Moving On Up

“Enough already! We get it. You had a perfect roommate in college. You became best friends. You didn’t want to leave her. We know!!!” complains everyone that follows me on any social media platform, or just knows me in general. And yes, I am sorry for the overload of love and sap, but these nine month sleepovers do not go as well for everyone, and I am just so grateful.

I won’t lie, in the beginning, there were times when I thought to myself, Is this seriously going to work? Living in such tight quarters with someone is not easy, and we will be the first to tell you that. We would also BOTH be the first to tell you that if someone had asked us if we’d become best friends by the end, it would have been a flat no. Madelyn and I went to grade school and high school together, so right off the bat we were breaking college roommate rule #1- Don’t room with a friend.

I do understand this philosophy of steering clear of strong relationships and branching out for the first year of college, but I am way too much of a homebody and creature of habit to be thrown into a brand new place with my bonus being a stranger to sleep in the same room with. Yeah, no thanks.

Fast forward from the worry and the secret Pinterest board planning our beautiful temporary home (which ended up as fabulous as we dreamed), Madelyn and I did not want to leave! Yes, we do understand that with a water bottle and a good playlist, we could walk to each other’s houses, but that just is not the same as spending late nights on our rug laughing about nonsense when we should clearly be studying. Or illegally making toast and grilled chicken on our forbidden grill. Or getting ready together while staying in our towel wraps for an excessive amount of time. Or knowing when we need a group nap with little lights. It just isn’t the same.

We were calm, cool, and collected about moving out until a friend had mentioned it took several hours to move out of her dorm. We looked at each other both thinking, we have sooooooo much more s t u f f than she does. We went home, turned on music, and got to work! We didn’t even know where to start, but we began by stripping the walls. Literally, paint, drywall, you name it, it came off the wall!DSC00731

We resolved this (not so) small problem like any smart girls would, a field trip to Home Depot with a piece of the wall that should have still been a part of the wall! They matched the paint, we returned, and the wall started looking better than before. No one could tell, and there was no way in heck we were going to pay fines for having cute decor.

All in all, our adorable 2409 became such a fun place where laughter and smiles came aplenty and homesick tears began to fade as the weeks went by. We have a million and one memories of our time that we made just about as fun as anyone could with plans to move on for a million and one more. That teeny tiny room gave us the friendship that we will forever be thankful for.

Next year will be much harder than I had anticipated. Don’t get me wrong, I am eager, anxious, and beyond excited to get to Mizzou, but I am sad that my best friend and roommate will not be coming with me. Instagram, we have many plans to reunite and annoy the heck out of everyone, so don’t you worry. She will be knee-deep in nursing school and I will be waist-deep in papers that I don’t know how to start, but we are moving on to bigger and better things to make our lives extra fabulous. This is my fab life, and I am oh so grateful that Madelyn is apart of it. 

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Her smile was constant. Mine came after the constant flow of tears. Because I was sad? No, no I just checked my final grade in Econ. 

 

PS: we decided that we lived so well together as roommates, we shouldn’t let it go to waist. After we graduate, we will be coming at you Monica Geller and Rachel Green style until we meet our lobsters. Now THAT will be fun.

Nineteen Fab Gifts

My Fab life grows and grows with each gift, costly or not, that I receive. While April is quickly wrapping up and I am still in that birthday mojo, I have thrown together a few of my favorite things.

19 of the Most Fabulous Gifts I’ve Received: 

  1. A trip with my mom- these tend to come often. Business trip on your kid’s birthday? Problem solved.
  2. My camera- They don’t call me the #selfiequeen for nothing. I love me a quality pic.Processed with VSCO with b1 preset
  3. Alex and Ani bracelets– My arm candy wouldn’t be complete with out them! I mean, seriously these ladies have come in clutch for the gift-giving world. Every occasion in a gold bangle- BRILLIANT! {The pineapple is, of course, my fav}.
  4. S’well water bottle– The pink bottle that completes every day’s look and keeps my water c h i l l.  Due to my water bottle fetish, my mother has limited them to gifts only (or I would literally buy them all).

