Confession Friday - Getting to Know You!

Today is a special confession Friday where everyone gets to know more about each other :) 

If you want to partake in the fun, link up with us here!

Hey, my name's Hanna! I'm 22 years old and I live in Greenville, NC. I am a student who is pursuing my nursing degree with the ultimate goal of getting my masters. I have a Psychology degree from NC State university, and as much as I love Psychology, circumstances changed and after much consideration I believed nursing was the right track for me. I am currently taking my pre-requisite classes and am trying to decided between going into an RN program -> then a BSN -> then a masters. Or, if I should go straight to BSN. The dilemma is, it will take me longer to get into the BSN program whereas I can start the RN program this fall and then work part time while receiving my BSN. Decisions, decisions. 

My mom and dad are still together and I have one younger sister. Caitlin is the little spitfire of the family :) Life is never boring when she's involved! Caitlin is currently attending school in Greensboro, NC. I was born and spent a chunk of my life in Michigan on the 10 acres my family owned. I spent my high school days in Greensboro and that is where my parents still reside. 

The little child herself

Daniel and I are coming up on our three year anniversary. Daniel's family farms and after lots of consideration, Daniel decided to become a partner at the farm. Daniel and I have two fur children, which we love to pieces

Mr. Boone and Mr. Ash

Photo Booth fun!

I have another fur baby who has been with me for 10 years. This would be Ms. Velvet - my baby girl. I have been riding since I was 5 and even though I do not have as much time to dedicate to riding as I use to, I will never let it NOT be a part of my life.

I am a very ambitious person and have lots of goals. One of my main goals is my career - hence the fact I will be in school forever. It'll totally be worth it, though! Another goal of mine is to be the best person that I can be - corny, right? But seriously, I strive to do my best and be my best - even if I've had a rough day. One of my dreams is to continue my love for horses and instead of owning one - I want to own a few more and have my own barn! 

I was an avid blog reader and once I moved and started a new phase of my life, I thought why not start a blog and get involved with the blogging community! So far so good!

Here are some fun/random facts about me!

1) I am left handed - and ambitdextrious! 

2) I saved a baby at a hotel pool

3) Persevere and resilience are two of my favorite words

4) I love the gym

5) I am currently on my third snow day! Crazy! 

Happy Friday! I hope everyone has something fun planned for this weekend - even if it is just for a little bit!

Snow Day!

Today I got to stay home because we got at least 6 inches of snow! I am not sure of the exact number, but six inches for anywhere in NC (unless you live in the mountains) is considered snowmageddon.  Winter storm Leon did work on the south and we are not prepared for it. We prepare for hurricanes, not snow - but hey I love snow and am not complaining!

Woo, snow!!

It took a lot of courage, motivation, and chocolate giving myself a pep talk to get any work done today. Studying just isn't right on a snow day. Good news: I did and still have more to do get work done :)

After waking up to a blanket of white, Daniel and I have been pretty lazy all day. I did manage to get some chicken chili cooking in the crockpot and we took the nuggets out to experience their first snow! Those little buggers thought it was great - until they decided that they were freezing and wanted back in the house.

I was sneaky and took a pic of Daniel :)

I hope everyone is staying warm! If anyone else was affected by this storm, I hope that everyone managed to make it home safely and not lose power. I am off to do the rest of my work/look up where to go for spring break be lazy and wait for the chicken chili to finish cooking. Happy Wednesday!

But Why is All the Beer Gone??

Another Monday has arrived and this week marks my first test of the semester - bummer. Also, possibly more snow for the south! This weekend was eventful in the household. 

Daniel's Grandmother ended up in the hospital but I am happy to report that she is doing much better and should be going home very soon!

Beginning Friday morning I felt like utter crap. Terrible headache and my stomach was not happy. I figured if I got some more sleep I might shake whatever was happening on Friday so that I wouldn't feel bad at the beer festival.

Commence Saturday morning! I felt even worse than the day before. After moping around for a bit I magically felt better and decided that yoga was the best thing for me to do - boy was I wrong. That yoga class was a struggle all around. I wasn't even capable of any of the balancing poses because I was dizzy. Once yoga ended, the magic kicked in again, and I felt miraculously better. Once again this was short lived. With no hopes of anything changing Daniel and I headed off to the beer festival and I crossed my fingers that the beer wouldn't kill my stomach - coupled with not eating a ton from feeling like crap I was rather optimistic about this beer festival. 

