Why I Think We Should Stop Being so Hard on Taylor Swift

I am a Taylor Swift fan. This isn't news to any of you, I'm sure.

The big news this week is apparently that her and Harry Styles called it quits. Now, I don't know who Harry Styles is and I'm quite satisfied with that. It makes perfect sense considering I am not a tween and don't still have an unhealthy obsession with boy bands at my age.

We all know Taylor Swift uses her many, many short relationships as inspiration for her hit songs and she gets a lot of criticism for that. Everyone knows by now (especially after he whined to Rolling Stone about it) that "Dear John" was so obviously about her relationship with John Mayer and "Back to December" is apparently about Taylor Lautner.

People all over the Internet are commenting on how many men she's been with, how short her relationships are and of course, making jokes about new songs everytime she splits with someone. Don't get me wrong, as a huge Taylor Swift fan (I think if we knew each other in real life, we would be really good friends), even I can admit to the laughing at things like this:

And if I had to guess, even I'd say that T. Swift is probably a little clingy with a side of crazy, which could be why she has so many short, failed relationships.

But to everyone criticizing her, I do have a few things to say.

• I have also had a series of short-lived romances. In many of these situations, like Taylor, I probably made too much of the relationship and turned it into a bigger deal than it was. I've fallen too quick, been more upset over someone than I should have been and been way overdramatic when it didn't work out.  
•  I've used those relationships for inspiration. Instead of writing a song about them (trust me, you wouldn't want to hear my singing) I just happen to record my thoughts on this here blog. Like I'm sure writing songs helps Taylor, writing helps me sort out feelings of anger, confusion, sadness when a relationship doesn't work out. Because of this, a lot of my blog content ends up being about...you guessed it, relationships.
• I, too, have dated a lot. I have friends (and sisters!) who have met the love of their lives and didn't date much, if at all, on the journey to find that person. I'm so happy for them and you if you have experienced this. It's important to remember though, that not everyone finds their someone like this. For some, our search is a little more...extensive, to say the least. Do we deserve to be criticized for trying to find love? No ma'am. We just know that we aren't going to meet the love of our life if we sit at home and think about it. So we go on dates...lots of them. We have short romances that make us wonder why we were ever interested in that person. We might kiss more guys than than we ever wanted to during our search for the one. Don't judge us for this. We are just trying to find what we are looking for.
• I sure can relate to a lot of Taylor's songs. I should add that I don't just relate to the ones about breakups. I can also relate to "Mean," which she wrote about a music executive who said she couldn't sing, "Everything has Changed," which is about the wonderful feelings we experience at the start of a new relationship and especially "Never Grow Up," which is about growing up and wishing you could go back to your childhood when things were simple. I'm sure if you listen to some of her music, you too would relate to many of her songs.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is this:

Taylor Swift and I are one in the same.

Just kidding.

I'm saying to give my girl Taylor a break. She's 23-years-old and writes about love, breakups and relationships. What do you expect her to sing about?

Tell me...

It seems everyone either loves or hates Taylor Swift. Where do you stand?

Random Thoughts #2

I already warned you that I have a lot to say this week. Unfortunately, I can't seem to pull a coherent post together. Do you ever have that problem? You have topics you want to write on and things you want to say, but you just can't seem to piece it all together. Instead, you end up rambling on about a variety of unrelated things. I've already done a post like this just recently, so I guess this is going to be a regular thing here on days I can't focus on one topic. So here goes...

Most importantly, I have a new nephew on his way into this world as we speak and I am esctatic! This is my sister's 3rd child and I cannot wait to get word that he has arrived. My sister lives way up in Buffalo so I can't be there to meet him which kinda stinks, but I am hoping to get up there sometime in the next few months to visit. I can't wait for that.

I pinned this on Pinterest today and actually said "oh shit" out loud at my desk because I was that overwhelmed by how wonderful and awful it was that I found this. Awful because my love for York Peppermint Patties is really intense and I don't think I have the self control to even make these. Good lord they look delightful.

Do you ever feel like negativity has become more common in this world than positivity? I come across too many people who don't know how to react to my attitude and I don't know how to respond. Some people even seem offended. What gives? Are there just too many bad things in the world getting people down and making them cynical?

