Wrapping up

This morning when I woke up at 8:30, my 8 am class was cancelled (Hallelujah!), I was overcome with anxiety. My "Countdown App" on my iPhone informed me that it is one week until my 21st birthday. You'd think I would have been excited, right?

Instantly so many events started running through my head. My birthday being closer, which means exams are next, then I have to say goodbye to everyone for the summer, then I am home barely for two weeks, then I hop on a plane to New York for 11 weeks. Panic, anxiety and fear completely overtook my morning.

As the afternoon progressed though, I felt silly for not being thankful for those events. I'm lucky enough to have made it to almost 21, to have incredible friends that are hard to leave, and I have the opportunity to go to New York for a summer. Sure, I know I can be sad and scared, but I don't want those feelings to overshadow the complete joy I have in my life.

Somehow I've blinked and here I am wrapping up my junior year of college. It seems unreal to me that my junior year of high school was four years ago. I've had quite the year. Beginning in August 2013 I started all of my journalism classes, ventured to New Orleans and New York for the first time, fell in love with a new city, watched the Rebels become the Music City Bowl champions, spent an unreal amount of time with my two roommates and pledge class, bonded with the freshman pledge class, and basically enjoyed every moment of being in Oxford, Mississippi.

There's a quote that says, "How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard?" from Winnie-the-Pooh. Recently there has been a new reason every day to make me think of this quote. The seniors are graduating, my bible study leader is moving to Birmingham and I'm saying goodbye for 15 weeks to all of my closest friends who I see every day. PSA: We don't know what personal space is anymore.

This school year has taught me so much and I am incredibly sad for it to end. Each day I am surrounded by my best friend who encourage me in every way. If only my family were here as well, I would have it made! I appreciate the time of my life that I am in right now more than ever, and I appreciate time in general. I'm encouraging myself and would love to encourage you all to appreciate every moment you have and sometimes you just have to look around and see everyone's faces instead of the screen of your phone, and you'll know how incredibly lucky you are to call these people your own.

To those of you who I spend every day with, I cannot thank you enough for being here for me 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You are the ones that make all the difference. College wouldn't be a second home if it weren't for you. Lets wrap up the year on a great note!

Every blessing You pour out I'll turn back to praise

From elementary education to journalism, my life in this past year has been quite the journey. One year ago I was enrolled in elementary education classes at Ole Miss. I was making lessons plans for Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs for my second grade class. I had no idea what was about to come.

At the end of May 2013 I realized I wasn't going to allow myself anymore to think about my "second life." Why only dream when I could make these dreams my reality?

I switched all my classes to meet the journalism school requirements and planned to visit Oxford to meet with an advisor. I went from learning about early literacy to journalism 101. After I made that jump and trusted in the Lord that this is exactly where I was supposed to be, the blessings kept pouring out.

I applied for and accepted an internship with Hello Perfect and began my journey with them as a contributing writer. I loved all of my fall semester classes in the journalism building and then reached out on a limb to apply for the Teen Vogue Fashion University weekend in October in New York, which I found out about through the founder of Hello Perfect.

Patience. One word I am not good with. Teen Vogue Fashion U was one of the only events I applied for and never thought about again. I didn't over analyze every step or already plan out my trip in my mind. That's why when my acceptance email came I was incredible overjoyed. Through prayers and not planning, the Lord provided for me to attend TVFU along with five of my best friends.

"And so it was, that [she], having waited long and endured patiently, realized and obtained what God had promised" Hebrews 6:15 

It was there that I had no idea how much my life would change. When signing up for my seminars for TVFU I had no idea who DANNIJO was, but they sounded cool. I liked the idea that they were two sisters working together and I like jewelry, so I thought, "Sure I'll sign up for your seminar."

Immediately I was drawn to Danielle and Jodie & I loved everything they said during the seminar. I knew I would fit in with them. Who would have thought that three/four months later I would be accepting an internship with them. How cool is this series of events?! Everything is linked together!

Last week was incredible & I received a "God wink" almost every day. I got offered other internships and interview opportunities, I am a new campus ambassador for Intern Queen, received a few cool emails from people in New York that I'm going to be able to meet, and to top it off, I was published in the Daily Mississippian this morning. Needless to say, I was on cloud nine. I found my head growing a little bigger.

What I needed to be reminded of is that without Jesus, none of these things would have been possible.

The Lord has humbled me through all of these experiences & they have taught me a lot. It is in my nature to want to run around saying, "Hey look who just emailed me back!" or send a tweet broadcasting my internship offers. My life would not be woven together like this without my daily strive (and struggle) to follow Jesus and believe that He has control of my life, not myself.

