handy woman

This past weekend was a doozy. (Is that how you spell that word? Well, you know what I mean.)
I don't think I've ever been more productive in a weekend since I was in band and we had stupid Saturday rehearsals. When I was posting Saturday morning while watching Pioneer Woman (can I please have her kitchen, I beg Justin, everytime we watch her), I was thinking how I told yall all I was going to do, and how I didn't really feel like doing it. Had Justin been in town, I regret to say that I would have done nothing, but snuggle on the couch with him. But he wasn't, so I didn't.
I hopped to the task of staining a desk for the second bedroom at the Clinton apartment. Needless to say, I've never stained anything before so Mom and Dad were very anxious to see how it turned out. I don't have a before picture, but here it is after I finished. And I love it.

I was pretty proud if I do say so myself. I liked it so much that I decided to take a a shelf unit that's been stored away in my closet and do the same thing. Mom and I brought it out to the garage, and quickly realized that staining this certain piece wasn't going to work (sorry, we have no pictures). So instead, I got a bottle of spray paint, and make that sucker black.

bad picture quality, but you get the idea.

It fits in a perfect little spot in our living room, and I am in love. But Mom and I didn't just stop there. We decided to shave our Madison pups (they were super jealous of Beaux's new haircut). I swear we had enough hair to make coats after we got done with those little dogs, and boy do they seem lighter and happier. And then after that, we decided to bath them, bathes ourselves, then have a drink. And boy, was it a delicious, well deserved drink.
Sunday wasn't much slower. It's supposed to be a day of rest, but after church, I loaded the truck with furniture and headed to Clinton to move it in. I wanted to do it before Justin got back, and my plan worked just in the nick of time. I unpacked my stuff, and then lounged around while Justin snored away on the couch (all that gambling tired him out).
Then like I promised, I made Justin dinner. I found a recipe for BBQ Peach Whiskey Chicken from Pioneer Woman (love), and it was a tremendous success. I was too lazy (and tired) to get whiskey the day before, so I just left that part out, but other than that, I stuck true to the recipe.

I know it's not pretty like hers, but it was yummy.

I actually didn't get a picture before we started eating it. These are the leftovers, which makes Justin a very happy man. Now, I'm off in Meridian at a roofing company, counting down the time until I get to go home again..
I'm hoping this doesn't become a habit.

working for the man

When I was younger I always imagined that traveling for work would be fun. You get to hang out by yourself, go to sleep at seven at night, order room service, and lay around your hotel room that you don't have to pay for.
Well, I'm dead wrong. It's ridiculously hard to be away from home. I mean really, who'd want to be alone in an empty hotel room when I could be with these guys.

These fellows have my heart, and there's nothing else to it.
Anyway, I was able to finish my first week back at Horne with nothing eventful really happening (Praise the Lord), besides messing up an expense report. I was even able to register for my first graduate school class (Praise the Lord x2)!
Next week, I'm off to Meridian for the first half of the week. I'm sure I'll survive somehow.
Enough about work though. This weekend is exam study weekend in the Madison home, so I'll be whisked away into the life of a 10th grader. Good thing I love Zack enough to do it.
Justin is off on a Bachelor party for his bff on the coast. Hopefully he isn't gambling rent money away (just kidding!), and is making us money instead. I plan on surprising him with dinner Sunday (hopefully he won't read this) and a newly painted desk for the second bedroom at his apartment. His iMac is currently on the floor in there, and it bothers me to no end (but, of course, he could care less).
Nothing else is new on the wedding front (I keep calling it a front, but I promise I don't think of this wedding/marriage as a war). On the agenda this week is contacting the DJ and the photo booth company and get squared away with that. Oh, there is something new! I have decided on Justin and mine's first dance song. Here's a hint, it has something to do with this blog!
Anyway, I'm off to snuggle with my baby puppy and watch food network all morning (I mean, go work on a desk and study). Hope yall had a productive week, and have someone to snuggle with this morning!

happy belated mother's day (and other wedding stuff)

I'm usually not a pessimist about holidays (I mean really, who doesn't like a reason to party?), but Mother's Day just seems like the perfect example of a Hallmark Holiday.
Needless to say, it's one of my favorite holidays of the entire year. No, I'm not a mother (except to my amazing puppy, Beaux), but I am in love with this day. Mainly because I'm in love with my mom.

