Quarterlife Crisis

So it's been awhile since I blogged....life has been busy! I've been to Arkansas and back, to Louisiana and back...celebrated my first Thanksgiving in Charlotte with friends, and decorated my first real Christmas tree!

I am in the process of applying for a child life internship at the hospital where I volunteer--so say a prayer that will work out for next summer. I have my transcripts ready, recommendations/references in the works, and just have to finish the application to send in a few weeks before Dec. 31.

Things I've been up to in pics...
I had a reunion weekend with my 2 best friends from high school...Noelle and Fran...for Frannie's wedding in Arkansas. It was a great weekend seeing both of them since we are all spread out in NC, OK, and NYC now. My family came to Eureka Springs too for the weekend so we made it our "early" Thanksgiving weekend.

For Thanksgiving, my friend Nicole's family adopted me for the holiday. Thanks Gasbarros! I made my pecan oatmeal pie and corn casserole. I decided to start a new tradition for myself since this was my first Thanksgiving without my family. I baked Christmas cookies and watched Christmas movies all weekend. Then on Sunday, I delivered cookies to my friends and got to visit with everyone.

Some of the cookies I made...I also made peanut butter hershey kiss cookies and these yummy peppermint shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate.

On Saturday after Thanksgiving, my roomie Casey and I went to pick up our Christmas tree and start our decorations! We ordered our tree from this man in the NC mountains--my boss vouched for his trees being very full. Well, we ordered a 6 foot tree and ended up with a 7 or 7 1/2 foot tree! We had to trim the top just so we could stand it up! It is a big tree...but it smells wonderful and is very festive with all our ornaments. This was the first year I could use my silver bells that my Grandma gave me on a tree, so that was nice.


I just got back tonight from a short trip to LA for an early Christmas and the Winnsboro Christmas parade. I must say---we were very impressed with the parade! The entire McLemore family were the grand marshals of the parade because we received some Franklin Parish spirit award. Our entire family was there to represent our side and we celebrated an early Christmas with all the cousins too. It was a great weekend to get us all in the festive holiday spirit early!

I have lots of other pictures in facebook albums from the past month and all its events.

Frannie's wedding weekend in Arkansas

Christmas festivities

I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season! Merry Christmas :)

Posted in: Christmas, family, friends, Thanksgiving, weddings on Sunday, December 7, 2008 at at 10:27 PM 1 comments  

Tonight I went to a pumpkin carving party with my young adults group at church. I must say that I can't remember the last time I carved a pumpkin. Halloween and trick-or-treating just aren't as much fun as back when....


So tonight I helped clean out a pumpkin to prepare to carve a cute face on it....only to have it turned into this... (sorry to offend any McCain supporters with this picture of an "Obama pumpkin"...if it makes you feel better I am still undecided on my vote for Nov. 4)
That's ok though, I enjoyed watching everyone else carve their cute pumpkins and get messy digging out all the pumpkin goo. I took pictures of the fun instead :)

Posted in: on Thursday, October 23, 2008 at at 9:27 PM 0 comments  

Some have suggested my blog title is no longer relevant now that I turned 26 on Sunday. But for now, I like it so it will stay :)

I had a wonderful birthday weekend filled with friends, food, and relaxation. Friday night my girlfriends and I went to dinner and then came back to my place for ice cream cake and presents. I must say it was quite different opening presents that weren't "for" me since I told everyone to bring gifts to take to the children's hospital. I figure that I have too much stuff anyway :)

Saturday brought wedding dress shopping with Vaughan....a quite overwhelming experience haha. Then I did some shopping for a new bike before going out to dinner at Cajun Queen with my friends' dinner club for our "C" restaurant this month. I went to 3 bike shops in Charlotte....even got to ride around in one parking lot to make sure I remembered how to ride a bike haha! Good news...I did!