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    Peep: Simplified Planner (#18)
  5. Jesus Calling– The devotional my best friend sent me in the mail. Not only do I get to reflect on and with God every day, but I get to think of her every time I read it.
  6. Bags- If you’ve ever lost me at the mall, you know where to find me–> searching for my next clutch, tote, or every day-er that I most likely (100% likely) do not need.
  7. Luggage- for real. If you’re going to look cute when you travel, then little miss suitcase better follow your lead. I love that my suitcases have gotten me through my best trips. It’s like we have a relationship (too far?). Also, a very practical and much needed gift.

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    Try to find me at the airport.
  8. THROWBACK: American Girl Dolls (+Bitty Baby)- only THE best gift a girl could ever ask for. When I was Little Lindsey, these dolls were my peeps, and I was totally THAT girl that brushed their hair, dressed them up, and then just looked at them. They’re so pretty! {Samantha will always have my heart}.
  9. Concert tickets- An event is always fun and GIVES those MEMS. My 15th birthday was complimentary of Taylor, herself. Swift, that is.
  10. The holes in my ears count for year number 8. Libby Lu (wow I am dating myself) pierced me forever with my first pair of pretty little pearls. Good thing they fit because this one is a no gift receipt kind of deal.
  11. FitBit Blaze– The ultimate “I don’t text in class and I don’t get 10k steps every day” electronic device. It may cause wrist radiation, but that hasn’t stopped me from buying more bands on Amazon.

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    Soft smiles for FabFit!!
  12. Lip gloss & Perfume- All. Day. Long. If we’re talking lip gloss, the Stilas are my favorite!! My collection is unhealthy but, hello, all light pinks serve different purposes. As for perfume, I got Marc Jacobs’ Daisy for Christmas this past year, and I am honestly still trying to decide if I like the smell or the bottle better. Hmm?
  13. Cards- Not gift cards. And no, not the ones that rain money. Don’t get me wrong, those are fab, but the kind that have sweet words. Being the hoarder I am, every card I have ever received is in a hot pink box under my bed. (When you are writing your cards, remember that people DO read them!!)Processed with VSCO with f2 preset
  14. A playlist- Literally free. Literally the best. My “poor” brother (fo real, dirtttt poor) made me a Spotify playlist and, well, it made My Top 19, so that’s something. I love listening to it thinking about him adding songs that he knows I love, smiling at our favorites, and laughing at some of the funnies he snuck in. (He keeps me hip.)
  15. Shoes- ALL of them. The April birthday is perfectly times for those new spring flippies. My summer Havainas are usually thanks to making it another year older.

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    Yes, all of my toes are the same length.
  16. Powerbeats3 Wireless Earphones– Well, well, well I recently received my first pair of these magical buds and they have quickly become my best buds. (I even had to look the name up because I don’t keep up with new technology! Shhhh…)! They accompany me on every run, but my favorite part…I can squat WITH music WITHOUT holding my phone. Boom.
  17. Birthday donuts- When someone wakes up 10 minutes earlier for a donut run to give your birthday a few more sprinkles, keep them. I repeat, they are keepers!!

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    I spy Alex and Ani. I spy a hat.
  18. A signed copy of Emily Ley’s, Grace Not Perfection– We all know my obsession, so there’s no need for an explanation. One question though: who else is counting the hours until Monday’s Simplified Planner release?
  19. Hats- I’m a hat girl, and tHAT’s a fact. I have a million of these lifesavers, and the majority have been gifts. My people know me so well (and by knowing, I mean they KNOW I wake up 5 minutes before walking out the door). Here’s my go-to STL classic.

