Updates & A Request

Greetings, blogland!  I hope if you are reading this, you enjoyed a healthy and restful Thanksgiving holiday.  I had a nice trip to visit family, but I have to say that I was itching to get back to D.C. for once in my life.  I am just ready to get this semester of grad school wrapped up and put away!  Several things have been on my mind, so please excuse the hodgepodge and please jump in to express your opinion if you'd like to!

• I've noticed lately that it really gets under my skin when bloggers repeatedly publish spelling or grammar errors in their blog posts.  I know that I'm not perfect and I do not expect anyone else to be perfect.  I can forgive an occasional mistake. Even though I proofread, I know I will sometimes make mistakes too and hopefully, as my readers, you can forgive me.  That said, I think I may need to unfollow a few blogs based on mistakes made over and over again.  I think this standard applies even more to bloggers whose blogs are monetized.  I do not make money off of this blog but I know that plenty of bloggers rely on their blogs as their secondary or primary sources of income.  I support those blogs by reading them so clearly, I have no problem with this. However, if I made grammar and spelling mistakes all the time at work, I wouldn't have a job.  The fact that some bloggers are so lazy that they admit to completely skipping the proofreading process all the time drives me crazy!  (I'm sure we all skip that process from time to time, but some people make a habit of it.) If you blog and make money from that blog, your blog is a professional activity for you.  As such, you should treat it and your readers with the same professional courtesies as you would treat your "customers" in the workplace- whether those customers are internal to your organization (your boss or coworkers) or external.  I will get off my soapbox now, but I just had to get that off my chest!  For the record, if you ever spot a mistake in my blog posts, let me know! 
• I am gearing up to put together some gift guides for the holidays.  I did this last year, but I'm hoping this year's guides will be even better.  I've decided to focus 100% on gift guides for women as I'm basically worthless when it comes to knowing what a guy might like to receive for the holidays- I buy my dad and brother the same things year after year. 
• For these gift guides, please let me know if you'd like to see gift ideas for a specific person! I've realized that in the past few months, I've provided several people with advice on birthday gifts, holiday gifts and hostess gifts.  I love trying to think of something that the recipient would like and most of the time the ideas I come up with work quite well!  One of my friends likes to joke that I should abandon my professional pursuits and become a personal shopper- haha!  Anyway, if you have a friend or family member who is crazy difficult to buy for (I am in this category myself) let me know about her and some of the things she likes and I'll see what I can come up with!  Feel free to let me know a budget too.
• The SEC Championship Game is this Saturday and boy am I excited to see LSU whoop up on Georgia!  (Yes, "whoop up on" is a technical term...)  I took advantage of the Cyber Monday deals and ordered a new television.  I currently own a 22 inch tv and I will be moving to a 46 inch tv.  It may be far too big for my apartment, but we will see!  We will definitely feel like we are AT the game when we watch it on tv!
• Is anyone else just not really into decorating for Christmas this year? Normally I jump right on it, but since I'm only going to be in DC until mid-December this year, it seems almost pointless to me to decorate.  I do have the decorations taking up prime real estate in my closet though, so I'll be pulling them out sometime this week or weekend.

Hope you have a great week! Thanks for reading this word-filled, pictureless post!

Geaux Tigers Attire

This weekend, I am off to join some of my very best friends for two days full of catching up, laughing, tailgating, tiger-baiting, eating, drinking and merriment. 

polyvore set found here

Tailgating at LSU involves a serious day-long commitment and this time of year, the weather is always questionable. Sometimes there's rain (though it never rains in Tiger Stadium) and sometimes it is still 80 degrees well into October!  No matter what, you can bet there is lots of walking to be done and lots of good times to pass!

Enjoy your weekend. Geaux TIGERS! Beat Auburn! 

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

What, did you think I was referring to Christmas???

No, silly! I am referring to 

COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON. 

I am so excited I hardly know what to do with myself!  If you read Southern Living magazine, you may have noticed that the September edition has just about everything to do with football season and the love of all things Southern college football.  For those of you who weren't yet readers during last year's football season, just be forewarned that I am that stereotypical Southern girl who lives & breathes college, specifically SEC, football during the fall months. 