For my actual birthday on Sunday, I went to church, lunch with friends, and decided to buy myself a new bike for my birthday :) It is probably one of the best things I've bought in awhile. I've only had a chance to ride it once since Sunday---but it's so much fun! This week is too busy with things after work....so I hope to have time next week to get out on my bike some more. My plan is to get a basket (yes cheesy I know) so I can ride to the Teeter (aka grocery store) and run other errands around the neighborhood....like Ben & Jerry's or Starbucks haha :)

Here are pics from my birthday weekend (click the blue words to see the album)

My new bike :) (I did not pay this much...I got a discount in the store)

Posted in: bike, birthday on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 at at 10:29 PM 0 comments  

So it's been awhile, and I figured I should give an update on life for those that might be interested and anyone who actually reads this blog (Hey mom and sister!)...

**I am still volunteering at the children's hospital on Friday nights. So far so good! I plan to apply in December for a summer 2009 internship. So we'll see what happens.

**The other "new" job didn't work out as hoped. They decided not to open a new office in Charlotte. So for now I'm still with the same recruiting firm.

**I start a 6-week sewing class with my friend Heather tomorrow night. I'm hoping to expand my skills beyond aprons haha. I want to learn to make cute purses/bags too.

**Charlotte is in a gas crisis....there is no gas to be found anywhere! Thankfully, I have a pretty full tank. It has definitely been interesting though watching the mile-long lines of cars waiting for gas. There is no end in site, so I don't plan on driving anywhere other than work and home :)

I spent 2 hours last Thursday driving my coworker around hunting for gas since her car was on empty. 2 hours, 3 gas stations, and 2 full 1-gallon gas cans later, we were successful. We sat in one line for an hour, topped off my car (that was already pretty full, not needing gas), then went to fill her cans--when they shut off all the pumps! Out of gas! So then we trekked to another gas station, waited in line for another hour or so with 100+ cars (they had cops directing the cars), to finally fill her 2 gas cans--just enough gas to get her home.

**I get to be a bridesmaid for the first time ever in my friend Lucy's wedding in June. I am honored and excited! I went down to Atlanta 2 weekends ago to visit her. We spent most of the time trying on bridesmaid dresses...fun haha!

**Just 14 days until my birthday....the big 2-6! So far my birthday weekend is packed with plans :) Dinner with the girls and a slumber party that Friday. Dinner again with my "dinner club" friends on Saturday night at Cajun Queen. Then Sunday (my actual bday), we have a young adult lunch. So I will be celebrating all weekend long :)

Posted in: birthday, gas crisis, job, sewing, volunteering on Monday, September 29, 2008 at at 5:00 PM 0 comments  

Chili's restaurants are donating 100% of all sales today to St. Jude. So go to Chili's for lunch and/or dinner today! September is Childhood Cancer Awareness month. What better reason to eat....you can help save children's lives :)

www.stjude.org
www.chilis.com

Posted in: on at at 10:38 AM 0 comments  

I got this idea from another blog. Here are 7 random things about me:

1. My favorite movie from childhood is "The Parent Trap" (the original version with Hayley Mills). I can probably still quote most of the movie :)

2. If I had to choose between dessert and a regular meal--I'd choose the dessert hands down :) Especially if it is chocolate hehe!

3. My birthday is on Columbus day--Oct. 12 (not the observed Monday).

4. I am going to start a 6-week sewing class in a couple of weeks with my friend Heather. Hopefully I can expand my abilities past just making aprons. Maybe purses too!

5. I don't have a very good sense of direction and get lost easily. I would rather take 10 extra minutes to go a route that I know I won't get lost than to take a shortcut and risk getting lost. Also, like my grandmother, I hate speed bumps/humps! Maybe a GPS would be helpful :)

6. I like traditions. My favorite family tradition is our Christmas Eve dinner with boiled shrimp....and Grandma's pralines mmmm :) Good thing my sister can make the pralines now so we don't miss out on the heavenly treat!

7. I hate to run/jog. Would much rather go for a walk around the neighborhood or park than for a run. I am always amazed at people who can run marathons, 5k races, etc.

