Bridesmaid Dress, Finally

Since January I have been searching for a navy blue cotton sundress for my mom's wedding. This resulted in many hours search the web that should have been spent studying, many shopping trips, and many angry yells about the lack of navy blue this season.
A week ago my mom and I were at the mall so she could get a purse repaired and I could stop by work to fill out direct deposit paperwork and we decided to pop into Gap on the off chance they were using navy blue this summer.... best decision ever!It was a little too flowy on my around the middle (made look a touch prego) so my mom suggested the whole wide belt around the middle to cinch it in... after I made sure she was ok with it in her wedding pictures (her response was, and I quote If Michelle Obama does it, its ok with me) so we grabbed:
except instead of brown its a metallic gold...
After that I picked up some metallic gold flops from American Eagle that don't make that clomp soung like most leather flops do....
I love casual weddings.... so comfy!

Also, on an unrelated note.. I am teaching my black lab how to jump and put his paws on the counter when begging because I was bored during dinner.... I feel like it will be amusing to see how it plays out... in my defense my soon to be stepdad has taken my two unruly dogs and trained them to be well behaved and polite and this could not continue...

Text Messages Can Blow Your Mind...

So, finally school is done... I have move back home and have time to breathe.. except for the fact that my Mom is getting married soon and my life is consumed with wedding related things... I made 75 favor bags yesterday and 50 more today.
Plus, I take my drivers test on Thursday (I know, I know, I'm really late is taking it. In my defense I used to live a ten minute walk from everything and my mom worked really close to where we lived) so I am practicing like crazy...
Anyway, on to the real reason of this post... A couple days ago I woke up and noticed my phone was dead. So, I plugged it into its charger and turned it on; then, I noticed a text from the big sister informing me that our nephew had a girlfriend.... What? seriously? He's like 15 and fairly awk... I couldn't believe it... I asked my soon to be step-dad if he knew about it, yes he did. I asked my mom, yes she did... Apparently I was the only one in the dark... So of course, I logged on to Facebook went to his page and checked his photos... He has a totally cute little girlfriend!!! Craziness! I mean, I didn't date until really late (my first kiss was the night of my 17 birthday, but that's a whole other story....) I'm not sure why this is so mind boggling but it is...
Also, he was apparently named MVP of his Lacrosse team which is just awesome!
Anyway... just had to mention this...
Ciao,
Kate

P.S. Having a nephew in highschool makes me feel old.... even though I'm only like 3 years older then him...

Wow, I really disappeared for awhile....

So, ummmm.... I'm sorry... but, life got distracting... what with classes, papers, picking out housing for next year, signing up for classes, trying to have an actual social life, and being a cool Aunt....

So first of all, I rocked my classes this past week, a 94 on my Sociology test, a 92 on my Anthropology test, a 11/12 on my government project, and a 21/20 on my Ethics paper (which I wrote at 3a.m.)

Plus, my absolute best friend since I was 5 came down to visit me over her Spring Break. AND she got into NYU Tisch for next year WITH an acting scholarship!! (How freaking awesome is that?) We had a blast, she said she can't wait for college.

I got an apartment with my two friends down here and one girl we were randomly assigned (but she looks pretty nice) so I will be able to cook next semester (YAY!) no more mass produced food!!

And I signed up for classes, no Friday classes, no Monday or Wednesday classes until 3p.m. plus Tuesday and Thursday classes don't start til 9am, which isn't too late...

Plus, I went to my first club ever and had a good time! I'm going to my first Frat party on Friday or Saturday, wish me luck!!

Also, I have the worlds cutest nieces, check 'em out...



















My nephew is pretty adorable too... Same with the big sister... And how cute are my big brother, my mommy, and me?
(Correct answer, "Super cute!")







So, I promise not to be away for so long.... I've got some catch-up to do on my favorite blogs, which I will do this week, I swear!!

Ciao,
College Prep

Ick

Today has been an icky day so far....
First, I forgot to turn off my alarm last night.... so I was rudely awoken at 9am when I didn't have class til 12:30... so annoying....
Second, I forgot to look out the window this morning, so when I went outside this morning I was surprised to find rain and icy pavement and I was wearing Ballet flats which have now been soaked through.... ewww....
Third, I left my room too late to stop for a bagel and coffee and I have back to back classes today... So I will be starving.... I must rely on a vending machine to deal with my hunger....

Tonight should be good though, I'm grabbing dinner with two friends and then heading off to watch the Patriots take on Drexel University!

