Thursday, September 19, 2013

taking a break

It just seems right to take a little blog break right now... There is a lot going on and sitting down at night writing just isn't in the card this week....

Until then, here's life:


  • Friday night a high school friend was involved in a car accident where one girl was killed. That girl happened to be celebrating my brother's birthday with him on Thursday. It has been very hard on everyone. My friend Barry is still in the hospital and has a long way to go mentally and physically, so if you'd say a prayer for healing, I would really appreciate it. The Quattlebaums and Comers especially need the prayers.


  • Work has really stepped up as I have gained responsibility this week. It's a good thing..... A great thing actually!! I like a challenge, but it just makes me more drained at the end of the day.
  • I'm currently on mile 32 of 50 for my #50milesseptember. I hit halfway on Sunday. I can do this!
  • My heart is also so heavy for the tragedy in DC and the flooding in Colorado. Why do bad things keep happening? Our world is just surrounded by terrible things lately! Luckily we are not in control!
  • Tyler's dad is driving down from PA to our farm to hunt this weekend and I'm really looking forward to seeing him again! I also have a wedding shower and baby shower on Sunday.
  • This commercial for Chipotle really upset me this week. I take farming/agriculture articles very seriously and I can honestly say Chipotle has lost my business. Here is a response to the video. Y'all farmers aren't out to "get" anyone and I promise you they care about the land and about their livestock.  This video makes it seem like they are only out to make money. Of course they want to make money but this is just a really unfair depiction of agriculture. If you ever have questions about farming or agriculture or organic or "natural" and my thoughts, please don't hesitate to ask. I love talking about it and learning more!
  • Sarge had his yearly checkup and passed with flying colors except for fleas! Those pesky suckers are driving us crazy! Our neighborhood is covered with them and he attracts him on his walks. Thank goodness for Advantix and Capstar!
  • Speaking of my neighborhood, we made the front page of the paper when we had 38 cars broken into on Monday... Joy! Luckily I park in the garage and Tyler is anal about locking his truck so we didn't lose anything but people are so disgusting and disappointing!
  • My mom has been in Paris for a week and is headed to Belgium next week. Who is jealous!?! This girl.... But super happy this is her time to travel with her girlfriends!
  • Next week begins season premiere week for my favorite shows!! Chicago Fire, SVU, Grey's Anatomy, Revenge... BRING.IT.ON!
  • And I have another prayer request if you are the praying kind. It's unspoken, but I promise you God knows what is on my heart about this. It's pretty big in our lives right now and a hump in our almost 6 months of marriage... But that's what marriage is for! Love and support!

That's all for now.... I'll be back soon! We just need to get through the next couple of busy days and weeks, but you know where to find me on social media! Thanks for your love, friends!!

xoxo

Friday, September 13, 2013

friday 5

Linking up with April, Darci, Natasha, and Christina....

{one} 
I'm really proud of myself  and my workouts lately.

I'm running a 10k on October 4 and am determined to do well, hence my goal of running 50 miles in September. Follow and join me on twitter (@charlotteplaw) and hashtag #50milesseptember. I realize 50 miles was a HUGE goals and maybe even too steep, but I'm doing my best to hit my goal!



I'll go back to 9/1/13 when I started my goal and throw in my other workouts... So I guess this isn't really a weekly workout, more like my "September so far" workout.
Sunday, Sept 1: 2.10 miles on treadmill 8'34 pace
Tuesday, Sept 3: 3.11 miles {with 2 coworkers} 9'34 pace
Wednesday, Sept 4: 2.34 miles
Thursday, Sept 5: 3.18 miles on treadmill, walk/run
Friday, Sept 6: 1 hour of spin class
Saturday, Sept 7: 1 hour of barre class
Monday, Sept 9, 1.05 miles on elliptical + abs
Tuesday, Sept 10, 3.38 miles outside and over the Beaufort bridge / 9'15 pace
Wednesday, Sept 11: 1 hour of weights + cardio class {I am h-u-r-t-i-n-g}
Thursday, Sept 12: 4.60 miles outside / 8'34 pace
Tonight I'm hoping to go to spin class again and get another run in tomorrow morning.

{via Tumbler}


Whew.