Posted in: on Wednesday, September 17, 2008 at at 5:30 PM 0 comments  

Last weekend my friends and I decided to make the most of our weekend since our NOLA trip plans were canceled. We were all so disappointed to miss out on our trip to LA--so we decided to take a shorter trip in NC to get out of Charlotte for the weekend.

We went to Old Salem (part of Winston-Salem) on Saturday for a short day trip.

Our favorite part was the bakery. I highly recommend the sugar bread/cake mmmm :)



We also toured the Moravian church and learned about the history of the town and the church. We had a nice little chat with one of the long time church members about the church.



Then Nicole decided she was hungry....and tried to take advantage of the apple tree orchard.


On Sunday we had a Louisiana dinner at my new place. I made jambalaya and beignets for those who were supposed to go to NOLA. This way we got to enjoy the yummy cuisine of LA without the worry of a hurricane :)



Tonight we're headed to the Greek festival for some more yummy food....very excited for some baklava!

Last year's Greek festival fun with Colleen and Nicole

Posted in: on Saturday, September 6, 2008 at at 11:01 AM 0 comments  

Since I was not able to go on the previously mentioned New Orleans mission trip this weekend due to stupid Hurricane Gustav....my friends and I are determined to have a fun Labor Day weekend!

Today we are headed up to Winston-Salem/Old Salem for a day trip. Our main incentive for going---the Moravian bakery with delicious cookies and other tasty sinful desserts like sugar bread. We'll miss watching the LSU/App game--but none of us are really too concerned about this haha (Geaux Tigers just for good measure since my roommate is an Appalachian alumni). And we'll get to avoid the crazy crowds at the VA Tech/ECU game in uptown Charlotte at the Panther's stadium.

Tomorrow/Sunday I am going to host a Louisiana dinner since we all had to miss out on Cafe du Monde :( I am going to attempt to make beignets, even though I have never made them before. Let's hope they turn out ok! Monday--not sure what I'll do yet, but hopefully something fun!

So I'm trying to make the most of this weekend since my plans got canceled. At least I was able to get a flight home for Thanksgiving with my flight credit (some silver lining). I hope everyone down in LA is safe and that Gustav decides to go somewhere else besides New Orleans. Or we could be making another hurricane relief trip soon---preferably not though.

Just a random thought--I had to make my 3rd (yes, 3rd) trip to the DMV yesterday. All so I could change the address on my license and car title. Now, this is never a pleasurable time sitting and waiting for them to call my number just to make a simple change. At least I got to bypass everyone waiting to take exams. Then--I had to take my 3rd picture for my 3rd NC drivers license issued in 2 months haha. At least it's a good pic. So---back to my thought---the whole world shows up at the DMV. People from every race, ethnicity, socioeconomic level, etc. Kind of interesting to see all of these very different people united over one thing---how much we all despise the evil necessity of the DMV. You can always make a friend discussing how ridiculous the wait is, the insanity of re-taking the driving exam, etc. :)

That's all for now :) I hope everyone has a wonderful relaxing Labor Day weekend!

Posted in: on Saturday, August 30, 2008 at at 8:55 AM 0 comments  

No NOLA, no gumbo, no hurricane relief work, no mission trip :( Stupid hurricane! Go away Gustav!

Posted in: on Wednesday, August 27, 2008 at at 1:52 PM 0 comments  

My young adults group at my church will be leaving Thursday early morning to head down to the hot, humid New Orleans for hurricane relief work. I am all packed into one small carry-on to avoid paying $15 to check my bag. I thought this was a miraculous feat...work clothes for 4 days, extra clothes for 4 days, shoes, sheets, towel, toiletries...all in one carry-on!

Not sure what we will be doing exactly in New Orleans. We told them we didn't have a skilled crew (with just 4 men and 9-11 women), so we'll be doing painting, cleaning, and yard work. Good thing because if we tried to hang dry wall or build a house, it might fall down or be crooked! Especially since it takes me 2-3 tries to hang a picture straight on a wall haha. Nonetheless, we will do work and hopefully it will make a difference in the situation 3 years post-Katrina. This Thurs/Friday will be the 3 year anniversary of Katrina. Ironic.