Mason Pride

So, I just back from a Homecoming party/finished playing some hard core Pokemon N64 with a hallmate and I just have to say I <3 my University... I am not the worlds biggest sports fan by any means but there is something very cool about sitting in the students section of any game... the cheering, the mocking, the singing, the standing for the whole freaking game. My feet hurt and my voice is hurt from screaming so much, but it was a blast! Tonight was homecoming and we won!!!! Go Mason!!! I had a blast except for the whole waking up at 9am on a Saturday... that kinda sucked especially since I don't really wake up that early during the week....
So I finally have pictures... Thanks to my friend (and roomie next semester) P.S. Shes the adorable little blonde... shes 4' 11" (we joke that we are gonna need some tall people in our on campus apartment so we can reach the top shelves since I am only 5'1")
This is us right before the game started so we look pretty and not super aggressive like we have been screaming for an hour...
The cutie pie on the left is our friend Ashley and on the right is yours truly...
Also, I just have to mention that the last minute of the game lasted for about 7 minutes cause the kept fouling each other... it was a bit tedious to see them just walking back and forth to each other's basket... lol...
Today (Sunday) I am heading back to Bawlmore to my Grandmom and Pop's house for homemade ravioli with my big sister and brother-in-law, yummers! Plus, I get to see my mommy, her fiance, and my soon to be nieces! And, kinda most importantly my puppies!! (I love the people but they can drive down whenever they want, the doggies... not so much...)
Hope everyone had a good Valentine's Day, whether single like me, with a boyfriend, happily married, or like my sister, happily married but with a husband who was convinced Valentine's day was this Friday (she didn't have the heart to tell him it was actually Saturday... lol)
xoxoxo, The College Preppy

TGIF... No More Like "Why God is it Friday?"

I don't like Fridays.... I may be the only person in the world who doesn't but my Friday schedule sucks... I have one class that is 45min at 12:30... I can never seem to convince myself to get up for it and yet I should. All the other days of the week I have more then one class which is a good way to get myself out of bed, but on Friday its just the one class which isn't much motivation. Plus, on Monday and Wednesday I have my Government class which I have to go to or I will fall behind and not do well and on Tuesday and Thursday I have my Ethics class which I have to go to for the same reason. But on Friday its just my boring old Public Speaking class... I know I have to go to it so I can take my tests with my group, but its just so boring. I already understand the need to be an ethical speaker and promise to not plagiarize or lie to my audience... eh... I guess I just have to deal...

On a more fun note... The College Humor show is premiering on MTV this weekend and I am super pumped! AND I am going to see 'Hes just not that into you' with my big sister too!

Hope everyone has a good weekend!!

So Cold... So Very Very Very Cold

So the winds are howling outside my dorm at the moment, there is ice on the ground, and if I have to stand outside with my friends while they smoke I may become an icicle. (I don't smoke, I just stand outside while they do.) It is so very cold at Mason. I really wish we could move the school to NC for like Jan, Feb, and the first half of March.
Being the incredibly intelligent person that I am I really only have two winter jackets; a sky blue North Face fleece that I didn't bring because its sky blue and matches nothing and a knee length Burberry-esque coat. I brought the plaid coat but it's a little impractical to wear day to day because its a little too dressy to toss with jeans and a t-shirt.
Enter this adorable jacket from Delias:
I love this coat! Its a short coat so it can go with jeans and a skirt. The hood is detachable, which just adds to the awesomeness! A girl in my Ethics class who I am friends with has this exact coat and she loves it so I'm pretty excited to get it! Plus $60 isn't to bad for a wool coat...

Also, I always thought I had a tone of clothes when I was at home... I don't.... I'm not sure if its because I don't have a lot of winter/cold weather clothes or what, but my closet is significantly less full then the others on the floor... I need to shop...

On a totally unrelated note, I am looking for cool plays to cut an Interp piece from for speech.... If anybody wrote a cool play, saw a cool play, or was in a cool play please let me know! I will name my first born after you if you can help me!

Well I have a 10:30 class tomorrow so I should probably sleep.... Damn Intro to Sociology...

Cool Classes Rock!

So last semester I went to a community college and had two very cool professors (one who made me want to minor in Philosophy) but this semester I am taking really really awesome classes.

Intro to Sociology: the professor is very funny though he can't seem to understand the microphone given to him since the class is in a huge lecture hall.

Ethics: the professor is a former Lincoln Douglass debater which makes me smile. He gets my jokes and references. Plus, hes really pretty. Also hes an amazing teacher, really engaging and very funny.

