A dream is a wish your heart makes.

This morning I woke up to do my regular morning of blog reading and coffee drinking. I tuned into my favorite blog by Miss Katie Brown,  Confessions of a Young Married Couple and 20 seconds into reading I was squealing with delight.

My favorite blogger in the blogosphere is writing a book about her first five years of marriage. This is when blogging becomes a little weird, because the thing is…I feel like I know this woman. I want to call her up and congratulate her, tell her I’d be happy to take Bean off her hands for a night while her and Chris go celebrate. But then I remember that she has NO idea who I am, and that I sadly only know her through the interweb.

But I digress, the point is, I am so freaking proud that shes doing this. Once upon a time, Katie started a cute little wordpress blog, and I remember a specific post when she mentioned that her current page views per day was somewhere between 40-60. I don’t know the specific number of her pageviews now, but I think it's safe to say that they have skyrocketed.

I’ve been getting a little bogged down lately because I don’t feel extremely proud of myself right now. I don’t feel very challenged in my classes, and I know that path will have to continue for a little while because I can’t fight the fact that I ‘m going to have to take General Education classes for a while. But then I see someone like Katie, who just started blogging one day to stretch her little writing legs. She had a job that had nothing to do with writing, but she committed to making it a part of her life.

I don’t mean to say I want to become a writer, I just mean that I’ve been reminded that you can make your life anything you want if you just see the possibilities that are right at your feet.

Truth be told, blogging has kept me sane all year. When I was an acting major, blogs like Katie's about the mundane, yet funny activities in every day life kept me connected to a much more normal, human side of me that I really missed when I was constantly in a world surrounded by people who only live for art. Nowadays, as a communications major, blogging has actually been able to keep me more attached to the creative part of me through all of the design blogs that I now immerse myself in on a daily basis. There is just a little something for everyone, and that’s why I love it.

Anything can grow if you just plant the seed, and today, I got that reminder from Confessions of a Young Married Couple.

Alright y’all, go plant some seeds!

‘Til next time…

-C

Poll!

P.S. Theres a little poll on the right side of the blog asking what kind of posts you favor on ASG. My blogging juices haven't been flowing as freely lately, so maybe this will gimme some inspiration.

Now, I HAVE GOOGLE ANALYTICS. I know more people than just my mom read this, so PLEASE for the love of goodness, just vote :)

Thanks y'all.

-C

Wedding Wednesday- Stephanie Williams Photography

So I've been contemplating starting a wedding blog since 

I spend so much of my time looking at wedding content anyway, 

but I don't want to neglect my Confessions.

So for now, I'll be adding in a little "Wedding Wednesday" feature. 

Maybe in a few weeks I'll do a poll about it to see if you guys say "yay" or "nay".

I am a little in love with Stephanie Williams Photography. 

Stephanie and her husband shoot together, and they are magNIFicent.

Did you get that? MagNIFicent.

There are a lot of places in weddings that I think can have a skimpy budget, 

but your wedding photos are something that you will have forever.  

You can't really say that about your cake or your flowers. 

This is my latest Stephanie Williams Photography sesh that I'm obsessing over.

It's Ashley and Derek's wedding in La Jolla, CA.

I love the soft colors .  

Anemones are my one of my favorite wedding flowers,

especially for winter weddings, but I think they look absolutely perfect with Ashley and Derek's Southern California wedding.

That last shot is probably one of the prettiest images I've seen...ever.

'Til next time...

-C

For the love of clothes.

Y'all, I have moved a lot in the last few years. 

My junior year of high school my family moved to a different house, my senior year I moved into an apartment in the city, then I moved to my parents house in Texas for a few months in the summer/fall. Later that fall I moved to a(n) closet apartment in Chicago, from Chicago I moved back to Texas with my parents for a few month, and then I moved to Baltimore to stay with a really good family friend for the summer. Finally, my parents moved back to Baltimore and I moved to Cincinnati for college.

Do you know what moving means?

Moving means getting rid of a.lot.of.stuff.

The longer you pack, the less crap you feel like dealing with.
The less crap you feel like dealing with, the more you begin to blindly throw heaps of clothes and miscellaneous objects in a box reserved for GoodWill.
I'm pretty sure I could have stocked 5 of their stores with everything that I gave away.
If you're a pack rat, try moving this many times and I promise you'll be throwin' things out the window that you thought you'd never part with.

I used to have a ton of clothes. Did I wear half of them? No. Is that the point? No.

The point is, with about 7 moves in the last 3-4 years, I have rid myself of many luxuries.

I'm not an extremely extravaggent person, but I found it a little sad the other day when I realized that I could probably fit almost all of my clothes in my little Nike duffle.

I never really used to buy into the whole "clothes reflect who you are" blah blah blah, not because I didn't love clothes, but because ya know...they're clothes.

But I miss them, y'all. I miss the good feeling you get when you put on a brand spankin' new dress, 

or the thrill of putting new outfits together. 

So, next month, after I've fulfilled my financial obligations of rent, food, and other miscellaneous items, 

I am going shopping.