In other news...I am heading up a bone marrow drive at church in memory of a friend and her 2 siblings who all passed away from Leukemia or related complications of treatment. I visited with their mom Sunday afternoon to get her ideas and suggestions. What ever happened to the days of visiting people on Sundays? I don't think I've ever really done this--but it was quite nice. Maybe I should do it again another Sunday afternoon.

Regarding my work situation---I am still WAITING to hear more back from the new opportunity. We'll see what happens. For now I am enjoying my volunteering at the hospital and looking forward to the day when I can do a child life internship and finally switch my career! I'm just buying time working so I can make it until next summer when hopefully I'll be able to do an internship. It works for me because I know this is what I'm supposed to be doing---even though it is taking time, I guess that is teaching me patience :) (in addition to rocking a screaming baby to sleep when babysitting---now that will teach you patience!)

A funny story: Last Friday, while spending time painting and playing games with one little girl whose brother is in the hospital, she asked me, "How old are you?" So I let her know that I was 25. She responded, "Oh, I thought you were 16." Hm...I guess one day this will be a good thing when I'm 40!

Posted in: on Tuesday, August 26, 2008 at at 7:50 AM 0 comments  

So I'm babysitting and am hearing the most wonderful sound....silence! I may have mastered the art of putting a crying....no screaming baby to sleep. Let's just say that whenever my time comes to have kids, hopefully I'll have it all figured out by then :)

Lately I have been so absent-minded. Forgetting stuff. Today I realized that I had lost my phone. After completely racking my brain of where it could be---I assumed I had left it at church last night. I had started to lose all hope--I even emailed people at church to send out the search team (just kidding)--when my wonderful roommate found my phone! It was sitting on the end table by my couch and lovely orange chair. Somewhere I had forgotten to look. So lesson learned, search every inch before assuming phone is lost.

So now that all children are asleep, and my phone is found (sorry if you tried to call me today)...life is back to wonderful :)

Ohhh--and I must share wonderful and exciting news that two of my best friends got engaged in the past 2 weeks! Congrats Vaughan & Drew, and Lucy & Chris! Let's just say that next summer will be very busy :)

Posted in: on Monday, August 18, 2008 at at 8:56 PM 0 comments  

I just realized that in exactly 2 months from today I will turn 26 on Oct. 12. My coworker so kindly pointed out that I will now be closer to 30 than 20 (um yeah thanks....I would like to point out that she is 32). I mean after 25, what else is there to look forward to? At 16 you can finally drive, 18 you can vote, 21 you can drink, 25 you can rent a car....what's next? Guess I'll have to change my blog title too! Here's to hoping that 26 is a wonderful year with lots of unexpected things to look forward to! :)

Regardless, I love my birthday (well any birthdays really--it's just fun to celebrate). So the official countdown to 26 begins today--2 months! FYI--I like to celebrate for the entire month of October hehe. Just ask my family. Cards, cake, friends, cake, presents, and did I mention cake :)

A few pictures to remember the past year of 25....(sorry they're not in chronological order)

Sisters in NYC, April 2008

me and Vaughan at the MS State/USC game, fall 2007

College friends at Pam's wedding, April 2008

25th birthday cake, courtesy of Nicole

25th birthday dinner, October 2007

Family pic, July 2008

Posted in: birthday on Tuesday, August 12, 2008 at at 3:35 PM 0 comments  

Yay! The last boxes have been unpacked, the keys to the old apt have been turned over, my apt deposit has been returned (yay!), pictures have been hung, curtains are hung.....I'm home sweet home in my new condo! (click the link to see pics in my facebook album--it's a public link so no sign-in required). Excuse the mess in the pictures...I'm still working on getting rid of some stuff or putting other things away and finding a new home for them.

