r e m i n i s c i n g

slush is everywhere. melting off the trees in huge slops, running down the sidewalks in rivers, everywhere. my love of this 'snow' business is fading quickly...

so, to get over my ebbing enthusiasm for our lovely snowmageddon i have been reminiscing about summer all day. luckily my bedroom gets that amazing, white-gold sunlight throughout most of the day, and baby D and i were able to relax and take a snooze in there while pretending it was summer. 

as we took our cat nap i realized that this time last year i was in miami with my girlfriends celebrating my 25th birthday. talk about a change of scenery! we lounged by the pool, tanned on the beach, drank pisco sours by night and daiquiris by day. lots of rum was involved. and LOTS of cuban food. it was nice to remember that this cold season won't last forever and we will be warm again! with that being said, here's to the last few weeks of winter (hopefully) and a great summer full of lots of new adventures to come! 

Miami Girls Trip 2014

s n o w m a g e d d o n

we woke up this morning to a winter wonderland. deep, fluffy, piles of fresh snow covered everything outside, weighing down the tree branches and making everything look like it was covered in heaps of powdered sugar. everything was so quiet and peaceful. the kind of quiet that can only happen when everything is muted by snow and no one else is awake and moving around yet. we made coffee and french toast, then layered on our snow gear to venture out into what we durhamites endearingly are referring to as, 'snowpocalypse 2015'. the pups bounded around like little rabbits, hopping into drifts and chasing each other in circles through the powder. they might have been more excited that i was, which is saying something. when we get snow in durham, everything closes down. i guess all TWO of our snowplows were busy elsewhere, which is fine with me! we walked over to the school playground and built a huge fort with a snowman inside, just like a couple of five year olds. its funny how easy it is to revert back to childhood with the right conditions! when we decided the snow fort was complete we trekked back to the house for some homemade pepper jack mac, perfect for a post snow excursion snack. can't wait to spend the rest of the day sipping hot tea and catching up on some reading inside, while everything turns to slush outside. even the doggies are pooped, and passed out snoozing on the couch next to us. so far its been a pretty great day. 

w o n d e r l a n d

its happening (again)! SNOW. we are expected to get up to 10 inches tonight which, for all of you northerners is a lot of snow down here. so, here i sit on my couch, with all of the windows open so i can continue to check how much snow is on the ground every 10 seconds without getting up...lazy i know. i am drinking a huge, holiday pour glass of wine, perusing pinterest, and snuggling with my pups while the bf plays destiny next to me. this is my kind of cozy, peaceful night! i am determined to go sledding tomorrow, despite already not being able to breathe through my nose due to a cold that sprang up out of nowhere (aka I'm around children all day) and nothing will stop me! i don't think seeing snow fall will ever lose its magic.

s ' m o r e s n o w

woke up this morning to MORE SNOW! huge, fluffy flakes that looked like cotton came pouring down all morning. we don't see much snow in good ol' durham, so it has been such a fun couple of weeks. i did still have to go into work though. a bit of a downer but we made the most of this snow day by going on a super fun 'snow walk'. i bundled  up my little nugget, snuggled him into his stroller, and we met up with the boyfriend for a flurry filled hike to alivia's for lunch. all the neighborhood kids were running around, building snowmen, and throwing snowballs. it brought back so many wonderful childhood memories of snow days when i was growing up in trinity park :) time sure does fly. maybe it's because I'm getting ready to move away from my hometown, but recently i have found myself being so appreciative of how great durham is. it truly has been an amazing place to live and i feel so fortunate to be from this awesome, quirky, artsy, and gritty town. 

i want to take full advantage of everything here before i head down to pensacola. Britt and i were talking about making a 'durham bucket list' of my favorite bars, restaurants, and places to hit before my move. there is also a long list of people i need to see and hang out with first. of course, my family is top on that list. as a birthday present my mother bought me a cooking class that we took together last night. so fun! we learned how to make several amazing seafood dishes, chocolate creme brûlée, potato gratin, and a fresh assortment of dinner salads. I'm definitely not the most coordinated or talented chef in the kitchen so i will take any help i can get. i definitely recommend taking a cooking class at Sur la Table. it could be a fun thing to do with friends or even a great date night activity. i wish i had time to take James to one, but he is making the move to pensacola this weekend to get things set up. i suppose it is time to buy some boxes and have a yardsale! the move will be here before we know it :)