And let me just say, even though I wasn't 100%, the beer festival was a blast!! Minus the fact that there were way too many people (Definitely doing V.I.P. next year) who didn't move, the beer was great. Did I get any pictures?? Nope! That hope flew out the windows as soon as I got there and was annoyed that I didn't feel good and couldn't get to the beer without shoving my way through a hot area and huge crowd. After I got over my urge to kindly shove people aside when they wouldn't move after I said "excuse me," it was so much fun. When you entered you get a little glass personalized for the beer festival that you bring around to get your "2 ounce" taste. Thankfully most the guys serving for the brewing companies didn't follow this 2 ounce rule. Especially if you liked the beer and went back more than once. I will definitely be going back again and recommend that everyone who is a beer fan and lives in/visiting the NC area look into Beer Army to see what events they have going on! So many good breweries, free beer, live music - what more could you want?! 

Utter Craziness

I did go to bed not feeling all too hot that night because of my stomach but I woke up Sunday morning and was a-okay. Don't ask. I am lucky to rarely have hangovers or feel crappy from drinking - and I certainly do not understand how I can feel sick, drink beer, and wake up the next day totally fine. It's a mystery! 

In other news: The nuggets turned 5 months on Saturday! They have been doing so good - I couldn't be more pleased. 

I hope everyone had a great weekend and as always, it is time for a short Motivational Monday quote! :)

"Just when the caterpillar thought the world was ending, he turned into a butterfly.~Proverb"

Confession Friday

Feel free to join the fun here!

1) I confess that I am a Chapstick addict. Burt's Bees, EOS, C.O. Bigelow, etc - I clearly have a problem.

2) I confess that I am a gym rat. I love it and I don't know how I would de-stress without it.

3) I confess that I spent about 3 minutes wrestling with a bag of popcorn before I notched the "tear at notch" printed across the top. Blonde moment of the week, anyone???

4) I confess that I love Modern Family. I was a bit slow to jump on the bandwagon but I am so glad that I did.

5) I confess that I am working on the sappiest Valentines present for Daniel. More to come on this!

6) I confess that the other night while getting Starbucks the guy at the window asked in a amazed voice if I got Starbucks every single day because he sees me a lot. I might of been slightly horrified. I thought it was normal for Starbucks addicts to get it almost every day?? I only get it in I'm in the area - but that's pretty much every week day. Oops.

7) I confess that yoga kicked my butt last night. She killed us. My legs this morning...Ouch! I love hard workouts until I have to climb the stairs to my classes the next day. This is probably what I look like:

8) I confess that it is freezing in North Carolina and I am apparently losing my northern-ness and becoming a weenie to the cold. Actually, it's more the wind than anything that makes me not want to leave the couch and walk to my classes. Layers on layers on layers!

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you all have a great weekend! Daniel and I will be attending a beer festival tomorrow afternoon. Stories and pictures to come!

Cold Weather Lovelies

I originally had another post planned for today, but since we have snow on the ground and temps are at freezing all day today and Friday I figured it would be a good time to share my favorite cold weather products!

This isn't a huge list - it's just some items that I keep on stand by when it's particularly cold.

1) Vaseline Lip Therapy. I went through a phase this fall where my lips were so dry. I am a chap stick queen and have all different brands and favorites on hand. I tried absolutely everything I had and nothing was working. I forget I had the vaseline and pulled it out of a drawer and viola - no more chapped lips! It's also really great to put on before bed.

2) Kendi Bamboo Oil. I cannot say enough good things about this stuff! I am not usually into oils but this stuff smells so good and leaves my hair shiny - not oily! It's good for all year round but I really love it in the winter when my hair can become a bit dry and static-y. 

3) Speaking of hair stuff - Moroccan Deep Condition. When I originally got this, I had a love hate relationship with it. Long story short - I wouldn't put it on your scalp. Just the part of your hair by the nape of your neck and below. Otherwise it made my hair feel greasy at the scalp. Once I figured that trick out - I love it!

