Have A Little Fun

Hello, hello!

So for my new years resolution, I committed myself to growing this blog and having more fun with it.

Just one month later, I got an email from a lovely lady named Christina wondering if I had any guest posting options.

My response was pretty much something like, "Uh, yeah, never done it before. But TOTALLY".

In my head, I was freaking out.

Of course I want to post your work.

Anyways here are her recommendations on what to do on a weekend.

They're pretty great.

Enjoy.

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Change-Up your Weekend Routine and Add some Fun

Article by Christina Johnson

When the weekend comes, everyone wants to blow off some steam and have a little bit of fun. Whether you want to have a good time with single friends, or you and your honey want to go out and have fun with other couples, there are excellent options no matter where you live.

 If you live in a city, the possibilities are nearly endless. Get a group together for a game of touch football and cook out in the park if the weather is warm, or if it's cold, call everyone to the largest home for a funny movie marathon complete with snacks, drinks and games in between flicks. In the summer, plan a gathering at the beach around a bonfire one sultry evening, but be sure to bring hot dogs to roast over the flames and all the fixings for s’mores.

Couples, of course, can get together at any number of restaurants or bars for drinks and meals, but may also enjoy hitting up local amusement parks or carnivals that set up around your neighborhood. If you'd like a more non-traditional approach, have a pot luck meal at a central location, with every couple responsible for a dish. 

Should you live in a small town, don't fret because there's plenty to do. Head out into the woods for a group camping excursion, whether it's in a rented RV, in tents or out under the stars. Fishing and swimming are always viable options for fun in the great outdoors, as long as you remember to bring swimsuits, trunks and fishing bait and poles.  

If it's cold out, or if the outdoors just isn't your group's cup of tea, come up with a creative plan based on one of the Food Network's most popular shows. Have everyone meet at one house, agree upon an affordable budget and a "secret ingredient" then head to the local market for all the makings of an "Iron Chef" contest all your own. Allow everyone a certain amount of time to come up with one, two or more dishes based on what they buy at the store, and designate specific, non-cooking people or couples as the judges. This event can be held regularly, with judges rotating regularly so everyone gets a chance to cook.

 No matter where you live, who you're dating or married to or what you and your friends enjoy, there are plenty of options for weekend entertainment. Either go with the same old, tried and true activities you know you'll enjoy or branch out and pick something new every week. Regardless of your choices, you and the members of your crew are sure to have a great time with whatever activities you choose to try.

(Christina Johnson who works remotely for Elliman Prudential in the New York City Rentals market.  She is using her journalism major to combine what she loves most, writing and her career. Her specialties include home decor design and DIY home improvement projects)

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Thanks Christina!

Now get out there and grab yourself a fishing pole.

Or cook some food.

Or do whatever you want.

Just have some fun people.

Eight reasons..

..why your life exponentially improves when you're my friend.

1. I do anything for my friends.

And I do mean anything.

Sneaking out of my dads at 2 am 'cause you're having a crisis? Check.

Wasting about 40 bucks in gas to pick you up from work everyday? Check.

Driving you across town to buy a fish? Check.

2. I like to do fun stuff.

Like wander around target.

Fun stuff, I tell you.

3. I share things well.

Unless they are really cool things.

Or really tastey things.

Then I very reluctantly give you a little bit.

Still sharing?

4. I'm hilarious through text message and midly funny in person.

5. I'm kind of ridiculous.

All the time.

Unless we have just recently met.

Then I'll probably be normal.

But holding back ridiculous comments in my head.

6. My friendships last forevah, yo.

Just ask Dani.

We're goin' on like 13 years now.

All because of kindergarten.

7. I like hugs.

And I give them generously.

8. I'm pretty sure I give good advice.

I mean no one's ever seriously been damaged by my suggestions, so I'm fairly certain that means it's good.

PS. this post is not me begging you to be my friend.

(Eh, ok, maybe a little bit)

But you totally should.



If you asked

If you asked me, I'd tell you that I'm a goofball, but most people don't get to see that side of me.

If you asked me, I'd tell you that fishing on that bridge is one of my favorite memories.

If you asked me, I'd tell you that I have a huge sweet tooth.

If you asked me, I'd try to tell you that I worry and stress over everything, but I'd be nervous because I would think you would see me differently.

If you asked me,  I'd tell you that one kind word will make my entire day.

If you asked me, I'd tell you that I love this blog and that I am so excited to see what the future holds for it.