I understand that it's easier to focus on the negative sometimes. It takes less energy to complain about things you aren't happy with than it is to find the bright side of that situation. I guess I just feel overwhelmed by this lately. Don't get me wrong. I have days that are not-so-great. But on those days, I certainly don't post "FML" Facebook updates or project my negativity onto others. That doesn't do any good. I don't spread happiness and positivity to people on a daily basis. Even I'm guilty of being pessimistic sometimes. But I catch myself. And I wish more people would catch themselves and turn their thought process around.  Maybe this needs it's own post. Maybe I need to blog about how you can cheer yourself up. I don't know.

Taylor Swift is coming to Orlando for two nights in April and I'm going to attempt to snag tickets on Friday morning at 10 a.m. Her shows sell out so fast so I usually don't even attempt to buy tickets. I've never seen her live and I know it would be amazing. If we are actually able to get tickets I am going to completely lose my mind. That's how excited I will be. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Has anyone else not even started their Christmas shopping? So many bloggers I follow said they were finished shopping Thanksgiving weekend. What? How did you do that? Thanksgiving weekend I went shopping and left the mall with two new sweaters, a sequin skirt and new aviators...all for myself. My dad totally judged me to my face. I just hadn't thought about what I wanted to get people yet and nothing jumped out at me. I need to get on this...

Speaking of Christmas, my coworker has Peppermint Kisses in her office. Why are these so delicious? I can't stop sneaking into her office to snag a few. It's getting out of hand. Have you tried these yet? If not, go pick yourself up a bag and proceed to eat the entire thing.

Is it frowned upon to tell your parents you want a flask for Christmas? I can't help but really, really want this one.

Miscellaneous

What's going on in my world right now:

I forgot to tell you all that Blake graduated from his beginner training class a few weeks ago. I really only share this with you because this photo is too cute not to. I am so glad I decided to sign him up for training when I did. He's almost a year old and while he is still very much a puppy, his behavior has improved so much and I'm so proud of him for catching on to the basic commands we learned so quickly. I'm pretty impressed that after 6 weeks of class I can get him to sit, stay, lay down, shake hands and drop toys or things he shouldn't have in his mouth.

I stumbled across these two quotes on Pinterest recently and I absolutely love them. I can't believe I still haven't read Eat, Pray, Love. I really need to add that to my Kindle.

In the last few weeks, I've started switching to morning workouts on the days I have evening plans. Depending on the week, I've been waking up at 5 a.m. 2-3 times a week to get to the gym. I know how awful this must sound, but I am finally at the point where it doesn't bother me too much. I used to hate it how I would get into a great gym routine, going 4-5 nights a week, but then a week would come where I had a lot going on in the evenings and I would hardly make it to the gym at all.

An active social life is no excuse to let all my hard work go to waste, so the only way to make this work was to workout in the morning on the days I have plans at night. I won't tell you hearing the alarm go off at 5 a.m. is a good feeling, but driving home from the gym at 7 a.m. feeling accomplished before I'd normally be awake is an amazing feeling.

I'm also super excited that yesterday I got up to a 4-mile run. This may sound silly to serious runners, but that is the farthest I've ever gone in one run. It took me 35 minutes and I seriously couldn't be more excited about this. When I started working out regularly and getting back in shape in August, I could hardly run a mile without struggling a lot. The fact that I've come this far in such a short time makes me realize that so much of our limitations are all mental. I'm not setting any specific goals, but this makes me so excited to build up my endurance even more.

 

Last but not least, if you don't watch Modern Family on ABC, you need to start. It's the perfect combination of funny and heartwarming. I'm obsessed with Phil's-osophy.

 

My favorite: "When life gives you lemonade, make lemons. Life will be all like "what?!?"

 

That's all for now. I hope everyone is having a great week!



Tell me...

Do you watch Modern Family? Who is your favorite character?

Do you prefer working out in the morning or evenings?