Life is slowly returning to normal around here. I am adjusting to having a roommate again, and it has been a good change. After 3 years of living by myself in Charlotte (yes, I have been here 3 years this month!), it was time for a roommate. I've already done at least 4 loads of laundry that I had saved up from my vacation and move. Yay for my very own washer/dryer! No more hauling my laundry to friends' places anymore! But I must say though that I have wonderful friends who let me do laundry for 1.5 years :) Thanks, y'all!

In other news--I'm still waiting patiently to hear back from the new job. Apparently they have to make so much revenue with their offices in B'ham and Atlanta before opening the Charlotte office. So, I wait. This is actually a good thing since life has been very hectic with vacation and moving.

Volunteering at the hospital has been very good. So far I've done 3 days (1 day each week) playing with the kids and helping the families. I'm enjoying every minute of it. The only not ideal part is I have to give up my Friday nights and miss out on some fun things---like happy hour at the new piano bar uptown. Hopefully another night to volunteer will be available soon and I can switch to a week night and get my Friday nights back.

My friend Janet had the wonderful idea to start a dinner club once a month. The idea is to try "new" restaurants in Charlotte (basically, restaurants we've never been to) starting with A and moving down the alphabet to Z. This month dinner is at Arpa, a tapas restaurant uptown. But alas, it is on a Friday night. So I may have to leave the hospital early so I can make it to dinner. I've been wanting to try Arpa since I moved here 3 years ago, but have never been!

I'm headed down to New Orleans for Labor Day weekend with my young adults group from church. I am very excited about this trip! There are 13 of us going down Aug 28-Sept 1. I haven't been to New Orleans in forever--probably since high school. It will be fun to see all these North Carolinians experience cajun food haha. I personally am most excited about the food! That may be my favorite thing about Louisiana--the food! But seriously, I think it will be a great trip for us to help the hurricane relief efforts in Louisiana 3 years after Katrina.

Also....I am very excited that my college friend Becki will be coming to Charlotte later this month with work. Yay! I have only had a couple of friends visit since living here, so it is always fun to have new people come see me :) Anyone else in need of a vacation to NC, I have a very comfy futon! My goal is to convince people to move to Charlotte. I've already started a list of reasons to move here....I tried to convince my friend Noelle, but it hasn't worked yet. Heck, I even had a job for her here! Now I'm on to Fran and her man, soon to be husband, to convince them that NC is better than OK :) Hehe just kidding! But who can argue with the mountains 2 hours away and the beach 3 hours away :)

So thats all for now in my thrilling life here in the Queen City :)

cheers!

Posted in: new condo on Monday, August 4, 2008 at at 10:34 PM 1 comments  

I'm back from vacation and have been thrown back into reality. After 10+ long hours in airports, I finally made it home at 1:30am last night. Now I'm in the midst of actively moving....started tonight by making several carloads to the new place. I would have made one more, but my car battery decided to be lazy. Wednesday is the big moving day! Wish me luck :)

A few pics from my trip home to LA






That's all for now...more after the big move is over!

Posted in: moving, vacation on Tuesday, July 29, 2008 at at 4:00 PM 1 comments  

This morning I am going to do the walk through of the condo with the landlords. Then hopefully I will get keys and be able to start moving in! I can't tell you how excited I am about the idea of being able to do my own laundry at my own apt :) Woohoo! I will be doing my last few loads of laundry at a friend's house this week. Thank goodness I have wonderful friends that open up their homes to me so I don't have to spend hours at the washateria/laundromat.

So things are moving along nicely over here in NC. I am a NC resident finally, set to start a new job hopefully in August sometime, getting ready to move into a better condo with my new roommate, and have started to volunteer at the children's hospital. It is going to be a very busy month packing to move (which is no fun at all), coming home to LA for 10 days, cleaning the new and old apts, getting situated in my new condo, and vacating my current apt by July 31. Whew, I'm tired just thinking about it :)

Last night I re-entered my childhood by playing legos with a little boy at the hospital. Who am I kidding though....this wasn't my kind of simple legos, but instead we were building this hard-core Star Wars space ship thing. It took us 1.5 hours!! The good news is I could follow the picture directions enough to figure out what we needed to do. So even though I had to miss out on the new piano bar fun with friends, I spent my Friday night with a little boy who was alone in the hospital while his mom left to take care of her other kids for awhile. It was worth it and I can't complain. There are more chances for the piano bar!