"...My cups overflows with your blessings" Psalm 23:5

In high school when I thought I was actively pursuing the Lord I thought I made all the decisions. Obviously you can see how wrong that was because I was settling with the idea that I was supposed to be a teacher for the rest of my life. Once I actively began pursuing the Lord and seeing where He led me, I have been overwhelmed with incredible opportunities. Don't get me wrong, every day I stumble and fail, but the Lord is always so faithful.

The glory does not go to me though. The glory goes to God. Without Him, I would never have gotten this far. I would still be student teaching and sulking to my classes. I have to remind myself every day that it is enough that I know these things about myself and to thank God every single second of the day for providing for me and putting these desires in my heart.

This morning, with the Daily Mississippian in my hand and the sun shining on my face, I was remind of the song lyrics, "Every blessing You pour out I'll turn back to praise" from Blessed Be Your Name. Everything clicked and I had to share this experience with all of you. Also, I can't wait to see that Jesus has in store for all of you! It makes me giddy and excited.

Without Jesus none of these things would be possible. I've learned that there is no way I can control my life. I can't make plans because the plans have already been made. Through this I challenge myself to turn every blessing into praise. (see how we came full circle there?)

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us" Ephesians 3:20

May 2014 be filled with...

May 2014 be filled with:

adventures with friends

vacations with family

breakfast dates

lots of cups of coffee

many concerts

heart-to-hearts

late night one direction dance parties

good grades 

reunions with old friends

new cities

reading good books

peaceful weeks & fun weekends

creativity

& most importantly love

I will not:

compare myself to strangers on the internet

stress about school

be afraid to be bold and take chances

eat meat

bring others down

rush things that aren't ready to happen / I will learn patience

complain (as much)

I will:

wake up each day with a smile on my face

be the best friend I possibly can be

encourage others

always listen & sometimes use less words

travel

love my family and friends

be the best possible vice president to tri delt

make memories to last a lifetime

continue to create my own style

be thankful 

Weekend Escape: New Orleans

My Photo Diary of New Orleans

The pictures say it all: 

Juan's Flying Burrito for dinner followed by Brocato's gelato 

Breakfast at La Boulangerie -- mocha + almond and chocolate scone

Perfect details scattered all over New Orleans

The French Quarter

Bourbon Street, Royal Street and the Cathedral 

Lunch at Mahoney's Po-Boy shop

shrimp po-boy + onion rings + barq's root bear

Lili's Vintage Boutique 

Obviously we found Free People

Sucre for an afternoon snack of macarons 

Dinner at Dat Dog

Kendall: crawfish hotdog

Frances: original hot dog

Ann Marie: italian sausage

Me: sea dog (fish)

Breakfast before hitting the road at Morning Call

coffee + beignets + gumbo

Pit stop in Jackson, MS to eat at Brent's (where a part of The Help was filmed)

grilled pimento cheese sandwich + fries + vanilla milkshake

Happy Birthday to my sweet Mama!

Why my mom deserves a great birthday:

She put Easter eggs on our ears 

We wore really cool jogging outfits on the same day

We didn't chose the thug life, the thug life chose us.

She is the Lorelai to my Rory

She is sweet, caring and giving 

She is a mother, daughter, sister and friend

"All I am I owe to my mother"
- George Washington

Happy Birthday to the greatest mother I could have ever asked for and the best friend that I have ever had! I am always thankful for your love and kind heart. You haven't aged a day since you won Most Beautiful at Franklin High School!
I love you!

Happy Birthday to my favorite twins!

Why Jennifer deserves a great birthday:
1. While she was always the smallest of the three of us, she coined the nickname "Big Jenny"
2. In second grade, when we became friends, Jen and I shared a locker. Remember poo-chis? We kept one in as our pet our locker. Little did we know this would only be the beginning of pets we all three tried to own together.
3. Jen is going on a mission in just a few shorts months! She will be learning portuguese so, feliz aniversario!
4. You can find Jen singing one of these three songs: It's A Hard Knock Life" from Annie, old Taylor Swift or Eminem's "Lose Yourself." All other songs she will gladly sing along too, but she won't know about 99% of the words.
5. In elementary school and middle school I would make Jen play Zenon or Harriet the Spy with me because I had a strange obsession with both. I'll always thank you for that!
6. When she was younger she used to think that people were sharpening knives in the room next to hers.. Glad we finally got over that one
7. Jen dated a unicorn......
8. She was always there to support me with whatever I was doing. Whether it was coming to a Friday night football game to watch me cheer & cheer on the Cougars herself or like the night Stanley, my dog, had to be put to sleep and Jen came over. She brought me sour candy with a note that said, "Sorry your day was sour!" She is one of the most caring people I know!

9. Her AIM username was AngelGirl92
10. You're the sweetest and most caring Lil' J and are always thinking of others. Your kind heart is going to be used perfectly in Brazil!

