2016 Word of the Year

So I have tried, and failed, at New Year's Resolutions as much as the next girl. This year I've decided I'm starting new traditions, one of those is the whole Breakup Challenge, the to other is going to be my word of the year. This year, I've chosen adventure.

What does my word of the year mean? It means that is my focus. Adventure is defined as an unusual and exciting, typically hazardous, experience or activity. My adventures won't all be hazardous, but where else would the adrenaline rush come from? It means that in 2016 I am going to treat every day, every activity like an adventure. 

I'm planning to be a tourist in my own town, there's a lot to do in Atlanta y'all. I'm planning to try things I wouldn't have beforehand so far, I've learned that I actually do like sushi.. I'm going to put myself out there, get outside of my comfort zone, and explore. I couldn't be more excited. 

I will be honest, I'm still brainstorming a hashtag for it, so any suggestions are super welcome. ALSO if you want to join along on adventuring with me this year, I'd love to see where your adventures take you. So let's get to work on that hashtag and it's gonna be the bomb.com. What is your focus for this year?

Not All Who Wander Are Lost

If I didn't put that title in quotes, does someone think I'm trying to take credit for that statement? I'm not. I also didn't write Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit. You know, in case you thought maybe I did that too. Anyways. Now that we've cleared all of that up, I have to say it,  I am lost. I realized it today at work when one of my supervisors asked me what my personal, not work, goals were. I realized I didn't have any. I hadn't had any since I started working. The girl who always has a plan didn't have one. I'm kind of freaking out. 

I don't really talk about my anxiety anywhere. I've started talking about it more in my real life to people who I know are fellow anxious people because I know they won't think I'm trying to get attention. I'm scared to talk about my anxiety because I don't want people to think I just want attention. It's a real fear. 

Two weeks ago I had a panic attack at work and I couldn't calm myself down. I've been having them since high school, that's the first one I really remember. I was in the hallway at school during a class change then all of a sudden I couldn't breathe. I didn't know what was happening or where I was or what to do. I didn't tell anyone about it for probably two more years. The one I had at work was worse than any I've ever had before. I had to have my aunt come pick me up from the office and take me home. 

Then today I started panicking over "what are your personal goals for the rest of September + October?" Which leads me to believe I need to come up with a plan, get back to the basics of what drives me over the weekend. That, combined with the outstanding timing of Chelsea's post yesterday reminded me that this is it, we just get the one life. I am going to start spending it better. (plus that Ryan Adams 1989 came out. you need to listen to that too.) Any suggestions on my next step will be very welcome...

Weekly Wishes + December Goals

Oh man, I totes forgot to do weekly wishes last week! So I don't have any wishes to catch up on. Let's start with November goals, huh? 

November Goals

start planning for europe : big. fat. fail. that's definitely going in December because HOMYGOD I leave in 21 days. Three. Weeks. From. Today. I'll be on a plane to Amsterdam by way of Philly. ahh

participate in the holiday hunny challenge : fail pants here too. I've been hitting roughly my 2 miles a day quota but nothing else. so half a fail. I could still get to #100byChristmas...

take more pictures : I was better this month fo'sho. check out November Through The Lens + Instagram! 

December Goals:

create a packing list + plan for Europe : eleven days is a long time right? I have to pack strategically. I am also genuinely freaking out about it and I think a list will make me feel a little less nervous. 

set up guest posts for while I'm gone : wanna be a poster? I mean, eleven days is a long time. shoot me an email if you're up for it!! 

pictures. duh.

create a set of goals for 2015. because it's a new year and we'll obviously need some new goals. 

this week's wishes 

spending freeze // because Europe costs money, or something. I mean I want to go see Harry Potter + Hogwarts + the Sherlock Holmes exhibit. 

plan who to sponsor in January // because that's the first step in my plan to make this space something other people will pay to sponsor, duh! 

What are your goals this week? 

Weekly Wishes :: Eighteen

I cannot believe that it is already Thanksgiving. THANKSGIVING! December is next. week. next week. Oh my goodness. THAT MEANS I LEAVE FOR EUROPE IN LIKE. SIX WEEKS. oh. okay. I'm freaking out now. So there's that. Let's just jump right into weekly wishes with The Nectar Collective, huh?

last week's wishes::

get to work on the bar cart // so the cart my grandmother found was mislabeled and the price was too much, but we went to a junk store + haggled for a bakers rack! boom! I'm so excited. I've started scrounging for frames too. 

two miles a day. duh. // okay. so technically it wasn't two miles a day, but I did do 10 miles last week between the bike and my regular walks! 

finish the blog business plan // still working on this one, look out, maybe I'll share it this week. probably not. probably next week. 

this week's wishes:: 

make a tasty desert for thanksgiving and remember to take pictures so I can blog it // I'm thinking sopapilla cheesecake, because yum and it's so easy.

two miles a day // I'm hitting #100byChristmas if my legs fall off. 

finish the blog business plan // for obvious reasons. I'm hoping to do something serious in 2015. and I love a good plan! 