I'm also counting down until my trip home to the 'boro. 5 more days until Johnny's Pizza (which will hopefully be ready for me when I get off the plane *hint hint), my sister's birthday weekend at Lake Bruin, seeing most of my family and friends in LA, and of course relaxing in the boro with the traditional trips to Burke's Outlet and Only-a-buck for fun. Hopefully I'll be able to take lots of pictures while I'm home to post.

And just to finish up with a few pics from my friend Nicole's birthday last weekend....the ice cream cake was delish :)

Posted in: on Saturday, July 12, 2008 at at 8:36 AM 1 comments  

Before heading out to the pool for a relaxing Independence Day, I wanted to post pictures from last night's Pops in the Park. It was a very festive night with lots of patriotic music and fireworks. Hope everyone has a festive 4th of July!

Our group enjoying the Charlotte Symphony

Some of the girls before the music and fireworks

Me and Nicole

Posted in: on Friday, July 4, 2008 at at 2:01 PM 0 comments  

I just wanted to put up pictures of my latest apron creation for my friend Mandy's wedding shower. I also added a new touch...I got a dish towel monogrammed at L&M Monogram (my fave local monogram shop) with her new married initials. Then I added my own special touch by sewing the apron fabric on the bottom of the apron. I was very excited how well they both turned out!

Maybe I will start taking special orders for aprons and actually make a profit from my new-found crafty skills :) Not to spoil any future surprises, but I love finding fabric specifically for my friends' aprons...this is now my favorite bday/wedding gift to give! A little more personal I think :)

The apron and coordinating dish towel

Posted in: on Thursday, July 3, 2008 at at 4:51 PM 1 comments  

Woohoo! Great news! I found a new condo! My new friend/roommate Casey (who I found on craigslist...who knew!) and I will be moving within the month to the 2 BR/2 Bath condo. It's about 2 miles from where I live now, and just 1 mile from uptown and 1 mile from my church. The best news of all.....washer/dryer, dishwasher, central a/c, fridge with icemaker :) Oh the simple pleasures in life!

More details and info to come!

Posted in: on Wednesday, July 2, 2008 at at 11:12 PM 0 comments  

I thought I should explain the links on the left side of my blog so y'all (those who are actually reading this) will know who/what they are.

1. My friend Vaughan is in Copenhagen for the summer studying abroad in accounting/business. She started a blog to chronicle her adventures.

2. My cousin Ben and his wife Rachel are expecting their first baby, Avery Elizabeth, in August. Rachel started a blog to track her pregnancy journey.

3. The Charlotte Observer is one of my main news sources here.

4. Weight Watchers is pretty self explanatory :) I have just a few more pounds left!

5. Myers Park UMC is my church here in Charlotte.

6. Pray for Katherine Wolf: Katherine went to Samford during the same time I did and graduated the year before I did. Although I did not know her personally, SU is such a small school that I knew of her since she was Miss Samford one year. She suffered a brain rupture back in the spring and went through a 13 hour surgery. She and her husband have an 8 month old baby. Katherine survived the surgery and is now in an acute care rehab. Please keep Katherine and her family in your prayers. You can get updates on the site linked here.

7. CF Husband blog: I randomly came across this blog, but it is an amazing story that will make you believe that miracles still happen...and they live in NC! Nathan faithfully blogs about his wife Tricia's journey with Cystic Fibrosis while surviving giving birth to a premature baby girl and a double lung transplant. All the odds were beat because Tricia survived the pregnancy and received her transplant. Their baby Gwyneth is thriving and growing after being born weighing just over 1 pound. You can read more about their story on their site and get the quick story here. Tricia is now battling some form of post-transplant cancer. Please keep this family in your prayers.

