fashion friday: month three of six months, six dresses.

Seeing as it's now July, which is smack-dab in the middle of summer, I figured it was high time to share a sundress for this month. This dress was purchased at the beginning of the summer from Forever 21 and to be honest, it's actually a little too short for me. I usually pair it with black leggings, but I love to wear it around the house without them.

It's very simple, but that's what I love about it. I'm usually drawn to dresses that are multicolored or have loud patterns so my wardrobe was aching for a basic, solid-colored sundress. The bright royal blue color really brings out my eyes, something that always nudges me a little more to buy a dress or a top. I instantly fell in love with this when I saw it - I just wish it was a little bit longer so that I wasn't in danger of flashing everyone if I'm not careful.

So now I'm at the halfway point of Six Months, Six Dresses and I have to say, I ended up purchasing more dresses than originally planned. The sad part is that it wasn't even for the sake of this project - I just developed a serious dress addiction that I'm still struggling to contain. That just means I have even more to pick from for the next three months!

{This post is part of a series called Six Months, Six Dresses dreamed up by the ever-lovely and inspiring Kyla Roma. I'm actually straying a bit from her idea by including dresses I already own and starting in May instead of April. If you wanna get in on the fun, click the banner above and join us!}

ten on tuesday [vol. 3].

{via}

1. How do you take your coffee on an average day? How do you like your coffee if you’re splurging?
I don't drink coffee daily, but I always make it light and sweet whether I make it at home or get some from Dunkin' or Starbucks.

2. What is your genre of books to read?
I tend to read of a lot of light-hearted, fictional coming-of-age books, but I don't read as often as I should so I can't really say it's my favorite genre.

3. Where do you want to retire, if you could go anywhere?
I haven't thought about retiring at all. I'm still at the "moving out" stage, and I don't even have an answer to where I'd like to move. I guess I would like to retire somewhere relaxing that's warm most of the year.

4. The 17-year-old you is told to write a 10-minute speech. What topic would you have picked?
Dance.

5. What word describes you best?
Enthusiastic.

6. What is the next “event” that you are looking forward to? (ex.: vacation, moving, date, job change, etc)
A girl's night in with my cousin and aunt, on Wednesday night!

7. Do you like to discuss controversial topics or do you prefer to avoid those types of conversations?
It depends with whom I'm talking. Mark and his friends always love debating about politics and in that case, I usually avoid it. But with my friends or my brother, I don't mind talking about it.

8. Would you rather add 4 free hours to each day, or add 1 extra day to the week?
I would add an extra day to the week. I'm better at packing my busy days full of a lot of stuff and then taking a few days to completely relax.

9. If you created a sports team; what would your colors and mascot be?
This is hard because if I could do whatever I wanted, I would make something totally girly - my colors would be pink and green and my mascot would be a unicorn or something. But if I was actually thinking about a real team, I would probably use a jaguar as a mascot and the colors would be pink and black.

10. If you had to be a teacher, what subject would you teach?
Well, if we don't count academics, I would definitely be a dance teacher. But academically speaking, I would teach math of some sort.

These questions are a part of Ten on Tuesday which is run by Roots and Rings.

faltering friendship.

Change is difficult, both to experience and accept. I believe it’s even harder when it’s a person who’s changing, something I've been struggling with in regards to my cousin. I usually talk about it in a forgiving way, where I defend her and hope that she’s just going through a phase. Recently, however, I’ve learned that I’m only hurting myself by continuously making excuses for her.

It all started just before her senior year of high school - in the summer of 2008 - which is when I could feel a significant shift in our friendship. It stopped moving and stopped growing – gone were the days when we spent hours together, baking brownies and having mock photo shoots in her back yard.

