This weekend, I was back in Wisconsin for a big family event.

My grandpa was taking part in the Stars and Stripes Honor Flight, the Wisconsin branch of the national Honor Flight Network, which honors World War II veterans.

As part of the flight, my grandpa and hundreds of other vets from Wisconsin flew to Washington, DC for the day and visited several of the monuments. And, due to my grandpa’s age and health, my brother went as his guardian.

No kidding, those guys had a 21+ hour day Saturday, leaving Milwaukee at 4 a.m. and returning home at 9:25 p.m. for a parade through the airport for families and friends to attend. The parade is a surprise for the vets.

So Saturday night, my mom, grandma, SIL and her parents crowded at the airport (elbows out!!) and waited for the guys to return. Yes, the wait was long, my legs cramped and I may or may not have SHUSHED a child (who was annoying) but when it came time to watch my brother and grandpa walk down the parade route to us, I was a total mess.

And I caught it on video. It’s a little Blair Witch with a Cloverfield moment thrown in.

I literally start to cry every time I watch because the emotion, joy and crowd made it so special.

It was a great night and I am so glad that I got to be there. And a big thanks to my mom and brother for coordinating the application, I won’t ever forget the look of pure joy on my grandpa’s face.

How was your weekend?

But I wanted to share some pictures from the long weekend because some are too cute for words. Literally.

While I was back in Wisconsin for Thanksgiving, I stayed with my brother and SIL and got to meet my fur nephew (aka their dog), Steve. He’s a daschund and (in my opinion), the most adorable, sweet and loving fur nephew a girl could ask for. I was fully prepared to cash all the love checks he was writing.

And write them he did!

Auntie Jess and Steve

Steve sitting on my lap (LOOK AT THAT FACE! How could you NOT love him?)

Butt shot (he was camera shy)

During my three days with him, he licked my eye (right on the contact too), nose, lips, boobs, hands and fingers. Yes, it grossed me out for a minute but then I gave in to it.

The best part? Thursday morning, he scurried out of my bro/SIL’s bedroom and ran right over to my closed guest room door before going downstairs. And when I gave the okay for him to come in, he came BOUNDING in the room, beyond excited to see me. Okay, he may have been excited for anyone but I think I made an impression.

I literally cannot wait to go back for Christmas to cash some more love checks and snuggle with him. I LOVE HIM.

And after my fur nephew morning snugglefest, it was time to get ready for the meal. In the past, I’ve worn dress pants or even jeans to Thanksgiving and honestly, after that meal, I feel like those pants could pop off themselves. So, I’m all about comfort now.

Here is this year’s Thanksgiving outfit:

(Flannel top: Ralph Lauren outlet, T-shirt: Banana Republic, Leggings: Hue, Boots: Banana Republic, Necklace: Nordstrom)

It was comfy and fashionable. Win, win.

How was everyone else’s long weekend?

Or as I like to call them “things I try to achieve when I’m not lazy.”

But before I go out tomorrow night, drink loads of champagne, possibly force a guy to make out with me and spend the first day of 2010 hungover on my couch, I want to highlight a few 2009 highlights (in no particular order):

• Vegas – holla bloggers!
• Boston with dad
• BlogHer 2009 – did you see this video of Katelin, Jamie and me? That’s how much fun it was
• New blog design/URL (I’m such a grown up blogger now)
• Target Bazaar party with Ed Westwick and Jessica Szohr (I die!)
• Turning the big 3-0
• Received a promotion at work (WOO!)
• First ever VLOG about my then life as a twenty something

All in all, 2009 was a pretty good year, lots going on but a lot of positive things too. So as I continuously try to become a better person, let’s look at how I plan to do that starting Friday. Oh and this is separate from the yearly pledge to lose more weight.

2010 resolutions:

• Sign up for dance classes (real ones at a real dance studio)
• Run a 5k (and start the Couch to 5k program)
• Be a better friend and daughter
• Start a knitting project (other than a scarf) and FINISH it
• Make one new recipe a month
• Be more active in blogging communities in addition to my blog

Well that’s my 2009 wrap up and 2010 sneak peek for now. I hope 2010 will be as exciting and good to me as well as for all of you. I think 2010 could be the year of me!