Why Marissa deserves a great birthday:
1. Once when Marissa was mad at a boy in middle school who she liked, she called him "the scum between her toes," and that's just one of those things you can never let someone forget.
2. Senior year she became Daisy and worked Las Vegas like no one ever thought she would

3. Birthdays are the biggest deal among the pookies and while Jen loves them, Marissa is the one to go above and beyond. It always involves decorating your car, cake, gifts through out the day, breakfast from your favorite place, balloons and one year it even involved a fish that I had to carry around with me all day during school.
4. Marissa lets no one do you wrong. During our little soccer career together (okay, our whole life before college), if anyone sought out to get me or Jen, or even worse, hurt us during the game, Marissa would charge across the field at them.
5. Marissa used to decorate her room with Johnny Depp and she even had a mini statue of him.
6. She's hilarious. I can't even tell you how many times Marissa makes me laugh a day & it got to the point in high school where it was almost a problem if we had a class together. Nothing would get done. We were either pushing each other's desks into the middle of the classroom or embarrassing the other one on a regular basis.
7. Marissa is my go-to hair girl. Both years for prom I got my hair done at a salon, then frantically called Marissa and had to get her to come and fix it. Finally I realized that she was way better than any salon, and look where she is now - hair school!
8. She loved the Sims as much as I did and would stay up into the wee hours of the night making sure their houses were perfectly decorated
9. When the holograph of Stevie Wonder came on at the Celine Dion concert, she really though Stevie was in the room with us. Maybe on day we will see him in real life! And never forget your glasses to a concert again.
10. Your the fiery redheaded best friend that everyone needs by their side and my partner in crime!

And together..
We all drive the same car, just different versions

We have gone to Las Vegas, Gatlinburg, Gulf Shores + the lake

Seen Celine Dion, Taylor Swift, Idina Menzel, been to the Grand Ole Opry + CMA Country Christmas taping concert

Went to see Mamma Mia at TPAC, Cinderella with the Nashville symphony performing + all the TPAC plays Grandaddy took us to when we were younger
We've played soccer, powderpuff football, ran cross country + played basketball

Met Sheryl Crow, Kimberly Williams Paisley + Barbara Orbison

Celebrated 15 years of birthdays

Celebrated 15 Christmas Eve Eve's

We are the pookies & are part of The Girls Club
We have supported each other in every other aspect of our lives that we strangely didn't do together (really, if you found us apart in high school it would have been weird)
We are one big family

Finally:
I'll never be able to thank you two enough for your friendship and love. We were meant to be best friends and go through life together. The term "best friends" doesn't even begin to describe us though. I am thankful for you two every single day and would not be where I am without you both.
I can't wait to see where the next 14 years take us, and many more!
love you both more than a thousand suns always 

Happy 21st Birthday to my favorite twins!

As Wicked says,

"I've heard it said, that people come into our lives for a reason,

Bringing something we must learn, and we are lead,

To those who help us most to grow, if we let them, and we help them in return.

Well, I don't know if I believe that's true, 

but I know I'm who I am today 

Because I knew you.."

I can't wait to celebrate when we are all together & reunited in May of 2015..

 It seems like a long time (it is), but no time or distance will ever separate this friendship!

LET'S CELEBRATE YOU TWO!

How My Roommate Became My Best Friend

My Hello Perfect post about how Ann Marie went from being a stranger to my best friend!
"How My Roommate Became My Best Friend"
click the link below and it takes you to the post on HelloPerfect.com 

http://www.helloperfect.com/how-my-roommate-became-my-best-friend/

Happy 21st Becca!

Eleven reasons Becca deserves a great 21st birthday:

1. Senior year we carried around a little baby (pictured below) named Kevin and photographed him everywhere we went.

2. Just like Meredith's post, we bought our CMT Award tickets in the middle of the wilderness from our iPhone

3. Spring Break would never have been the same without her. The four of us were all perfectly molded together and we each brought our own aspect to the group. Becca was always there to take pictures of us and document the entire trip.

4. From the beginning of our senior year to graduation day Becca carried a flip camera around with her every day. She took it to birthday parties, normal school days, senior day, and even graduation. Since she made this video, we will always remember senior year and I will always be thankful for that video!

5. I'm not sure if you have ever heard of a drink called wassail, but Becca introduced it to me (and I think our whole grade) & it was forever a staple when we would have get togethers at Becca's.

6. If it was socially acceptable to still play The Sims, she would.

7. Becca, Anna, Meredith & I went on Spring Break together our junior year and senior year of high school. Each year Becca without any hesitation would somehow break her swimsuit and it was always hilarious. One day we have to all venture back to Edisto, but this time we will all hope you don't break anymore swimsuits

8. We took really cool pictures like this in 8th grade:

9. Becca looked like Kit Kiteredge as a child, the American Girl doll. 

10. Becca and I would always alternate for goalie when playing soccer, even though she was the more talented one and wasn't afraid to dive for the ball. Thankfully she led us to victories while I was too afraid I was going to knock a tooth out. Becca is so intense because she was a competitive cheerleader and was also the soccer goalie, and, well, you really can't beat up someone like that.