Instead, any time we had together was spent silently watching TV while she texted friends, which I tried to brush off despite finding it rude. I let a lot of things slide – I wanted to pretend things were okay, that our friendship wasn’t morphing back to being ‘just cousins.’ She would treat our time together like an inconvenience, both in the planning stages and while we actually hung out. Getting her to pin down a time to hang out was difficult and, once I did, I felt as though she really didn’t care to be there. Of course, there were exceptions – the occasional fun car ride around her town or visit to her shore house – but for the most part, our time together was awkward and forced.

I quickly made my way to the bottom of her priority list as time spent with her friends became more appealing. It was clear she found my company boring, something she once actually said to me via an anonymous ‘truth box’ on Myspace (yes, I know, Myspace is breeding ground for drama, which is why I deleted it soon after). I remember receiving the message and being so taken aback and hurt that she would ever outright insult me like that. It should’ve been the breaking point, but I continued to defend her actions in my mind.

Still, for a short while after that, our friendship was visibly fractured. We only saw each other at family events, at which point we barely said two words to each other. I saw her mother (with whom I have a separate relationship) more often than I saw her; she would walk in the kitchen to say hi before going out with her friends, even as I sat there helping plan her graduation party.

Last summer, I chose to confront her about everything in a series of Facebook messages, because I'm a coward and am terrible with face-to-face confrontation. Her first reaction was to be extremely defensive, claiming that she wasn't to blame for any of the issues I had listed. After a few replies back and forth, she eventually showed compassion and agreed that we were drifting because we were at two completely different points in life. She said that we just needed to give it time and that hopefully, in the future, things would settle back into place.

We eventually recovered from all the drama, but things haven’t been the same. I see her once every couple of months and we put on a good show both for the family and for ourselves, acting like we’re still as close as we once were. We exchange heartfelt picture collages and graduation speeches, though it mostly feels like we’re playing pretend. It’s emotionally exhausting to act like we’re still close when we’re not. My texts still go unanswered most of the time and there is literally no effort on her part to see me. The only communication I get that originates with her is an occasional enthusiastic Facebook comment about how much she misses me.

The hardest part of it has been that we were once similar people with similar interests. We were best friends, relying on each other and expecting our friendship to be there when all others failed. When she was still a sophomore in high school, she experienced a falling out with friends and explicitly said that she was glad she could always count on me. I expected us to remain close for the rest of our lives, being in each others' wedding parties and spending holidays together with our families. I thought she had those same expectations; now I'm not so sure.

Her life has morphed into something different than what it used to be – which isn’t in itself a bad thing. Whether I like it or not, though, she’s changed. Obviously she still retains some of her old self, which is the part I can connect with when we have our good moments, but there is too much newness to which she thinks I can’t relate. The most unfortunate part of it all is that she’s let the change in her life affect our relationship for the worse, seemingly without any regret or concern.

Sometimes I wonder why this shakes me up so much, why I defended her for so long and tried to make everything seem okay. It comes down to this: until college I never had many solid friendships, and my biggest fear is that any friendship I have is going to dissolve. Essentially, she perpetuated that fear. But it’s not just that she walked away from me as a friend, or that she changed, or even that she doesn't seem to care that our friendship is falling apart; it’s that, in my mind, she was the one person who was never going to do that to me. Our friendship bordered on sisterhood – I may expect friendships to fall apart, but not a bond between almost-sisters.

To have your ‘sure thing’ turn around and not be as sure as you expected is earth-shattering, which is why I still struggle to accept that things might never be the same. There will always be a part of me who hopes she just needs to grow up and that, in a few years, we’ll be laughing about all of this. I really hope that part of me is right.

virtual baby shower!

Last month, I got a lovely little e-mail in my inbox with the greeting, “Hey there, blogger!” I don’t get many of those, so I was understandably excited from the start.

I was asked to participate in a very special celebration that included creating a video blog. Even before I finished reading the e-mail, I was bubbling with enthusiasm and knew I needed to take part. So what’s all this hullaballoo about?

We’re having a virtual baby shower!