Total for September: 19.7 miles /  30.3 to go!

{two}
I've seen so many interesting articles floating around Facebook that I had to share!

 - Though I am married... I thought this article titled "26, unmarried, and childless" was super interesting. I think we can all relate to a lot of the points in the article.

- Another friend also passed on this article about marriage. It's called "15 ways to stay married for 15 years" and is definitely worth the read! There are some really good key points about marriage including  doing your own thing (hello Charlotte running and Tyler hunting) and going to bed mad and making up in the morning (I don't hate this one).

 - And I know we all LOVE Buzzfeed, so in honor of Halloween quickly approaching, I thought this one, "10 Questions Hocus Pocus Let Unanswered" was too funny not to share. 



{three}
You have all got to make this cookie dough dip. My friend tried it a few weeks ago and told me about it, but I was super skeptical until she made it again last night and I asked her to bring some to work.... Ladies and gentleman, I bring you "healthy cookie dough" and the main ingredient is chickpeas! I'm serious. It sounds so gross but it is delicious and I am making some tonight!

{four}
And HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BROTHER!


I don't know about you, but he's feeling 22. Cannot wait to embarrass his Facebook wall with some T.Swift.

{five}
No real update on my night sweats. Blood work came back "perfect" which is great butttttttttt we still aren't sure what is going on. I think I'll just wait it out and see. Thanks for those of you who have been concerned!!





Happy Weekend!


Thursday, September 12, 2013

shifts and shirts

The "I've-gained-16-pounds-since-we've-been-married" part of me is kind of in love with shirt dresses and shift dresses lately. I've been buying not a single fitted thing and now my jeans don't even fit!!

I'm on a mission to incorporate more light, comfortable dresses into my wardrobe! You can't go wrong with them, especially if your shoes make them work appropriate!


shift


{one} J. Crew dress // Sam Edelman booties

{two} // Lilly Pulitzer dress // Modcloth wedges
{three} Top Shop dress // Vince Camuto booties
{four} LOFT dress  //Tory Burch flats
{five} Top Shop dress // J. Crew flats


I need to know where to find more reasonable shirt and shift dresses. Where have you seen them!?

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

a plug for my entrepreneurial friends {blogtember}

Again, Blogtember coincides with a blog post I had already thought of in my head!

Wednesday, September 11: Share links to your favorite online shops, preferably with a few photos of your favorite items in each shop.

I have some awesome friends. They do a lot of cool things and I'm really proud of them. Instead of telling you all about my favorite stores (J.Crew, LOFT, Nine West, Target), I thought I would spotlight a handful of my friends who have started their own businesses. I truly hope you look into them and support them!

My sorority sister and fellow Wofford alum, Grace, began a stationary company, WritefullyHis, LLC in which a percentage of the proceeds going back to purchasing paper and pencils for schools in East Africa. These supplies are purchased locally in the village markets to make it more sustainable for their local communities.
Wildflower: Purple


Typewriter: Crisp White
Follow Writefully His on Twitter // Facebook // Pinterest // Wordpress





One of my best college girlfriends just started this cool website just a few weeks ago. She lives in DC and has been there with another one of our girlfriends since college graduation. After Jamie's first lease was up, she became obsessed with the hunt of looking for a place to live. She began logging on to websites like Craigslist, Padmapper, 4walls, and Live Lovely every day. Her obsession became worse as she studied management companies’ websites, explored open houses and grilled friends about their renting experiences.

So, Jamie created Exposed Brick DC which will give you a sampling of affordable rental listings for young professionals, in some of DC’s best and most exciting neighborhoods. For those of you not looking, “Off The Market” provides inspiration and ideas on how to make your rental feel like your own.  I am not an expert but I’d like to think that I have good taste and know how to spot a deal.

And just for fun:

Just a little college throwback

Follow Exposed Brick DC on Facebook // Twitter // RSS Feed // Bloglovin




If you read my post a few weeks ago about Rodan + Fields, then you know all about it, but my new friend Alexa is a consultant with this company. Just as a refresher: Rodan + Fields a dermatologist- created skincare line by the two Stanford-trained dermatologists who created Proactiv. If you are interested in trying it out, just leave a comment (make sure you aren't a no-reply blogger) and I'll get you in touch with Alexa!