I’ll be back this weekend with more but in the meantime, I hope everyone has a safe and Happy New Year! My New Years Day plans involve my couch, a pizza and lots of water and Naked Juice. Let’s party.

What was your 2009 highlight (blog or otherwise) or what’s your big 2010 resolution?

New movie review is up! You can read my full review of the musical Nine, get those jazz hands ready!

What I’m wearing: Sunday, I put up a picture of me wearing the below outfit over the holidays and then I didn’t share what stores I got everything from! I’m sorry! Details on my comfortable, “trendy” look are below.

Outfit breakout:

Shirt: Old Navy

Long vest: Banana Republic

Leggings: Hue, purchased at Nordstrom

Necklace: Banana Republic outlet

Boots: Banana Republic

Bracelets: Old Navy (black jet beaded ones) and David Yurman

As many of you know, I’m a huge Gap/Banana/Old Navy fan. Minus the Yurman bracelets, the most expensive item from this ensemble was the boots, which were $100 on super-end-of-season sale. Everything else individually was $40 or below.

When I lived in Germany, people joked that I had a passive aggressive monkey that stayed caged until I let her out to play and wreck havoc. Then, it was hilarious, but as I’ve matured, being passive aggressive is a pain in the a**.

I used to be passive aggressive because I was mortally afraid of confrontation. I had trouble expressing how I felt when people upset me, so I would bottle it up and wait to unleash it. This means I may teach you a lesson by hiding cassette tapes or when I would fight with people, stuff would start coming out like, “six months ago you didn’t call me back and I was mad.”

I’m still not great with confrontation or harsh criticism but I like to think that I do better at talking to people about it and working through it so it’s “resolved.”

I’m also clear with people I’m friends and work with that I want them to be honest with me and tell me if I do something to piss them off. Believe it or not, I’m not a mindreader (if I was, I would be making SO MUCH more money). I don’t always know if I’ve done something that has upset someone or if they have misinterpreted something I said. The popularity of texting, IM and email makes it difficult to determine what’s sarcasm or just mean.

Today, I had a bad run in with the passive aggressive gorilla living in my parents house, which resulted in a big fight and me in tears all day (literally) and en route back to Chicago early. And when this person and I had this blowout I said, in a stunned voice, “why didn’t you tell me you were upset earlier?”

I got no response but realized through this awful situation that I need to be better about talking out my issues and problems with friends and family before it’s too late and it explodes in a tirade.

So what about you? Do you talk to friends or family when they’ve done something to upset you? Or do you have a tendency to be a little passive aggressive at times? Or do you hate when others are passive aggressive to you or others?

Movie review reminder: Just a reminder that my review of The Young Victoria is over on the review blog! My first one ever!

Honestly, I had to write down that today is Sunday because I totally forgot. That’s what happens when you’re off for several days in a row.

Santa definitely visited my house this year and it was clear that dad told him I was a very good girl :) I’ve had some past issues of dad not following my Christmas list (which he always requests), but after a heart-to-heart about the difference between what I want/need and what he wants to give me, this year went much better.

Santa managed to fit in his sleigh for me several fun/practical things like a Wii, Wii Fit Plus, Huntress boots, yoga mat/bag, Glee seasons 1-2 CDs, JCrew/iTunes gift cards and a crock pot. Seriously, I was really excited about that crock pot. I cannot wait to bust that out!

And of course we had insane amounts of food in our house. I swear, any healthy food was replaced with M&Ms, fudge and cookies. My stepmom made a fruit salad and I devoured the entire thing because I FORGOT how good fruit tastes. Sad.

Festive ice cream cake, nummy

So all of this food meant I had to constantly wear comfortable clothing (to avoid another uncomfortable pants hissy fit) and I ended up wearing variations of this outfit anytime I went out in public. At least I was trendy.