{via}

In case you haven’t heard, the ever-wonderful Erin of The State I Am In and her husband Ted were blessed with the news that they would be expecting twin baby girls. Her pregnancy journey has been a nerve-wracking and emotional one, with the entire blogosphere biting their nails and crossing their fingers along with her every step of the way as she struggled with her infertility. It seemed like a no-brainer that we’d have a blogger-hosted virtual baby shower to celebrate her little girls.

So, that video blog I was talking about. We were asked, in honor of Erin’s twins, to talk about our favorite things that come in pairs. After tossing a few ideas around in my head, I finally settled on what I was going to talk about and got down to vlogging.


There you have it! Please visit Renee's blog to see a full list of "attendees" to what is probably the coolest virtual baby shower ever. Congratulations again to Erin and Ted, and I hope you loved your surprise!

[almost] wordless wednesday.

Still got it.

sometimes, i'm responsible.

This weekend, I had to battle it out between my Rational Side and Impulsive Side. You’re probably familiar with these two – Impulsive sounds like the bubbly friend who tells you to throw caution to the wind and do whatever you wish; Rational sounds like your mother.

After weeks of unsuccessfully being able to get on a regular schedule, on Thursday I committed to fixing it no matter what it took. I had no plans for the weekend and had off from work this week, so it was perfect timing. But after updating my Facebook status to say I was overdue for a beach trip, I was presented with an invitation to spend the weekend at a friend’s shore house.

I woke up Saturday morning debating for a good hour and a half. That’s when Rational and Impulsive showed up. Impulsive was jumping up and down, pointing out the window and saying, “look how gorgeous it is outside! You get to go to the shore, and the beach, and see your friends! Who cares if it wrecks your schedule again, you can just start again on Monday. Go, go, go!” And, to be honest, I listen to that side of my mind a whole lot – Impulsive is a persuasive little thing.

Except, Rational was there, calmly repeating itself over and over again. If I went, I would definitely not eat properly and I might not sleep well in a bed that wasn’t my own. I would have to take my meds, deal with my anxiousness, and probably not be able to enjoy it as much as I’d like. Still, Impulsive tried to coax me. Maybe I wouldn’t be as anxious as I was predicted and the trip would be relaxing (and still fun, it never forgot to bring up the fun part).

Despite my tendency to listen to my impulsive side, I ended up choosing the responsible and rational option, which was to stay home. I could enjoy the sunny weather from my house while still working on my schedule, and to assuage the nagging sadness of turning down another invite, I reminded myself that this is the first big hurdle to feeling better. Once I’m well, I can accept every invite that comes my way.

That being said, I had a pretty enjoyable weekend nonetheless, if only because I felt like a normal, functioning human being again. I woke up before noon, went to bed before midnight, and had three balanced meals each day. It was rounded out with doing yoga each morning, getting some sun (and sunburn) while doing yard work, and playing video games.

Being responsible isn’t always fun – I would definitely have enjoyed my trip to the shore this weekend – but if this is step one to getting my life back on track, I will definitely appreciate it in the future.

things that changed her life.

This is a post inspired by Amy over at Just a Titch, whom I adore.

"There are some moments that change your game, your view, your life. They start out normally, but well, they never quite end that way, do they? This is one of mine."

--

During the summer between sophomore and junior year of college, I developed a crush on a friend, a bad habit I seem to be unable to break. Fall semester of that year was spent over-analyzing every conversation, every comment, every action – my roommates would nod their heads, assuring me that I wasn’t making up the flirtation and the chemistry. I was always worried it was all in my head, but with three other people confirming that it wasn’t, my confidence was built up.

I made a decision at one in the morning on Christmas Day. It was the first time I was making a move regarding a crush I had, and I was going to do it via text message. I am not courageous in any way, and even just sending a text message was incredibly difficult. But, inspiration struck and I composed it and before I even had time to think twice, I hit send and it was on its way.

For a brief moment, I was flying. I felt invincible, having done something I never thought I’d have the courage to do. Within minutes, however, panic set in at the complete realization at what had been done. I frantically tried to contact my friends who immediately applauded my bravery. Clearly they knew how monumental this was.