Intro to Cultural Anthropology: Shes crazy, absolutely crazy. I mean that is the nicest way possible. Its a huge lecture hall with close to 150 students and yet she doesn't use a mike... her voice is that loud. Plus, she rejects technology; she uses an old school white board. I sit in the back simply because I like the view and she walked back to where I was sitting and informed us that she was going to bring binoculars one day to class... she wouldn't tell us what day but she said to make sure we were always paying attention. If I didn't love government as much as I did she might be able to convince me to change my major...

Public Speaking: Because I really needed to get over my fear of speaking in front of people.... Its a required course, never mind the fact that I got accepted to the Speech Team here on campus. ehh... I guess its an easy A...

Democratic Theory and Practice: I saved the best for last!!! I LOVE the class and the professor. Hes awesome and Britsh. Very funny, very interesting, very awesome. He taught at Cambridge which makes me feel very smart... I am on page 20 of the textbook after about an hour of reading, I can't verbalize why the textbook is so hard for me to get through but it just is. It may be because it was written by British authors so I keep having to Wikipedia the references to Margaret Thatcher and other Prime Ministers....

Anyway, thats my class list and my schedule is pretty sweet (read: no 8am classes... or 9am classes... or 10am classes)
Oh, and I went to my first basketball game on Wednesday. Very fun, it feels awesome to sit in the student section at a school that is actually mine and not sitting in the student section when I was visiting my sister at her school (now shes going to comment with some sort of snippy comment, trust me, I loved going to UMD games with you... chill)

Adjusting to College is Hard

So.... still here. I realized that the last post I left was a really depressing one and it seemed kinda creepy that I didn't have another one. Fear not for I am alive and well. I've moved into the dorms and everything.
Somehow I got stuck in a triple... My room mates are nice, but very very different from me. One is very hipster and the other is really into the punk scene... pink leopard print pants have been worn... So its kinda interesting getting used to living with people very different from me, but they are really nice. My hall is quite the party hall which is interesting given that I don't drink or smoke anything. I hang out on my friends dorm...
My friend Andrew is a dance major and right now I'm watching two of his hall mates record a '90s workout dance' video Facebook. The two girls are absolutely hysterical. Its been a lot of N*sync and old school Britney. <3
If my camera wasn't broken you would all get to see pictures of my pink polka-dot bed with flamingo sheets and green and pink picture frames.... unfortunately you will have to wait till I can figure out how to fix it...
So thats what I have been up to.. moving in, dorms, college food, and ya know classes and studying...

Puppy Love

Colt was born 4 years and one day after me. We got him when he was 8 weeks old and he was a tiny golden puff ball. I wanted to name him Catfish, my dad wanted to name him after the old Baltimore Colts. My dad won. Colt was my best friend. We shared naps, a bed, and occasionally a bathtub... Colt was the sweetest thing on the face of the planet, about 98% of the time. He did have a liking for fine Italian leather, mainly in the form of boots, and one time he tore our porch couch to shreds after being left there for an afternoon. He did also have a tendency to walk away, not run, walk. We would be driving down the street and would see a dog that looked a lot like Colt and then notice the dog had 15 feet of lead and a stake that was supposed to be in the ground attached to him... He also enjoyed visiting my big sister at the pool and going for a dip.
Though he was a little naughty he was much more good. He walked the neighborhood kids to school, first the high school kids and then the elementary school ones. He watched over the many gerbils we have had over the years. And though he wouldn't speak to us for a week after we got Wondermutt he eventually taught him to be a good boy and showed him the ropes on how to beg for people food.
My mom and I had to put Colt to sleep today. He was 14, deaf, and had a bad leg. It wasn't fair to keep him alive just because it was hard for me to deal with. He was completely spoiled today. My mom was carving turkeys for a New Years day party and he got more then his fair share. On the drive up to the vet he hung his head out the window like he did as a puppy. Putting him to sleep was incredibly peaceful for Colt. Saying goodbye was hard but the right thing. I've cried more in the past week then in the rest of my life but I had a friend say something that has helped, "if the death of your dog doesn't drive you to tears I don't want to be your friend." Colters is at peace now, up in heaven. Hes running around with my Grandmas dog Sparky and my cousins dog Madison. It was the right thing to do, but it realllly sucked.
I know it has nothing to do with shopping or preppy-ness but I needed to write it. Though, it should be noted that Colt's collar is lime green with hot pink flamingos... He is a stylish boy.