Still a Pinterest Addict & Wonderful Words

It's no secret I still have an unhealthy addiction to Pinterest. If you haven't fallen victim to the magical and life-changing time suck that is Pinterest, I respect you immensely and also feel really bad for you. I might go a few weeks without going to the site, then one visit gets me completely addicted again. I could spend hours on there planning my wedding that doesn't exist, decorating my house with items I can't afford and wishing every outfit I pinned could magically appear in my closet. It's the best and worst thing that's ever happened to me.

As a lover of writing, words, reading and quotations, I could spend hours perusing the quotes on Pinterest alone. I love the feeling of finding a really great quote or poem and when I find one that really speaks to my life, it's like hitting the jackpot.

Where was I going with this?

 

Oh, right. I wanted to share some of my favorite recent inspirational words and poetry finds. After all, I hope it isn't just me who feels like this week has d...r...a..g...g...e...d on, so I'm sure we could all use some inspiration.



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I love her, but this quote really struck me. People are always going to criticize you, but as a female I feel like we get especially criticized for being true to ourselves and our feelings. I know I've experienced a lot of this and her message to not let anyone or anything take those things away from us is so important.

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I loved this and we all need reminding sometimes that we are perfectly fine the way we are. I especially loved the "Sometimes I make a lot of mistakes" line.

Couldn't find a source, but here it is on Pinterest.

First of all, if you haven't seen the movie "We Bought a Zoo," you absolutely have to watch it. I can't remember ever seeing a movie that made me feel as inspired and overjoyed as this one did. I cried a lot; some were sad tears, but then most were happy and joyful tears. This is my favorite quote from the movie.

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Such romantic, yet simple words. I really look forward to feeling this way again someday.

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The importance of keeping things in perspective...it makes such a big difference when we are going through a difficult time in life.


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I've seen a lot of his poetry and quotes on Pinterest lately and I loved everything I've found. I found this poem to be so sweet and honest.

 

Tell me...

 

Are you still addicted to Pinterest or are you over it? What do you find yourself pinning the most?

Why I Loved This Weekend

Happy Monday everyone!

I kicked off my Monday by landing my client an interview with The Wall Street Journal, so excuse my being overly excited about anything and everything. I was sick last week (boo), but thanks to my awesome doctor, I was back in action just in time to have an absolutely delightful weekend. Why, you ask?

Saturday I spent the morning pampering myself and it was just lovely. I got my highlights touched up and eyebrows done and ran a few errands. I'm headed to Boston/Maine this weekend for a wedding, so it was nice to be out and about getting what I needed for the trip. I followed this up with a really fun dinner with my two girlfriends.

Sunday I had the pleasure of spending the day with my parents, brother and one of my sisters in Orlando. We all had things we needed to pick up for our trip, so we set out on a shopping adventure. My dad and brother aren't the biggest fans of day-long shopping trips, but they hung in there! We took a break for lunch at one of my favorite little restaurants in downtown Winter Garden, but other than that we shopped until we dropped! I am a little obsessed with some of my purchases. So much so, that I need to share them with you.

Nike Lunar Forever running shoes.
I can't wait to run in these tonight!

This shirt from Forever 21.

Eurostep Women's Adrift Boat Shoes.
These are so cute and so comfortable.

Fast Track by China Glaze.

Sundays with my family are absolutely delightful. It doesn't matter what we're doing, the day is always full of love, positivity and lots and lots of laughter. Spending the day with them Sunday left me feeling so giddy and grateful.

And this weekend we're off to spend Friday night in Boston and the rest of the weekend will be spent on a lake in Maine for my cousin's wedding. Should be a blast!

How was your weekend?

"I keep forgetting I bitch slapped someone last night"

I hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th of July! Me, I didn't do one 4th of July-related activity, but I had a blast. I'll get into that soon, but first I have to tell you about the most amazing and hilarious thing that occurred the night before. Seriously, if you've been following my blog for a while, I think you are going to love this. You might love it so much you'll want to steal my best friend and make her your best friend. It's that good.

My best friend Taryn is in town for the week. It's been a while since we've been able to spend some quality time together, so to celebrate her visit, I convinced her to come downtown with my roomie and I on Tuesday night. At Independant Bar, one of our stops later in the night, we had the unfortunate luck of seeing Gary. I hadn't seen him since we parted ways in January and I erased every sign of him from my life. I don't mean to be dramatic, but he is really someone I just never wanted to see or talk to ever again.

