i believe in...

souce.

i believe in dreams.

i believe in rainy days as an excuse to spend the whole day curled up on the couch.

i believe in family.

i believe in giving everyone the benefit of the doubt, just that one time.

i believe in pumpkin spice everything.

i believe in our Lord, Jesus Christ and all he has planned for me.

i believe in coffee.

i believe in magic.

i believe in having friends that you can always turn to, no matter what time of day or night, no matter what the circumstance - no questions asked.

i believe in doing everything you can for love.

i believe in sweet words just for the sake of them. (and i believe in warm fuzzies that fill your stomach when you receive them).

and i also believe in arguments.

i believe in a down right, red splotchy face, swollen eyed, cry.

i believe in a glass of wine, or two.

i believe in never being old enough to not act like a kid.

i believe in santa claus.

i believe in always doing everything with 120% of my heart.

i believe in a good book.

i believe in "keep calm and.." cards.

i believe in having that one song that you freak out like you just met someone famous because it is finally on the radio. and then belting it out like it's nobodies business.

i believe in spending too much time to get ready only to wear the outfit you put on in the first time.

i believe in wearing sweatpants every night when i get home from work.

i believe in children teaching adults more than we teach them, and the change they make without even realizing it.

i believe in prayer. 

i believe in taking too many pictures and never getting around to loading them.

i believe in listening to christmas music starting before thanksgiving and way after the stores have put all their decorations away. the most wonderful time of the year isn't only 25 days long.

i believe in allowing your past to change you, or else it would never bring you to the place you are today.

i know what you're thinking

girlfriend has got some serious issues.
first never posting. now posting twice in one day.
i know, even i'm creeping myself out.

but since it is rainy. and icky. and the best place to be right now is in my sweatpants, curled up with a blanket, and that second double fudge brownie staring me down, i figured, "hey self, lets do this!" and the rest, my friends, is history.

1. When you're feeling down, what do you do to pick yourself up?
this is quite a tough question which usually depends on the situation.  the top three would have to be: listen to music, blog, or eat a nice big bowl of ice cream accompanied by a sappy chick flick.  although, shopping tends to fit itself in there somewhere....the list may just go on forever....

2. If you had to live in a different time period which would you prefer?
i've got to say the 20's. i'm thinking gone with the wind. when life was simpler and men still kissed women like this.

 

3. What is the most creative Halloween costume you've ever worn?
i've had my fair share of interesting halloween costumes. convict? you got it. snow white? been there, done it. pink lady? you're the one that i want. but by far, my hand made white swan costume wins in my book, hands down.

4. Five weird things about you we wouldn't know without being told?
1) i am terrified of squirrels. terrified as in i won't leave my house if there is one standing outside my front door.
2) i have a birthmark on my scalp that makes the hair white that comes from it. pretty nifty and cruella-deville-esque.
3) i like eating chips on peanut butter sandwiches.
4) i love watching harry potter, star wars, and lord of the rings almost as much as i love watching chick flicks.
5) i hate odd numbers. and thursdays. i'm almost positive that i have a slight case of OCD.

5. What would you tell your 16-year-old self?

always keep dreaming, even if they do not turn out exactly the way that you originally have planned.

friends aren't always forever, and neither are boyfriends, but there are a select few that you can always count on, hold them close.

stop worrying what everyone else thinks.
mom and dad are always right. always.

belated birthdays and letters

 

dear big sissy, happy belated birthday. because i stink. and this post should have been done yesterday. and because you've reached 100 FOLLOWERS! and because i love you. and miss you. and you're the best friend a girl could ask for. and i'd be lost without you.

 

dear summer, i say we count our losses and wave that white flag.  i broke out sweatpants last weekend, the pumpkin spice latte is making its grand re-entrance, and quite frankly, you're working on my last nerve. i need me some chunky sweaters, knit scarves, and riding books...stat!

dear boyfriend, thank you. thank you a million times over. this smile on my face today is dedicated to you.

 

dear blog, i promise even though i tell you every week that i am going to try and pay more attention to you, i really mean it this time. girlfriend is going to get her act together starting this week.

 

dear phillip phillips, i appreciate your song more then words and describe. seriously. i may or may not play it every day. or get wayyyy to excited when you come on in the car. or miss my mom's phone calls because that is her ringtone. that being said - t. swift, your song is my jam. boyfriend can attest to that.

 

dear schoolwork calling my name, i'm not listening (at least for now).

 

dear double chocolate brownie, you are calling my name. and i'm listening. roger that, over and out.

 

i love link-ups and you should too! so join in on the fun at life, etc.

always sometimes never

holy cow it is sunday monday! which means i definitely started this post yesterday. and also means i'm finishing it today. total blogging slacking right here. which also means that tomorrow today is the beginning of the end of my summer.
could i be more excited about this? probably not.
am i excited about it even remotely? probably not.

now, i'm quite in love with this girl, and this lady as well, and seeing as they have made a little link-up, i couldn't resist joining in on the fun. better late then never, am i right?

harry potter

i always get suckered in to watching harry potter marathons on abc family

i sometimes quote movie lines before they are said in the actual movie

i never thought neville longbottom would get this cute

coffee
i always drink one and a half cups of coffee every morning.
sometimes i drink two or three cups.
i never forgo a cup of coffee in the morning (unless of course i want to plague the world with the evil being that is the coffee-less me)

 me a la driving

i always listen to music when i drive in the car

i sometimes sing obnoxiously at the top of my lungs like i'm in concert

i never sing with the windows down (i learned this the hard way, looks like that stay with you)

wasn't that fun? i thought so too. now go and have yourself a fantastic monday! i know i will seeing as it will mainly consist of a whole lot of decorating, organizing, and reconstructing of my first grade classroom.

twenty three in twenty three

one of my favorite blogs to follow (okay, okay, i also follower her on twitter and instagram, gotta be consistent people) is erin's blog. so when i saw her tweet the idea of doing a "26 in 26" post, i anticipated the post like a kid on christmas morning.

this girl is hilarious. how could i not?

and since she made it a link-up, i decided i'd try it out. and since i am only twenty-two for a few more short months, i figured i'd claim this my "23 in 23".