Folllow R+ F on Facebook // Consultant Website





And last but certainly not least, these two girls are awesome! Kensley the blonde was my college roommate for two years and is still one of my best friends. Mollie, the brunette is also a really good friend. In August, they opened up a Copper Penny in Columbia, SC, which is super exciting!
Copper Penny was first started in the Charleston area, but has spread all over the state and areas like Savannah. Columbia desperately needed a new women's clothing store that wasn't too expensive, but also wasn't too inexpensive. CP in Columbia carries Trina Turk, Rachel Pally, French Connection, Sam Edelman, Bella Dahl, Tolani, Jack Rogers, Hanky Panky, and so many more! If you are in Columbia, SC, please check them out on Harden Street!!!

Follow Copper Penny on Facebook // Instagram: @CopperPennyColumbia


Happy Shopping!



Monday, September 9, 2013

why must the weekend end?

This weekend was so much fun. We packed a to into a little bit of time and I am honestly whooped as I type this. The weekend was one of those that you didn't want to end because we both hung out with friends and got to do a lot of (new) things.

Friday night I went to spin class (a first) at my YMCA. It wasn't as hard as I anticipated, but it was also a great workout and I was drenched with sweat when I left! I headed to the grocery store to pick up some beer -- Abita Purple Haze and Sweetwater Blue it was -- so good! Tyler was getting his hunting stuff together to go dove hunting at the farm on Saturday, so I sipped on the beer while he got ready.



Saturday I met my friend (she's also my coworker) Caroline at her gym to try a barre class. I've been DYING to try one and finally got a chance since she had a "bring a friend to class" pass. I had no idea what to expect but kept an open mind. While it was a really challenging workout, I also felt great afterwards and am feeling it now!! It was nice to go with a friend who was used to going, and I'm glad I don't have to "commit" to it right now; I am just going to visit when I'm over in Bluffton.

After the class, we met up with another friend, had lunch at the Frosty Frog on Hilton Head (hello amazing Jungle Juice daiquiri) and hit the beach with mojitos. The weather was absolutely perfect at the beach at Sea Pines was almost empty! After a few hours and a little sun, we went back to shower and have girls night!

I feel like I haven't had girls night in a really long time and it was SO GOOD to meet new girls to start hanging out with! We had some drinks before dinner then headed to Wise Guys back on Hilton Head. We decided on the tapas and had the calamari, sliders, lobster risotto, goat cheese, and stuffed mushrooms. So so good, and a great amount of food for 5 girls to split! I drove back home to Beaufort (about an hour away), so I dropped the girls off at a bar and headed home for the night. Good thing, since they told me they stayed out until 3:30!



Seriously counting down to another weekend to hang out again!

Sunday Tyler and I visited a church (we are trying to decide between two), and I did a lot of cleaning in the house before going to dinner at a friends' house. Tyler has become really good buds with my coworker and we had dinner with them for the first time. So much fun!

Did I mention Tyler went hunting all day Saturday with a friend? I'd say they did pretty well:


165 doves killed by 11 guys. Pretty impressive. And I think Sarge had a blast. Poor thing has been moping around all Sunday from running around and getting the birds. 

So there's my weekend in a nutshell. Why did it have to end!!??

How was yours?

Saturday, September 7, 2013

today is my blogiversary!!!

For some reason, I thought my "blogiversary" was in August.

Alas! I was wrong... it's TODAY! On September 7, 2011, at my desk as an intern, I wrote my first post.

When I started this blogging journey, I had no idea I would keep it up. I had no idea I'd ever have someone design my blog, make me a button, or that I would make friends online that I would call friends in real life. I never thought I'd host a giveaway, win a giveaway, or meet the person who inspired me to start blogging in the first place, {av}.

This "thing" that is the blogging community is amazing.

Today I celebrate the second year of this little blog of mine that began as "From Carolina Cotton to Illinois Corn" and turned into "Laws in the Lowcountry." I never thought I'd move home to Carolina so quickly, and I didn't know two years ago when I would become Mrs. Law. Life happens to quickly.