When push came to shove, it turned out to be a case of bad timing and complications. I’m still not sure what was complicated, although a few months later it became apparent that he was seeing another girl. For a few months I wished he would explain himself, but eventually I settled into the fact that I wouldn’t ever know what had been going on between us.

To this day, this is one of most courageous things I’ve ever done. My friends still congratulate me for having the guts to do it. I was always the timid, quiet girl, who kept everything to herself and would dwell on crushes without taking action. Sending that text message was going against everything in my nature, every instinct to keep quiet and avoid embarrassment and hope that he would take the first step for me.

I can’t say for sure if this experience makes me more or less likely to do it again in the future. Because I was essentially rejected, I went through the “worst case scenario,” but it’s hard to know if that’s a good or bad thing. If I think about my current crush (yes, I already have one, shut up), in theory, I want to be able to say I would do something about it, but chances are I’ll just sit and wait. I think too much and am analytical to a fault, so I don’t think I’d ever reach that level of assuredness I’d need in order to do it again.

All I know is that it taught me that I could do anything. It showed me how damn difficult it is for all of that pressure to typically fall on the guy to say something first. It made me realize that I wasn’t a silly, immature girl anymore, but that I was growing up and things were changing.

geekery.

Today I woke up and took a look at my calendar from yes and yes, and it told me that today was the day to embrace my geekiness. Well, then.

geek: A person who is interested in technology, especially computing and new media; A person with a devotion to something in a way that places him or her outside the mainstream

- Wikipedia

For a long time I tried to hide my geeky side - I still do it sometimes, out of habit. But, it became harder and harder to deny that side of my personality. I think it fully developed in high school, when I spent weekends designing a website for a computer game I played and nights on AIM playing Gunbound (thanks to Kyle for that reminder of how I spent my entire junior year), and I developed a hardcore Harry Potter obsession. Still, I was in denial. Trust me when I tell you that those around me knew I was a complete geek, I just hadn't accepted that fact for myself yet.

In college, a time when everyone is encouraged to "start fresh," I think I just let go of inhibitions and completely embraced my geekiness. I no longer denied my love of video games and I developed a strong love for the interwebs, what with all the time I spend blogging and on Twitter. I geeked out over all things dance and Disney and nobody was going to stop me.

I didn't really have much else to say about my inner geek until I was surfing along the internet this afternoon and found NerdyShirts.com. It was only appropriate that I share with you some of the shirts that I am now coveting.

ZOMG, I *heart* Doug. I nearly peed my pants over this one.


Harry Potter 4eva. Seriously. Is it November yet? I can haz Deathly Hallows plz?


Yes. Just... yes.


Princess Peach was a video game character created especially for me, I'm sure of it.

If that doesn't convince you that I'm a proud geek, just remember that I have a hard time not using hashtags outside of Twitter. #itsjustsofun #dontjudgeme

some scrapbooking.

Last weekend was my grandmother's 80th birthday bash, and as I mentioned, I made her a wonderful scrapbook. My mom gathered pictures from our stash and my aunt's, then scanned all the pictures in and had them printed. At that point, the bulk of the work was placed in my hands because I am the Martha Stewart Scrapbooking Queen of the Family. So I got to work.

Yes, I own quite a lot of Sharpie markers. And I love them.

Scrapbooking is such a time investment. You have to cut out pictures, figure out where they'll go, glue them down, add flare with handwritten things and stickers... I was creatively drained at the end of it. We did the bulk of it the week before the party and by the last day, I was letting my mom make decisions because I simply didn't want to figure it out myself anymore. But, it got finished.

I don't want to overload this post with pictures, so here are a carefully chosen few.

My grandparents on their wedding day!

My mom, aunt and uncle, who all look ridiculously adorable.

Everyone gettin' hitched. That's my mom and dad on the upper left!

The cutest grandkids: my brother and I, obviously.

All the cousins in our toddler years.