Okay! That's what I want to get done this week! I even managed to write and schedule three posts for this week over the weekend in my football sofa fort. Multitasking for the win! What are you going to accomplish this holiday week? Do you have any deserts you want to share? OH ALSO. you need to check out Melissa's super fantastic hack for a Starbucks Peppermint Mocha. yum. 

Weekly Wishes + One Lovely Blog!

Oh hello blogland! It's Monday again, so obviously it's time to wrap up my weekly wishes with TNC + also the prettiest princess there ever was, Bri over at All That's Glittered, nominated me for a One Lovely Blog award! I have all the energy today because I went to sleep at 6:30 pm last night [Athens: 1, Kasey: 0] and I'm jamming to Christmas music! Let's do it to it!

last week's wishes::

clean the apartment// check!! I mean we did manage to make a huge mess Saturday morning. By we, I mean me. By making Deep Fried Tequila shots. Keep an eye out for a post on that later this week, without an "after" picture because I kinda burnt them so they weren't pretty, also we were trying to run out the door. but they are delicious. or they were. they were all gone as soon as I started handing them out.

two miles per day for #100byChristmas// okay. I kind of failed at this. but I made up for it. I'm just not letting myself off the hook. I wanted 10 miles last week, and I managed it. but gameday walking, I just don't know if it counts. I mean I'm sore as all can be from trotting all over campus in cowboy boots + all of the stairs man. But I didn't do two a day. I'm keeping this goal for this week again.

last payment for Europe!! // so I am set up on an automatic transfer plan because it saved me $$$ and I would have to cancel it and schedule the payment to have it process more before next Wednesday. But it's paid off either way!! happy dance! Also it's only 41 DAYS AWAY!!!

this week's wishes:: 

get to work on the bar cart // my grandmother found me an old tea cart at a junk store, so I'm going to get that from her + start making it pretty!! I'll totally post updates on instagram, so you should probably be following me there. sorry not sorry for that shameless plug...

two miles a day. duh. // I can already feel myself trying to make an excuse for tonight, because I'm mega sore from the weekend. maybe I can do the stationary bike and catch up on some reading? 

finish the blog business plan // this is pretty self explanatory, but I'm trying to plan for 2015! can you believe it's already almost Thanksgiving!? where has 2014 gone?

Here are the rules - because we all know how good I am at following the rules. 

• Thank the person who nominated you
• Add the One Lovely Blog Award Logo on your post/blog 
• Share 7 Facts about yourself
• Nominate 15 (okay 10-15?) Bloggers you admire & let them know by commenting on their blog

Okay! So 7 random facts::

1. I have a real talent when it comes to opening champagne bottles. I never make a mess or shoot the cork across the yard. This is a skill that I think would be relevant on a resume but I'm pretty sure I shouldn't put it on there.
2. I've worn glasses since middle school, but I probably needed them earlier. My parents thought I just wanted to be trendy. 
3. Speaking of my parents, growing up my dad had this camo cooler and they convinced me I couldn't see it. I believed it for a really long time until I finally figured out that it wasn't ever there. 
4. I love love jumping in puddles. I don't think I will ever grow out of it. I put my rain boots to WORK y'all. I really love the rain. 
5. I am super competitive, so I've learned a lot about myself by having a losing fantasy football team. 
6. I have serious haircut anxiety. Don't tell me it's not a real thing. I have panic attacks when I try out new hair salons, the man who has been cutting my hair forever even knows to talk me through a hair cut. It's probably ridiculous, but so am I. 
7. I fall down more than normal people probably should. If you don't see a bruise or seven on my legs, then you're probably not looking at my legs. 

Now for my nomineeeeees!

Melissa at the Rambling Llama -- totally cheating because I know she's already been nominated. See what I mean about rules?

Melissa at Daily Chaos.

Megan at Chasing Pradas + PR

Laura at Port City Party

Michelle at Becoming a Heath

okay so maybe that's only five. You know how I feel about rules anyways. OH PS don't forget today is the last day to enter Becca's birthday giveaway!! 