Southern Living's monthly feature called "Only in the South..." this month discusses some great football moments.  One is: Only in the South... do football games register on the Richter scale.  Oh yes, my friends.  That would be known as the Earthquake Game- LSU vs. Auburn in October of 1988.  Coincidentally, I was a newborn babe living right near campus at the time.  

Circa 2006.

I have had so many wonderful memories of my life associated with LSU football and the SEC.  I cannot wait to watch another beautiful season play out.  This weekend, I will definitely be birthday-wishin' for some roasted duck- Oregon duck, that is!!  If you are wanting to know more about LSU fans and our fanatical ways, I highly recommend this article.  We are a fun bunch, indeed.

GEAUX TIGERS!

Lauren's Visit to DC

My friend Lauren came up to DC for a quick 2 and 1/2 day visit.  It was so much fun! 

We started off on Thursday by going to the US Capitol.

We took one of the standard tours of the Capitol.  I've done this twice now with different people who've come in town and I really enjoyed it.

Then, we headed to my favorite museum: the Museum of American History.

My favorite exhibit in the museum, by far, is the First Ladies' Exhibit.  

They have gowns and artifacts from many of the First Ladies, including this dress which once belonged to Martha Washington!  How cool is that?!

I definitely recommend checking out the exhibit for yourself the next time you visit DC.

That night, we went to Oyamel for dinner.  Oyamel has become one of my favorites!  I didn't take any pictures, but you can rest assured that we definitely enjoyed the guacamole and more!

On Friday, we headed to the National Zoo.

We started out by visiting the pandas.

I've visited the ones in Memphis many times before, but Lauren had never seen a panda in person.  They are always so chill.

Recently, two lions at the zoo welcomed seven, yes, SEVEN cubs!  I am so glad people do not have babies in "litters."  (Well, usually...)  We were there at the right time to see the cubs.

Aren't they so cute!  

They made the cutest little noises.

I also took some pictures of this HUGE hole they are digging at the zoo:

Apparently, they are building a new home for sea lions and seals.

They are also building a new elephant habitat.  Apparently, the National Zoo will be rocking by 2013!  

We had a great time, but sadly we didn't get to see that many animals.  Many were indoors and moved off exhibit because of the weather.  Hopefully, there will be more animals the next time I visit.

Later on Friday, we did some shopping at Tyson's Corner in Virginia and then made a MASSIVE trip to the grocery store.  Since my car was still here, I took advantage! 

We then headed home to watch the LSU Tigers BEAT Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl!

Image source here. 

It was a great football season for LSU and I am as proud as ever to be an LSU Tiger!

On Saturday morning, we ate brunch at Founding Farmers before Lauren headed to the airport.  

Thanks, Lauren, for visiting!  I hope you will come to Washington again soon! 

A Few (Very) Random Observations

Well, I've made a few observations recently.  I'm just gonna put it all out there.

1.  I prefer talk radio over music when I'm driving long distances. 

When did I become a 65 year old?  But seriously, it holds my attention better than music most of the time. Weird.

2.  I'm officially not a "young person" anymore.

Proof?  The other day a family friend told me that her daughter asked for an Eminem t-shirt for Christmas. And I literally thought she meant M&M's... as in "melt in your mouth, not in your hand..."

Yeah.  That actually happened.  And I felt about a million years old when I realized what she was talking about.

3. I saw a few friends when I was in Louisiana for the holidays.  

And I've missed them.  A lot. 

4.  I am so glad I was a member of a sorority in college.  

The girls I met there are truly some of my best friends and I know I will be able to count on them for the rest of my life to be there in good times and bad.

5.  Even though I feel old, I really am young.

Everyone says that college days are the best days of your life, but I don't think that's true.  I had a great time in college but I know there are many more happy times ahead of me as I enter the period of life when my friends are starting to get married and have families.

6. I really can't believe Tennessee lost their bowl game tonight.

And in such poor form.  It was just like the LSU game all over again.  Even though that game ended in my favor, I still felt a little bad for Tennessee fans- not really for the coach since he apparently can't count correctly.  But I know how it feels to lose badly.  And it doesn't feel good.  