My Life is Complete.... at least for the moment

OMG, OMG, OMG....
Pardon my teenager moment... I got the most amazing news on Friday... So this semester I was attending CCBC also known as the local community college (I was taking difficult courses, English 101 Honors, Intro to Philosophy, U.S. History part 1, and Art Appreciation) So, I got my grades in:
English: A, Philosophy: A, U.S. History:B. Art Appreciation: C (I didn't turn in a paper.) That adds up to a GPA of 3.25!!! Which I am pretty proud of, I am fairly intelligent but I have a tendency to get bored and not turn in homework. Thats why I <3 college, no busy work! So I got my grades around 11:30 on Friday and I emailed them to my admissions officer at George Mason University and at 12:30 I got this email back, "Although I'm not impressed with a C in Art Appreciation, I am offering an early holiday present. You've been admitted for spring and your admission letter will mail on Monday."
I was at my internship in VA at this time. Its a law internship at the law office where my middle sister works. To sume up I screamed when I read the email, cried in front of the managing attorney while he was eating his lunch, went into my sisters office and opened my e-mail account and had her read the email without telling her anything about it, she got excited and I got even more excited! I called my mommy and my bestest friend and my friend who goes to GMU. I am over the moon at the moment. Plus, Santa apparently is getting my a George Mason t-shirt for Christmas!!
I now have to start my dorm shopping! Luckily my mom saved my older siblings dorm stuff in our attic so I have a travel iron, bed pad, and other boring stuff. I am, however, getting the fun stuff, sheets, pillows, posters, lamps, etc, etc... Any suggestions from those just out of college, in collegem or a more then a couple years out of college are welcome.What is needed, what is fun to have, and what is a waste of money? The only thing I am concerned about is bringing too much clothing, but I am on a academic team that requires buisness suits, heels, stockings, etc. (I know... I am a dork) Luckily, GMU is only 1.5 hours from home and like 15min away from my sister (not that she has clothing storage space... but she does have home cooked food :) ) So, my whole wardrobe won't be too far away. Well, any advice is welcome...
Happy Holidays to all whether its Christmas, Hannukah, or Festivus. And GO PATRIOTS!! Ciao for now!

A Birthday Party with a Stripper

Yup, that was my night. It should be mentioned that my 5yr old niece was the stripper.... she isn't so much a fan of clothing and she is a huge fan of showing all of us her booty...
It was my step-dad's birthday dinner thing tonight. My mom made lasagna and Glenn made his own birthday cake; which was surprisingly good (it was from a box.) So we start of by decorating the tree which goes well and then we eat dinner and do the whole cake thing. Anna then decides she wants to finish decorating the cake which means she needs to wash her hands. This leads to her going to the potty. As she comes down the stairs my sister goes "Anna, you need to pull up your pants." Lo and behold my niece is walking around with her pants around her knees, booty is full view. I laugh as does her brother and my mom. This, of course, only encourages her, so she takes the pants all the way off and bends over and moons us... priceless. She stays naked for a while showing us her but until she is threatened with no visit from Santa and re-clothes herself.
Later on in the evening I asked Anna what she wanted for Christmas, "a pony" Wendy then tells me the story of her visit to Santa: Anna asks for a pony. Santa says, "well a pony needs a barn to live" Anna replies,"I have a barn, at my pop-pop's house" Santa tries again "a pony needs lots of grass" Anna,"oh, there is a lot of grass at pop-pop's house. Santa tries for a third time, "A pony will need pastures to run around in" Anna "There are a ton of pastures at pop-pop's house" Santa has no answer... In her defense there is room for a pony and Glenn once had a horses. However, he is not open to the idea of having a pony which is breaking Anna's heart... I'm pretty sure by the time she is 10 there will be a horsey at Pop-pop's house.
After Anna asked for a pony and I said I can't get her a pony I asked what else do you want,"diamonds." Seriously, it must be encoded in our DNA to ask for diamonds because this girl is a tom-boy. She isn't into poofy dresses or playing dress up or doing makeup. It has to be genetic. After I turned down that idea she asked for "another Dog-dog." Dog-dog is her luvey, she has had it since she was a baby. It even has a real dog tag with its name on it, their phone number, and 'reward offered.' I am now on a mission to find another dog-dog. If that fails I'm getting her a 'make your own lip gloss kit.' Its pretty messy so I feel that will make up for the uber girlyness of it, plus I want to make my own lip gloss.
There were pictures taken tonight but Wendy didn't send them but I'll post them when she does. The girls were too cute.