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This Week's To-Do List

Okay, so I love all of the weekend adventures I've been going on. I'm not even going to complain about spending over 30 hours in the car in the span of two weekends. This weekend is a short trip to Athens, then next weekend I might not get out of bed once. I might hibernate. Can I catch up on three weekends worth of sleep in two days? Challenge accepted. Anyways, since yesterday I did my tour through blogland, we didn't catch up on weekly wishes! 

last week's wishes:: 

that super fun craft project :: okay. this is finished + not finished. every pinterest tutorial saying that hot glue will hold together wine corks is a liar liar pants on fire. I put together my wine cork initial with hot glue, only burned myself twice and pulled my hair into the gun once [seriously, I need constant adult supervision..] but then as soon as it was all dry + cool, I stood it up to take the after picture for the blog, and the loop part of the P fell off. wtf mate. I'm going to try something else to stick them together, then I'll be pinterest famous because I'll have found the perfect wine cork bonding agent! 

schedule at least four posts :: fail. get it together, self. I did start four different posts, that counts right?

minimal dining out :: SUCCESS. Last week I managed to not eat out at all. Actually. That is a lie. I did manage to not eat out using any of my dollars, which was the goal. To celebrate, yesterday I went to Kohl's and spent too much money stocking up on new tights (because all of mine have holes in them. not just runs, holes. I can't have anything nice.) and buying the perfect new gameday dress. 

this week's wishes::

clean the apartment :: Auburn weekend means lots of sleepover guests! It's actually pretty clean already, since my roommate had company last weekend. 

two miles per day towards #100ByChristmas :: I don't want to lose any weight? But I want to stay skinny and maybe build some muscle, but really just make sure I can eat all the Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners and still be able to wear the clothes I already own to Europe. 

LAST PAYMENT FOR EUROPE EVER:: I will have my whole 9 day trip paid off completely by next Wednesday. HOW cool is that? I've paid for an entire trip to Europe! I'm such a grownup. 

What are your goals this week? Is ones of them to win $250? You should check out the giveaway Becca put together for her birthday!

Goals + Wishes + Pictures, Oh My!

So I'm already on my second [if my first was a grande from starbs, does that make it my third?] cup of coffee today. I do need to do a major shout out, I don't think I would have been capable of getting out of bed this morning without Daylight Savings. I'm sure when I get home from work + it's already dark, I'll be singing a different song, but right now I'm digging it. I have all the things today, wishes, goals, AND through the lens! Let's do it to it!

ps, I took this picture with my iPhone. Can you believe that? hashtag thanks VSCO cam.

Last Week's Wishes //

just kidding. I didn't accomplish any of them because I could not get my act together last week. I didn't even pack for the weekend until Friday morning before work. I had 400 instagram followers for about a day, then as soon as I said something about it, I lost 5? so... I'll just leave that there. 

This Week's Wishes //

that super fun craft project :: that I am going to knock out this week. has anyone used liquid nails instead of hot glue for wine corks? I'm only 34% sure I can find my hot glue gun... 

schedule at least four posts :: how many times can I talk about my editorial calender and not post about how I made it? 

minimal dining out :: I have the Auburn game to save up for and I also need a new gameday dress now... so I'm shooting to make almost all of my meals this week [exception: special occasions like a birthday...] 

November goals // 

Since I already recapped October goals + how I kicked butt here I'm going to go ahead + skip to November goals. [BUT HOW IS IT NOVEMBER ALREADY]

start planning everything for while I'm in Europe :: oh my god, my Europe trip is officially "next month" I'm panicking a little. It's already paid off [what whaaaat] but I have to plan blog things since I'm on the fence about toting my laptop around Europe... anyone want to guest post between 12/29-1/8? 

actually participate in the Holiday Hunny challenge // I hit 99 by Halloween because I totally forgot that I would spend almost all of actual Halloween in a car Jacksonville bound. I'm actually quite irritated with myself because 99 out of 100 is so stinking close. So here's hoping I kick #100byChristmas booty. 

take more pictures // I promised a million times to take all the pictures at Georgia Florida + all I ended up taking pictures of were the sunset after the game + one really sad, cold face at the end of the game. liar liar pants on fire. 

SPEAKING of pictures, let's look at October through the lens!

LeBeaufest 14 || The Lucky Dress [I think that picture is technically September, oooops] || Oktoberfest in Helen || Georgia Voter! -- in making this collage, I realize I did a horrible job of taking pictures in October. Get it together, self.. 

So! What do you have planned for November? Linking up all the places because it's Monday, obviously..

Weekly Wishes Fourteen!

HAPPY GEORGIA FLORIDA WEEK Y'ALL! 
It is officially the last Monday in October! I cannot believe it. I totally failed at my pumpkin patch goal, I'm sure I can stop by one in like a parking lot. but it's just not the same. I do believe this is as good a time as any to catch up on my October goals + weekly wishes!

October Goals //

blog every weekday in October // we're on pace for that! I've even scheduled a few posts for this week. 

mast at least one aspect of manual shooting // GUYS. I think I have a good grasp on the whole aperture thing and I'm pretty proud of it. I'll do a photo dump one day this week...

get on top of my budget // CHECK IT. y'all I've saved TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS for Europe. CHECK THAT! 