4) Josie Maran Highlighter. Once again, this stuff can be used year round and look gorgeous, but during the winter I miss the glow that the sun gives to my face. To compensate for that I mix just a little of the highlighter with my foundation or tinted moisturizer and it gives a soft natural glow.

5) A great moisturizer! I have currently been loving Origins A Perfect World moisturizer. I love it because it is thick and creamy and leaves my face feeling moist - for lack of a better term. I know, that's terrible! And it also has an SPF of 25! Don't forget in the winter that SPF is still important!

6)Lush Ocean Salt. I love to slather this stuff all over my body and just a little on my face. Gets off all that dead skin and then I just put my favorite body lotion on after I'm tried off!

Off the top of my head, these items are my absolute favorites for cold months/days. What do you incorporate into your line up during the colder months? 

Happy Wednesday everyone! Half way to the weekend!

*I paid for all these products myself

Because I'm Happy

This weekend was a pretty low-key weekend. I am lucky enough to have today off so that made the weekend slightly better ;)

Friday we didn't do much except for try to get some errands out of the way that night. Commence trip to Target! I managed to walk out of target without doing a ton of damage to my bank account. Target is great yet evil. There's always a ton of cool things and how I am always suppose to resist the temptation of the good smelling candle, the jewelry that's on sale, the new make-up, etc. It's all about the mindset people. Repeat after me: we do not need to buy things just because they are cute and/or on sale!

P.S. Bring a guy along who will drag you away - this tactic works wonders! :)

Saturday Daniel and I bummed around. We did go on a hunt for essential oils early in the morning after my yoga class and I finally managed to find some! Commence making my own aromatherapy. I now have lemon aromatherapy and it smells lovely. I didn't feel that great later that night but we went to Daniels cousins Birthday party and then went grocery shopping at 9 that night. Yes, we live this wild lifestyle. I mean, isn't it obvious? The grocery store is pretty rowdy at 9 on Saturday nights. It's actually peaceful, which is nice! 

Sunday Daniel slept while I studied. Lucky duck. I promptly woke him up so that he could come to the barn with me and see miss Velvet. She was absolutely wonderful and I cannot wait to have my own land and barn so that I can hop on anytime after school/work. We ran home to have a frantic lunch (more like early dinner) before leaving to see Lone Survivor. Guys, great movie. It is an emotional journey and I will warn you: do not, I repeat, do not do what I did and go while PMS-ing. Emotionally draining, yes. Mind blowing, yes. Gives you a whole new perspective, yes. After that, we picked up some dinner and headed home to the boys since we had been gone the majority of the day and I proceeded to fall asleep around 11 because I still wasn't feeling good. 

My baby girl

Today I got all out of whack because I still am not feeling good and I tried to get my nails done but the wait time was an hour and a half. No thanks. I also had this wonderful picture in my mind that I would have my work done by 3 or so. Yea, it's almost 5 and I still have more to do. At least I didn't have class though :) I hope everyone had a great Monday and instead of a motivational quote we are going to have an uplifting song!

Confession Friday (TGIF!)

We made it to Friday!! Have a little fun and join the link-up here!

1) I confess that I was so excited about Chipotle coming to town (yes, even with a major college here we are way behind) that I called Daniel like a fan girl. Our love of Chipotle may be slightly neurotic :)

2) I confess that I have gotten back on my smoothie kick and don't know why I ever strayed

3) I confess that growing up is exciting but terrifying. Friends getting married, careers, a house…big life decisions

4) I confess that I am addicted to Minion Rush and collect my bapples every day

5) I am a nail whore. Not only do I have a ton of nail polishes, but one of the saddest parts of moving was leaving my great nail salon behind. So maybe it wasn't that sad, but it is hard to find one that lives up to your expectations when you had such a good one minutes from where you lived!

6) I confess that on Thursday I made a new crockpot meal and it was SO good. Healthy, eh, I made it healthier than the original recipe - but oh so good. Here is the link!