P.S. Bonnie, the baby, had her first real experience with birthday cakes tonight and it was adorable. Anna and I were pulling the candles out of the cake and licking the icing off of the bottoms and Bonnie saw us doing it and she pulled a candle out and stuck the wick end in her mouth. Luckily it wasn't hot anymore, but it was absolutely priceless. A little sister mimicking a big sister, I'm sure my own big sister has plenty of stories about me mimicking her.

Well, I really should write the paper that is due tomorrow... Wish me luck!

I have Evolved Past Sleep

ok... This post has not point, except that it is quarter of 6 and I'm not tired. I simply cannot sleep this week. Seriously, in the whole week I have gotten maybe 25 hours of sleep total.... thats around 3.5 hours a night... My excuse has been that I have had term papers due all week and I am trying to study for finals.
I will ne so excited on Thursday next week when I take my last two finals, Art and Philsophy. My Art final is 50 questions with multiple choice and true/false... not studying for that so much. I am studying for my U.S. History final since I had an awful professor and have no idea what will be on the exam. Plus, I need to polish my final paper for English and finish my final project for English. (I did however get an A- on my last essay which made my pretty happy!!) The Philsophy final shouldn't be to bad given that it is open note; however, my professor has a tendency to phrase questions in a way that makes them difficult to answer. Plus, he doesn't believe in just having us repeat what he has said, so I don't think the open note will be all that helpful. In any event I cannot wait for next week to be over so I can really get excited for Christmas!
On another note, I HATE my bank. Seriously, I HATE them, I really, really do. Arrg... I have to call them in the morning and have a conversation with them and by conversation I really mean argument. They are charging me overdraft fees when I didn't overdraft myself. (I think I may ask them for a bailout... not sure how that will go over. Or I may say that since I am a tax paying citizen I gave them that loan and therefore I am their boss and I demand that they take away the bogus charges...) Most likely I will brush off my highschool debating skills (I am a nerd, I picked my dream college because of their debate team) and argue with them until I get my way...
In any event I gotta go my puppy is doing her 'puppy nightmare' crying so I must rescue her from the big mean vaccume cleaner... Ciao for now!

A Trip to Target & an Award

So I went to Target the other evening after class for 5min... riiigghhtt. 5min quickly turned into an hour. But it was a very productive trip. I got some fun un-needed Christmas things. A t-shirt to torture my puppy with :) Plus, two new toys to buy my nieces love with. I can't decide if I am saving the bigger one for part of Anna's Christmas present....
In any event I took pictures so you can share in the fun!!!!
My 5yr old neice was a big fan of paint your own pottery + making a mess. Perfect combo! My sister did 'make your own t-shirts' with Anna the last time she babysat so I figured I needed to do a craft project with her too. I think I may need to go out and buy another kit though, cause after seeing this one for a couple days I really want to make my own dish and mug.... I miss being 5.

A Dora the Explorer bubble whistle. Apparently, my neice Bonnie loves bubbles but doesn't get the concept of blowing, she sucks the bubbles into her mouth..... I am thinking this may solve the problem. You load the back part of the whistle with the bubble solution and then just blow like a regular whistle... pretty nifty, right? I fear my sister may hate me after the next time I come over. There will be bubbles in the house plus another toy that makes noise. I do think I will need to buy another because I don't think Anna or Bonnie will be good sharers with this toy.I LOVE the dollar bins at Target. A cute jingle bell necklace for just a buck. I got 3! One for me, one for Anna, and one for Bonnie. My sister is seriously going to hate me.....
A T-Shirt for my puppy!!! I am not someone who constantly dresses up her dog (partially because she wouldn't let me) but I do like dressing her up for Halloween, parties, and Christmas. Blazer and I had a very long photo shoot with her modeling this shirt...

The 'pouty, emo, bangs in your face' pose.

Her 'ruler of the world' pose. She believes she is by the way...

She was not impressed with her mommy.

After this picture she ran outside to get away from Mommy's camera.

Well my big sister over at Diary of the Fanatic Foodie gave me an award! How sweet of her. Though, it should be noted that while she gave me an award she did also have to tease me about my blog. Just like a true big sister.So I am going to tag:

1. Anne-Toiresa at The Devil Wears Kelly Green
2. L,S,&M at The Daily Fax Email Blog I know they don't 'do' awards but it is a hysterically funny blog that everyone should read!
3. Ms. Crocodile at The Preppy Pink Crocodile

And I also have to list 5 addictions....
Here goes:

1. Starbuck's White Peppermint Mocha Latte (Heather, it also hurts me to not say venti, 140, skinny, wpm its in my DNA too...)
2. My UGGs. So warm and cuddly...
3. Cofee flavored ice cream
   
4. Argyle sweaters! Cute, preppy, and a lilttle nerdy.... perfection
5. Monogrammed stationary... I love it! I pretty much love anything with my monogram though. Call it the youngest child syndrome. I share nothing...