Last week's wishes // 

finish my book for blogging for books // okay, well I read most of it, keep an eye out for the review this week! 

write + schedule all of my "five things to know" posts // duh I realized that I couldn't completely do this because I like to include what happened the games before and stuff. I do have them all started though! I'm considering it a success because I did start all of them. 

find a ticket for gafl // DONE. It may or may not be in the Florida section, man it's a good thing I'm pretty. 

corn. maze. // womp womp womppp

This week's wishes //
clean the stove // we don't use two of our stove burners because they smell bad when they get hot. I'm assuming this is because they're dirty, so I'll be trying to clean the kitchen this week..
super fun arts and crafts project // I have another wine cork project planned! I want to get it done this week, or at least started this week...
hit 300 likes on facebook // I am a measly 13 likes away. Have you liked me on facebook yet? [side note, I'm two followers away from 400 on Instagram, wanna be lucky 400??]
finish my book + review for blogging for books // I'm so close y'all.

With that, I'm going to get back to work. What are your goals this week? Linking up for Weekly Wishes, obviously! 

Weekly Wishes [lucky thirteen]

No, you've watched Hocus Pocus at least fifteen times already and it's not even Halloween yet... October is going pretty well, can we talk about the lucky dress being nine and zero. NINE wins + zero losses. Can we just? Let's talk last week's wishes + make some more!

last week's wishes ::

figure out Georgia/Florida // all but done! I just need to get my hands on a ticket + I'll be all set. World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail party, here I come! Anyone want to donate a ticket? I promise I'll wear the dress! 

corn. maze // son of a biscuit. we were planning on it but then didn't get our act together, maybe I'll roll this one over to this week..

ask someone to take my picture // hollaaa -- I've had a couple of people offer, because they're the bomb.com, including Jennifer @ Tin Can Cozy. Now I just need to get my act together enough to get my picture made! 

this week's wishes

finish my book for blogging for books // I mean, come on. It's been sitting on my dresser, I love to read, I'll just have to make an effort to finish it, write my review, and pick my next book!! 

write + schedule all of my "five things to know" posts // there are plenty of games left and helloooo easy day taken care of right there. Biggest ones being GAFL, Auburn, + Tech.

find a ticket for gafl // because duh. 

corn. maze. // see above.

Honorable mentions// clean up + out my closet [honestly, can't I pay someone to do this? I'm offering margaritas and sopapilla cheesecake, plus my eternal love if you do my laundry...], accomplish 10 miles towards "100 By Halloween" since I'm on track to hit 100, complete the perfect gameday playlist, and take more pictures with my fancy camera! 

Obviously, it's Weekly Wishes time, so I'm linking up! What shit are you gonna get done this week?

Lebeaufest 14 + Weekly Wishes

I've been battling a stupid cold this week, so I didn't do too many exciting things this weekend, but I did manage to knock half a thing off of my fall bucket list! It was too damn hot Saturday night, but we still had a bonfire -- I even bought s'more stuff, but we didn't quite get around to making them. The bonfire was at Jennifer from Tin Can Cozy's annual Lebeaufest! So I'm going to share some of my pictures + then a quick recap on weekly wishes!

Lebeaufest did not disappoint, never does. Plus we had the musical stylings of Steve Nebraska, who has an album coming out soon! Now let's see how I did on my weekly wishes..

last week's wishes: 
have a no spend week // I'm counting this as a success, because the only thing I did spend money on was groceries + cold medicine. ps, I discovered that Alkaseltser's daytime cold medicine has some caffeine in it, so I wouldn't recommend it if you're trying to nap..

knock off two things from my fall bucket list // oops. failed at that one. did cross bonfire off the list, and I bought s'mores stuff! we had planned to go to the corn maze sunday, but it rained all morning so we didn't, and obviously in the afternoon the sun came out and it was beautiful.

finish decorating my bathroom // I did really poorly this week. I can't even blame it on being sick because I didn't admit I was sick until Thursday. wah wah.

this weeks wishes:
figure out georgia/florida // I have a ride to Jacksonville but I haven't made any plans other than that, I feel like this week is the "figure it out, or stay in Atlanta" week. So we'll see where I can get on that. maybe I should work on getting tickets for Auburn + Tech too...

corn. maze. // make it happen, captain! so many fun pictures to be made!

ask someone to take my picture // I want to put my stuff on the Atlanta Bloggers website [ ps how awesome did Becca + Melissa do on that website?! ] but I don't have a nice picture of myself and everyone else looks so pretty! So I need something that resembles a headshot and at the very least doesn't feature me being at the bar, which is where most of my cute pictures come from.

What are your goals this week? Linking up with The Nectar Collective for Weekly Wishes!

Weekly Wishes :: Eleven + A Giveaway!!