First of all, since I'm working in the DAAP office now, I really want to invest in a few pieces that will be good for both work and play. The office is pretty laid back about what I wear since I'm a work-study student, but I can't be rollin' in my usual 8am yoga pants and t-shirt get up.

Secondly, I really, REALLY need summer clothes. I own 0 pairs of shorts. Zip. 

They ride up, they make me uncomfy, I'm just not a huge fan.

But it's summer y'all. And it's hot. And a girl needs to own some shorts.

I love these from Banana Republic.

They are such a great fit and length. It's very difficult to find shorts these days with more material than a piece of dental floss.

I also love these skirts. They are such a good alternative to shorts, 

and can be dressed up, down, and all around!

Dresses are my favorite thing to wear in the summer. You slip them on and ding dang you've got a whole outfit! I love wrap dresses but it can be hard to find them in airy and fun styles like this one. (banana republic)

I love. I want. (banana republic)

 

Is this top not beautiful? I need it.

Sadly, I've never been much of a shoe shopper because I hardly ever wear heels.

If I was just 2 or 3 inches shorter, you couldn't get me out of them. But I'm about 5'6 1/2''- 5'7 and every time I wear heels I feel like a drag queen. Don't ask me why. I can't explain it. 

For now, shoe shopping really only exists in my dreams.

'Til next time...

-C

Birthday Dinner.

I can't say enough good things about my weekend in Toronto.

I loved it.

Our hotel room was even better than I hoped it would be.

The area around our hotel was absolutely adorable and I wish I could have had more time to explore everything it had to offer. There were so many shops and restaurants that I wanted to try, but my wallet and my stomach did not have near enough room for all that Toronto had to offer in just one day.

Saturday night Trevor and I dined at The Hoof Cafe on Dundas St W.

I absolutely adore this restaurant.

I love going out to dinner, but I've never felt comfortable in really stuffy restaurants.

I'm not a very formal girl. My favorite things are pretty, yet always relaxed.

This restaurant totally fit the bill.

I loved this cabinetry.

source 1

source 2

I love the quaint elegance of this restaurant. We sat at the bar for a while and enjoyed some wine while we waited for a table, and I was so in awe by how lovely the whole atmosphere felt. In the daytime it's an adorable setting for a little brunch, and in the evening the dimmed lights and bottle of wine made it a perfect dinner place for us. On top of the amazing atmosphere, the food was great and extremely well priced. If you are in the Toronto area and haven't tried this place yet, be sure to do so!

'Til next time...

-C

Happiness-Now and Then.

This weekend I turned 20.

I've never really actually thought about getting older  on my birthday until this year.

But as I was sitting in the cab on my way to Trevor's house in Buffalo 

(after a very long, delayed flight)

I saw the clock turn to midnight, making it May 22nd, making me 20 years old.

I took a minute when I was sitting there waiting for the cab driver to pull up to Trevor's street

and thought about everything that I've accomplished, and all the ways that I've changed over the last few years.

I remembered my 15th birthday that my parents surprised me with 

in the backyard of our old house in Baltimore.

At fifteen I had zero doubts about my future as an actress.

At fifteen I had never had my heart broken.

At fifteen I had never completely fallen in love.

At fifteen I had never worried about money.

At fifteen I had yet to live on my own.

At fifteen, I hadn't been the happiest I have ever been.

Was I happy?

Yes, I was really happy. I loved my life and I smiled all the time.

But something I'm learning to appreciate as I get older is the deph of what you are able to feel as you grow and experience new things.

Maybe I found more to laugh at when I was fifteen, but I laugh deeper now.

I appreciate every laugh, every smile, every peaceful moment.

Life and Love is a tricky thing. 

I don't know how to manage either one all the time,

but this weekend I took the deepest breath I think I have taken in about a year and a half.

Driving in the car to Toronto on Saturday with Trevor and sipping wine at The Hoof Cafe later that night together, made something in me feel like it was home again.

I felt like me. And it felt really good.

I'm not sure what it was. The new city, being with Trevor, or starting a new decade.

All I know is that right now, I love where I'm headed.

I have so many endless possibilities for where my life can go.

I hope that with every birthday I still carry a little bit of that 15 year old with me,

to remind me that life is nothing if it's not an adventure, 

and to show me that relentlessly believing in your dreams and in people 

is the only way to live.

Til next time...

-C

The big 2-0.

Saturday is my birfday.

I turn 20.

It's really fun/weird to think about all of the things that will
(hopefully) happen in this new decade I am about to embark on

I better get crackin' on my 25before25 list

I leave today for my most AMAZING birthday weekend with my most wonderful boyfriend.

Tomorrow, I'll be on my way to Buffalo to spend the night with Trevor, and Saturday morning we will be driving up to Toronto for my actual birthday and staying in 

this fabulous hotel. I'm so excited!

This is our room:

 There are 37 rooms total in the whole hotel, and each is designed by a different artist. 

You even get to choose which room you want!

I loved this one because of how cozy it feels.

Stay tuned next week for lots of pictures and stories about our trip. 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

-C