Thank you to all of you who have stuck by me, read my blog, commented on it, emailed me, followed me on social media, met me in real life, and encouraged me to keep posting. I am truly thankful and really appreciate you coming back everyday.


Some of my favorite posts from the past two years:

Post #1: Off we go!
10k Success (my first race!!)
The Hair Emergency - this one may be my all-time favorite


Thanks for reading, friends! Love you all!


Friday, September 6, 2013

friday friday friday!

{one}
At first I was really skeptical about this whole "fall" thing.... I do love summer and we do live on the water but I am getting really tired of the heat and sweating! 

Since Labor Day has passed, I've retired my white and started the transition process. Our office dresses up a little bit more post-Labor Day than during the summer. I've replaced my Jack Rogers and other sandals with flats, and tried to pep up my attire a little.

I may or may not have worn this almost exact outfit yesterday (minus the Kate Spade bag.... hello drool!).


fall




Topshop dress // Tory Burch flats // Kate Spade purse // Kendra Scott necklace // Kate Spade watch

I'm still trying to keep my wardrobe light, but not too summer. I'm ready for cooler weather!

{two}
I cannot recover from our trip to Houston! I have been whooped all week and am really looking forward to the weekend to relax and chill! Hopefully the Gamecocks will get a huge W over the Dawgs and I'm sure Clemson is going to blow SC State (eek near where I grew up) away!

{three}
I have some really weird symptoms going on right now. I've been having terrible night sweats and I feel like I'm almost going through menopause. I thought it was just adjusting to sleeping in the bed with Tyler, but Wednesday night he was out of town and I was able to sleep alone, but I still woke up 4-5 times absolutely drenched it sweat! I also noticed at a meeting today I was standing up and got clammy all of a sudden and broke out in a sweat. I called my lady doctor thinking it was my medicine because I have switched medicine 3 times in 6 months (honestly not my fault, I blame Walgreens!). At first they thought I was nuts, but when I said "I feel like I'm 24 going on 48," they listened and ordered some bloodwork. Next week I'm going to my general practice to get checked out, too, but this is SUPER weird. Anyone else had this happen to them before? It's really uncomfortable and I'm a little concerned! I did call my regular doctor from home and she said she actually went through this same thing but never got answers, so she is curious to know what the bloodwork shows. 

{four}
Revenge is now on Netflix!!!! I got Tyler hooked recently, but we only got through season 1. A Facebook friend posted that season 2 was now online and I am SO excited! Now if only I can figure out how to hook my Mac up to our TV, we'll be set!


{five}
Have you seen that Brianna has opened up an Etsy shop??!! 


Carolina Bliss is open for business! Brianna makes custom vinyl monogram decals right now, but Etch drink ware, personalized stamps and jewelry will come early next week! I am so excited for Brianna and know she is going to do so well! If you don't follow her, you can here:

Adventures Southern Wife
Happy weekend!

Thursday, September 5, 2013

lessons from 80 year olds {blogtember}

I'm finally participating in Blogtember and this post was sort of by accident. Today's prompt is:


Thursday, September 5: Pass on some useful advice or information you learned and always remembered. 


I had a text chat with my cousin (in law) Stacey a few weeks ago after a shower for her future sister-in-law (confusing, I know). You see, my mom and I drove my grandmother and great aunt two hours for Betsy's shower. The ride was interesting to say the least. After I texted Stacey some of the ridiculous things that were said by the two ladies, she said I should blog about it. If this isn't funny to anyone, at least it will be to the two of us!

If they knew this was on the internet, I'm sure they'd die. But, they don't get on the internet, so I'm not concerned ;-)


Well ladies and gentlemen... Here are a few lessons I learned from two hard of hearing, hilarious, stubborn, and sassy 80 year olds:

1. Elastic skirts are key.
"I love this skirt because its elastic. I only buy elastic things with elastic."
This is genius.

2. Drink water to prevent kidney stones.
"There is no pain like a kidney stone. You just want to die."

3. The sign for a struggle or sickness (they are neighbors) is for the other to leave the light on.
"If you leave your light on overnight, I'll know its your gallstone."
I can't make this stuff up, ya'll.