A few other highlights of the last few days include: the first time having fondue with my work/WI buddy Lizz, seeing a few movies and not washing my hair for a few days. God, that was liberating.

Oh and I had to share a picture of my mom’s new ornament, can you guess the classic movie this appeared in? :)

How was everyone else’s holiday? What was your favorite present?

Review blog update: I’m staying strong on my no shopping pledge, but that means I’m behind in having things to review, so I’ve added movies! And my inaugural movie review is one of the best movies I’ve seen in recent memory (minus New Moon): The Young Victoria.

It feels like Antarctica all the time.

I’m constantly cold with teeth chattering and trying to stay warm while wrapped in my big fuzzy robe and slippers. I don’t want to TMI on here, but having your nips constantly at full mast is super irritating. Those things could cut glass.

Basically, I hate being cold.

My Chicago apartment, where I don’t pay for heat, is a balmy, heavenly 75 degrees in the winter. I love it, especially when I come home to a warm apartment when it’s cold outside. I’m sure when the free heat days are over, I’ll be a 60-degree girl too but for now, welcome to tropical paradise!

Dad and I constantly argue about the thermostat temp. He tells me to put on (another) sweater or just dress warmer but once I get cold, I cannot warm up. Thank goodness for my heated mattress pad. I cannot live without it in winter and I never want to leave my nice warm bed.

So this time when I came home, I decided to plan ahead and bring cute, coordinated pj pants from Gap and Old Navy. If I’m going to struggle to stay warm, why not try to look cute doing it?

Yeah, it still doesn’t work and I’m still wrapped in the fetal position in my bathrobe trying to stay warm. Classy.

What about you? Do you prefer to be warm or cool in your home/apartment or when you sleep?

Bloggy birthday: Thank you everyone for the kind blog birthday wishes. My blog and I appreciate them :) I also owe a big thank you to Teena in Toronto for reminding me about the big day!

This week, I’m mourning a very sad loss. The loss of the BEST CAKE EVER. That’s right, I said, EVER.

It’s sour cream chocolate with vanilla buttercream frosting and it’s like taking a bite of heaven and digesting clouds of sunshine and moonbeams.

I’ve mentioned it on here a few times because I have at birthdays and well, it’s just that fabulous. And I’ve had this as my birthday cake since I was a kid. And considering I just turned 30, that is, well a long time and a lot of cakes.

So why am I mourning it’s loss? Because last weekend, my brother texted to tell me that the bakery is closing due to the economy and ownership change. And that it was closing on Thanksgiving.

No joke, I nearly started to cry.

This cake was going to be my wedding cake and be a tradition I carry on for a family I may have one day. And now, the thought of it not being there for my next birthday breaks my heart.

What? Breaks my heart? A cake?

Yes, it’s dramatic and overblown but it’s more than that. It’s the symbolism that a long-time tradition is now gone.

And last week, my mom and dad surprised me at work by emailing to say they’re getting one more cake for us to enjoy at our separate Thanksgivings as a way to say goodbye. Bittersweet.

So now, I pour some malt liquor on the sidewalk to honor that bakery and say goodbye. I even play a little Peter Gabriel, clutching a branded napkin in it’s honor.

Goodbye Shaker Baker and thank you for being there with us for so long.

So questions for the evening! Do you have a favorite cake that you can’t live without? Or what is a longstanding food tradition in your family, for holidays or birthdays?

And here’s some cake porn to take us out tonight:

I’ll miss you :(

My parents are divorced so every year I have two Thanksgivings in one day. Moms in the morning and dads in the evening. And the first year we worked out this arrangement, I thought my stomach was going to explode from all the food. My dad found me passed out with a plate of turkey next to me and woke me up to go to bed.

The image of me passed out on a couch, drooling with turkey next to me is hilarious. I wish I had a photo of it.

Anyhow, tonight I’m on my way back to Wisconsin to be with my family, shop my heart out and try to get into the Christmas spirit.

But before that, it’s time to share a silly and serious list of what I’m thankful for this year.