This woman is my best friend. There's really nothing else I can say about our relationship. She knows me better than I know myself, and we understand each other so well. Anything random I say, she usually can pick up my train of thought (unlike my dad, Sorry Barn!). That's just one of the things I love about her. Others would be how she keeps our family moving forward together and how well she balances work and home. Or how she can tell I'm freaking out about wedding plans by the look on my face and can calm me down with a pat on a shoulder (there's been a lot of that lately).
I could go on, but you get the picture. January 19th, 2013 will be a long day when we both realize we'll never live together anymore (mom, don't tear up at that), but we'll survive (I've already asked Justin to buy me a house in Madison, the answer was no).
Anyway, I love you Mom, and feel so blessed to have you as my mother and my friend.

Now onto wedding things...
It's been a busy week or so on the wedding front. Mom and I were able to pick out some paper for Save the Dates, Wedding Invites, and programs. Hopefully we'll be able to get free samples through the church instead of ordering an entire reel of paper that we might not use. We also finally have a backdrop for the ceremony! I won't go into too much detail (mainly because there aren't many just yet), but we went to this amazing architectural salvage store and purchased three reclaimed cedar doors and glass knobs. It'll be an exciting experience to see what we're able to do with them, and I can't wait! I was also able to order some accessories for the wedding as well like my veil and bouquet, both from Etsy. After everything we've been doing lately with the wedding planning, we can definitely add another word to my theme: handmade. And I love that!

Other than that, nothing else has really been going on. I'm still trying to help Justin get settled in his Clinton apartment and trying to start this whole graduate school thing. Classes start in about two weeks and I haven't been able to register until I get my official acceptance from MC. It's supposed to come thing week while I'm in Tupelo on an audit. I really couldn't believe my first week back at Horne, I was immediately whisked away to an audit, but it beats sitting around the office (and who doesn't like travel time and overtime!).

I hope everyone had a fabulous Mother's Day and really appreciate everything she did and still does for you!

my (almost) alma mater

Sorry for the lapse in posts, school really started to kick my butt. Four more days...
Someone pointed out to me the other day that I am graduating in about a week or so. One real final, and then I'm done. And no, I'm not walking, but we will definitely celebrate. 
I just can't believe four years are over and done with. As a small, blonde freshman, if I had been told that I would been going to graduate school, be engaged and planning a wedding, and working at an accounting firm by the time I got my degree, I would have burst into a fit of giggles (because that's what freshman do, giggle that is). 
Looking back at all this, I feel so blessed as to what I have now. I would have never imagined that someone like Justin would have come into my life (mainly because I had put all my eggs in one basket), but now it wouldn't make sense without him. He's pretty much my rock (especially when I have to study for five straight days or there's a roach in the bathroom), and I can't thank God enough for him. 
Anyway.
What's so crazy to me is that this whole Bachelor's thing isn't even a big deal to me. I understand that this is an opportunity not a lot of people get, and I should be proud. Trust me, I'm very happy to graduate, but with everything else going on right now as well, this whole undergrad thing seems small in comparison. I mean, I just got a part time job at an accounting firm, Justin and I will finally be living in the same town (or metro area anyway), and I just received a scholarship for graduate school. Everyone else in Starkville is living it up. Yeah, I get that we're seniors and this is our last hooray, but is it sad that I just don't care anymore? What I have going for me beyond is so much better, I'd rather just sit around with my pup and count down the days until I'm Mrs. Lewis and I have a Masters. I mean, I hate to say it, but I won't miss Starkville. I had some great times, and there were times when I was completely happy there, but my head and heart are elsewhere now, and that's just part of growing up.
So please, don't think poorly of me. I'm not trying to be selfish or arrogant in saying that it's not a big deal that I'm graduating. But seriously, I just have better things planned that I'm looking forward to. Way better things. 


Other than this little bit that's been on my mind, I've just been studying, packing, watching Glee, and trying to eat all my frozen food. 

Oh yeah, and this handsome fellow tried to help me start loading the car yesterday. Found his perfect spot. 
(You seriously didn't think I'd post something without adding a picture of Beaux now, did you?)


I've seriously got to get back to studying before Mom senses that I'm not and calls to get onto me (just kidding, Mom!).
I hope that everyone else has something in their future to look forward to that makes them anxious, excited, extremely happy, and stressed. Because life wouldn't be worth it any other way.

easter holiday

(sorry this is late. too much is going on, and there's not enough of me to keep up at the moment.)

Hope everyone had a Happy Easter spent with family and friends. Unfortunately, Justin and I could not go to church Sunday to celebrate the Resurrection, but I did find this image (on Pinterest, who would have imagined) that I'm just currently obsessed with for this time of the year. 