1. get to twenty-three followers! okay, kidding, just trying to stick with the theme. but i would love my goal to be 100 followers by the time i turn 23 (which is in october). then who knows, maybe up to 230 by the end of my 23 year? a girl can dream.

2. get in to shape, tone, and cleanse. i want to find a routine and stick to it.

3. on that note, get back in to a ballet class. probably one of the best workouts one could ever get and one of the things i miss most in my life.

4. purchase that plane ticket, get on that plane, and fly down to alabama to visit my best friend. she has been there for over a year and i just haven't gotten there yet. even better, drive back to pennsylvania with her after the visit.

5.  finally finish that college scrapbook that i have attempted to start three times now.

6. drive via motorcycle to our alma mater with my dad.

7. three words: black. friday. shopping. and do it with my sister, full out game-plan, all night, attack it head on. its like training for the hunger games, kinda, sorta.

8.  move back out of my parents house and move in to my very own apartment.

9. and once i am in that apartment, finally get the little dog that i've always dreamed of:

hi world, meet weasley. sweater and all. (and he will be named after ron weasley from harry potter. don't judge).

10. read at least one book a month.

11.  go to a lady antebellum or rascal flatts concert. country concert in general please!

12. see white christmas on broadway with my entire family in tow. family tradition taken to the next level? i think so.

13. get a contracted position at the school that i am long term subbing at this year. after this year of full year subbing i hope to be a permanent member of the district.

14. make it a point to talk to my girlfriends at least once a week. whether it be on the phone, via text, skype, or a girls night out, keep in constant touch.

15. fall in love. completely, hopelessly, in love. and be loved back the way i know i should be (and not settling for anything less).

16. rely more on my faith and in turn, rely on God and his timeing.

17. start cooking! and when i mean cooking i mean really cooking like recipes and directions and all the things i pin on pinterest that i want to do. so long pasta sides.

18. really learn how to utilize everything in my closet. maybe give kendi's thirty for thirty challenge a whirl.

19. bake christmas cookies with all the women of my family, just like we used to do, baby S included this year.

20. and on that note, try and wait until after thanksgiving to start listening to christmas music. if i can do that i think that i will forgive myself for not doing anything else on this list (sometimes you need some easy things to accomplish..baby steps..)

21. all of those crafts i pinned on pinterest? do some of them. my main goal is to send out hand-made, home-made christmas cards this year to my friends. think i can do it?

a christmas card i made last year

22. hello my name is positive polly. remind myself daily of the things i have to be thankful for.

23. finally get to a flyer's hockey game. i've been trying for the last three years of my life and maybe this year might just be my year.

what will you do in this next year of your life?

when in rome, do as the romans

  
   
baby S finally learned how to beat the rebel forces with a light saber, and how to rock her very own pair of stunna shades. and sand? pshhh...sand is nothing to little S. she crawls on it like she doesn't have a care in the world.
also, ask her any yes/no question in the book -- with a one grunt response for "yes" and two grunt response for "no" and she can answer it.
 
 
 

there is nothing i look forward to more as summer approaches than our family, all together, in one place - the beach. it has been this way for as long as i can remember and it is nothing short of amazing each and every year. this year i was even more excited knowing that this meant ten whole days with everyone i love most and no drives to new york or skype calls to see their faces.
i could ramble on forever about vacation. what we did and all. but instead i'll let the pictures do the talking with a little assistance from some stories.

the stories my family tells, as we are all circled up in the usual seating arrangement that our beach chairs seem to find, revolve around, but are not limited to:

-- my father and his small accident with the paring knife. four stitches later and he is water-banned for at least forty-eight hours. which led to the discussion of the "finger condoms"...which you can only imagine where that led to...i don't make this stuff up.

-- the time my cousin forgot she had nail polish remover on the top shelf in her bathroom and proceed to spill it all in her hair and eyes and face when she had to be in work in ten minutes. oh, and having no idea how it would react to her meds her psychiatrist prescribes her.

-- good cat, good cat, hideous.
-- the trials and tribulations of a pedestrian.
-- bejeweled and bedazzled walkers.

-- the time my aunt j's cat brought a bird in to the house. and it was still alive. and flying.

-- the time my aunt j and uncle j told my dad to pretend he was blind and would walk him and ran him straight in to a pole.

-- conversations my grandmother and grandfather used to have.

-- the time my aunt j went out with some of the cousins and my aunt k. the "low" song came on. and everyone went low (and my aunt j, can't get low unless she has some assistance - thus she demonstrated). and when they all came up a lady emerged high above the crowd as if she was being carried. it was my aunt k.

-- that one time my cousin picked up a girl at a gas station and fed her triscuits.
-- that one year that my uncle decided to wear a speedo and pose baywatch style on the beach for all to see.

         

p.s. if you'd like to see more of my vacation, which i know you do, 

visit my sister over here on her blog!