4. Old ladies are amazed by the 18 wheelers that carry the new cars on the trailer driving along the highway.
"Wow, that's a lot of cars."
I guess those trucks don't drive through Cameron.

5. Even old ladies need a change of shoes.
"We aren't even there yet and I'm ready to take my shoes off. Why did I wear these shoes? Only because they match my outfit."
Sassy ladies.

Those were the only direct quotes I got from these two BUT we did a LOT of talking about doctors appointments, who has died recently, who is divorcing who..... and we repeated every story three times because they can't hear.

So, in short, if you want to be thoroughly entertained, through an 80 year old... or two.. in the car for a road trip. But you may need some wine!!

There you have it: something I'll always remember.






Wednesday, September 4, 2013

wedding wednesday: wedding q + a

Remember when I asked you guys a few weeks ago to ask questions, we'll I'm back for part two... wedding edition!


How did you meet your husband?

Tyler and I met in 2010 at the South Carolina/ Clemson football game in Clemson. I was going to the game with my friend Ruthie but staying with my friend Matthew. Matthew had been in PA with Tyler for thanksgiving to hunt and somehow they began talking about me. Matthew told me he had someone for me to meet at the game and tricked me into going to tailgate with Tyler and our friends from home. It was love at first sight! He graduated two weeks later and moved to Illinois six weeks later. A year later, then I moved to date him in the same city!
One of our first dates

I'd love for you to post about the wedding planning process (what you were glad you did, what you think looking back, etc.).

1.       Don’t buy a wedding planning book. Make your own three-ring binder. I never ever used mine and hate that I spent $35 on one when I could have made one that was much more organized for $10 like my mom did.

2.       My parents and I split what was important to us. For example, I wanted a band (instead of a DJ) and alcohol. My mom wanted the flowers done her way. My dad was in charge of what food we would serve.

3.       I wish we would have hired a videographer, especially for the reception. I’d love to hear the songs that the band played and see everyone dancing all over again. We taped the ceremony so I do have just the audio from it.

4.       There is so much leading up to the wedding and then it is over so quickly. I’d keep a journal if I did it all over again.

5.       Thankfully my mom and I never fought. We agreed to disagree and got over things easily. The only thing we got really upset about was printing the programs, but that would out of our control.

6.       Do things as early as possible. My mom and I relaxed all week long. Now my dad on the other hand was working like a dog with some of the guys who work for him getting beer delievered and making sure the reception was ready to go. Mom and I had everything ready, bows tied, presents wrapped, etc, all before the week-of. Never do that stuff last minute!

Favorite thing you 'just had to have' for your wedding or something that played a bigger role than you expected.

Like I mentioned I wish we had a videographer, but I was so thrilled with our photographer and her husband. They were both so engaging and worked the crowd great! Everyone was also raving over the band, Ascension. I’ve had people ask me who our band was because they want to use them for another event. They were worth every penny!

Totally random but just how many wedding have you gone to in the last year?

2013 weddings:

Mollie & Evan (I went)

Us

Catherine & Brian (we both went)

Eleanor & Adam (same day as above)

-and unofficially Shannon and Coleman (right Shannon!?!)

Rachel & CT (we went)

Bailey & John (same day as above)

Dan & Brittany (same day as above)

Caroline & Chris (I was MOH)

Ryann & Andrew (I went)

Ainsley & Webb (we were at the beach)

Anna & Will (Tyler was a groomsman)

Betsy & Stewart (November 23)
That's a lot!

What was the most memorable part of your wedding day?

The most memorable part was after my bridesmaids and I got ready. Somehow we started dancing with bongos and other music in the church’s music room. I think Stacey gets credit for this with slam poetry. It then turned into a dance party with music from the movie The Proposal, mine and Tyler’s favorite movie where Betty White is dancing in the woods chanting.




What do you think is different about being married, compared to before?