Posted in: blogs, church, family, friends, weight watchers on Tuesday, July 1, 2008 at at 7:00 PM 0 comments  

Today I completed the final step of becoming an NC resident...I trekked back to the DMV to register my car. With my car title, insurance, and new NC license in tow, I was ready! I successfully obtained my very first NC license plate for my little red escape :) I ended up having to take another driver license pic because they left my apt # off the first DL. So now with a brand new license and car tag, I'm official!

I made it over to Griffin Brothers, my friendly car guys, to get my car inspected and have the car tag "installed." I left it there and went to work. They told me it would take awhile (this is a more detailed inspection that the LA "flash your lights" inspection lol). Just 10 minutes after I got to work, they called to say my car was ready. I picked up my little red car that was almost "new" with its NC plates. I think it was happy :) Now I don't stick out like an out-of-towner.....which I guess is good since I've been here 3 years!

What a successful day!

BTW--any family and friends that are itching to visit the wonderful state of North Carolina, be sure to look me up when you come! I know all the good places to eat and shop here...hehe :)

Posted in: on Monday, June 30, 2008 at at 8:30 PM 0 comments  

Posted in: on Thursday, June 26, 2008 at at 1:45 PM 0 comments  

Why is it so confusing and difficult to figure out which car insurance policy to get?? I am in the process of getting insurance in NC so I can finally get a drivers license here. After dealing with this for 3 days and with 3 quotes, I'm still confused :) Hopefully I'll get coverage this week so I can study up for my driver's exam for next week. Yup...I have to take the NC written driving exam to get my license here. I have had 2 friends fail their first attempt in the past, so I'm going to study! Soon I can be an official NC resident woohoo!

In other news...I'm one TB test away from volunteering at the children's hospital. Once I get the TB test checked Friday, I should be cleared to volunteer! I'll hopefully be able to start next Friday at the end of June :) Who knew it would be such a long process to start volunteering? But I'm sure it will be worth it!

That's all for now :)

Posted in: on Wednesday, June 18, 2008 at at 8:24 PM 1 comments  

Today was Alisa's last Sunday at MPUMC. We will definitely miss her as our young adults minister, but wish her the best of luck in D.C.

Vaughan, Alisa, and me on Alisa's last Sunday

Posted in: on Sunday, June 15, 2008 at at 9:27 PM 0 comments  

Vaughan, Nicole, and I at Speed Street in uptown Charlotte during Nascar Race week.

Me and Lucy on Memorial Day weekend at her family's lake house on Lake Nantahala.

Mom and I walking the Guillian-Barre 5k in memory of my grandma and my friend Mary Matt.
At the finish line after walking the 3+ miles :)

Some of my Samford friends getting ready for Pammie's wedding.

Posted in: on Tuesday, June 10, 2008 at at 10:26 PM 0 comments  

Made by Michelle (monogram by L&M Monogramming)

This was my latest apron creation for my college friend Pam (aka Pammie) who got married in April.





And here's the beautiful bride on her wedding day

Pam and Becki

Pam and her new hubby Jeremy

Posted in: on at at 10:19 PM 0 comments  

So I should probably update everyone on my career situation (for those that haven't heard about all the changes). This actually a very exciting time for me right now. After finishing grad school classes for I/O psych (aka work psych, aka human resources), I still have that pesky thesis pending (no comments needed on this please). This is a thorn in my side I'd rather not discuss (if you want me to be your friend and like you, please do not bring this topic up next time you see me).

While in my most recent interview for a HR job, I just sat there realizing that I would be completely miserable in this type of job. It was almost an epiphany....an "ah-ha" moment. Definitely a God-thing, I feel. I have been working at a recruiting firm in an internship type job since September. This was to help me get on an HR track to get some recruiting experience. While I love my coworkers and what I do here for the most part, it is not my future.