My grandparents.

If you'd like to see the rest, they're up on my flickr. They're in reverse order, so if you want to go from start to finish, start here and go backwards.

Both of my grandparents adoredthe finished product, which is all I cared about. It was also fun to see everyone else's reactions to the old photos. Overall I felt the project was a little rushed and that I was too much under the direction of my mother, but it came out good for what it is. (Basically, I could do better. Sorry mom!)

-----

Do me a favor and click through if you're not already viewing my actual blog, because I added some banners off to the side that are of extreme importance. One is to vote for LiLu to be the very first MTV TJ, which she clearly should be because she's amazing. (If you're on Twitter, you should also follow her @LivitLuvit.) The other is to vote for Emily in the WeddingBells blog contest because she is also amazing and definitely deserves the grand prize, which includes a very lovely honeymoon for her and her hubby-to-be. So go be The Awesome Internet that you are and get voting!

just remember...

Perfect Saturday morning motivation.
{spotted on yes and yes}

friday is for lists.

Friday! I'm exhausted! Exclamation points and bullet lists! Ready, go!

• I am totally that person who turns up the air conditioning, then realizes it's too cold and puts on a sweatshirt. It's kind of ridiculous. My brother is always commenting on it, but I can't help it! My computer desk is right across from the AC unit, so when it's on, the cold air is coming directly at me. Some might say, well, then just turn it off - but then it's too hot! #firstworldproblems #usinghashtagsoutsideoftwitteriscool
  
  
• Alex freakin' Wong, my favorite dancer on SYTYCD of the past three seasons, is officially off the show because he ruptured his Achilles tendon. Yes, I cried. But his little face! He was so! sad! Okay, that's enough now.
  
  
• Why am I playing Animal Crossing for Gamecube on a daily basis? Why? I should be looking for a job. Effing mindless video games sucking my life away.
  
  
• I've only been out of my relationship for three months and already I'm feeling those shitty "I'm going to be single forever and become a cat lady" feelings. I think it's worse now that I've actually been in a relationship; at least beforehand, I didn't know what I was missing.
  
  
• Speaking of my past relationship, in case anyone was still wondering, I'm pretty much over it. Mark and I have entered the friend zone and I don't really think I'm going to budge. We've had several discussions in the past few months and every time we disagree on something, it just solidifies in my mind that we really don't match up.
  
  
• I know I'm way late to the party on this one, but I am in love with this song. I mean, come on - it's begging to have a dance choreographed to it.
  

my weekend.

Pardon me for being a little slow on reporting back from my busy weekend, but I think the sun physically moved next door. It’s been about, oh, one hundred degrees around these parts, so I’m a little lethargic. I’ve even taken to wandering around the house in tank tops and my dancer booty shorts and making everyone thoroughly uncomfortable, but only because my body temperature seems to be higher than everyone else’s while my tolerance for such heat is much lower.

Aside from the heat, I had a very awesome Fourth of July weekend. On Friday night, I braved rush hour traffic and spent about an hour with my two best friends before they headed out into the city. We watched some Cash Cab, discussed Harry Potter and half-birthdays, and Nat and I figured out a tattoo we both want to get. I really hope we actually go through with it and will be thrilled if we can get Dani to agree to it, too.

On Saturday I went to a barbecue with Mark’s friends, which wasn’t at all awkward (a concern several of my friends had). They are a lovely group of people who are friendly and laid-back. The host had a beautiful house with an in-ground pool, hot tub, and even a small television out on the back deck. All of that plus a glass of sangria in my hand and I was in heaven.

The whole gang, minus Mark because he's the camera man.

Me, laughing? What a surprise! Not.

We started out watching the end of the World Cup game before taking a brief dip in the pool and hot tub. Most of our afternoon was spent either lounging on the deck or inside watching UFC. I served my triple-berry trifle and everyone loved it, so I was pretty stoked. Unfortunately I had to leave pretty early, before the main event UFC fight (oh darn…), because I was exhausted and busy the next day.

