flies and fishing.

Fly Fishing: Contemplative Recreation from Brian Wilcox on Vimeo.

this video makes my heart melt into a puddle.
let me tell you, nothing makes trevin happier than a perfect fall day spent on a river with a fly rod in his hands, and a cigar in his mouth.  this video, sans cigar, completely captures trevin in his element. plus it was shot in the peak of our maryland fall explosion.
so i may be a tiny bit biased since the main character is my soon to be hubby, and the creator, brian, is a dear friend of ours. but really, the video. wowzers.
and getting that furry thing growing on trevin's face in real time action? priceless. if you didn't get the hint boat load of sarcasm. go back and re read that. 
brian is a.maaazing behind the camera, illustrating, video-ing, and animating.
seriously. he's genius, people.
brian also took our engagement photos, annnd is creating our save-the-dates for our wedding.  i can't wait to see how they turn out!
i guess what i'm trying to say is...
we are so blessed to have such talented friends.
and i hope you enjoyed the video :)

currently, brian's website is under construction. but when it's finished, if you're a betting person, you can bet it will be right *here*. for now you can click the link on the video to see his other vimeo videos.

Liebsta-wha?

...liebster blog award!  yup, its an award that goes to little blogs like mine with less than 200 followers as a way of getting to know each other a little more and getting our names out there.  heck, i could be eligible for the the blog award for blogs with less than 5 followers... if there was such a thing.

thanks m, for nominating me. i can't nominate her, but you should still go check out her blog!

ok, the way it works... the nominator asks 5 questions, and the nominee(meee) answers them along with 5 random facts about herself.  I then nominate 5 other lucky-duck blogs and ask my own 5 questions.  and the cycle continues... so for the fun part:
q+a

+ why did you decide to start a blog? (i know it is a repeated question but i think it is interesting to hear how people decide to start their blogs) 
i first started a blog when i traveled to India with my friend, and wanted a way for friends and family to hear about my trip, and to document the stories for myself.  then my blog just sat for a while. i was that creeper blog reader who didn't comment, and didn't post, and decided that needed to change. so there.

+  if you could be one disney character for a day, which would you be and why? (you know you've thought about it)  

well to be honest, i haven't thought about that much lately.  but i can tell you i always wanted to be pochahontas.  because i mean, who wouldn't want to swan dive off of an enormous waterfall and not die?!

+ craziest thing you have ever done. if you had a partner in crime, who was it?

well. i've done lots of crazy things. i'm talkin, looooots. because, what fun is life if you're not a little crazy sometimes?! my partner in crime is usually my friend lauren, or my mom. my mom is a crazy lady. (probably where i get it!)

+ guilty pleasure? 

sleeping in. watching tv and not getting up(for anything). lounging on a beach alllll day. need i keep going?  basically, my guilty pleasures include doing absolutely nothing. and it's the best if it includes being home.

+ what are your top three favorite blogs to read?

ummm. i love so many.  only 3?  this is difficult! ok, 1 2 3!

i love emily's blog, because she is organized, and so creative.  I've made SO many of her recipes, they're simple, but oh so yummy!

ruthie is the sweetest, most honest little wife, and i so appreciate the way she lives her life with so much love for those around her.

casey has the cutest little family, and her raw emotion is so beautiful.  i can't stop reading.

*go visit these ladies, you'll fall in love*

randoms.

+ i can't sleep without a fan on.  even in the winter.

+ eggplant gives me heartburn.

+ i love road trips.

+ i never went to a high school dance.

+ i can't function without at least one cup of coffee in the morning.

nominees.

rachel

anna

allie

nadine

alex

(some of these ladies just hit 200, but i still love their blogs, and thought this could be a little celebration for them of their achievement!)

questions for my nominees.

+ who inspires you?

+ what 5 items would you take to a deserted island, and why? 

+what are 5 things on your bucket list that you have yet to do?

+what was a highlight of your childhood/favorite memory?