11. One day senior year we went to school but didn't answer for attendance so we could sneak across the street for lunch & creep on our teacher who was going on a date. We were quite the star students in her class and even ended up with hats that said "Creepers" on them for our senior gifts.

We ended up getting invited to her wedding though so it was completely worth skipping school

12. Becca is so sweet and caring, always there to tell you how great you are & she is so good at loving people. She is incredibly trustworthy and reliable. I admire so many of her qualities and am so thankful I can call her a friend. I'm so glad that after going together all of middle school we finally became friends in high school and were able to go on so many fun adventures from that. One year Auburn will play Ole Miss on a perfect weekend where we can finally visit each other!

Love you Becca and HAPPY 21st!!

I can't wait to celebrate when we all get home!

Sassy turns 21!

Fifteen Reasons Susanna deserves a great birthday:

1. Her nickname is Sassy. Enough said.

20th birthday bash

2. Susanna still watches movies like The Cheetah Girls and High School Musical. Disney channel will never be foreign to this newly twenty-one year old, and the lyrics to their movies won't either.

3. Once Susanna woke up and found a Sonic hamburger in her closet.. Hopefully one day she can remember where the trash can is.

4. Everything she owns is hot pink. Her Tory Burch flipflops, her Lilly Pulitzer agenda, her J. Crew shorts, it's all pink. Her birthday celebration? Pink.

5. If Sassy laughs hard enough, she cries. When this happens in public places it is so entertaining and embarrassing at the same time. Let's hope many tears are shed tonight though, only for good reasons!

6. Her mother, Diva Dee, has forbade her from watching the movie Remember Me and all of her friends are in on it too. Sassy will literally lock herself in a room just to watch this movie. The first time she watched it, she was depressed for a few days (maybe weeks) and wouldn't come out of her room. Valentine's Day 2013? We all went to see Safe Haven and got depressed and cried (romantic, eh?). Then back at the dorm, Susanna says she is going to her condo. Betsy Kate knows what will happen. Sassy tells us she is going to watch The Cheetah Girls, not any depressing movie. BK is so clever though, she looks inside the movie case. Sassy has hidden Remember Me inside of The Cheetah Girls case!! Sassy, you are 21. While you are able to make your own decisions, the decision should never be to watch Remember Me.

7. If you ever need a ride, Susanna will drive. She hates being a passenger and this is very convenient for her friends and the squirrel girls.

8. She has touched Celine Dion's hand and looked in to her eyes. Of course Sassy randomly decides to see Celine in Vegas and is presented with THIRD ROW AISLE SEATS. It's ok, that's only all I've ever hoped for in life. Since she's touched Celine (still crying and can't believe it), she deserves a great birthday.

9. Switching to Accounting as her major from Education, she met the love of her life. Since he is faculty at Ole Miss, I won't say his name. Let's just say though that Susanna would only wear makeup on days she was in his class, would go out of her way to go to his office hours, and Google searched his name over 100 times.

10. She is one of my only friends who only refers to me as "Chan" 99% of the time. The only time she says "Chandler" is if it something very serious and dramatic. Examples: telling me about touching Celine Dion, talking about previously mentioned accounting teacher, "guess who I just saw" sentences, and if I say something stupid.

11. Sassy really is a caring friend. She never forgets your birthday, if you're sick she sends you things, she sends care packages to our friends far away, and is always there to lend a hand. 

12. While some may think she has her life together, on the inside she is Sham City. (shambles). Everyone is shambly in their own way though, which is what makes us all friends. Whether we are sipping Passion Tea out of our Anthropologie mugs or taking turns in your bathtub to take bubble baths, everyone's problems fade away with the help of our friends. Sham City is real, but it helps that we are together as one.

13. On Spring Break Sassy was determined to get in the Flora-Bama bar. That's all she talked about. All Sass wanted was that geotag on Instagram, and what Sassy wants, Sassy gets. 

14. When in doubt, fly. Why walk when you can fly? You know where you were supposed to be Susanna, you know ;)

15. Susanna has such a big heart underneath her diva status and is such a caring friend. Everyone loves to be around her and when she is there everyone is laughing. Whether it is a trip to "the Chili's" or a move night to watch Twilight (yikes), it's always a party with Sassy. I'm so glad we became friends sophomore year, and you finally learned my name after a year of being in the same pledge class. Being neighbors in Crosby brought us together and I can't wait for this year and the next. Love you Sassy!!

Happy Birthday, Sassy! Let's celebrate!