Serious:

• Family (we’re not perfect, but they’re mine!)
• Friends (even those I’ve been estranged from lately)
• A good job
• Good health
• No credit card debt
• A good life in a great city

Silly (this is more fun):

• Jacob’s abs (cougar time!)
• Glee
• HD-TV
• A full head of hair (I would be more thankful if I didn’t have so much gray)
• iPods
• Text messaging
• John Krasinski’s hotness
• Push up bras
• Cotton leggings
• Nordstroms
• A good sense of humor
• Twitter (which will help me get through four days at home)
• Mac and cheese (or just cheese)
• Honey crisp apples
• Cupcakes

And of course, thankful for all of you :)

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

So what are you thankful for this year? It can be silly and serious!

I wish I could regal you all with stories of an exciting, thrilling, action-packed weekend but really, I laid around and did a whole lotta nothing. And it was awesome. But it wasn’t totally boring.

Sweetest Day: Pile of crap?

To start, Saturday I woke up and heard that it was a national holiday…Sweetest Day!!!

*crickets chirping*

Sweetest Day is like a rash. You wake up one morning and notice is something different, then suddenly it starts spreading and realize you’re out of cortisone cream and can’t do anything but ignore it until it goes away. Yeah, I’m reaching a little bit but I think you get my point.

For as long as I can remember, Sweetest Day is for couples, almost like a mini-Valentine’s Day. But according to Wikipedia and the official Sweetest Day Web site, it’s a day to celebrate all the loved and special ones in your life.

I really like that explanation more, too bad it’s only really associated with couples, full of cards, flowers and candy. Kill me.

But is it really just another Hallmark holiday? I think so.

Wikipedia says the “holiday” is celebrated primarily in the Great Lakes area (which is where I grew up and grew to hate this holiday) but I think Neil Kramer said it best on Twitter Saturday:

“Happy Sweetest Day to everyone who lives in upper Midwest where it must have been invented to ease your way into freezing winter.”

Oh Neil. There is so much truth to that statement.

Therapy time at the salon

So as a single girl, how did I celebrate this “holiday?” It started with a trip to my bi-monthly therapy session at the salon for a haircut and color. My hair grows very quickly so I have to get it cut every other month and I always look forward to it for one reason: scalp massage.

A good scalp massage is better than a good workout and a mani/pedi because it kneads out all the stress and you feel completely different (and relaxed) when it’s done. Couple that with a complimentary glass of wine and paying for those services is so much easier :)

I love going to get my hair done because I can talk my stylist about anything and just have a sympathetic ear to whatever is bothering me friend-, work- or family-wise. Actually, it might be better than retail therapy (almost).

And once I had a sexy, cleaned up cut and color, I took that sassy bob downtown to go shopping…but came home empty-handed.

Seriously! That’s always my luck, whenever I want to go shopping, I can’t find anything. Oh well, another time. Next weekend is full operation gym shoes, shoe booty and fall sweater. No mercy!

How was everyone else’s weekend? Do you look forward to going to the salon? Or do you celebrate Sweetest Day? I’m always curious to hear who knows about it.

Also, thanks everyone, both pro- and anti-pumpkin, for weighing in on Thursday’s post. I’m glad to hear there are other non-pumpkin fan supporters out there and for those who do enjoy it, we will agree to disagree on friendly terms :)

Review blog update: Yes, I’ve been slacking on this one but I’m back with part two of the MAC Volcanic Ash experiment, this time, the Thermal Mask!

For example, last night I meant to upload photos from my camera but didn’t because I was distracted by downloading Glee episodes on iTunes. I blame the change in seasons for that musical distraction.

But along with blaming the seasons for my absentmindedness, it has also caused some dormant “old lady” habits to surface too.

I started thinking about this after I saw a picture of my 14 year old goddaughter/cousin on Facebook going to her freshman year homecoming. She looked so beautiful and I choked up because I remember holding her as a baby and holding her hand as she learned to walk. And then I looked a picture of her full dress and said, “hmm that hem could be a little longer, below the knee Grace!”