Watching UFC.

All the fighters look super tough and kind of scary.


Proof that Mark was actually there.

My berry trifle, before and after. Completely demolished.

Sunday was my grandmother’s eightieth birthday party, which was really chill. It was the usual suspects from my mom’s side of the family hanging out at my aunt’s place. The highlight of the day was my grandma opening the scrapbook that the family put together for her. And by “the family,” I mean me. My mom and aunt collected some pictures, but I put the whole thing together because apparently, I’m some kind of scrapbooking genius.

Looking at the scrapbook.

The family!

Grandma and Grandpa.

We have a bit of a dessert problem in our family - we always buy (and eat!) too much.

We got home pretty early on Sunday, so I settled in with some leftovers from the party and watched the fireworks on TV. It was a nice, relaxing way to end my super busy weekend.

ten on tuesday [vol. 2].

1. If given the opportunity, would you choose a mediocre job that paid well or your dream job that paid poorly?

Even though I don't have that much money to my name at the moment, I would still choose my dream job. My first instinct was, because of my situation, to pick the mediocre job and more money so I can build up my finances, but then I realized life's too short to sacrifice happiness. If I was being paid poorly for a job I love, I would work extra hard to save and budget my money.

2. What is your favorite thing about the 4th of July? (For the foreigners: What is your impression of the 4th of July?)

Everything. (Can I say everything?) I love the barbecues, the American spirit, that it's in the summer, and fireworks. But, I suppose if I had to pick a favorite part of all that, it would definitely be the fireworks.

3. What’s the most random fact you know about American history?

I'm not sure how random this is, but Clara Barton was the founder of the American Red Cross. I also know that the teddy bear was named after Theodore Roosevelt. (Both of those facts are due to school reports I had to prepare for school.)

4. What is the best fireworks display you’ve ever seen?

I won't count the Macy's show on TV because, although it's fantastic, I haven't seen it in person. The best professional display I've seen was in the next town over a few years ago; it's also the only professional show I've attended. A close second has to be my grandparents' former neighbors down the shore. Their house was right on the bay and some of the neighbors put on a pretty decent amateur show.

5. Who taught you how to put on makeup?

My aunt gave me a lot of general tips (how much blush to use, "more is less," etc.), but I learned actual application from watching my friend Emily and my cousin. I also picked up on general techniques when my mother used to do my stage makeup for dance recitals and competitions. Otherwise I kind of taught myself by trial and error.

6. Have you ever gone through a financial planning process? Tell us about it.

Not really. I'm terrible at planning in any respect, especially with my finances. The closest I've come is probably figuring out budgets when I was on the executive board of RHA in college.

7. What was your favorite outfit as a kid? Bonus points for pictures.

This wasn't my hands-down, wore-it-to-death absolute favorite outfit (I don't think I really had one of those), but I remember liking it a lot. Otherwise, I was a fan of floral print and matching sweatpants-and-sweatshirt outfits.

8. Do you prefer a beach, lake, swimming pool, or no water?

I have always loved the water. I absolutely love swimming in pools. The beach is a close second, although I have a small fear of getting pummeled by the waves and swept out to sea. I've actually never been anywhere near a lake, so I don't know how I feel about it.

9. Do you recycle? If not, why?

I try to recycle whenever possible. We recycle cans and bottles in my house so it's become a habit. I actually find it strange when people don't do it - when I went to college, I was surprised that people would toss bottles away in the regular garbage because I'm so used to recycling.

10. What are your thoughts and feelings about the Twilight Saga?

I haven't read the books or seen the movies, and I don't really care to get into it. It seems over hyped, and though I might pick up the books and try reading them eventually, I don't think I'm going to be a fan.

These questions are a part of Ten on Tuesday which is run by Roots and Rings.

video friday.

My weekend kicks off in about fifteen minutes, by which I mean, that's when I'm going to hang out with my friends for an hour before they go into the city, where I will not be joining them because my body is a hot mess and I have about ten varieties of cramps, so instead I'll be coming back here and finishing my grandmother's scrapbook.