These wishes go to eleven! I'm linking up with TNC, because I like to get shit done.. Let's start with how I did last week and then move on to this week!

last week's wishes ::

work on my editorial calendar // check it y'all. I even planned a post to talk about my editorial calendar, so how 'bout them apples?

organize my closet // okay well just no. I'm the worst. 

knock three things off my fall bucket list // hey -- two is close to three right? I'll post about the adventure that is Oktoberfest in Helen later this week too. Pumpkin beers were probably cheating though. I mean I'd drink pumpkin beer if it wasn't on my bucket list too..

this week's wishes :: 

have a no spend week // aside from the obvious expenses [gas + probably groceries]. I need to be saving for Europe anyways..

knock off at least two things from my fall bucket list // you know, kick butt, take names, do better than I did on my summer one. it's so bad I'm not even going to link back to it..

finish decorating my bathroom // I'm almost done and it will also make a great blog post. I'm apparently at a point in my life where I think through by saying "oh I should take pictures of this so I can blog about it" 

So that's what I have on the schedule for this week. Hopefully it will keep me from stressing about the UGA vs. Mizzou game this weekend, that's for like all the marbles right now. What are you working on this week? 

OH but before you go how about entering to win fun stuff from Sephora! Happy Monday!! 

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OCTOBER GOALS!

Monday is like a bad penny y'all. Keeps showing up. This past weekend, I easily lost ten years off of my life by not breathing for the last three minutes of the UGA game. Then the Falcons broke my heart, again. So let's recap on Weekly Wishes + goals. OH and I guess since October is Wednesday, I should probably set those goals too. I can't handle it. Let's start with September's goals!

september goals ::

increase followers -- Y'ALL. I particpiated in Rebekah's September giveaway and not only did I grow followers, but I made new friends! OH AND I HIT 100 BLOGLOVIN' FOLLOWERS. A HUNDRED! 

make more pinable images to strengthen photoshop skills -- I played around with photoshop a lot. even used it to edit all my fancy camera pictures. so, success

take more pictures --  I've already started putting together my September Through the Lens [I always want to spell it lense and that's not a word] post + I took oodles more pictures this month than last month. 

blog every weekday in september -- I ONLY HAVE ONE MORE DAY TO GO. y'all. ONE MORE DAY AND I ALREADY WROTE AND SCHEDULED IT! sorry for the screaming.  

last week's wishes :: 

organize my closet // nope. I actually made it worse. oops. we'll just roll it over to this week..

write + schedule my posts for #blogtober14 // oops. I didn't finish this, but I did start it. soo that's sort of a success. 

plan something cool for Thursday because I'm holding the Blog Baton! // oh good! I did accomplish one of them!! I had all sorts of fun holding the Blog Baton last week! 

this week's wishes :: 

work on my editorial calendar //  so I made one, but I haven't really done anything else with it. Now it's time to plan posts + be organized. boom. 

organize my closet... for obvious reasons. 

knock three things off of my fall bucket list // uh oh. that's probably a lot. but I have at least one, maybe two planned for this weekend. so I should be able to swing three! 

october goals :: 

blog every weekday in October // if I could do it in September, why can't I do it in October?

master at least one aspect of manual shooting with my camera // I'm still learning how to get the right lighting + aperture settings down. so I'll keep taking pictures and get better. 

get on top of my budget // in line with needing to organize my closet and be an adult, I should really get on top of my budget as well. so I'll be pinning and researching and building something I can really stick to. I promise I'll share if I come across anything super helpful! [other than ebates, because if you shop online and you don't use ebates, you're throwing money away.]

That's it for me today, what are your goals for October? 

Weekly Wishes + A Giveaway!

Oh, Monday. Here you are again. I'm in a substantially better mood than last Monday because the Falcons played pretty well on Thursday night and UGA did okay too... So we're back again for weekly wishes with the Nectar Collective, let's see how I did!

last week’s wishes ::

use "teach yourself photography" lessons every day // I took easily 400 pictures last week. how about that? I mean, I like to take a bunch of pictures at once to make sure I get a good one [+ even more candid ones, because those are usually so much better]. I shared some from the Braves game, how do you think I'm doing?

continue to limit spending on dining out // ALL I wanted for dinner Thursday night was takeout + I managed to refrain mostly because I didn't want to miss any of TNF. So I did well again this week! 

Work out every day this week // okay so I didn't get any long runs in, or even any really long walks in, but I did get about a mile every day -- so that totally counts. 

this week's wishes ::

organize my closet // Thursday night I cleaned the apartment, obviously because it wasn't on my to-do list for the week. I have an oversized walk in closet that will hold all of my clothes and probably could be a bedroom, so I shouldn't have piles of clothes on the floor, because apparently at 25 you're supposed to pretend to be an adult. So closet organization + maybe cleanout are in order. 

write + schedule my posts for #blogtober14 // in keeping with my new addiction to blogging every weekday, I've already decided which prompts I'm going to use so, in theory, I should be able to write those ahead of time + schedule them. hello preplanning!

plan something cool for Thursday because I'm holding the Blog Baton! // YEAH! You read that right! I will be taking over the Blog Baton Instagram on Thursday, September 25th + I'll have to do some fun stuff, obviously! 