After seeing him once inside the bar, we decided to leave after finishing our drinks and walked outside the bar to find him standing right there. Ugh. I didn't want to say anything to him or really even make eye contact, but Taryn (who was drunker than I realized) asked if she could slap him. I kind of laughed and said "Hey, you can do whatever you want." I never would have thought she would follow through with it.

Then, the most glorious thing happened. She walked right over to him, leaned over the railing and slapped him across the face. Let me tell you that this isn't typical behavior of her. My best friend Taryn is crazy, but she is more of a quirky and random crazy, not a slapping people in public kind of crazy. I truly think we could have run into any one of my other exes and she would've never done this, but she really, really had it out for Gary after he broke my heart. I think many of my friends/family feel the same way.
 
I wish I could tell you he was shocked by the public slapping, that he started crying like a little baby, or that he thought the whole thing was funny, but we honestly didn't stick around long enough to find out. After the slap, Taryn jumped for joy across the street to the next bar and I walked with her kind of in shock and kind of completely overjoyed by what had just occurred. She was on a slap high, jumping for joy and telling everyone we crossed paths with what had just happened. I did manage to hear him blabbing about how what he did to me just happened to him. I don't mean to be immature, but I was glad to hear that. Oh, the person you left me for just left you for someone else? That is karma and maybe it will teach you not to treat people like that because it will just come back to you at some point.

I can honestly say that I feel like I handled our break up with class and maturity. After the initial freak out, I picked myself up, cut him out of my life and moved forward. I didn't do any of the crazy ex girlfriend things my friends and I joked about. Will the fact that (1) my best friend just slapped him in public and (2) the fact that I am so happy about it completely diminish the mature way I've handled the break up to this point? It's quite possible. But it's also totally worth it.

Taryn and I spent the entire next day together doing random things (none of which included typical 4th of July activities). We couldn't stop talking about what happened laughing nonstop about how hilarious this was. Throughout the day, whenever we complained about how tired we were, how hungover we were or whenever we just needed to laugh again, we'd say "Life is tough. Just ask Gary." Even last night as we walked out of the movie theatre, Taryn goes, "I keep forgetting I bitch slapped someone last night" and we laughed some more. We're calling it the slap heard round the world.

I spent the whole day laughing with this girl

We definitely wrote this on her hand to document the occasion.

I've never been more proud to call this girl my best friend. She bitch slapped my ex boyfriend in public. If that isn't a best friend then I don't know what is.

Snapshots of Life Lately

I'm still obsessing over Instagram, so I figured it would be the best way to share a little of what I've been up to lately. 

I went ziplining for the first time a few weeks ago for a team building day with
my coworkers. More photos to come from that day!

I've officially made my "mark" at Johnny's Filling Station,
the bar I go to on Thursdays with all of Scott's friends

Speaking of Scott, one of his friends gave me this. 

Blake found a cozy nap spot in the days after our beach trip
because I was too lazy to unpack :)

Oh, I bought a new car last weekend. I'm obsessed!

Carrot cake cupcake at 4 Rivers BBQ. 

Wise words.

Sunshine cupcakes I baked for our potluck at work last week :)

Blake and I had a lazy, nap-filled afternoon today. He is such a good snuggler!

I hope all is well in your world!

Insta-Love

Hi everyone! I have a lot to update you on...but until I have a little more time to write, I want to share with you how absolutely esctatic I was when Instagram became available for my Android phone last week! I've seriously been waiting for this day for so long and kinda squealed like a little girl when I found out I could download it last week. Since that day, I have been documenting my daily adventures like a crazy woman and I'm loving it. So today, I just thought I'd share some of my favorite Instagram photos from the last week. Enjoy!

Sleepy puppy and a new book

Cheers to team building day!

My quirky boy and I

New floors and new living room setup

Easter Sunday with Laura and Blake (One ear up, Blake style)

An entry in my "Today I am Thankful For.." book

What I Loved About the Weekend

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! I sure did! Let me tell you why...