Yes, that’s how sweet I am.

Now on to the other “old lady” habits I’ve adopted lately:

• Unable to stay awake past 10 p.m. on weeknights (and wanting to sleep until 10 a.m. the next morning)

• Commenting that high school girls’ senior photos look a little sluttier every year (my cousins showed me their yearbook)

• Inability to understand “kids” lingo. For example, a younger coworker said the word “baller” in a sentence to me and I have to think about what that meant

• Dislike of loud TVs or parties when I’m trying to go to sleep

• The attraction and longing for napping

• Exponential increase in bounce back time needed from drinking

Yeah, I need to get out more and be more reckless. Or I need to move to California where it’s sunny, warm and heavenly all the time. Or maybe it’s time for me to find a cul-de-sac in Florida where I can rest my back and swim by the pool. Sounds nice.

Have you noticed any “old lady” habits lately or a change in your moods because of the seasons? Or what would you like the blame the change in seasons for? Feel free to share, it’s not your fault!

My grandma means well but sometimes when she says things, it can be…back handed. I just chant to myself, “she means well, she means well.” I know in my heart she does, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t tease her a little bit when she makes these comments.

She’s also been “supportive” of my quest to stay single too. I’ve posted before about our “colorful” conversations regarding my singleton status and recently  had another dating-related conversation with her, yippee. Apparently she’s brought this back on the call agenda because I’ve entered into a new decade.

Let’s join our conversation.

Grandma: I saw a report on the news that women in their 30s are getting “more involved” than they did in their 20s

Me: More involved?

Grandma: Yes, in things they didn’t get to focus on a lot when they were younger

Me: You mean, like dating or having kids?

Grandma: Well yes, they just choose to hold off on that stuff so they can live their life. So that’s something for you to look forward to

Me: You know, it’s okay if I don’t get married or have kids. That’s not for everyone

Grandma: Well you’re in your 30s now, so you still have time

Me: Yeah, maybe, it could happen, you never know

Grandma: Oh yes, that single stuff we knew was just a phase

Me: Like rock music and experimenting in college?

Grandma: Experimenting with what?

Me: ……….stuff, you know, like, actually never mind, yes I’m going to definitely stop living my life now in my 30s and focus on getting married

Grandma: There you go! Good for you!

Yeah, I cherish these talks :)

Does anyone else’s grandma or family continunally poke at their single status and anything else?

I know now never to bring up weddings around her because she’ll say how great it is and how happy it makes family when their kids get married.

Enter more crickets chirping from my end of the phone.

And after some last minute prayers to feel better and survive the craziness, I’m pleased to say that I’m back in Chicago in one piece and feeling a lot better than I did Tuesday-Thursday last week (thank goodness!)

So let’s get started!

Football

My parents and I are huge Wisconsin Badger fans. Sure, I went to the University of Minnesota, but in our house, Badgers are #1 and getting invited to my take one or two of my parents tickets to the games is a big treat (*cough* 50 yard-line seats *cough*). And because I had to be in Madison for a wedding that same day, my dad gave me the golden ticket to the Michigan State game, where he told me beer would make me feel better (it does) and a soft pretzel (LOVE THOSE) would settle my stomach. My stepmom even smuggled in chardonnay, which we drank from a water bottle. Seriously, that woman is the QUEEN of smuggling stuff into games. Here’s the view from our seats.

Wedding

So after a great game (which we won!), I had to get ready for the wedding, which I did in my own traditionally classy way, carrying my dress, shoes and make up into a public restroom and changing in the handicapped stall. The Badger fans that walked into the bathroom and saw me struggling to reach the zipper on the back of my dress must have thought I was c-r-a-z-y.

But I pulled it together and was ready to meet up with Rebecca C and head to the ceremony.

And despite my “tough cookie” exterior and dead-inside heart, I do actually have a fluffy, nougat center (like a candy bar) and seeing two friends get married in such a personal, wonderful ceremony made me tear up, especially as the bride and groom choked up during the vows. I even had a moment, seeing them so in love and happy, where I said, “maybe this is something I want.”