If you asked me, I'd tell you that I miss the feeling I got when I had a studio to myself and could dance just for me. 

If you asked me, I'd tell you that I'm a huge perfectionist and slightly OCD.

If you asked me, I'd tell you that I'm so excited about life and what it holds for me, but it also scares me more than anything.

If you asked me, I'd tell you that I feel like very few people know me completely, and I'd tell you that it's completely my fault.

If you asked, I'd tell you that not a day goes by that I don't think of the past.

If you asked me, I'd tell you that I love to travel and I can't wait to see the world someday.

If you asked me, I'd tell you that I have a very hard time letting go of the things that hurt me.

If you asked, I'd tell you I'm incredibly blessed and thankful for all of the opportunities God has given me.

If you asked, I'd tell you that I have a slight major obsession with office supplies.

If you asked, I'd tell you I'm scared of rejection and people not liking me so I don't let anyone in very far.

If you asked, I'd tell you that I can't sleep without my teddy bear, Snuggles, and my baby blanket.

If you asked, I'd tell you that I love taking pictures and I want to learn more about it.

If you asked, I'd tell you it was very hard for me to admit a lot of the things I did today, but I'm glad I have a safe place like this to do so.

If you asked, I'd tell you this year is looking like it's going to be a great one.

Awkward and Awesome Thursday

Hola!

Let's talk about the craziness that has happened this week today.

Awkward:

1. Lubbock, as you may know, is a very windy place.

I think it may be a close second to Chicago, which I'm assuming is very windy considering it's known as the "windy city".

Anyways...

Today was one of those extra windy days.

The kind where your hair covers your face and you almost die by walking into a pole which you narrowly avoided.

Well, since it was so windy, the doors were being held shut by the wind.

I tried everything.

I pushed.

I leaned against it with all my weight.

I took a mini running start and slammed into it.

Nothing would open this door.

Unknown to me, there were three architecture students standing and watching my innovative ways to try and open this door. Apparently, I'm hilarious.

Anyways, I finally got it open.

And by that I mean, one of the architecture boys opened it for me.

Either way, I got through the door.

2. I'm taking an art history class this semester and we are learning about the cave paintings.

Riveting, I know.

Anyways, my teacher {an older woman} was speculating about why the people of the time would draw such detailed things. And then proceeded to tell us that she suspected it was because they used the caves to get high and then they would draw their hallucinations. No one had a clue if she was being serious or trying to relate to our generation by making drug references.

3. In interior design, we are learning how to letter. Lettering is the handwriting used by designers and architects on the building plans. So, we were given an assignment to write a bunch of definitions using lettering. I spent two hours preparing my page to start writing and as I was beginning, I realized the page needed to be moved down on the table so I could reach it more easily. Well, in attempting to pull the page off the table, I ripped an entire chunk off. Two hours of work completely ruined.

Hooray.

Awesome:

1. The past three days, I've been getting my lunch from a sandwich place on campus.

The past three days, the same lady has checked me out.

Well I handed her my meal card to pay and she said it was free.

Apparently, she was feeling very generous today

Nothing like a free sandwich to make your day!

2. Yesterday, I designed the coolest poster ever and I totally wanted to share a picture with you.

But the file was 15,600 MB and was way too large to email or upload.

Just imagine the coolest poster you've ever seen.

Now think of it 10 times more awesome.

Yeah, it was better than that.

There ya have it.

The best and craziest parts of my week.

Until tomorrow puddin' pops!

Big News

Happy Monday!

{Well, as happy as it can be considering it is a monday}

As the title tells you, I've got some big news.

Prepare yourself.

..

Ready?

So last semester, I discovered majoring in Journalism just wasn't my thing.

So, I looked into all sorts of different paths and finally landed on one that is going to be awesome.

 

Got any guesses what it is, yet?

I'll give ya a bigger hint

 That's right!

 (Oh don't feel too smart, I practically gave you the answer)

This blogger is now an interior design major.

Eep!

And let me tell you, I've never been more excited about waking up at 7 AM on a Monday than I am right now. After leaving the introduction to my studio class today, I am excited beyond words. I need a new word for the word exciting. So if you're feeling like renovating your house, ya know, just wait four years and give me a call. I'd be happy to do it.



Sunday's



Sundays for me mean laying in bed and watching tv while remembering a million things I could be doing. But for me, Sundays are my day to do the things that help me relax and remember that sometimes it's ok to take a day for myself instead of trying to squeeze in everything.