7) I confess that Daniel scared the you know what out of me the other night when he asked if the light in the attic has always been on? Um, no, it hasn't. He then proceeds to tell me that it was just the pilot light so that I would go back to bed. Low and behold, the next morning I discovered that he had accidentally turned the light switch on for the attic and hadn't realized it. Phew! 

Having Puppies Has Humbled Me

Having two puppies has been a real adventure - definitely a good one, a bit frustrating, and mostly humbling.

Both Daniel and I are responsible but we didn't fully realize how lucky we were to have Bailey. The dog who was perfect - literally. He grazed throughout the day, he never had an accident even if he was left for hours, I could leave him out to stroll the house when we were gone - always, he listened on and off the leash, he loved going on walks and didn't stray form the sidewalk, even though he was tiny he looked over the house, he was patient when I had to bathe him by myself because he had flees, etc. I could go on and on about how fantastic he was. And even though I do not want Boone or Ash to replace Bailey, I wouldn't mind if they inherited a few of his traits. 

To put things simply, I haven't felt in over my head with two puppies but they have taught me a lot about myself, how to better handle situations, that they are young and do what is natural, and how well Daniel and I work together.

One of the hardest things I have to remember is that they are young (currently 4 months!) With that being said, do I get frustrated if they grab something and run away with it when they shouldn't? Yep. Is it frustrating when they have accidents - most definitely. They are still babies and they are going to have accidents. Would I prefer Boone not to pee in his crate…YEP! Especially when I take him out before I leave, he is in a small crate so there's really no avoiding it, I do my best to tire them out before bed, and they are on a regular schedule. He is young and things are going to happen. Does Ash steal everything off the table? Did he knock over my smoothie the other morning? Yes and yes. They are babies and they are curious. To me it makes perfect sense that we do not chew on nail clippers or knock over a smoothie but to Ash it either smells good or it may be something new and interesting to chew on.

One of the most humbling moments happened when Boone and I were attempting to clip nails. I had done it before - but as I said earlier, when it seems so simple and non threatening to you it's hard to remember that the puppies have no clue - but we had a little incident. Boone got nervous and instead of backing off and praising him for letting me get part of it done, I tried to clip another nail (not forcefully!) and after a squeal (he is the more sensitive puppy) Boone was nervous and got off the couch. When he's not sitting still and behaving it's simple to get annoyed, especially when you aren't doing anything harmful (unless you clip to high! Ouch) therefore, I told him no for trying to squirm instead of working with him and encouraging. After lots of feet touching, excitement over the clippers, and treats we are working through it. 

You know how people say it's a good idea for a couple to have dogs before kids? If you have the means and space, I would agree that if you are up for it it is positive! I have learned when it comes to how to approach certain behaviors, potty training, and training a bit different in some areas and the same in others. Compromise people! Also, you will learn how willing or not willing your significant other is willing to get up in the middle of the night when the puppies are young and have to pee at odd hours of the morning :) 

Needless to say, I love my babies and while I would give anything to have Bailey back, these little nuggets have brought joy into my life!

If you made it all the way to the end, thanks for reading :) 

Tornado Warning in January

So this weekend has been a wet one to say the least.

Friday evening/night we had rain which was a bummer because I went out to the barn to ride Velvet and she was getting clipped so by the time she was done, it was dark, cold, and wet.

At least I got to spend time with her :)

Saturday I had a hair appointment so off to Raleigh I went. My mom met me but we were a bit apprehensive about going because - and I'm sure it affected some of you guys to! - we had a band of nasty storms roll through the state. While my mom and I were eating lunch we even had a tornado warning! A warning - in January!! And on Tuesday and Wednesday it was freezing! Bipolar weather. After we ate lunch and survived, we went to the mall to waste some time so that the storm could move past my house so I didn't have to drive through it. 

On another note, my mom and I are thinking of doing a juice cleanse. We even went to the store to get our 6 day cleanse but it was closed. If we manage to make this happen I will definitely let everyone know all about it!

Hair cut! I wish my hair looked like this everyday!

Sunday was a day of cleaning, studying, grocery shopping…you know, that really thrilling stuff that you do every week once you become and adult! Daniel and I did go to brunch and do a little sale shopping. For dinner we made loaded nachos and they were so GOOD! We devoured it so fast so I didn't get a picture but I will link the recipe here! These will definitely be a regular in our meal selection and knowing Daniel we will play around with some other ingredients next time.