Then my little group made our way over to a bar near the reception hall, but this bar had a tree inside. Yes, a HUGE faux tree. It was awesome. And drunk, male football fans were more than excited to see pretty ladies in dresses. I even discovered the joy of New Glarus’ Spotted Cow beer, which is almost as popular Miller in Wisconsin but is NOT available in Illinois. Oh the cruelty.

The reception was amazing, held at an old, vintage movie theater with the tables set at the floor of the theater with lovely accents and soft lighting. If I had gone with a date, yeah I would have been in the mood to make out :)

My weekend even ended with a French cab driver, asking me why I’m single and refusing to believe I’m 30. Yeah he got a little bigger tip than normal. Sometimes, it’s still nice to hear :)

So how was everyone else’s weekend? Do anything fun? Any other big college football fans out there?

My friends who have known me for awhile know that I rarely take sick days or go home early.

And since I’ve been out on my own, I haven’t really needed to take a lot of sick time because *knock on wood*, I’ve been overall pretty healthy.

But I now notice that when I do get sick, I go DOWN like a sack of potatoes and instantly morph from being an adult into a child.

When I get sick, the following things usually happen:

• I forgo any sense of hygiene outside of brushing my teeth (showering? optional)
• I stop picking up my house and it becomes littered with cups, tissues and blankets that I’ve kicked on the floor
• My level of annoyance about things goes up by 100 percent
• I retreat to the couch and lay like a beached whale on it with the remote dangling in my hands
• I turn to napping (which I never do, so that’s another sign of illness)
• I start to complain…a lot

The complaining part is actually kind of funny (once I’ve recovered) because my dad will call to check in on me and he really is talking to a child.

For example, I’ve been sick lately and when I went home from work yesterday, our conversation went something like this:

Dad: How are you feeling?

Me: Icky *sniffles*

Dad: What does that mean? Sore throat? Cough?

Me: Icky means icky, I’m just really run down and feel like crap *whimpers*

Dad: What are you taking to feel better?

Me: Stuff, I dunno, ibuprofen, cough drops, water *pouts*

Dad: Okay well get some rest and I’ll check in with you later

Me: I don’t like feeling sick, can’t you come take care of me and make this go away *bats eyelashes, even though we’re on the phone*

Dad: No, get some rest

Then I’ll usually hang up the phone in a huff and go back to watching TV.

I know, I’m so mature.

Are you like this when you get sick or do you prefer to just be left alone?

Xoco and Rick Bayless

I love going out to eat in Chicago and and sometimes I can peer pressure friends into going out to eat with me.

That’s pretty much the magic I worked on Friday with TC, who I nearly dragged from work to go with me to Rick Bayless’ new casual restaurant Xoco in Chicago. Seriously, Rick Bayless is HOT right now in the city (you know from that whole Top Chef Masters thing). And this new restaurant = awesome.

TC and I solved world problems while waiting in line (yes it was long but not too bad) and yes we did eat like there was no tomorrow, sharing some dishes and having a lovely cup of homemade hot chocolate.

Bask in some of the food porn below. You can see more on my Flickr page too!

And while we were waiting in line, Twitter proved to be a lovely distraction during breaks in conversations. I totally, absolutely 100 percent geeked out when I said “hi” to Rick via Twitter and got a DM back from him saying “hi” back. Check it out. Yes, I did feel like hot sh*t and giggled like a schoolgirl.

Only thing, we weren’t able to get a picture with him :( Maybe next time.

Getting craft, Renegade-style

Saturday I met up with Jamie and hit the Renegade Craft Fair in Wicker Park. It’s literally Etsy, in person! And while I got some sun and enjoyed a delicious strawberry lemonade. I picked up this cute print too.

It’s SO me :)

The only drawback, a clown that was walking around and took a shine to Jamie and me. I don’t like clowns. They scare me. So when he didn’t get the hint to back off, I firmly told him to do so. *shudder*

Small Facebook world

Finally, on Friday morning I also got a huge shock, when a long-lost cousin I haven’t seen or heard from in probably 10 years found me on Facebook.