• On Saturday night, I went to Cowboys for some beer and line dancing with my sisters. We started the night with 4 Rivers Smokehouse, a BBQ place right near my house that everyone is always raving about. It was amazing and we had a blast flirting with the employees and causing a scene. I hadn't been to Cowboys in a few months and my sister Kelsey had never been. It's always fun...but we really had a great time and even met a few guys which kept us really entertained. 

Happy girls :)

• Kelsey stayed the rest of the weekend. She lived with  me when I bought my house but she moved to Ocala a little over a year ago. We used to go on all these fun adventures together so spending Sunday together was super fun. We spent the hungover and rainy day going to brunch, doing some shopping for my house and having a movie night. The day involved a ton of giggling and scoring some awesome stuff for my house. I miss that girl.

• What did I buy for the house? This is super exciting...I have been shopping for wood floors to replace my living room carpet. It's a pretty small room and the carpet isn't in the best shape. I've been trying to find a good deal and didn't want to spend a lot, but hadn't had much luck in my search. Since I had a partner in crime, I got up the nerve to venture out to Lumber Liquidators, a flooring warehouse with really good prices. Judging by the fact that it is kind of in the ghetto, I was glad to have a sidekick...haha. Anyway, I found an awesome deal on the perfect wood floors. I'm installing them on Saturday and I absolutely cannot wait! It's nice to be making a change in my house that I've been wanting to do since I bought the place. Yay! 

• It was also one of those weekends where I went out looking for nothing in particular, and scored some awesome deals on things for my house. I wasn't even looking for this, but found a Houdini Wine Opener at Ross for only $15 and I just had to buy it! 

I'll drink to this!

This is totally unrelated, but I had to share a picture of Blake with you all. He got neutered last Thursday and has to wear this cone until his follow up this Thursday. He looks pathetic, but way too cute!

My poor little buddy

Hope you all have a happy week!

In Other News...

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope your day is filled with lots of happiness. Rather than spending the day obsessing over being single or the fact that your boyfriend didn't get you the diamond necklace you wanted, put the emphasis on simply being grateful for and showing love toward the ones you care about.

This might come as a bit of shock considering what has been going on lately, but I actually DO have plans for Valentine's Day. I wish, wish, wish I could tell you because it is totally random and fun, but I want to wait and fill you in after the fact. So expect what is sure to be an entertaining post about that later in the week :)

In other news...

I baked my heart out yesterday and it was delightful. As you know from previous posts, I love all the cute Valentine's goodies there are to make and it's a yearly tradition that I make red velvet cupcakes. I used the same cupcake recipe I use every year, but this year, I got a little more creative with the decorating. I even finally got to use my Pampered Chef frosting tubes for the first time! Here's how they turned out...what do you think?

I also made the most adorable cookies...obviously found this idea on Pinterest :)

Peanut butter cookies with Dove chocolates

I also realized I totally forgot to brag about the country concerts I've been to recently. At the end of January, I headed to Tampa with a group of friends to see Zac Brown Band. I've seen them before...last year when they toured with Kenny Chesney, but this time they were headlining and it was absolutely amazing. They have an awesome set and they're just really fun to see live.

Sarah and I <3 

all the ladies!

Last weekend, I went with my good friend Laura to see Miranda Lambert, Chris Young and Jerrod Neimann. I love each of them, but over the last year or so, I've become completely obsessed with Miranda. The show was amazing and we didn't even have very good seats. Most amazing part? Miranda Lambert was really emotional because of some recent deaths in the family and her family dog of 20 years dying just a few days before the concert. She came to Orlando straight from her hometown and when she started singing "The House That Built Me," not more than a few lines into it, she started crying when she got to the part that says, "My favorite dog is buried in the yard." What happened next will go down as one of my all-time favorite experiences. The entire audience sang the rest of the song for her. She started crying, the audience started singing and she couldn't pull herself back together to start over. The audience sang the whole song while Miranda stood on stage in awe. I am getting goosebumps just remembering. It was an amazing thing to be a part of. Moments like that are why I love country music.

I can always count on Laura for concert fun :)

Chris Young, Miranda and Jerrod Neimann

Needless to say, I've been wearing my cowboy boots on the regular, which makes me ridiculously happy. I'm also going to Cowboys this Friday night to do some line dancing...always a fun time!

xoxo

Date a Girl...