I like Sundays because I can take an hour out of my week and spend time with God at church rather than spend time with God at home. This time reminds me that the rest of the week will be ok.

Have a great Sunday.

I hope it's been as nice as mine.

Headin' Down Unda

No, not me.

{I wish}

My dad is though.

He's headed to Perth, Australia for a few weeks to do some business.

And this girl could not be more jealous.



His flight leaves today.

He first flies to Moscow, then to Singapore, and the finally to Perth.

Now when he was telling me about his flight time I came to a realization.

His flight from Texas to Moscow is 9 hours.

The drive from my house to Lubbock is also 9 hours.

People, you can make it halfway around the world in the time it takes me to get across Texas.

Pretty crazy stuff.

Happy Friday friends.

Chicawa

Whaddup chickadees?

Speaking of chickadees, when writing this I wanted to say chicklets and I couldn't figure out how to spell it so I spent a good five minutes trying different ways to spell it and when I couldn't I asked the boyfriend, "Baby chickens are called chicklets right?"

Turns out I was wrong.

They are called chicks, chicklets are mexican gum.

And this chick has been mistaken for quite some time.

Whatever, I just make up my own words for baby animals, ain't no thing.

On another note, when googling images of chicks, use the words "baby chicken" not "chicks" because that word has taken on a new meaning and it has nothing to do with birds anymore, if ya know what I'm sayin'.

While I make up words for actual objects, the boyfriend makes up words with no meaning.

"Chicawa"

In case your wondering how to say it

"Chick-ow-ah"

{Or you can say it however you want, that's the beauty of made up words}

He has no idea what it means, but he says it at least four times a day.

This kid went so far as to buy a star and name it chicawa.

Well, now I've started sayin' it and people, let me tell you, once you start you'll never stop.

So today my gift to you is a new word.

Use it however you please.

And be sure and thank Keegan.

Chicawa.  

An Almost Average Day in the Life of Me

Hola!

And that, amigos, is the extent of my Spanish.

Although, I did enjoy some yummy fajitas at Lupe Tortilla with the fam and the boyfriend.

 I also revealed my little known talent.

Of being a monkey.

And I also stole a billion mints

They're a recently developed and much loved addiction.

And whenever there are tons of 'em just sittin' out, I go a little crazy.

I just can't help myself.

But all these mints will make the nine hour drive tomorrow a little more bearable.

That's right.

Today's my last day at home until March.

And how did I spend it?

If you guessed laundry and packing you would be right.

If you guessed watching a Law & Order SVU marathon and snuggling with my dog you would be accurate.

And lastly, if you guessed lying in the arms of the world's sweetest man, you would be correct.

You people are such good guessers.

Kudos to you.



The Best Decision Of Your Life?

Well, maybe not the best of your life, but a pretty darn good one.
Since all of you people are incredibly smart, I know you want to make an excellent decision today.

What is this great choice?

Oh, just swapping buttons with me.

<a href=”http://livingandlearningbynatalie.blogspot.com/” style=”border: none;”><img alt=”Living & Learning” src=”http://i1204.photobucket.com/albums/bb401/njung93/NatalieJ-19-2.jpg” style=”width: 129px; height: 129px;”/></a>
Yeah, you know you want to.

Or maybe you don't, although I'm sure hopin' you do.

Send me an email (living.and.learning.for.today@gmail.com) if you feel like being smart today and we can swap away.

Holy Moly, I'm An Oldie

This morning when I woke up I had all sorts of hair issues.

 

The first of them being that this is what my hair did overnight.

Maybe I stuck my finger in a socket in my sleep.

Ya know, thinking about it, my dream was pretty out there so that's actually a real possibility.

Anyways, as I was working through this hot mess, I discovered not one, but three gray hairs.

Yeah, you heard that right.

At the ripe old age of eighteen, this chick is going gray.

Like I said all sorts of hair problems.

Although, I do believe I found the reason for my hair turning gray.

Here he is:

That would be my kid brother behind the wheel of a Ford Excursion.

I was a nervous wreck.

Cue picture of me being scared out of my mind

Let's just say, the curb was his best friend and my worst nightmare.

He hit that sucker probably 25 times on the drive to our grandparents house.

Oh, and he dropped an open coke can resulting in a geyser of soda spewing all over the car {sad part is, he did this at a stop light so his bad driving couldn't even be blamed for it}.

It was impressively disastrous.

But as discovered earlier this week a little something sweet can fix any problem.

So the boyfriend took me to get some frozen yogurt.

Doesn't that yumminess make your mouth water?