Right.

So now, I'll show you some awesometastic videos that graced my presence this week.


(I am not responsible for any pants-wetting that may have occurred during the viewing of this video.)

I may or may not have giddily jumped up and down after seeing this video. I am beyond excited and am now on a quest to re-read all of the books and re-watch all six movies before November. Which would be in progress already IF WE HADN'T MISPLACED OUR COPY OF BOOK ONE.




Everything about Maroon 5 is sexy. Including this video. If I could trade places with that girl, I would be the happiest person alive. Adam Levine is a yummy, sexy man.


NOW. Before you watch this one, let me preface it. Yes, it's a dance video. Yes, it's from So You Think You Can Dance. The dashing man with the clipboard and glasses is Twitch, who came in second place on the fourth season of the show (we're on to season seven now) and is now the male Hip Hop All-Star for this season. The kid in the jacket is ALEX FREAKIN WONG, contestant on this season and the most perfect technical dancer I've ever seen in my life. He came straight from a ballet company and has barely touched hip hop in his career. Not going to lie, as amazing as he is, I kind of expected him to bomb. HE DID THE TOTAL OPPOSITE OF BOMBING. See for yourself.

alex 9 @ Yahoo! Video

I KNOW RIGHT? Have fun picking your jaw up off the floor.

Have a wonderful holiday weekend everyone!

happy july!

{via}

I can’t believe it’s already July. That means half the year is officially finished! Yikes. I’m pretty sure I was just out celebrating the New Year like, last weekend.

July might possibly be my favorite summer month. It probably comes from being younger and attributing June to still being a school month, and August being the beginning of the end. July, though, is filled with the idea of barbecues, beach parties, and of course, plenty of fireworks and sparklers for Independence Day. Looking at it that way, it’s pretty clear why it wins the title of best summer month.

I have mentioned several times that beginnings of months, years, and even weeks motivates me intensely. So, here I am again, hoping to set forth a few little goals.

Get healthy. Yes, I know. I write about this basically every month. If you’ve been reading for any length of time, you’re probably rolling your eyes (it’s okay, because so am I). But, my mom found me a nice little book that told me to stop eating sugar and limit my carbs, which sounds like it makes sense. It also told me to drink more water, which is the single-most thing with which I struggle.

I grew up drinking very little, unconsciously training my body to be okay with only about two bottles of water per day or less. As crazy as it sounds, I just don’t know how to drink more because I never feel thirsty, and unless I’m noticeably thirsty, I have a hard time drinking a large quantity. It’s kind of insane.

Figure out what I’m doing with my career. I recently looked up information about the CPA (Certified Public Accountant) exam and found out that it changes as of January 1 of next year. It’s going to be harder, include more information, and have a completely different format. Needless to say, I had a nice little mental breakdown that day.

Now I really need to decide if this is what I want to do. My family has put a little pressure on me to take it even if I don’t want to be an accountant, because 1) it’s something to fall back on and 2) it gives me something to do while I work on getting better. If I take this on, I would really have to dedicate myself to it as I would a full-time job in order to finish it in six months. The exam normally has an eighteen-month window to complete all four parts, and I’m considering doing it in a third of the time. That’s a huge decision to make, but I have to get moving if I’m going to do it.

Craft. I’ve gone back and forth on this idea because I go from thinking I’ll make wonderful things to being completely intimidated by the crafting skills of the people already out there. I love what I make, but compared to what others make, I just don’t think it compares. But, I’ll never know until I try, and I’ll never get better until I work at it, so I’m going to find time to start making a few things here and there.

Some other things on my plate for July include planning (and possibly throwing) a little summer party with friends, helping Mark move into his new house for school, taking up yoga, and finally getting my computer fixed. This weekend – a couple of barbecues and my grandmother’s eightieth birthday party – will be a nice kick-off.