march madness.

march was a pretty fun month,

but I never really caught up with all of it...

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of course there was the 

RODEO!

I was on a committee this year, so that was a new thing.

I "badged" in to two shows- Usher & Maroon 5, and then saw Jason Aldean on my committee bus trip.

Funny thing, I saw Maroon 5 at the rodeo when I was a sophomore in hs.

pretty crazy that 9 years later, they are still making music 

& thousands of 10th graders are still in love with Adam... lol

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I celebrated St.Patrick's Day by drinking green beer & wearing green- oh so Irish of me lol 

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Dinner Club with the most fabulous ladies ever:

laughing with them is truly medicinal.

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 I took my employees to see

Ellie Goulding

bc we love her and listen to her all day at work.

my girls are so sweet & so hard working,

it was great hanging out with them and just relaxing.

(and blair joined us!)

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I finally saw Frozen...

\

it was cute, but I am still confused about all the crazy for it.

it wasn't better than Finding Nemo or Toy Story, to me.

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okay, now I feel like we can talk about April ;)

it's april.

(eeeeek this post is all about yours truly... sorry in advance for all the ME ME ME today.)

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So last April I was in a new chapter of my life and it was scary.

I am an independent person that loves people, but

I felt like there were SO many things I had not done for ME, on MY own terms.

I was scared though.

and the only way I knew how to get out of that, was do do things for ME, things only I could do, & do things that basically scared me to death.  Things that were good for me, but forced me out of my comfort zone.

So I made a list.

and as I was cleaning out my car a few weeks ago, I found it.

and since today is April 1st,

it is exciting to see what the last year has been like.

Things I did do:

-Journal

-Donate Clothes

-Take someone dinner

-Travel

-Visit St. Arnold's

-Move into my own place

-Pay for a Stranger's dinner

-Houston Sporting Events

-Hit Percentage Rent 5 months @ PLT

-Throw a Party

-Go to a concert of someone you have never seen before

-Counseling

-Go to the movies alone

-Painting Class

-Play a Sport

-Buy a piece of furniture

-Take someone dinner

-Go to the River

-Save a certain amount of money

-Join a rodeo committee

 

 

I understand that some of these may seem silly, or not scary at all.

There are a few I left off. and I never shared this list with anyone really.

It is just very personal. we all have our own random desires and fears.

(I will say going to the movies alone was HUGE for me.

I know some people do that weekly.)

Some of them were as easy as attending my bffs bday party (painting class), others required saving money & planning (traveling, some were scary (play a sport, pay for a stranger's dinner, counseling), and others took a lot of time and hard work (sales goals @ PLT). 

Some of the things I did NOT get to:

-Run a 10k 

(signed up for one & didn't train enough, my bad.)

-Send someone flowers

-Ride a bike

-Sky Dive

(scheduled it & someone died 2 days before our date...still want to do this)

-Visit MFA

-Volunteer @ Church

-Sponsor a kid @ Youth Camp

-Ribbon Cutting @ PLT

(prob won't happen 2 years in lol)

I am pretty excited about some of the things I didn't put on my list, but did...

-Met new friends -Attended church regularly -Colored my hair for the first time 

-Attended my first Steelers game -got a new car -ran a 5k alone

 -watched my best friend get married -hired new employees -networked  -met Colt McCoy

-ran out on the Texans practice field -flew places alone, a lot -went to Disney

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So today, I will make a NEW list!

and see where I go/what I do in this next year!

it is kind of refreshing to make one & not complete it either...

I am the worst about wanting to be "perfect" at my goals.

that is dumb.

I am leaving room for failure, too! 

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who is she?! pt. 7

Happy Friday!!

I am happy to say that my dad's surgery went well yesterday & he is at home resting and preparing for the long weeks ahead, pain, and therapy, but in the end all of this will be worth it.

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This week's "Who is She?!" is my amazing friend, Moriah.

I call her MoMo  :)

We went to high school together, after graduation she studied Journalism at Oral Roberts University in Oklahoma and then moved to Israel to study at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. 

She is currently living in Perth, Australia and is a media adviser for a federal member of parliament (the equivalent of a US Congressman in the States). She basically writes press releases, speeches, blog posts, looks over social media and helps manage his website.

(I just realized how that description could make her sound a bit serious, maybe... I will have you know, she is crazy smart... but also one of the silliest people-she would be highly offended if you took her as "uptight", so don't!)

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-What is she wearing?