Aweeee :)

I hope everyone had a great weekend and since it is the beginning of the week, here is another inspirational post to get you going :)

"It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop. –Confucius"

Confession Friday

It's that time of the week again where I confess some of my deepest darkest secrets. Okay, not so deep, dark, and secret but still fun nevertheless. If you want to join in on this fun, you can link up at Leslie's blog here!

Here we go!

1) I confess that last semester was rough and I've had a lot of anxiety starting off this semester because of that.

2) I confess that my anxiety became worse because I missed the first day of one of my classes - total misunderstanding/poor teacher communication but we won't get into that right now :) 

3) I confess that I spend half the day taking the puppies outside. Sad but true, I know.

4) I confess that I spend way too much time watching makeup tutorials on youtube. What can I say? I'm addicted

5) I confess that I like beer, a lot. But I try to be good about my consumption.

6) I confess that I know I am getting old because I am excited about getting my new dresser. Don't have to pile anything in the closet anymore! Yippee!

7) I confess that I sold my soul to Starbucks when I got their phone app. I have to go and get a star whenever possible, okay?? It's really scary how much many I can spend at Starbucks…

These are a Few of my Favorite Things!

I wanted to share with you all a few items that I have currently been loving. It does rotate regularly depending on the season and if I get something new that is absolutely fabulous - and I will continue to do a favorite things collage when I have enough stuff that I love worth sharing :)

1) Frye Jane Boots. I got these boots for Christmas and I LOVE them. I have a few pair of Frye's, it's a bad addiction, but these take the cake. I love these because they are so versatile. They look great with jeans and with dresses. Since these boots are so pricey, the versatility of the Jane boots is a plus! You can check out other available colors here!

2) I recently discovered this over break when I was hunting for a present for a good friend. The company is called Library of Flowers - check out their website! - and oh my goodness…I am addicted. I have the perfumed creme in the scent arboretum. I also fell in love with the wildflower and fern scent but the store did not have that scent in a creme form. They have so many fragrances available on their website and I can't imagine any of them are bad! They have a huge selection of products and all I can say is, I will definitely be getting other fragrances but I hope that you may check them out also and tell me which fragrance you tried!

3) The Naked 3 palette by Urban Decay. Let me first say that I wasn't even going to buy this palette. I have Naked 1 & 2 so I thought, why do I need number 3?? Well, low and behold number 3 is my probably my favorite naked palette. Palette 1 & 2 are pretty similar but 3 is a whole different ball game. It is a pink toned palette and the colors and pigmentation are great! If you were skeptical about it too, you may want to check it out. It is available at Ulta and Sephora, as well as Urban Decays online store.

4) The beauty blender! I have wanted a beauty blender for as long as I can remember. I finally got one and it is safe to say that I am not disappointed! I like using it for thicker foundations and concealer. I have been impressed how seemlessly it blends my foundation. The beauty blender is available at Sephora and at beauty blender.

5) My Lilly Pulitzer planner. This thing keeps me on track. I am doing so much with school and life that if I don't write things down I will slip up eventually and forget something. Oops!

6) Ugg Ashdale Shoe. I found these suckers on sale and they are great. I have full sized rain boots but these are easy to slip on and lined with sheepskin. If you can find these babies on sale I would definitely say check them out if you're looking for some new rain gear. Available here.

I hope you may find something new to try out or look into! 

Also, happy hump day! We are halfway there everyone :)

I'm Pretty Sure That I Don't Live in the South Today

Today has been a rather interesting day for us southerners to say the least. 

I am originally from Michigan so I am more use (I use the term more because after being down south for the vast majority of my life you forget what it's like to freeze) but let me just say it's not even the cold, it's the windchill today that is beyond awful.

With that being said, I knew I didn't have my first class this morning and was waiting to see if I had A&P lab because lets face it, I didn't want to leave the house.