w e e k e n d l i f e

if there is one thing i love, it is a clean home. with four animals it is a constant uphill battle to keep things fur free and smelling, well, not like a zoo. many of my friends have been getting into essential oils as a means to clean, sanitize, and invigorate their homes. i never really saw the point until recently when i realized how often i spray chemicals and burn candles in my house. surely, it would be better to do things the all-natural way. so, i have decided to try my hand at essential oils. instagram and pinterest are amazing when it comes to recipes for different cleaning products, oil blends, diffuser products, you name it! hopefully this will be a way for me to keep my home clean in a natural and healthy way. my toxicologist father should be proud ;)

this weekend the bf was out of town visiting family so i was able to get a really thorough cleaning done. obviously i am a little OCD about this and I'm going to have a difficult time giving up my swifter wet-jet to an all-natural method, but what can you do. the result will be worth it. i also had time to go on a lady date with a good friend Britt which is always fun. especially now that the countdown for my move has begun, and i am trying to get as much time in with my girls as possible. we went to a hockey game and late-night dinner afterwards. super romantic considering this date was arranged for Brittney by her boyfriend who had to work last minute...thanks Danny! 

on saturday night, the fan and i went to DPAC to see Motown: the Musical. it was so well done and the voices were incredible. i always love getting to spend time with my parents and sister, and tempe and i always end up finding something hilarious to crack up at during these shows (comedy or not) and last night was no exception. 

overall, it was a productive and fun weekend. not to mention it was nice to finally get out of the house after all of the snow! now i am  going to sit on the couch, drink a hot cup of peppermint tea, and read until my sweet bf gets back for dinner. banana bread is in the oven, the house is clean, and sunlight is actually coming in the windows again. 

t h a w

it was so hard to wake up this morning knowing that it was only 17 degrees outside and soooo snuggly warm in my bed. but this little nugget can't babysit himself! luckily we were able to sit by the fire and read books all morning to stay warm. we put the 'chill jazz' station on and sipped on peppermint tea (or a bottle in Dillon's case...) and relaxed. however, i was beginning to get cabin fever with all of this cold weather! a girl can only sit inside and do nothing for so long. we decided to brave the cold and go for a walk to our favorite cafe for a little mid-day snack and some fresh air. our faces almost froze off but it was a beautiful, clear day and definitely worth the momentary cold shock. not to mention, little dude has the warmest snowsuit known to mankind! they should make those in adult sizes...

b o o k s & b a b i e s

this morning, despite the frosty weather and icy roads, i got to go back into work to see my little bub. its hard to consider being a nanny 'work' when i get to snuggle those sweet cheeks all day long. unfortunately my little guy has a cold so he's not feeling so hot. but we will spend the day reading books, resting, and doing some tummy time so nothing too strenuous ;) 

on a separate note, I'm halfway through my most recent mass book store purchase. The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History was amazing and insightful. I loved being able to go back to my college anthropology days and read about something that truly interests me on an intellectual level. I definitely recommend this book to everyone. we only have one world and everyone should be interested in what changes we are causing as humans and how we can improve upon our time here. Unbroken was absolutely heart-wrenching. i had to repeatedly put the book down and take a break simply because it was so emotional and I'm a pansy. it also may have struck too close to home since my boyfriend has a flight contract. but all of that aside, it was well written, straightforward, engaging, and an all around wonderful story of hope, perseverance, and brotherhood. long story short, you should read it.

s n o w d a y

today was the first snow day of the year, and even as an adult i find it hard to contain my childlike excitement over seeing those first few flakes fall from the sky. of course, work was cancelled for the day so we are laying low and enjoying the warmth and coziness of home. it seemed an obvious choice to bake slow-cooker french toast to munch on throughout the day as we read, snuggle up, and watch movies (or in the bf's case, play Destiny). even the pups seem content to curl up and be lazy. i'd be lying if i said i wasn't excited for summer and our move to pensacola since its been such a cold winter, but days like this make it easy to sit back and enjoy knowing that while its positively frigid outside, we are snug and warm with our coffee and blankets inside. 

b e g i n

the move is eminent. of course, no packing has occurred yet. that would make things way too easy. however, change is in the air and its time to start the ball rolling. how one is supposed to pack up and move one slightly neurotic control freak, a nonchalant less-than-great planner,  a couple of dogs, and two cats across the country is a mystery to me. but, this will soon be the norm considering we will have to go wherever the marine corps tells us to for quite some time. i suppose the adventure begins now.