Thats all for now. I have to be at work in 9 hours... An 8 hour Saturday shift during the holiday season. Hopefully I won't kill any customers... Ciao for now!

Fast Food

So, I am not a food blog. That is my sister's domain. However, I do enjoy cooking from time to time and I know that when I have my own kitchen and family I will be a cooking mommy. How do I know that? Well, my mommy was a cooking mommy. My mom worked full time for as long as I can recall but she still served a full meal every night. She wasn't a kid food person either. My sister, brother, and I ate whatever my mom was making for her and my dad. That is why I was the odd kid who liked spinach and brussel sprouts. We didn't each chicken nuggets or fish-sticks as a regular part of our diet.Fish-sticks we were reserved for Friday nights during Lent when my mom was making a seafood pasta meal (something I have never been able to stomach.) Fast food was very rare. It was either a treat for getting a shot or used during a long road trip to NC, MA, or Kentucky.(my mom is a huge fan of a road trip, I have seen many caverns and been to many places where George Washington spent the night) In any event even though my mother often worked till 7pm and all three of us played sports we had a real meal consisting (always) of a starch, normally two veggies, and a protein. Dessert wasn't guaranteed and was often fresh fruit.
Why I am writing about this is because I attended a panel discussion that infuriated me. My college picks a community book every year that is built into many classes. This years book was Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. I loved this book. It is about the dark side of the fast food industry. It turns your stomach both on a food level and a marketing/employee relations level. In this panel discussion a young man argued that Fast Food is a necessary evil. No! A parent can serve their child healthy food. It may be harder for a parent to cook a real meal but parenting isn't supposed to be easy. Frozen veggies are just as expensive as fast food. I heard a man defending marketing to children. No! Marketing to me is one thing.I have the ability to see the comercial and logically say, "well, while that double cheeseburger looks delicious I know its loaded with calories and while those french fries look amazing I know they are deep fried in tallow (a beef by product) which isn't remotely heathly for me. A child cannot. I guess the point I am trying to make is that I know fast food is easy and tastes good. I get that. Some days I crave a cheeseburger, milkshake, and french fries. And once and while is fine. So long as the rest of the time you get excersise and eat healthy. But a lot of people don't. They see easy and yummy. But life isn't about the easy choices. It would be much easier to stay in bed and sleep in. To not spend time writing papers and studying for tests. But what are those choices doing to me in the long run? They are hurting me. Same as eating fast food on a regular basis. And when it comes to yummy. A salad is yummy. So is my Mom's soup. It is full of veggies and who grain pasta and lean beef. It is pretty healthy and beyond yummy. They make low sodium soups in containers you pop in the microwave for two minutes and while I am sure they are perfect they have to be better then whatever new burger is out on the market now.
Well, I am glad I got that out. I know this has nothing to do with shopping but I needed to rant for a moment.Thanks for listening.... err... reading... I'll get a shopping entry soon. Ciao for now!

My Christmas List

So I have to start with a story, my father sends a Christmas List detailing everything he wants for Christmas. This is a great idea! Picking out presents for parents is always a difficult thing and having a guide is a great thing, plus you are guaranteed to get a present that the receiver likes. So, a Christmas List is a great thing, however, my father sends his Christmas List out on December 24th.... Christmas Eve! I might dawdle a bit in doing my shopping but I am most definitely shopped, wrapped, and ready by the 24th.
So in the spirit of learning from one's parents this is my wish list for the holidays and beyond.....

1. The Dakota UGG slipper. So pretty, so comfy, so perfect! I have the tall boots from last Christmas and the short ones from my sister's Honeymoon in Australia, so, all I need are the flats and I have the whole collection. UGGs are the best shoe to wear on campus... it is like going to class in your slippers... Heaven!
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. A brand new, monogrammed coffee tumbler! It is oh so cute from Miss Priss. I love the red and white damask print plus the boldness of the black monogram. Normally I only like the swirly, cursive, girly script but with this print I am in love with the block, diamond monogram. It is only $23 and for something you (or at least me, the coffee addict) would use every day it is totally worth it. Besides it would be very cute in a stocking filled me candy... perhaps Lindt truffles...
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. A pink towel wrap. I don't know if anyone else has this fear; but I am terrified that when I am walking from the bathroom to my bedroom my towel will come undone and I'll flash everyone... There have been nightmares... In any event this solves it all. It is lime green + pink, fluffy, and can be monogrammed. It is again from Miss Priss. I seriously love that store. In any event this is a great was to get from the bathroom to bedroom without giving anyone a cheap show :) Plus once you monogram it no one can steal it. Always a good thing.
   
