Together Again!

LOOKS WHO'S IN LA...!!! 

It is going to be a very fun weekend.  I love my best friend! :-)

Goals and Observations.

“Annie week” (as Mary refers to the week of said person’s birthday) was lovely…full of beloved friends, fun parties, and a “shocking number of birthday greetings this year” (also via Mary). ;-)

At my birthday dinner, moments after the manager gave me these balloons and announced that it was my birthday over a loudspeaker. Ha!

24 was extremely eventful with many BIG life changes (as mentioned in my last post), and I can only imagine that 25 will be pretty eventful as well.  Here are some goals for myself while I am this unique quarter-century age…(in random order)….

• Go to San Francisco.
• Visit Mary in New York (again).
• Do yoga at least one time a week.
• Go on a cruise (again).
• Read for pleasure.
• Rest more.
• Buy a new car.
• Visit C-Gunn in Austin.
• Keep my new apartment organized/simplified.
• Ride bikes along the beach.
• Go to my brother’s graduation from OU in May.
• Blog more. (holla!)
• Enjoy this year to the fullest. J

Two years ago I went on an amazing 5-week mission trip to Costa Rica.  I didn’t know a single other person on my team when the trip began, but by the end, I had made some lifelong friends.  I had a fun mini-reunion with four of these friends as the cutest couple of all time, Wesley and Emma, tied the knot in Alabama this past weekend. 

The wedding had the perfect mix of vintage-country-fun-classy-charm, just like the newlyweds themselves.  

Barrett and I had a blast dancing the night away...

...as the talented Zoesch was working his magic taking these gorgeous photos....

Here are some random observations after this wonderful wedding weekend…

• First class is AMAZING! Completely unbeknownst to me prior to boarding, I was on first class on my way to Alabama. Wow. I used to think ridiculous leg room, warm towels, gourmet meals, and free-flowing champagne/wine were things of legend.  Now that I have experienced the glory, I will truly never be the same.
• Outdoor wedding+August+Alabama=CRAZY HUMID HOTNESS. Yowza. It is legitimately impossible to escape being a sweaty hot mess in this setting. 
• Deep Southern accents should almost be considered a different language. Seriously… it does not sound like English at times.
• Perfect loves (like Emma and Wesley’s) really do exist, and it’s sweet (but also a weird mix of encouraging/nauseating) to witness. 
• In the South, it is not uncommon to eat fried okra twice in one day.
• Short weekend trips across the country are extremely exhausting.
• I miss my Costa Rica friends a lot. Reunions are so very sweet (and go by entirely too quickly)!

Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Teague!  You darlings are the best.  I love you a lot and I’m so glad I got to share your special day with you.

Currently listening to: She & Him.

Why: (to keep with the bullet-point theme of this post...)

• Zooey Deshchanel
• Catchy
• Retro
• Summery
• Fun
• Two thumbs up. :-)  

PS—Mary is coming to visit me tomorrow! Cha chiiing.

Happy Birthday Eve to Me.

I literally cannot believe that I am turning the big 2-5 tomorrow... how in the world did I get this old?  It just doesn't seem feasible that I should already be in my legit mid-20s. As I was discussing the crazy phenomenon of my upcoming age with my sweet mom a few days ago, she said, "I became your mother when I was 25..." Yowza!  So very weird.

Despite my disbelief and slight disdain regarding my upcoming age, I am excited for my birthday. Maybe it's just because they are a good reason to celebrate with friends, but I really LOVE birthdays. They are just so fun and joyous... which I really need right now. Tomorrow I am having dinner and drinks with some close friends and then going to my favorite comedy show. Friday I am inviting almost everyone I know in the greater Los Angeles metroplex for a fun gathering at my favorite bar, Lola's. Should be fun! (I'm sure a post-bday party report will be soon to follow on the blog). ;-) 

Thoroughly (as you can see) celebrating last year's birthday at Lola's. (I told you, I LOVE that place).

This dawn of a new quarter century (geez louise, that is daunting!) is coming at a really unique time where essentially almost every single aspect of my life has changed dramatically in the past couple of months. It just seems appropriate that my age should change right along with it...

New job. 

New apartment. 

New part of the city. 

New roommate. 

Parents moving to Houston. 

Break ups. 

etc...etc...etc.  

All of these intense changes are very overwhelming (to say the least), but I'm trying to make myself see the excitement and blessings in them as well.  While changes are often scary and totally push us out of our comfort zone, they also definitely make us stronger and allow for opportunities we would have never experienced otherwise. 

Wow, I originally thought this quick little post would just be a "whooo! It's my birthdayyy!!" type post, but then I got all unexpectedly deep and a bit sentimental.  I really AM getting old! Ha.

I'll end on this lighter note: Cheers to the next quarter century, and bring on the celebrations... hooray birthdays! :-)