And I won’t lie, I nearly started to cry because I’ve been looking to reconnect with her too on/off for the last six months. My super online stalking skills found her but I didn’t have an e-mail to contact her so I’ve been regrouping before she found me.

It’s a funny thing when you finally reconnect with those people because…what do you say? I’m still working on that but for now, I’m just glad I found her and have a way to talk to her now and catch up on some lost time.

How was everyone else’s weekend?

Oh I promise the post about my epically awful date is coming tomorrow. Trust me, it is awful :/

Yard work sucks and I suck at it. Trust me.

Actually, I look like a total sissy in the yard because I don’t like to get dirty (especially my cute outfits and shoes) and I gingerly hold tools, as if they are covered with a disease that could spread to my entire body.

Problem with that part is that I’m not really a regular “lottery player” or gambler. I have no idea how to play slots (shocking but true) and don’t buy weekly lottery tickets.

But I will walk to a gas station and buy a lottery ticket when there is a huge jackpot because, why not? Sure, my odds of being struck by lightening are better than winning, but it’s fun. The Mega Millions jackpot was $330 million or something so Friday night I went to a gas station and bought three tickets.

And while I didn’t win (and have been at work all week), I always let myself daydream a little bit about what would happen if I did win. It was a hot topic one day at lunch too.

So here is what I would do with $330 million (or whatever I get after taxes):

• Buy my parents house and give them a lump sum of money to cover property taxes for the next 20 years
• Let my dad retire and say “f*ck it” to his job
• Buy myself a SWEET condo (lots of room to walk around naked)
• Work freelance and go back to school for my MBA
• Donate a lot of my clothes and replace them with beautiful things from JCrew, Anthropologie and Nordstrom
• Two words: Chanel quilted
• Donate money to local charities
• Volunteer more
• Stalk Oprah.com to get tickets to a taping (since I won’t have to work)
• Get a car, or two (and a parking spot)
• Send my parents to Europe (and get some nice non-addictive, Michael Jackson sleeping pills for dad to help him not go crazy on that flight)
• Travel (hi five-star hotels around the world) and take my closest friends on a nice trip
• Buy a real pony (not that I don’t love my birthday ones, but you know, get a real, live one to love forever)
• Get a dog (and pay someone to train him, kidding?)
• Have fresh cut flowers in my house weekly (I LOVE fresh flowers)
• Go to LA and stalk John Kraskinski (kidding?)
• Get a personal trainer and get my fat a** back in shape
• Hire a cleaning lady (I’ll be honest, I’m lazy and hate scrubbing floors)

As you can see, some are more realistic than others. And it seems I’ve put more thought into this than I imagined :)

What would you do if you won the lottery? Feel free to shoot for the stars (and get creative too!)

Edit: I also meant to add about getting a condo that I’ll have room for Alexa to come live in my “room of awesome” :) FORGIVE ME Alexa!

Like, “surprise! you’re failing sociology” or “surprise your ex boyfriend is gay.” Not good things.

Much like I don’t care for conversations that start with “I have to tell you something” or “come into my office and close the the door.” NO THANK YOU.

I think the reason I don’t care for surprises is a whole lack-of-control thing and by not knowing what’s going on or coming up, I can’t prepare or prevent it, if necessary.

But, as part of my new 30-something attitude of “relax!” and not taking things so seriously, I’m learning to embrace surprises and not fret as much if they’re not good ones.

For example, this week I got TWO surprises, both of which were awesome and actually, I’m glad I didn’t know about them ahead of time.

Wednesday’s surprise was a sweet birthday care from Renee, which just said “Happy Birthday” but was such a wonderful surprise when I opened up my mailbox. And I’ll say she has good karma because a bill wasn’t in mail that day either!

And on Tuesday, a package arrived for me at work, which I was not expecting at all. I thought our mail room was confused when they delivered it but nope, there was a box, with my name on it, from Anthropologie.