Hand in hand with my September goal of increasing followers, I'm participating in this killer giveaway that Rebekah put together! What would you do with $100 to J. Crew?

Living Lavender // Dream Big And Buy The Shoes // Our Nashville Life // The Mile Advisor

Love The Here And Now // Becoming Adorrable // Kasey At The Bat // Blogs Like A Girl

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Weekly Wishes :: Eight

No, I do not want to talk about that game Saturday or anything else any of my sports teams did this weekend. All I want to do is sit in bed and eat froyo and not talk about how the SEC officials redefined a first down or how the Braves got swept again. I just don't okay? So let's do weekly wishes, see what I did last week, and where I am on this month's goals!

last week’s wishes ::

limit spending by not going out for dinner // success! Well, sort of. I did go out on Tuesday night, but my mom bought my dinner, bonus – I didn’t go out to eat any over the weekend either, so of the $50 I budgeted for the weekend, I still have $35. How about that?

create an editorial calendar for the rest of 2014. // okay so I didn’t finish this, but I started. I also wrote out all of the ideas that I have for the rest of September in my planner. I decided I wanted to make something reusable rather than something that would just cover me for the rest of 2014. So, half win at least!

get back to applying for jobs //  I’ve applied for two this week, and I think I’m going to go to the Falcons thing on Thursday. Even if I don’t find a job, maybe I’ll get in front of the right people. Even if I don’t get in front of the right people, I’ll at least get to go to the Falcons game. So the silver lining has a silver lining..

this week’s wishes ::

use these "teach yourself photography" lessons every day // I want to practice every single day this week to [duh] become a better photographer. I’m going to make sure I get my money’s worth for everything.

continue to limit spending on dining out // maybe I should really sit down + build a better budget, but I’m thinking eating at home more will make my life better. Not that I’ll be bailing on adventures or anything, just less drive through + takeout.

Work out every day this week // no excuses. I’m going to hit that #100byHalloween if my legs fall off in the process. so this is going to happen.

september goals ::

increase followers – I’ve been doing well in all of these! I’ve been slowly but surely increasing followers all around, so if you’re new, welcome! Plus, this month I’m hanging out on Becca + Steph’s side bars! Check that out!

make more pinable images to strengthen photoshop skills – still a work in progress, I did use photoshop to resize + watermark all of my pictures from my fancy new camera!

take more pictures – I am taking pictures of ridiculous things, but it’s so much fun. I’m also toting my camera everywhere. Sorry not sorry for being that person.

blog every weekday in september – hayooooo 11 for 11. How about them apples? oh + not to brag, but thanks to making myself sit down + work on an editorial planner, I have all of this week at least planned if not already half finished. boom. 

Being able to track the progress of my goals here really keeps me honest. It also helps me visualize my success and honestly it's a nice little ego boost that I normally need on Monday. I'm predicting this to be a great week, I have the Cole Swindell concert tomorrow to look forward to, and you know, pay day on Friday! What are your goals for this week? 

Weekly Wishes

Apparently in order to get my laundry done, the first thing I had to do was take it off of my goals list and accept that it wasn't going to happen. I'm not sure what that really says about my type A, goal + list oriented personality though.. Anyways, here are my weekly wishes/goals + super soon updates on September goals!

weekly wishes
limit spending by not going out for dinner // we eat out a lot. I need to curb that for a little while at least so that I can start saving for Europe. My trip is in 111 days which is going to go by so fast. I had a nightmare the other day that my trip was the next day + that I had the amount in the bank available for my trip and I had a meltdown. So my goal is to save at least $50 this week by not going out for dinner as often.

create an editorial calendar for the rest of 2014. // I'm a planner, I haven't been applying that aspect of my personality to my blog and I really should be. I've seen and pinned countless guides to creating and maintaining editorial calendars, I just need to sit down for an hour or so and do it. Maybe I'll knock out a media kit while I'm at it.

get back to applying for jobs // I've kind of settled into my role managing the office and accepted that it's my job and I've kind of let finding a job in sports fall to the back burner. I'm considering attending the Falcons Networking event -- they're calling it a career fair, but I seriously doubt anyone will actually be hiring at the event. I'm burnt out on not knowing if I'll have a job at the end of the season.

september goals -- 
increase followers -- so my inner mathematician is really cute, 10% of 300 is only 3 which is where I already hit that goal on Instagram. I'm not even sure where those new followers came from, I think they want me to follow their band... so I'm modifying this to be 30% which is still a very attainable number. by the way, are you following bloglovin', instagram, twitter, and facebook?

make more pinable images to strengthen photoshop skills -- this is obviously a work in progress, but I did make that image at the top of this post!

take more pictures -- I have been stalking my amazon.com order for my DSLR since I placed it Friday. It still hasn't shipped and I'm ready to break out in hives over it. Just give it amazon, just put it on the truck please.

blog every weekday in september -- six for six!! In case you missed it last week, I compiled three easy steps to help you not be a big fat jerk.

bonus// if you haven't seen it already, Korked Bats put together a gallery of sad Urban Meyer pictures and everything was well.