I don’t know who ever said marriage is easy, but they lied! It is hard work! There are so many stigmas about getting married and being the “perfect wife.” It is just not humanly possible to be perfect, and we all know that, but there is also room to strive for perfection. I want to cook a meat-and-three dinner every night that is healthy, but it can’t happen. I need to exercise for my mental and physical health and there isn’t time in the day to prepare an elaborate meal. I want to keep a perfectly clean house that is always tidy, but normally men aren’t tidy and our dog sheds an unbelievable amount! Laundry is constant and sometimes his work shirts have wrinkles (I do only buy non-iron shirts now for that reason!). Bills have to be paid (on time) and there is such a thing called a budget. We have student loans, car payments, and rent to pay. We can’t splurge all the time, but will occasionally. It is hard to schedule date nights, especially when you have weekend commitments almost every weekend. Sleeping in and breakfast in bed hasn’t happened since we’ve been married.

Before we were married, we had our own lives, sort of. Yes, we lived in the same place, but we had two places to clean, pay rent, and live in. We lived in a different state with different culture. We had an excuse to be independent and go to the grocery store alone or run errands alone or be apart. There is some pressure I feel being married that you have to be together 24/7 but that isn’t our personalities. I’m super independent and try to do my own thing here and there.

In a nutshell, there are similarities, but definitely differences. When you get married, two become one, and it isn’t just all about you anymore. You really have to consider your spouse because you are a family together. You make decisions together, you live together, you sleep together, and you go about life together!

Favorite and least favorite things about Tyler.

Favorite: Hardworking, funny, goofy, caring, likes to cook, enjoys the outdoors, loves my family and me, committed to strengthening our relationship always!

Least favorite: Early to bed, crunches ice, lacks patience (I'm guilty too!).

Most memorable date/trip?

Mquestion would be do you have any advice for couples in long distance relationships since you and Tyler did that?

Go visit fun places together, but also see what real life is like. In our first month of dating, we never really dated in one place. I was in SC and he was in PA and then IL. We went to NYC for New Years. I then moved to DC for a month for school and we played in DC for a weekend, then I finally got to go out to Illinois for a week inbetween my semesters. We really experienced real life, not just the fun stuff like a nice date in Manhattan! We also visited St. Louis together, but with another couple in their home so we could really relax together. Tyler spent a week at my parents house with me during my senior year spring break. After we got through all of this, I finally think "real life" sunk in and we realized all this traveling wasn't realistic in the future. While we like to travel, we also like Law and Order SVU marathons and Chinese takeout.

Also, when you were in Illinois was it hard to be away from your family and how did you manage your long distance "relationship" with them?

It was really hard to be away from my family, but much harder to be away from my friends. When my girlfriends would get together, I would get really sad. There are 12 of us who are super close and at one time they all got together (maybe for Homecoming) but it was too expensive for me to fly to SC. We did a lot of skyping and they followed my blog to keep up with me. I saw my family a lot, surprisingly. We also had a family of our own in Illinois who really took us in and made us feel like their children. My mom and I talked every morning on the way to work and every day on the way home.

He was approved by my best friends on week TWO of dating!
Thanks for your great questions, friends!

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

weekend in houston

Hello hello!

Excuse my absence- we were having a blast in Houston and trying to regroup from such a fun time. We did a lot of things in just three days and it was awesome!

Friday afternoon Tyler and I drove to Charleston to hop on a plane to Houston. We had a short flight and arrived in Houston just in time for dinner! Tyler's brother Cameron and his wife Lissy picked us up and then we headed to their apartment for some grub. They cooked delicious lamb burgers with pitas, a fabulous salad, and couscous. I need cooking lessons from them! Oh, and wine of course! After dinner we walked a few blocks to a bar to meet up with a few of their friends. We met them last year at their wedding in Rhode Island so it was nice to hang out with complete strangers. Funny enough, their couple friends were flying to Charleston for Labor Day weekend.

Saturday I met up with Whitney from The Observant Turtle who lives in Houston and is from SC! This is the second time we have gotten together and of courseee food was involved! We had a fabulous brunch at Tiny Boxwoods and I had THE BEST watermelon lemonade I've ever ever ever had. Seriously, I couldn't get enough. And my granola, yogurt, and fruit was super too, but y'all the watermelon lemonade!! I want some right now!! We had a great catch-up as always and of course ended with a "see you soon" because hopefully I will get to see her later this month!




When I got back to meet the fam, they were geared up and ready to go sample BBQ. Keep in mind, i'd just eaten breakfast an hour prior!