   
   
   
   
4. I LOVE The Office. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, it. It is arguable the best show on Television at the moment. Well NBC has a t-shirt that captures one of my favorite moments thus far.
   Dwight: Very good! You have earned one Schrute Buck.
   Stanley: I don't want it.
   Dwight: Then you have been deducted 50 Schrute Bucks!
   Stanley: Make it 100.
   Dwight: We--- Don't you wanna earn Schrute Bucks?
   Stanley: No. In fact, I'll give you a billion Stanley Nickels if you never talk to me again.
   Dwight: What's the ratio of Stanley Nickels to Schrute Bucks?
   Stanley: The same as the ratio of unicorns to leprechauns.
   
   
   
   
5. I don't think I have ever mentioned what my major is, I am a Domestic Policy and Foreign Relations major. I rather like that this is my major.... I think it has a certain level of pretension to it that I like... or at least my mother says it sounds pretentious... I also LOVE to read... When my mom suggested that all of my books don't need to move with me when we move to my STB step-dads house I almost cried. I can't leave them behind... even my children's books they all have too much meaning. Lately though I have been on a political/cultural book kick. In the past year I have read both of Obama's book, Maureen Dowds "Are Men Necessary" (answer:yes), and "Fast Food Nation." However, it occured to me that I have never read my favorite presidents book. John F. Kennedy's "Profiles of Courage"... so on the list it goes...
   
   
6. Tickets to the Innaguration! Please, Santa! Please! I want to see it so badly. I know im going down (there are some serious beauties to living in Bawlmore, hon) but I want to be close enough to see something...
   
   
   
   Well that is all for now, I'm sure I will come up with some more as Christmas approaches... So you've seen my list, what is on yours? But more importantly, are you on Santas nice list or naughty list? Well I've got to go judge a debate tournament so Ciao for now!
   

I Still Exist I Swear

So I seemed to have disappeared, fear not my friends! I am still here and well... very well in fact.
Here is a quick run down of what I have been up to:

1. I voted for the very first time of my life. Let me just say I love that I turned 18 during an election year. Infact here is a picture of me just after I cast my ballot.
   Please excuse my appearence, it was 8am and I was exhausted. I am much prettier then my picture lets on... Plus it was a bad hair day... but I got to vote.
2. Ummm... My guy won!!!!! I am a huge Obama supporter. I am a big fan of his education policies, mainly the idea that if you give to your country your country will give to you and not just for military service. I am a huge supporter of our men and women in uniform but I believe our country needs more then military, it needs teachers, it needs people to build houses for the homeless, and it needs people for the peace corp. I want to go into Teach America for a couple years after college... But it was pretty excited... I may have called my republican father and possibly sung a song about Obama (but hes a huge republican... like he LOVES Bush.....) But as I have said before I would rather you vote for a republican then not do your civic duty...
3. I had a very fun family brunch this weekend for my mom and soon to be step sister's birthday. Some very, very yummy food made by me awesome mommy. Waffles, bacon, eggs, hash browns, and cake! I'm not going to lie I positioned myself right near the bacon because I have a 15 year old soon to be step nephew... 15 year old boys eat A LOT! Especially tall, sports playing 15yr old boys... My STB niece was riding their great dane who took it all in stride, unfortunately my camera was in my other bag so I didn't get to capture the moment on film.... As for presents my mom got a great gift, plane tickets to go to NC to see Neil Diamond in concert with my Aunt Kathy (the aunt I visited earlier this month) she was very excited. I got my mom a new skirt and my sister and I got our STB sister a brown courduroy dress with a pink cardigan to go over it, fun mommy clothes...
4. I got a 98% on my philosophy mid-term!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am soooo excited given that I am considering a double major in philosophy, which isn't actually pointless for me given that I want to go to law school, now I just have to convince my father of that.
5. I got a B on my english essay on the contamination of meat in American fast food with room to re-submit for a whole new grade! The only thing she said was that if I don't break up my 3 page paragraph she was failing me.... It is already done... don't worry...
6. I am getting ready to order my chocolate making supplies... every year we make chocolate lolly pops and candy with molds, but this year with the economy the way it is I decided that I am going to get cute bags and cute gift labels and give them as gifts to Aunts, teachers, co-workers, etc. I'm still gonna do normal gifts for nieces, close friends, etc but it will save me some money which I like!

