?

4. What is your favorite book or book series?

5. If you only had one piece of jewelry to wear for the rest of your life what item would you pick?

6. Netflix or Hulu?

7. If you could pick any time period to live in what time would you choose?

8. In everyday life, what is your number one pet peeve?

9. What is one skill or job you wish you had?

10. Anything else you would like to share?

Thanks for letting me get to know you a bit more!