Make sure you head on over to the Nectar Collective to see what everyone else is hoping to accomplish this week! How happy did the gallery of sad Urban Meyer's make you?

Thursday Things + September Goals

I've been trying to be better and more accountable with my goals, you know by posting them on the Internet so people can be like Kasey, you said you were going to organize your closet this week but it still looks like all of your dirty laundry is in a pile on the floor. That hasn't happened yet, but it really should because I haven't done any of my laundry.. Let's see how I did on my August goals anyways.

august goals ::
pick three new blogs to sponsor for September  --  oops, looks like I only did two.. but I'll be hanging out on Becca's sidebar in September + Rebekah's in November!!

put my agenda to work – obviously forever a work in progress, I've been doing pretty well.. probably because it's just so damn cute.

run/walk/exercise three days a week – two days is better than no days. I may still have shin splints from all the Athens walking... whooops.

september goals ::
increase followers -- I managed to hit 30 bloglovin' followers without even setting a goal, so I'd like to use the month of September to increase bloglovin' followers, Facebook fans, Twitter, and Instagram followers by 10% -- this goal should come with some kind of plan to gain followers, but I haven't figured that part out yet. 

make more pinable images to strengthen photoshop skills -- I was really proud of my Oliver Wilde quote last week and I'd like to make at least one per month from here on out to strengthen my photoshop skills and boost Pinterest stats.

take more pictures -- when I put together August Through the Lens, I didn't have much to choose from because I slacked on the whole picture taking aspect. Hopefully I'll be getting my new camera sometime this month so I will need to take lots of pictures to learn to use it well and become a semi-decent photographer. Practice makes perfect you know..

blog every weekday in september -- there are plenty of challenges and linkups to help me on days that I have writers block. plus so far I'm 4 for 4. this should also help me with all of my other goals, so how about that!

I'm slowly but surely becoming more ready for fall, with the bonfires and spiked apple cider and Halloween! Also the whole leggings every day, that's going to happen too. Do you have anything you want to accomplish in September?

Weekly Wishes!

Update update update! Today doesn't feel like such a bummer of a Monday, it's probably because I think I slept about 98% of yesterday. Naps really matter y'all. SO I'm linking up my weekly wishes, updates on last weeks wishes, and updates on my monthly goals!!

update on last week's wishes ::

be productive at work – success! Except that I was so productive last week I have substantially less to keep me occupied this week…

clean the apartment – sort of success – we kept the common area pretty clean because people came over, my closet + bathroom still need some love though.

start saving for my camera – ACCIDENTAL SUCCESS. Mother nature intervened + kept us from really partying hard this weekend – so I saved all of the money I would have spent at the bar!  

blog every day this week – ayooo another success – I even hit 10,000 page views!!!!!!!!!

august goals ::

pick three new blogs to sponsor for September  --  I have picked who I want to sponsor, now I just need to buy the space + create a new button! Plus, the meet-up last week was so great! So many new friends!  

put my agenda to work – obviously a work in progress – I did add everything already planned to it though [including when I’m holding the blog baton in September!!!!]

run/walk/exercise three days a week – two days is close right?

Atlanta Blogger Babes courtesy of Melissa!

this week’s wishes ::

streamline the blog layout + simplify it -- Jessica wrote in her blogger tips about creating a logo + streamlining your design as a blogger tip + my design is pretty ADD, like me, so it needs a little focus..
laundry laundry laundry -- part of the reason my closet needs so much love is because I have all of my laundry on the floor [sorted into loads, obviously.]
clean + wash my car -- poor Jude is covered in so many dead bugs you can't even tell it's a white car. whoooops.

What are your goals for this week? For inspiration, I will leave you with this video of the Manning brothers rapping about Fantasy Football, thanks Korked Bats...

A Little Bit Of Everything

I absolutely cannot deal with it being August. To help process the fact that football season is only 26 days away, I'm going to do Weekly Wishes + Monthly Goals which I haven't done in a minute! So I'm linking up with Melyssa at the Nectar Collective!

weekly wishes :: 

be productive at work -- I'm the only one in the office this week, it's freaking me out because I think every sound is someone here to like, kidnap me. I should be able to accomplish more though this week without any distractions, I have a lot of filing to do and schedules to rearrange. 

clean the apartment -- after I unpacked I kind of left things in piles everywhere, my closet is in disarray, I feel like every week "clean my room" has to be my goal. People who work, do fun stuff, and keep your room clean always -- what's the secret? 

start saving for my camera -- taking all of the advice I could possibly get, I've decided on the Canon Rebel t3i for my picture taking adventures, now I just need to stretch a couple of paychecks out to finance it. 