And it's pretty low-fat.
Win-win boyfriend.

I'm Crazy Because I..

For those of you who spend a lot of time with me you know I have my crazy.

My moments of complete nonsense or my moments of complete breakdown.

They come as a part of the package that is me.

Since I am currently wide awake in bed due to some of this ridiculousness, I thought I'd share with you a few of my more ridiculous pieces of crazy.

1. I am afraid of taking showers after dark.

My bathroom at my mom's house has this tiny little window above the toilet. Somehow, I convinced myself that people could see me naked. Considering my bathroom is on the second floor and faces my backyard this is actually impossible. Although, technically if they stood on the neighbor's roof they could, and trust me I had myself convinced they did just that.

2. I can't vacuum a room if I'm in it by myself.

As a kid, it was always my chore to vacuum the house, but the sound it made stressed me out because it was so loud I wouldn't be able to hear anything but it. The reason this stressed me out? Obviously, I was convinced that people were trying to break in at all times and I wanted to be able to hear them when they opened my door so I'd know to call the police.

3. I can't leave doors half open when I am trying to sleep.

I honestly have no explanation for this one. It just causes me major stress if I see even the tiniest crack when I am trying to sleep.

4. I have toilet anxiety.

On my 7th birthday, I was watching a special on animal planet about alligators in the sewers of Chicago. So the natural leap in my seven year old mind was that alligators in the sewer meant that at any given moment an alligator can swim into your toilet. {I know it's completely irrational, but cut a girl some slack, I was seven} Well this led to years of hovering above the seat and peeing faster than you can imagine. Seriously people, to this day, if me and my brother were to race in a public bathroom kind of situation, I'd beat him every time.

5. I can't play hide and seek.

First, I don't like tiny spaces that are good for hiding. Second, I was always really afraid that the people I was playing with were trying to trick me by telling me to hide and then doing something else. 

6. After about 11 pm, I'm convinced there is someone in my house

It doesn't matter if I'm there alone or if the whole family is home. The tiniest noise will have me curled up in a ball hiding behind my bed with 911 dialed on my phone waiting to see the person reveal himself. This one makes falling asleep especially difficult because as we all know sometimes houses creak at night causing noises.

7. If a bathroom has a shower curtain, I must look behind it before sitting on the toilet.

Basically, I'm convinced a serial rapist is waiting behind it waiting for me to pull down my pants before he strikes.

I'm going to stop now because you all get the picture.

And also because I had no idea how many things scare the bejeezus out of me.

Well, and mostly because I'm feeling a little silly.

All of my crazy written down for me to read makes feel pretty embarrassed.

I didn't realize the extent of it.

Anyways to wrap it, I'm convinced people are out to get me and that I have swamp creators living in my toilet. Don't judge.



Speaking of..

Let's just talk about how a little something sweet can fix anything.

Seriously, I was having one of my meltdowns {nothing out of the ordinary these days}.

So Keegan gave me two peppermints (which have become a new addiction of mine) and when those didn't get me all the way back to normal, he fixed me a piece of pecan pie.

Talk about the perfect way to fix a bad mood.

In a few minutes I was back to laughing & playing.

I was impressed with myself.

Now, speaking of my new addictions..

Have ya ever noticed the negative connotations that come with the word addiction?

For example when I say addiction, I bet the first thing in your mind is drugs.

Anyways... I've got only a few million of 'em.

But my latest and greatest would have to be

the Urban Decay Naked palette.

I just keep doing my makeup, takin it off, then doing it again.

It's that fun.

My eyes have never been happier.

I'm in love.

Wait maybe just infatuated.

Speaking of love, don't you wish you got messages like these?

He's the cutest.

These messages are what make me the luckiest girl ever.

{In case you're wondering we were talkin' about the drive from his house to my dads}

Peace out, yo.



Forgiveness.

Today I read this post over at Casey Wiegand's blog

 (if you don't know of her blog, go read it. she's sort of a big deal.)

She talks about a lot of what if's in her post and it got me thinking about the way I've been acting.

You see, Keegan has my heart, the whole thing, which makes it very easy for him to break.

And in October, he did just that.

And just when I was getting back on my feet, two individuals made themselves a part of something they didn't need to be involved in and because of it my heart was broken a second time.

And this heartbreak was of a different kind.

They got in my head and made me feel inadequate and small.

They brought up feelings that I'd worked through and learned to cope with.

They undid almost all of the work I had done to be ok again.

They broke me.