We started at Virgie's BBQ and had brisket, sausage, ribs, baked beans, and potato salad. Oh and Big Red..... Texas friends- what is that stuff and do you like it!!? I felt like it was carbonated kool-aid and kind of hated it, but loved it at the same time!




Texas BBQ = beef not pork


It was obviously delicious.




Second stop was Gatlins BBQ but they weren't taking orders thanks to a catering order. After standing in line half an hour, we left and tried to go to an ice house that served BBQ, but they were closed! Finally we landed at one more place to get in a second sampling of BBQ. I was so full I totally missed the name of the restaurant!



Hello fried okra!

Tyler and Cameron went to the gun store for the afternoon while Lis and I went to the pool. I was like a blimp after all of the food I'd eaten! Then of course we showered and got ready for the CLEMSON GAME!!!

The four of us and a friend hopped in the car to get a table to watch the Clemson/Georgia game at Black Finn Grille where the Clemson alumni gather to watch the games. We had on all of our orange and got a great table and lots of beer! I had shrimp tacos which were decent, but it was OK since I was consuming plenty of beer (OK probably too much). We had so much fun screaming and yelling and ooh-ing and ahh-ing. We even met a couple originally from SC who went to Clemson who is friends with one of my friends and knows exactly where I grew up. It's such a small world people! After pulling out a great WIN we went home!



Sunday we woke up (with raging headaches- me at least), had breakfast (do you sense a food pattern here), and drove to George Bush Park to shoot skeet. Friends, let me warn you. Never ever shoot a gun while hungover. My head was pounding and every time I shot I could feel little blood vessels popping! I had beginners luck... We'll not beginners because been shooting a gun since I was very young, but I hit the clay the first shot I took. I think Ty was amazed. I, honestly, was quite amazed and then I was ready to go... Impatient much?


Trying to make things colorful.


A monogrammed gun case. NOW I have seen it all......



Of course, we had to grab some food (duh) after shooting up an appetite and Cam and Lis suggested Vietanamese food. I was super skeptical because usually my post-beer food is greasy, buttttt while in Houston you must eat like Texans! We drove through China town (this city is crazy) and had sweet and sour chicken at Que Huong. Thank goodness for Foursquare or I'd never remember the names of these places. I must say, it wasn't as crazy as I had anticipated!



Sweet and sour chicken- tomatoes, green onions, pineapple, onions + rice

And no trip to Texas is complete without boot shopping. Tyler is now a new proud owner of a new pair of Justin boots thanks to Cavendar's! I opted out of boots since I already have a pair and I don't wear them often, but it was so much fun trying on all kinds of crazy cowboy boots! We were so tired when we got back from our outing that Ty and I took a nap while Cam and Lis went to the pool. Before dinner, we all went downstairs to the gym to run off a few of the millions of calories we'd consumed over the weekend!


To wrap up our foodie weekend, we had tex-mex for dinner on Sunday night. I had delicious chicken tacos at Ninfa's and we all indulged on queso and mojitos and beer for the guys. I was seriously stuffed!! It was fun to experience all kinds of foods this weekend... obviously. After watching The Great Gatsby (which I wasn't really a fan of by the way........), we crashed!





Monday we had breakfast at home (because that's important) and sadly packed to head back to SC. Before we left, though, we made a trip to Tyler and Cameron's friend's fire house. I felt like I was on a set from Chicago Fire! I'd never been in a fire house before. As I sat in the driver's seat of the firetruck, the siren went off and I FREAKED out... I just knew I'd hit some wrong button, but, no.... the guys were called out to an assault! I asked a million questions and jumped on the pole because we couldn't slide down it since they'd closed it off due to the heat.... Oh Texas...





So as you can tell, I think we had a phenomenal time and I am so glad we were able to visit Cam and Lis! We hadn't gotten to spend too much time alone with them since we are usually in PA for a holiday, so it was great doing our own thing! I'm so blessed to have a great brother and sister-in-law! In a few weeks they'll move back to Lis's home state of Rhode Island, so I'm hoping a New England trip will be in our future!

And I'm going to miss their precious pooch and Sarge's cousin, Popcorn!

Thanks for reading my novel. Hope you don't think we are complete fatties! I promise I'm running and eating healthy this week!