Gifts are so special. We all know that gift card runs to Walgreens are sometimes the easiest option, but a well thought out gift can show how much you value the relationship or friendship. Like I said, I love love love wearing, using, or just simply having things that other people wanted me to give me. They DO NOT have to be expensive and some don’t even have to cost! I will be the first to admit that I like nice things, but who doesn’t? Gifts are all about thought, which is why simple HBD texts, tweets, instas, and FB messages go a long way. Everybody loves a birthday shoutout.

In all seriousness though, I don’t know what’s better: receiving a gift or being the GIVER. Sometimes when I’m on the hunt for that special gift, it’s hard for me to stop. Or or or isn’t it the best when you find the PERFECT gift? And you just have to give it to them unwrapped because they obviously need it. Right now. If you are in the gift-giving role anytime soon (or it’s just time to treat yourself), I hope this list helps you make someone else’s (aka your) life even more fab.

A Prayer, The Thank You Kind

College. College is hard. It turns out that change is more constant than routine, giving our lives a rather fluid consistency. Friends that I have just met this year are coming in and out, grades are… well, out the window, but “good” can serve its purpose when asked, and home is just a few miles too far away. Like I said, it’s hard. The one constant that always remains? He has been there for me when other people have not (or when mom just doesn’t have enough time to squeeze a road trip into her Tuesday lunch). God — good old God.

God,

Thank you for my people. I love them. I love them a lot!

Thank you for the people that have not stayed in my life. They taught me things about myself, and I needed to meet them.

Thank you for keeping me grounded in college.

Thank you for letting me make mistakes. I’m learning that learning curves are my best curves.

Thank you for the days when you know I need a Netflix episode in bed so my teachers relax on homework (which could come more often if You were wondering.)

Thank you for my heart, that I try to give to everyone, but keep for myself when I know I should.

Thank you for my planner. I’m fully aware that it is irrelevant because You have a mind of Your own, but it looks pretty and makes me think I have it all together.

Thank you for leading me through life with a plan. A plan that I would love to know every detail of and write it in my pretty calendar for next year, but cannot. It simply does not work that way, and I will eventually come to terms with it (But for now, I’m going to just let You keep ruining them- apparently it’s more fun that way).

Thank you for motivation and determination.

Thank you for FaceTime and texting.

Thank you for children.

Thank you for wise (old) people to teach us all they know.

Thank you for dogs. Puppies in particular, but they are all pretty cute.

Thank you for hot showers on rainy days.

Thank you for my smile, her smile, his smile, and all of their smiles. (Some of Your best work, in my opinion).

Thank you for the power to further knowledge every single day. Just when I think I’m getting super smart, I go and learn something new.

Thank you for ALL the coffee to get me through the paper I waited last minute to write.

Thank you for a good grade on the previously mentioned, extremely procrastinated, paper.

Thank you for keeping me safe.

Thank you for chocolate. And ice cream — don’t forget the ice cream.

Thank you for my role models to guide me through life.

Thank you for my health.

Thank you for books and stories to captivate our thoughts.

Thank you for the beauty within the earth, itself.

Thank you for the sunshine, the clouds, the rain, and the thunderstorms that remind us that You are indeed still up there.

Thank you for the bed that lets me dream my dreams and stay up past midnight thinking my thinks.

Thank you for opportunities — ALL of them.

Thank you for french fries — the crinkly ones.

Thank you for the beach that gives me all the feels.

Thank you for my memories. I love them.

Thank you for blessing me in so many ways.

God, most importantly, thank you, thank you, thank you for listening.

The most sincere thank you’s do not have to be the deepest. It is true that many people think a prayer must be the rosary on your knees. Well, I am here to tell you that I talk to God probably 101 times a day, and trust me, I’m not on my knees!! It’s kind of like shooting your high school BFF that “Happy Wednesday!! I miss you!” text. Every person’s prayer is different, but it’s the actual prayer that counts. How the message gets to God does not matter. Clouds are my trigger. A sky full of beautiful clouds instantly sends a little thank you card up to The Big Guy from me.

I’m grateful. And oh boy, I’m so, so thankful.

What are you thankful for?