Because of how broken I was, I am struggling with forgiveness.

I have forgiven Keegan.

It took a while, but I realized he never meant to hurt me.

He loves me more than I know and I don't want to lose him.

But I have not forgiven the people who hurt me so much.

I've been trying.

But I am angry.

I am angry at myself for letting them get in my head.

I am angry at them for treating me so horribly.

I am angry.

 And I let this anger control me.

I have been praying that God helps me let go of this, but it is taking some time.

I wish I would have handled some of it differently, but I can't undo the past.

All I can do is work to forgive them and treat them with the respect that they never showed me.

All I can do is be better than I was yesterday.

I want to be better everyday.

 And in order to do so, I have to let go of my anger and my hurt.

Everyday Is For God {Not Just Sunday}

Happy Wednesday pumpkins.

This is what I'm loving today

                                                                                                                                                         

God is good.

And so are you.

Hope your Thursday is even better than today.

Pinterest Saved the Blog

I have no idea what I want to talk about so instead of my own words I'm giving you other peoples. Enjoy homeslices



The perfect day is...

A rainy morning.

{That caused a lake in my backyard and an ocean throughout the town}

Driving through the ocean streets with my man.

Eating a hamburger in the middle of a gas station

{I know it sounds sketch, but it was the best burger I've ever had}

Driving down some old country roads.

Running around electronic stores.

Chinese for dinner.

Laying in the arms of the sweetest man I know watching some college football.

(Well, he was watching, I was on Pinterest)

Now, it's time to keep enjoying this really great day.

Catch ya on the flip side bro.

"Where you invest your love, you invest your life"

I am a Southern girl.

{Technically}

I mean really I do live in one of the biggest metropolitan areas in the country.

But it's in the South, so therefore I'm a Southern girl.

But until a year or so ago, I did not want to be.

I wanted to get out of here more than anything.

I wanted to be a Northern girl.

I wanted to be a girl who every winter could wake up to my truck looking like this.

But see if I wasn't a Southern girl anymore, I wouldn't be driving my truck.

I wouldn't get to drive 9 hours and still be in the same state.

I wouldn't have the appreciation that I do for the wide open spaces I drive through from time to time.

I wouldn't love the smell of cows.

I wouldn't wish I'd stuck to horseback riding as a kid.

I definitely would down sweet tea like it's going out of style.

There are so many things I would miss if I moved out of my home state.

If I wasn't a Southern girl, I wouldn't be me.

And now more than ever I'm realizing how lucky I am to have grown up in the South.

I can't imagine ever leaving this place.

And I invest all my love in being a Southern and I'm hoping my life can stay in this wonderful place.



"Reunited and it feels so good"

'Sup nuggets?

I hope you all imagined me wailing singing the title because thats definitely how it happened.

Speaking of nuggets.. chicken nuggets have a way of making my day.

Especially when they come from a little place called Chick-fil-a.

I desperately need to move to a place that doesn't have one of these puppies otherwise I'm going to die of a heart attack when I'm around 350 pounds. And we don't want that now do we?

And getting right to the point, today was pretty special.

You see, Keegan has a very interesting story.

Much different than the way I grew up.

The only thing is, it's not my story to tell.

Perhaps one day I'll let him take over and tell you all about it if he's up to it.

For now, I'm just going to tell you about what we did today.

Today we drove to Brenham, Texas.

Along the way, I rapped mumbled loudly to all of his awesome music.

He just turned it up and pretended not to hear my voice.

We were on our way to meet his real family.

(I should probably mention at this point, he was adopted at the age of 8)

He hadn't seen any of people we visited today since he was very small.

He saw his aunt and uncle.

His cousins.

His great-grandmother (aka Nanie).

His half-sisters (Kailyn and Kourtney).

Probably the most exciting for him was getting to see his dad.

The last time they were face to face was years ago.

From the things Keegan told me about his time with his dad, I gathered that Keegan really missed him even though he couldn't remember much.

And today I discovered why.

His dad is a really good guy.

And an awesome dad.

It meant a lot to be there with Keegan when he was reunited with his dad after so long.

I hope know they both enjoyed it.

And for both of their sake, I really hope it happens again soon.

These people were wonderful.

Typically, I'm terrible at meeting people, but today I felt right at home among strangers.

It was pretty great.

Plus I got a super cute ornament out of it.

Keegan, since I know you're reading, find a way to see your family again please.

And thank you for letting me be a part of this very special day.

It meant a lot to me.

Just like you do.