After waiting since yesterday for an email or the classes to pop up online, there is finally a message at 9:30 saying that the website is loading slowly so classes won't be uploaded until later. After that frustration I went into the closet to decide what to wear/layer…and what do I discover? A mini-tarantula! Okay, it's a wolf spider but it's huge!! I do not like spiders at all and this sucker is about the size of a half dollar. It is currently residing under Tupperware until Daniel gets home. Ick! 

That Picture doesn't even do it justice - it looks so small but I assure you that it is not.

After that traumatic experience, I braved the cold and went to lab - which I did have and then made my way to the gas station. Well guess what? My fuel tank latch is frozen shut. Hahaha, at least I think this is comical! 

The good news is, I had a nice hot crockpot meal to come home to after yoga!

For your entertainment, here is a picture of Daniel bundled up to work outside (poor baby)/he also looks like he may rob someone's house.

If you've made it this far, thanks for listening to my little rant!

Last Few Days of Freedom

First off, my blog had a little facelift to start the New Year! I want to say thank you to Audrey who designed this beautiful template and for being so incredibly kind! You can find her blog here. If you want any custom work, check her out! If you're just looking for a good blog to read, head her way! 

As you all know, because I've maybe complained about it in my last few posts, I start classes tomorrow. I had all these grandeur plans to accomplish during my time off and lets just say I didn't fully accomplish all of them.

And instead of finishing these projects this weekend, I ran around like a chicken with its head cut off preparing for classes. Not to say I didn't have a good time this weekend, Daniel and I did some shopping (food of course - but I did manage to hit a few awesome sales!!), we had a movie night on Friday and a great lunch on Saturday.

We also took the nuggets to a vet appointment and Boone ended up being sore from one of the shots. Never fear, he recovered in time to still socialize

Ash had a good weekend also and discovered the joys that an ice cube can bring you! Warning - cuteness overload!

They are so precious and as much as I want to kill them some days, I am incredibly thankful to have them in my life. 

Well there you have it! My boring/get ready for the crazy life again weekend :)

Since it is Monday (Motivational Monday anyone?!) I wanted to share this great quote for everyone who is working/starting classes/dealing with any hectic times in their life.

"People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing.  That’s why we recommend it daily. –Zig Ziglar"

Confession Friday!!

It's that time of the week again…

Without further ado…

1) I confess that I am a slave to the puppies during this potty training process. It isn't that bad except for today because it's 19 degrees with the windchill. 

2) I confess that I am not so thrilled to start classes on Tuesday.

3) I confess that I always have this ambition to be well dressed every semester and if I'm lucky I make it half way through before the yoga pants come out to play.

4) I confess that every time I read Southern Living I have dreams of being this perfect housewife/career woman with the great house/barn/flowers/decorations/food, etc. Too ambitious? Quite possible, but goals are good!

5) I confess that I have too much makeup - but I use it and love it!

6) I confess that tonight I will be a lazy bum and spend it on the couch while watching Say Yes to the Dress with a glass of wine in my hand (thanks mom for the good stuff!)

Join the link-up here!

Have a great weekend! 

It's Already Over...

Once again the Holidays flew on by! 

This is hard for me because I love Christmas and it's always over so fast and then hello New Year!!

Thankfully, I do believe this might of been one of the best Christmas's ever.

Christmas Eve Daniel and I celebrated in our house and exchanged gifts.

Christmas day was lots of fun and it got to last longer because we spent the first half of the day with Daniel's family and then that evening with my parents!

Christmas lasted all day and it was phenomenal!! 

 My sister and myself

 Us girls and our men

:) 

To make Christmas even better, everyone loved their presents!

After Christmas Daniel and I did a lot of relaxing. We planned on going to Asheville but that fell through. What made Christmas break even better was the fact that I got to see one of my very best friends before she left for Boston to attend PA school.

I am going to miss this girl so much but this means lots of visiting and FaceTime!

For New Years Daniel and I went to Raleigh to spend the night with our good friends Mitzi and Tyler (who are engaged! Yay!) at a hockey game, and what a game it was!!

We had an absolute blast and are so thankful to be invited. 

Needless to say the break has been great! I am saddened that I start classes on Tuesday but I needed this break. Almost time to have my nose to the grindstone again.

I hope everyone had a fun and safe Holiday and I hope everyone is ready to make 2014 a good year :)