I started talking to friends and others about switching to child life (www.childlife.org). This career track of working with kids in a hospital has always been in the back of my mind (I just chose to ignore it at the time). Well what do you know....my friends have connections :) My friend Jennifer put me in touch with the child life coordinator at Presbyterian Hospital. Well...things just started coming together and I met with a couple of child life professionals at Presby recently to get my questions answered and such.

So all things going as smoothly as possible, I will start volunteering at Hemby Children's at Presby this summer in order to complete 50 hours of volunteer hours. Then, I will be eligible to apply for a child life internship for spring/summer 2009. I am very excited! I'm sure there will be lots more updates and stories to come as I begin this adventure.

In the meantime, I am set to start a new job at another recruiting firm in July. So this will give me a better financial situation for the next year until I can intern and switch to child life. So for right now, things are looking good and I can't complain :)

All this means too that I'll be in Charlotte for at least another 1-2 years, maybe longer (shhh don't tell my family). I keep trying to convince them to move here...but who am I kidding, hell will have to freeze over first before they'll leave the 'boro.

Posted in: on at at 11:00 AM 0 comments  

**This heat has already gotten the best of me today...and its only the first week of June!

Needed:
1. A new place to live in Myers Park, Dilworth, Elizabeth neighborhoods with central a/c (I can seriously live w/o washer/dryer, dishwasher as long as its cool inside!)
2. A nice, clean, friendly roommate to share 2 br apt/house with previously mentioned modern conveniences (if you know of anyone in Charlotte, send them my way)

OR
1. AIR CONDITIONING!
I'm considering biting the bullet and investing in a portable a/c unit for my bedroom since I can't install a window unit. And also channeling my inner-repair "woman" self to install shades over my mini blinds and under my curtains to help keep the heat out.

I thought Louisiana summer heat was bad....stupid global warming...NC isn't any better!

Posted in: on Friday, June 6, 2008 at at 5:01 PM 0 comments  

For those of you unfamiliar with my lovely apt....I'll give you the low-down. I may live in the middle of one of the nicest neighborhoods in Charlotte...next door to million dollar condos....but I live in a 50+ year old apt building...with no dishwasher...no washer/dryer...and only one "window" a/c unit thats in my den. But I love my old apt :)

Despite these minor inconveniences, I couldn't ask for better neighbors or a better place to live. My neighbors are wonderful...when I first moved in, my neighbor Anne brought me cookies :) I don't have sketchy loud ghetto-fabulous neighbors like my other apt in the university area (which totally sucked btw). I can walk on beautiful tree-lined streets with amazing homes on my way to the park. I live within a few miles of my church, most of my friends, the ymca, Harris Teeter (aka grocery store for you non-Carolinians). So all this to say is that even though I don't have all the "modern" conveniences, I love where I live! (Ask me in a month or so when its the middle of HOT summer, I may change my mind lol).

A view of a Myers Park street (probably Queens Rd West) in Charlotte.

My new idea is to get a bike with a basket so I can ride to the park, to the store, etc. I just need to actually go to Target or Walmart and buy the bike first. This will be my small attempt at creating a cleaner earth, saving money on gas, and getting exercise. We'll see how this goes since it's already supposed to be in the high 90s and up to 100 degrees in Charlotte this weekend. Oy!

Posted in: on at at 10:22 AM 0 comments  

So here I am attempting to venture into this blog world. I thought it would be good to put my thoughts and such somewhere. A few things I will probably blog about...

Family...Mine is in LA and TX, while I am starting my life in NC. Not always the easiest thing.

Friends...near and far from high school, college, grad school, etc.

My vintage apt....what it's like to live without central a/c, washer/dryer, and dishwasher. The rough life!

Career...doing a 360 degree career change from recruiting/human resources to child life...more on that later.

Church...Weight Watchers (trying to lose those last 5 pounds)....And just whatever else I have the urge to share about life :)

Cheers!

Posted in: on Thursday, June 5, 2008 at at 10:13 PM 2 comments