+where is your favorite place to be?

don't forget 5 random things about yourself, and to leave me a comment so i know when you post!  looking forward to reading your answers :)

a showering.

this past weekend I threw a bridal shower for my best girlfriend, lauren.
for the past 2 months i've been trying to figure out how to do this whole bridesmaid thing.
coordinating all of the other bridesmaids, moms, aunts, and all of the other shenanigans that comes with a wedding. man!  talk about being fed to the wolves.  I guess I've got to start somewhere!  this is just the first of many weddings to come.
we had wooden spoons for guests to write their marriage advice on, wedding vow mad-libs (which were hilarious!!) and had a contest for making toilet paper wedding dresses.

i'll let these pictures do the rest of the talking :) (sorry for the photo dump!)

me, haley(bride's little sister), lauren(the bride), janina, sarah(future sister-in-law ), and karen(cousin).

now.. time to plan bachelorette party, and get this girl married!
have you been to any bridalshowers or bachelorette parties lately?? what are your favorite games/activites?

sleepless.

 tomorrow is a clinical day, which means I have a wake up call at 4:45 am. 

yet here i sit at 12:15 still awake.

I went down stairs to get myself some hot milk and honey with cinnamon, and wonder why i can't sleep.

 maybe it was the tea I drank this afternoon... 

maybe I have too much on my mind, and need to write some things down.

I've been thinking a lot lately about friendships. what makes them, what breaks them, what makes them stronger, what makes them grow.

my friendship history(i guess you could call it that) has had it's ups, and it's downs.  somedays if feels as though the downs out weigh the ups.  thank goodness there's pictures, and memories to make you remember that the ups are worth the downs sometimes, and the friend that you love is worth the ride.

sometimes, however there is no up after a down.  at least is seems that way. i am in that particular spot with a friend now.

 its not arguing, no name calling, no disagreeing.  there is no specific event that was a turning point.  it is simply falling apart. or has fallen apart. 

i keep wondering what did i do wrong? how could i have been a better friend? why is this happening now? 

part of me is "over" this friendship, the part that gets impatient, and annoyed.  the other part of me is broken. totally crushed. the part that cares, and loves and needs those people close to me to share life with. 

 i am not sure how to go about this whole thing to be honest. i have fought tooth and nail to resuscitate the friendship, but i sometimes wonder if in fact this friendship has served it's purpose, and it's ok to move on.  even the thought of that makes me bawl. 

Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival. -C.S. Lewis

how true. life is possible without friendship, but life with friendship is something to truly treasure.  i truly am thankful for the friendships i have, and the ones i've had.  even this one, that is keeping me up tonight.  a am so blessed to be surrounded by friends who make me a better person, who make me laugh so hard i cry, who make me laugh when i cry, who have strengthened my weaknesses, friends who i cherish and have made my life full.

(and i'm so thankful for my mom who's friendship is always reliable, and who's advice i should have taken years ago. thankfully she doesn't mind repeating herself ;) )

if you could give one piece of advice on friendship to a child, that would stick with them for the rest of their lives, what would you tell them? 

leave a comment with your answer!

goodnight,

-C

My weekend

This weekend was the first taste of fall in Maryland.  I love it!  I love the chilly weather, and the warm sun, the cozy nights and yummy fall foods.  This weekend was cold and rainy though.  Not the best of fall in my book.  But I spent the morning working on an Interpersonal Relations paper then left to spend the rest of the day with some great friends...  We had a lazy afternoon watching college football, the girls looked at wedding magazines (my favorite!)  and then we took a road trip to D.C. to the famed Ben's Chili Bowl.  Anyone been there?? 

packed like sardines on our way to Ben's

It was a fun late-night road trip!  The food wasn't as great as we thought it would be, and the loud, push around, DC atmosphere was frustrating! (P.s. They only take cash)  I'm sure if you know what you want it is a more smooth process. We had a good time though, and it was a great little adventure.

What did you do this weekend?

Tonight I enjoyed catching up with an old friend.  We met when we were in 5th grade at Pioneer Girls, a christian Girl Scouts held at my church and became instant best friends... I loved spending the weekends at her house because she had lots of brothers and sisters running around.  I even looked like them.  We loved it when people would ask if we were sisters. We would share a glance, usually giggle, and let them believe we actually were sisters.
We were obsessed with country music together, especially Tim McGraw and Faith Hill.  We even made our own music videos to our favorite songs. 

Over the years we've grown apart, grown up, gone to school, and have grown together again.   Nothing is better than sitting across the table from this girl sharing a plate of sushi and catching up on our changing grown-up lives.  

Love you Dee!