7.  I'm going back to Tennessee tomorrow for a few days.

I'm supposed to finally get to meet my best friend's boyfriend.  I'm pretty excited about this considering they've been together like 2 years (I think??) and I still haven't met him!

8. I saw Black Swan.

And it was odd.  But mostly because I think I actually followed/ got it. I think this because it really didn't blow my mind as much as I thought it would. Hmm...

9.  I know I said this recently, but I really do love you people out there who read this blog.

Especially random (pictureless) posts like this one.  You guys rock.

10. I like even numbers.

So I am ending this post with a tenth observation.  Haha! 

Top Ten Things I Love About Fall

I know fall is almost over, but it is techinically here until December 21, so I thought I would share the top ten things I love about fall with you today. 

10.  Pretty Pumpkins

 [Refer to number 4 for more.]

9. Halloween  

I'm not a big fan of Halloween for grownups, but I love the excitement that little kids get from Halloween!  And they are always so proud of their cute little costumes.

8. Boots

Who doesn't love a great pair of boots?  I prefer riding boots and I love it when the weather is cool enough to pull them down off the shelf and give them a home on my shoe rack.

I'm sort of obsessed with these Hunter Riding Boots right now. It is a shame they are so pricey. 

Image via Google Images

7.  Outdoor Festivals

Fall is the time for outdoor craft festivals, and they are so fun.  You can always find unique items there and shopping at these festivals is a great way to support small businesses.

6. Fall Recipes

Doesn't this roasted squash look good?  Fall recipes are so warm and fuzzy.

Image via Google Images

5. Thanksgiving "Break"

I guess it won't always be called a "break," but I love time off for Thanksgiving.  It is so nice to have time to recharge, especially for students heading into finals.

4. Fall Décor

Image via Google Images

3. Changing Leaves

Image via Google Images

2. The Weather

The cool breezes of fall are SO welcome to me after the heat of summer.

1. SEC Football

I mean, did you really have any doubts about what I would say is the number ONE thing I love about the fall? 

Keep Calm and...

I am really obsessed with the spoof "Keep Calm" posters that are out there, widely available on etsy.  If I had the wall space in my apartment, I would buy one.

This is one of my favorites:

From the Keep Calm Shop

But in honor of the ultimate college football weekend, I just have to share this one:

From Katie Company's Prints.

Happy football watching and GEAUX TIGERS!  BEAT THE RAZORBACKS!

Ten Reasons Why I Love the South

10.  Lemon Ice Box Pie

My granny used to make this with the old timey, classic recipe- you know, the one with the sweetened condensed milk?  To this day, whenever I see this on a menu, I just have to get it.

Image from Southern Living Magazine

9. Oak Trees

Beautiful trees at Oak Alley Plantation.

8.  Kenny Chesney

His songs are simply perfect for a sunny day of driving on the interstate with the windows down and a great pair of sunglasses.

7.  To Kill a Mockingbird

6.  Family Names

Nobody does this better than southerners.  I love the idea of naming your children after family members who are dear to you- this probably speaks to my love for tradition in general.

5. Monograms

Pillow available from Ballard Designs.

4. Old Homes

Okay, obviously they have old homes in the north, too, but there is nothing like a beautiful old southern house with a big wrap around porch and beautiful windows and doors- preferably with stained glass details.

A beautiful New Orleans home.

3. Mardi Gras

Okay, so maybe this should be on a list of things I love about Louisiana, but it is a southern thing, and it's just about the greatest darn occasion ever invented as far as I'm concerned. 

Throw me somthin' mista! 

2. Coffee with Chicory

1. SEC Football

Okay, so maybe the other things I love about the South shouldn't be in any particular order, even though they are numbered.  Even so, this is undoubtedly my FAVORITE thing about the south. 

The fall in the south is the most wonderful time of the year, any college football fan will tell you that. 

The SEC is undoubtedly the greatest conference in college football.  I mean, did you pay any attention to football today, alone?

Note: As I am writing this post, I am yelling at the TV watching the LSU/ Florida game on TV. 

And just to end this post on the highest note possible, here is a photo of my favorite LSU football player of all time.

Glenn Dorsey, if you ever read this- I love you!