So several months ago, my momma stumbled across a blog post called Date A Girl Who Reads by Rosemarie Urquico. Knowing we share an intense love for books and writing, she shared it with me and I'm so glad she did. It immediately became one of the best posts I've ever read. As a reader, I related to the post but as a writer, I absolutely appreciate her writing skills. I've posted about this blog before, but if you haven't read it, I suggest you check it out.

Well...I loved the post and the "Date a girl..." theme so much that it inspired me to come up with my own version. Enjoy :)

Date a Girl...

Date a girl. Date a girl who dances. Date a girl who dances not because she is good at it, but because it makes her laugh and smile…because it relieves stress and makes her feel good. Find a girl who dances and dance with her whenever she wants. You might not like dancing, you might hate it. You might be in the middle of the street or getting ready for bed and she'll want you to dance with her, spin her, dip her. Do it. Her great big smile will make it all worth your while.

Date a girl who bakes. Find a girl who has so many recipes she wants to try that she can’t decide which to make first. When she is baking, she is happy and at peace. She loves giving her creations away more than she loves enjoying them for herself. You’ll know she cares when she bakes you Red Velvet Cupcakes on Valentine’s Day and makes your favorite cookies when you feel blue.

Find a girl who accepts you. You aren't perfect and neither is she. She knows this. You aren't going to be like her in every way and she appreciates that. She may not agree with everything you do and you'll hear about it. She may not like your favorite shirt or the way you snore at night. She will make sure you know this, but she will also make sure you know she loves you for all of these things. Your imperfections and differences make you who you are and she'll accept you. She'll love all of you and hopes you'll love all of her, too.

Date a girl who loves the little things in life. She’ll find joy in everything life brings. You don’t need to give her the world to make her happy. Things like rainbows, kisses on the forehead and picnics will do. You might laugh at her love of rainbows, but you’ve never met anyone like her before. She doesn’t need extravagant gifts, just to know you care. A simple card or love note will let her know you do. That’s all she wants. That’s all she needs.

Date a girl who cries. Instead of getting angry, she gets sad. When she is absolutely overjoyed, she'll cry happy tears. Her crying isn't a sign of weakness, it's a sign of strength and passion. You’ll laugh when she cries during Extreme Makeover: Home Edition or when she cries at the end of a good book. You’ll hold her when she cries after a bad day at work and be understanding when she cries for no good reason at all. You’ll love her for her passion, but you’ll never want to be the reason for her tears.

Date a girl who laughs. She’ll laugh at all your stupid jokes and even at her own. When life isn’t perfect and you think she might cry, she’ll find a reason to laugh and she’ll make you smile, too. You’ll be able to laugh at each other and cheer each other up when life is no fair. She’ll love making you laugh just as much as you would do anything to hear hers.

Find a girl who sees the world through optimistic eyes. You might roll your eyes when she quotes Winston Churchill and Abraham Lincoln to you, but her optimism is contagious. She’s the girl reminding you there is always a reason to smile. She is one of those reasons. Tell her that and don’t ever try to bring her down.

Date a girl who reads and writes. Date a girl who reads and writes and loves to tell you about it. She might be up all night, too enthralled in her book to put it down. She might spend hours at Starbucks on Saturday writing about her family, her thoughts and her favorite songs. She gets a rush out of finding a grammatical error in her book and gets so wrapped up in a story that she cries out in shock when something unexpected happens. These things will happen and she’ll want to tell you all about it. Let her tell you all about it…and really listen to her because she’ll love telling you.

Date a girl who speaks up. You’ll always know what’s on her mind, good or bad. She doesn’t play mind games and you don’t need to figure her out. If she feels something, she’ll say it. If she wants something, she’ll tell you. You’ll be able to talk with her for hours. You can debate with her, daydream with her and talk things out when you don’t see eye to eye. She’ll never keep her thoughts from you and her feelings, too. But if you find a girl like this, please realize she’ll expect the same from you.

Find a girl who loves you. Find a girl who gives you more than she gets. She’ll listen to your stories and appreciate your quirks. For all the things you love about her, she’ll love more things about you. She’ll be your biggest fan, your best friend, your one and only. For everything you are to her, she’ll be for you.