And my first thought was, “sh*t did I get drunk and go online shopping again?”

Don’t judge, it happens!

But fortunately that wasn’t the case because it was a belated birthday gift from my dad, who remembered a necklace at Anthropologie that I was SALIVATING OVER a few months ago. Apparently me touching it wistfully at the store resonated with him because he went, ordered it, had it gift wrapped and shipped out to me, all without spilling the beans.

He’s a clever guy and he totally made my day. One hundred times over.

My surprises!!

So my little moral from these situations is: surprises are good and bad but don’t close yourself off to them because the happiness you feel for a good surprise, is pretty awesome :)

What about you, do you like surprises?

In fact, when I started writing this post last week, I was sitting on a park bench in front of a local library where Wifi is free. Yes, it’s quite a scene.

So while I loaded up on fresh air and watched my hair disintegrate thanks to humidity (stupid curls!) I wanted to share some of my favorite things about being on vacation, outside of the no working thing.

• Sleeping late (which is still 8 a.m. for me. So sad)

• Not counting calories (yes, I will have another beer, piece of pie and/or cup of gelato)

• Looking at the stars

• Watching the sun set (beer in hand is optional)

• Visiting boutique shops (no JCrew or Banana Republic within 50 miles)

• Forgoing make up and fashion (I didn’t wear make up for a week and I LOVED it)

• Seeing local, exotic animals (including raccoons, deer and wild turkies. Not your average city animal life)

• Laying at the beach and/or pool (assuming a beached whale position on a chaise lounge chair)

• Reading on the porch (I read three books while I was gone and I show no signs of stopping!)

I have to say, reading in general is my favorite part of vacation. I loved relaxing with a good book on our screened-in porch or when lounging at the beach or pool. I just picked up another book today and have another waiting in the wings for me to get started on. My brain is just a sponge when I’m on vacation, soaking up all the good books and stories I’ve been waiting to read.

What do you love most about being on vacation, or where is your favorite place to retreat to each summer? Northern Wisconsin is definitely ours. Also, how was everyone’s weekend?

Tomorrow I’m officially back in the office, which means this happy little vacation bubble I’m still living in goes away.

F*ck.

But, I will be back to regularly blogging and commenting again :)

Giveaway update: The winners of the Gap giveaway are up now on the review blog, along with my review of the Gap Perfect Boot jeans! Thank you everyone for your great entries!

Oh yes, 21 is when I finally had my own car. That’s why I am SUCH a good co-pilot on long trips. I’m very attentive :)

But recently, I was digging through some old photos and I found a picture of my first car and with a smug Katie-Holmes-like-side-mouth-smile, I took a little trip down memory lane.

My first car wasn’t a LeSabre or Ford Taurus, it was a white Plymouth Laser (similar to the photo below). Sexy.

It was a two-door piece of freedom given to me by my dad when I transferred to the University of Minnesota because, well, he wanted to make sure I could come home whenever I wanted. And after borrowing cars for so long, I could not WAIT to do whatever I wanted in it. It was like a gift from heaven, with automatic windows and transmission and A/C.

And what made that car even better was the word “Laser” written in cursive on the trunk. I thought this was so classy, until a friend pointed out that from far away it looked like it said “Loser,” thus naming my car, “the Loser car.” Trust me, those girls stopped calling it that when they needed a ride.

Other fond memories in this car include, dreading emissions testing, whining about gas prices (when they were under around $1.25/gallon) and getting stuck in the snow because the car rode so low to the ground. I kid you not, the seats were so low and reclined that I felt like I was in a DeLorean. I was just missing the flux capacitor.

And I’ll just breeze over the front seat making out stories where you try to figure out how to move over the passenger side when your short legs get caught in the space around the gas/brake pedal. Nothing says, “I want to second base” like getting stuck in the car and then laughing. Hot.

So those are my first-car memories. And while the Laser was replaced with a Honda Civic after an unfortunate engine issue, it will always hold a special place in my heart. But man, I did really love that Civic.

What was your first car? Any fond memories of it?