It's Matthew 28:1-10, if you can't read it :)

This will definitely be something that I will want to print out and frame for Easter decorations (much better than rabbit figurines everywhere).

Now onto why Justin and I didn't go to church. No, we're not heathens (I don't think), our plans were changed in the middle of the day Thursday, and instead of heading to Franklinton to be with Justin's parents, we packed up and left Madison at 6:30 Thursday night headed towards Chattanooga. Melissa, Justin's sister, was admitted back into the hospital that morning with labor pains, bless her heart. Needless to say, we thought we might have babies this weekend, but it was a no go. We still got to spend time with Justin's parents, and it was a bonus to see Melissa and Matt (her hubby). For a small woman pregnant with twins, she is the cutest, I must say. Hopefully God will be as kind to me and I can be a cute preggo too. Melissa is doing well (as any 35-week lady with twins), and is going back to the hospital tomorrow to begin real labor, so keep the three of them in your prayers. Wish Justin and I could have stayed longer, but to be honest, we would have just been in the way. I am excited to be an aunt (in-law?) anytime soon though!

Anyway, we decided to make the most of our trip. Justin went fishing with his dad and brother, and I had some time to do my never-ending Cost homework (seriously, even the teacher says it's too much work). We even took in a baseball game!

not bad seats for $5! and the beer was cheap too!

i really do hate baseball. but love this guy.

Other than that, we just soaked up family time together, and headed back to the MS Sunday afternoon. Oh, and by the way, our lovely Easter lunch was brought to us by Moe's Southwest Eatery. It was delicious, but nothing like Mom's deviled eggs. Sunday night I had a group meeting so I didn't even have time to take Justin home. So yesterday, we went to Madison to have our belated Easter lunch (my mother willingly cooked a ham, green beans, potato casserole, and made deviled eggs basically for the second day in a row so that I could get my fix, aka, I love that woman to death). I spent some much needed Madison family time, and skipped my morning class today to sleep in. 

Now things are back to normal with a Cost test on Thursday. I should have started studying tonight, but things don't always go the way we plan. And I'll live (and hopefully my grade will too!).

Hope everyone else has a productive week. If you need me, I'll be in a corner on campus somewhere learning about spending and efficiency variances and budgets!

Today

This is how I feel about today.
Just breathe.

sprained ankles and hummus pizza

Crazy title, huh? And no, it's not a belated april fool's prank.
I did sprain my ankle, and it sucks. I guess it was Wednesday, and I was sitting on the porch with a friend and the pup. We had just finished a good dinner and were sitting outside (still gossiping) when all of a sudden, Beaux took off after another dog. I ran after him, but unfortunately, missed a step on the porch stairs (mainly because one of them is falling apart aka I'm blaming my landlord) and landed on the brick path ankle first.  So I laid around Thursday with this guy:

how could i stay mad at him?

And on Friday, I did basically the opposite and ran errands before Justin came to town. And boy, did I wear my ankle out from Kroger, the post office and the liquor store. So we just rested Friday night, and visited with the friend that he carpooled with. Anyway, Saturday we took Beaux to the dog park, and he loved it. Someone had set up a kiddie pool, and he had a blast. He'd run around like crazy with the other dogs, and then jump in the pool. Again, we realized that Beaux needs a place to run around and swim once we move somewhere. (Unfortunately, that won't happen for the next year, as Justin is signing a lease on an apartment in Clinton, but we'll make it work.) Beaux even made a girlfriend at the dog park.

she was really just into him, not the other way around.

Now, we'll get onto the hummus pizza. I found this recipe on Pinterest, and because hummus is my new favorite food, we gave it a try. Though mine was not as colorful as the picture on the recipe, it tasted darn good. And didn't look too bad. 

yummy and healthy? i'll take that.

I had to add feta cheese, because what's pizza without cheese? Other than that, we just soaked up as much time together as we could, watched Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (way intense) and Adventures of Tintin (not that great). Oh, and bought a vacuum (one of the best things about Saturday, actually). Then Justin had to leave Sunday afternoon (very sad face), and it's back to the work week. I have a test and a project this week, and then we'll be that much closer to graduation (aka I'll be closer to Justin and that's what's really exciting!).


I didn't want this weekend to end, but I found this image earlier today, and think that this is an excellent way to look at Mondays when the weekend was just too perfect! 

compliments of Pinterest

Hope everyone has a great "My Day"!