One good website I have found is http://www.candylandcrafts.com/index.htm they have everything for every occasion... seriously..... And http://www.expressionery.com/index.aspx has a ton of cute gift stickers... I am trying to find something that is cute and festive but not Christmas exclusive...

Sorry for the long post... I'm procrastinating... I have an English essay on graphic novels due tomorrow as well as my revised fast food essay and I have an essay due on Thursday on Taiwanese Modern Art... fun.... Ciao for now!

Think, Research, and VOTE!!!!!

I can't believe I forgot to say this especially since I just wrote a post. As anyone who has met me for a mere second can tell you I am die hard into politics. This is the first election I get to vote in and I am super excited to exercise my duty as a citizen of this county. That's right its a duty. If you care about education, liberties, peace, our soldiers, you children, your grandma, gas prices, our environment, or you get out there and vote tomorrow!!! (if you did early voting thats cool too!) This election is so excited, we have two very different tickets running. Now I am very happy that in my first election I get to vote for someone I actually like rather then the lesser of two evils.

And if having a say in your government isn't incentive enough if you go into Starbucks tomorrow and tell them that you voted you get a FREE Starbucks coffee.

See you at the polls! Ciao for now!

There is a Reason Why We Develop New Technology

So for all who work in retail: Were you surprised that when you walked into your store on Saturday that it looked like Christmas had thrown up in there? I was. I walked in at noon on Saturday and everything was red and green and Santa and Mrs. Claus and Elves and Angles and Toy Soldiers and I could go on and on. So in any event I change into our new uniform shirt (don't even get me started on the uniform.. its awful... it involves all white tennis shoes) and hop onto the floor. So the day is going totally normally we are pretty busy for a Saturday lots of kids coming in and freaking out over all the new stuff. Which is, admittedly, pretty cute to see. Well later on that afternoon I walk out of the backroom after grabbing more shopping bags to be greeted by my manager telling me the registers are down. At first I thought she meant the credit card sliders or maybe even the credit card service all together, things I have dealt with before normally very early in the morning. No she meant all registers. We had to do handwritten receipts and calculate prices on our own. Which is a little difficult when you work in a store that puts things on sale but doesn't update the prices on the tag only on the SKUs. It was an interesting couple of hours dealing with all of it.
Later that evening I went out to dinner with my mom and her fiance and while we were out we ran into my soon to be step-sister and her husband enjoying a night away from their delightful kids (one of whom is responsible for my cold) and I was explaining to them why I was so exhausted and Matt, who worked in retail as a teenager, told me "I want you to know that that was the way we always did receipts in my day, so no complaining." My response of course was, "There is a reason why we develop new technology."
Luckily Sunday, while we were insanely busy, ran smoothly as far as technology. Though it took us a solid hour and a half to put the store back together and we still had to leave an apology note to the manager opening. Ehhhh... guess the holiday season really is here...

P.S. I have to share the worlds cutest story. I was talking to a little girl who turned three on Saturday and asked her what she was for Halloween (Snow White) and her mom told me that she picked up the routine pretty quickly except after the getting the candy her parents would ask her "Now, what do you say?" The little girl's response was "More please!!" I think her parents were looking for a 'Thanks.' But at least she was being polite and coming out of the mouth of a three year old that would have been freaking cute!

Well I get my English mid-term paper back tonight so wish me luck! Ciao for now!

When it Rains, It Pours

This morning was gray, wet, windy and cold all the makings of a perfect skip classes and sleep in day. However, Tuesday is my busy day as I have Art, Philosophy and History so skipping was not an option. Especially considering the fact that I needed to make up my Philosophy mid-term and I have a History test on Thursday. So I bundled up in my favorite cold weather wear (my highchool sweat pants (Generals!), under armor turtleneck (so very, very warm), Georgetown t-shirt, and my north face jacket. Well my bus was 30min late meaning I was waiting outside for 40min in the rain and the wind freezing my booty off. Not a good thing when you have gotten sicker and not better from yesterday. In any event I have spent the whole day trying to not fall asleep during class and eating the cafeteria's chicken noodle soup which was suprising delic! In any event I'm ready to go home, curl up in my bed and watch whatever reality TV show Bravo has in store for me. Hopefully tomorrow will bring a nicer day and a healthier College Prep.

P.S. anyone else counting down the days until Black Friday? One month and one day today!!