away i go

i leave for tampa early tomorrow morning

and i couldn't be more excited!

on friday we are going to bennett's cousin's beach house

to ring in the new year--the year that i turn 22

get married

and graduate!

oh, what a year 2011 will be!!!!

i hope everyone has a wonderful new years!

farewell 2010

in 2010....

-bennett asked me to marry him

-i said yes

-i turned 21

-bennett and i went to harry potter world

-i spent 9 days in nantucket

-bennett had his (hopefully) last surgery

-i took 18 hours of classes and somehow got all A's and B's

-i bought a wedding dress

-i cried a lot

-i laughed a lot

-i learned who my true friends were

-i learned how to silkscreen

-we went to the biltmore

-we had an engagement shoot in a canoe

-i had my last christmas without bennett as a single woman

-i lived in an apartment, then a house, then another house

-i was a nanny for the most adorable little boy

-bennett was in greece for 3.5 weeks and i lived

-i learned how to use power tools

-i climbed a rock wall

-i loved the heck out of bennett

and in 2011...

-i am getting married

-i am going to barcelona, nice, and cinque terre

-i will be a wife

-i will have a husband

-we will get a tiny apartment

-and i cannot wait

a white christmas

merry christmas to all

and to all

a good night

(my house right now. taken by papa humphrey)

what does a _____ say?

i made the adorable baby boy i nanny

little stuffed animals for christmas

but not just any animals

these are the ones he knows the sounds to!

they were so much fun to make

and to hear him

woof woof

neighhhhh

moooooo

bahhhhh

rawrrrr

was just priceless!

i even made a little bag with his name on it to carry them in.

merry christmas!

rockin around the christmas tree

(photo from a few christmases ago)

tonight i'm sleeping under the christmas tree

with my mom and sister.

it's something that we've done every year since i was little

and i look forward to it every christmas.

i can't wait to carry on the tradition next year with bennett!

merry christmas eve eve!

5

only 5 more months...

until i am a wife

until i get to wake up and fall asleep next to my best friend every day for the rest of my life

until i can run into people i haven't seen in a while and say, "oh, and this is my husband bennett"

until i really do need to start cooking meals instead of eating out all the time

until we can watch movies as loud as we want because we are each other's roommate

oh i cannot wait

tampa engagement party

i had such a wonderful time in tampa this weekend.

my mom came with me so she could meet the rest of bennett's family

and they had an engagement party for us

with plenty of gifts, food, and mimosas.

all of bennett's friends were there and we had a blast.

ONLY 5 MORE MONTHS!

tampa trip

i am headed to tampa today with my mom

to see bennett for a few days

and to celebrate our engagement with a bunch of his family

and friends

and i couldn't be more excited!

be back on monday!

* * *

(me, on the left, with the sisters in 1994)

it snowed here in nashville a couple days ago

and we're apparently supposed to have an ice storm tomorrow

so i have a feeling i will be cuddled up in bed

watching movies and trying to recover from a stomach bug

for the next few days...

which is just fine with me

slow it down...

(baby jack smelling the christmas tree)

i am done with finals

DONE

and i couldn't be happier

because i can finally slow down

and enjoy the christmas season

before it's gone...

i did it...

i chopped off my hair.

and it feels incredible.

funny photo

i came across this photo and had to laugh.

this is from a looong time ago

when bennett and i were just friends

but i liked him so much.

my best friend karlie came to visit

and snapped this photo of us...

look at how awkward we were!!

a little bit stressed

ah,

nothing like eating a bowl of chicken noodle soup

at 1:15 am

while trying to finish one million assignments....

this is how i feel right now

about ready to pull out all my hair:

Gustave Courbet

The Desperate Man