Target. It’s pretty much the only store I buy clothes from. I am easily overwhelmed when I shop because I honestly have no idea what I am doing. I consider myself a relatively smart person, but I often find myself looking at women’s clothing, asking myself, “What is this? A shirt? Dress? Skirt? Sweater? What do I do with this?” I usually just stick with jeans and t-shirts or dresses.

-What is she listening to?

Cage the Elephant, Two Door Cinema, Coldplay and Sin Fang.

-Where is she going?

Currently on a trip to Israel, Thailand and Cambodia for a month, visiting friends and eating a ton of food. “Eat. Pray. Eat.” That is the motto for this trip.

-What is she reading?

a book called, “El Alamein” that my friend’s dad wrote. It’s about how a critical battle won by the Allies in World War II prevented the Nazis from expanding the Holocaust into North Africa and the Middle East.

-What is she working on?

Working on making this trip the best it can be and soaking up this great time with friends.

-Who is she with?

Friends mostly, but I also enjoy spending time by myself.

-What is she afraid of?

Living a boring, unfulfilling life. There is too much living to be done to be stagnated.

-What is she hoping for?

To one day become a foreign correspondent in the Middle East. It’s a region that fascinates me and I absolutely love the complexity of its many cultures and diverse history.

-What is her favorite part of the day?

After work when I am able to work out. I sit at a desk for much of the day, so I like being able to get out and move, whether it’s at the gym or on running paths along the river.

-What is she eating?

Hummus and rugelach (a mini croissant with chocolate swirled in it) every day! Israel makes amazing hummus and the BEST rugelach, so I eat it at least once every day I’m here.

-What is she drinking?

Water, all the time. I drink at least a gallon a day.

-What is she loving?

I love traveling again. I get restless every few months, and traveling provides me with an outlet. I like finding new ways to challenge myself, connect with people from different cultures and broaden my worldview. Traveling does all of that.

-What is she watching?

I am currently rewatching 30 Rock, and am always watching a ton of CNN, History Channel and National Geographic.

-What is her favorite quote?

"Few men are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, the wrath of society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence. Yet it is the one essential, vital, quality for those who seek to change a world which yields most painfully to change."

Robert F. Kennedy

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MoMo, you are so very brave!

your sense of adventure and hard work are so perfectly balanced and a great example to all of us.

I hope you are enjoying your "eat pray eat" adventure & new hometown!!

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Have a great weekend everyone!

before i die________

this wonderful wall was inspired by Chandy Chang's TED Talk.

You can watch the 6min video here.

basically she took old abandoned spaces in New Orleans and turned them into inspiring places where people can come together in the crazy of life & have some commonality. people have taken her ideas all over the world & I found this wall in Houston.

She discusses that  time and relationships are the two most very important things in life, 

and I think she is absolutely correct.

It really is all about maintaining perspective, which gets harder and harder the more caught up we get in the day to day of life. 

___

What did I add?

well, I could have said:

-be in love forever

-have amazing children

-travel the world

-work really hard & see success

and those are all great answers... but they could also all not happen.

and would I have not had a fulfilling life if they don't?!

so I simply added

"HAPPILY!!"

to someones 

LIVE!!

someone else wrote "live passionately"- which was one of my favorites!

bc at the end of my life if all those things on my "check list" don't happen,

it really won't matter as long as I lived happily & passionately! 

but life is a whole lot of fun too, and some of my favorite answers were:

-"live in a house with a secret passage way"

-"go to a Super Bowl"

-"see U2 in Dublin"

-"go to a fashion show in Milan"

-"enjoy the little things"

 "thinking about death, clarifies your life" -Candy Chang

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Some exciting news is that the little piece on yours truly was printed in District Magazine! 

this was the idea behind my little blog series, Who is She?!

and I do have to say tomorrow's is really great :)

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go live a little!

bachelorette fun.

my dear friend, Jena, is getting married a month from today!

so what better way to start her wedding month, than reminiscing the 
Bachelorette Party!

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It was fun, chill weekend in Gruene, Texas.
her bridesmaids rented a cute little house with a fire place out on the patio.

Saturday we woke up and headed to a little winery,

we shopped around the trade days,

 

and then got lunch @ the Gristmill...

my favorite-their chicken fried chicken & sliced potato fries would be a contender for my last meal... and those pineapple wine coolers.

so much delicious.

and the weather was perfect! 

that night we got ready and went to

Gruene Hall

to hear Roger Creager play.

it was a really great trip.  A lot of times it is tricky blending friend groups and long days, but I have to say, this was the best with that.  We all got along so well and laughed a lot.

-So happy for you Jena, the countdown begins!-