Date a girl like this. If you are lucky enough to find her, you’ll want to date her and love her. And when you do, please don’t ever let her go. Date a girl like this.

Date a girl like this. Date a girl like me.

Can't Stop Listening

I can't stop listening to Kelly Clarkson's new album, Stronger. I've liked a lot of Kelly's music in the past, but I am completely obsessed with this whole album. For someone dealing with a broken heart and feeling pretty angry about it, this album is absolute perfection. It's the perfect girly, powerful full-of-attitude music to help me remember that it is his loss and he doesn't deserve me. In fact, one of my favorite songs on the album called 'You Love Me' is about just that...

I can really relate to this song right now and try to listen to this instead of feeling sorry for myself. It reminds me that I am better off without someone who doesn't see how great I am. Favorite lyrics...

Thick skin, soft touch, heart of gold...but it's suddenly not enough. Forgiving arms, the higher road, working hard...but it's suddenly not enough. You said I'm not good enough, I'm not good enough. But what you really mean is you're not good enough, you're not good enough. 

Anyway, I'm currently obsessed and just had to tell you about it. What are you listening to right now?

Puppy Love

Last weekend I fled to my parents’ house. I tend to do this when life gets to be too much for me. After Gary basically told me he was leaving me for someone else, I had to get out of town and find some peace. Sometimes you just need your parents to talk to, cry to or to simply remind you that everything is going to be okay. Mine are great for that. My father is less vocal in his support and advice, as I’m sure he’d rather just snap Gary’s neck, but he has a way of being there for me without really saying anything. My mother is more like me, she vocalizes her anger and disgust over the situation and listens and commiserates with me, but she is quick to remind me he isn’t worth another thought, telling me not to waste another moment wondering, caring, analyzing or feeling sorry for myself…that I am more than enough and if someone can’t see that, it’s their problem, not mine.

Anyway, the point I’m trying to make is that I knew getting away to mom and dad’s last weekend was more than necessary. I’ve mentioned before that my parents live in the country, so there aren’t a whole lot of crazy things to do, but that’s why it’s nice to get away to. It was a beautiful day, so we decided to head to the flee market and grab lunch somewhere later on. Now, I’m not a huge fan of flee markets. There is something about seeing rednecks drinking beer and shopping for fishing gear at 9 a.m. that just doesn’t sit well with me. This particular flee market really isn’t too bad though and I love going there with my parents because there are ALWAYS puppies for sale and they are just so fun to look at! There is one breeder there every weekend who just has so much passion for animals that you can’t help but love her. We visited her first thing and that is where I first laid eyes on this guy…

How could I resist?

Now, I’ve wanted to get a dog for a while now. There have always been a million reasons not to get one: I don’t have time for a puppy, I want to wait until I’m settled down and married so there is someone else to help, I don’t know what kind I want…the list goes on.

When I saw this little guy, I knew this was what I wanted. He’s a dwarf lab, which means he’ll only grow to be 20-25 pounds, a very manageable size for me. He looked up at me with those beautiful green eyes and I was hooked. We said our goodbyes and left the puppies, walked around for a while and on our way out, stopped by to see him again. Next thing I knew he was cuddled up on my lap in the car heading home.

Was this all a little impulsive? Obviously. But when it comes down to it, there are always going to be reasons not to do something. I am a strong, independent, smart woman. I can make this work. I am lucky to have a fairly flexible job that is going to help getting through these first few weeks with a new puppy especially.

My silver lining, Blake

I was just thinking sometimes you just need to take the plunge and things will work out. I knew this puppy would bring lots of joy into my life and even better, I can count on him to not leave me for someone else. My wonderfully supportive parents must have seen the joy on my face when I was holding him and wanted to do whatever they could to keep that happiness going. They also knew I would need to focus all of my attention on taking care of my new baby that I wouldn’t be focused on getting my heart broken so much.

So here we are, a week later. You all already know I am still recovering from the break up, but lucky for me, I have Blake (named after country music artist Blake Shelton) as my sweet silver lining. If I hadn’t run off to my parents’ I wouldn’t have this little guy brightening my days. Life is funny like that. My parents are amazing.

End of story.