blog every day this week -- I usually hit at least three posts per week, but this week I'm challenging myself to hit five. Five posts worth reading too. I already have my Wednesdays covered with Humpday Confessions, I just need to figure out Tuesday, Thursday, + Friday this week!

august goals :: 

pick three new blogs to sponsor for September  -- You know, because I've decided to really put myself into making this a successful thing and also my first sponsorship with Sweet, Sassy Southern Belle has been great + I'm even going to the Atlanta Bloggers meetup on Wednesday! 

put my agenda to work -- I mentioned that I bought the cutest agenda from Ban.do  + I plan on organizing everything, writing down all of my responsibilities, and checking them all off the list one by one! 

run/walk/exercise three days a week -- I mentioned my runkeeper app sassing me the other day, but I did tell it that I wanted to run a sub 65 minute 10 K + they're really just helping me stick to my goals. I should be running at least three times a week because I have plenty of places to run and should have plenty of free time, now if only I could convince myself to be a morning person. 

summer bucket list update

so I've done pretty abysmal on this whole thing. Let's see what I've actually accomplished so far! 

• make it to the damn beach -- any beach -- at least once before October.
• float the Chattahoochee River. [oh we tried so hard to make it last weekend but it was overcast + a little too cold for that 55 degree water..]
• successfully make a pair of cutoff shorts. yesss so I have some, I wear them all the time, I forgot to take pictures + document the process though. 
• re-read the entire Harry Potter series + complete my summer reading challenge [I'm already through the first two! I'm halfway through Azkaban right now + I've planned a post about how much you can see both Harry, JK Rowling, + her audience grow through the progression of the books, plus one of my favorite HP Quotes...]
• unplug for an entire weekend.  okay, this I kind of cheated on, because I did watch TV to fall asleep, and used my phone to take pictures, but I almost completely went tech free this past weekend + it was super refreshing. 
• buy one of those ridiculous waterproof disposable cameras + take ridiculous underwater pictures. [turns out we have these in the house, now I just need an adventure to document!]
• canoe or that stand up paddle board thing OR BOTH! probably both...
• day trip to Little River Canyon
• weekend trip to at least one new MLB ballpark + MiLB ballpark. [I'm planning to go to Miami in September for a Braves game, so that will be one new MLB park!]
• master the mermaid hair. THE TRICK IS FRENCH BRAIDED PIGTAILS. how did that take me so long to figure out? 
• try three new local breweries 
• make it to at least four outdoor food + booze festivals.
• blog about it all! [yeah I know that's cheating -- whatevs] obviously I set myself up for failure here. womp. 

Also, because football season is rapidly approaching, I'll end with this:

Little Known Facts About Me + Weekly Wishes :: Three

I am recovering from fun adventure reuniting with two of my favorite people in the world who know every last thing about me -- so I thought I would share some [probably not] interesting facts about my life.

one :: I'm the kind of person who just destroys a song. When I like it -- I'll listen to it over + over again until I can't stand it anymore.
two :: I think it's bad luck to wear matching socks + I'm very superstitious.
three :: while we're talking about socks -- I absolutely cannot sleep with socks on -- doesn't matter how cold it is.
four :: I read my horrorscope every day [also I call it a horrorscope] -- I'm not saying I plan my life around what the stars are telling me to do -- but I totally take it into account [especially when it's something along the lines of double check your bank balance -- you might have missed something]
five :: I have a tendency to say exactly what's on my mind -- sometimes without saying it in my head first..
six :: I never take a bad picture -- see above. Obviously by that I mean I don't take myself seriously + I think pictures people would call "bad" are hilarious.

It's been a minute since I did my weekly wishes -- so I have four this week to make up for it. I'm also doing pretty good on my March goals! I didn't quite hit 25 miles last week -- but 20 is pretty close. So here are this week's wishes:

one :: spend $0 this week. Monday - Friday without spending any dollars (I've made plans to celebrate St. Patrick's Day so I will be spending this weekend...) It's going to be a challenge -- but I spent some serious cash in Raleigh + I have to make up for it this week. 

two :: do all of my 25 miles this week outside. It's going to be so pretty + the vitamin D is good for you!

three :: unplug. turn my phone off for at least two hours each day. maybe more + enjoy my surroundings.

four :: write + schedule this week's blog posts in advance. 

Weekly Wishes :: Two + Motivational Monday

As the state of Georgia is preparing for the second snowstorm in as many weeks -- I am doing everything I can to pretend it's just going to be almost in the 60's all week like it was this weekend. I'm really just ready for spring. Baseball games, sundresses, + longer days -- bring it on.

First -- how did I do last week? I crushed those goals. This might be the most accomplished I've felt during free agency. First of all, it didn't take me that long to clean my room -- cleaning out my closet definitely helped. Second -- I have no idea why I've been putting off my passport. It took more time to get my picture made than it did for anything else. I was inside the courthouse for maybe ten minutes. I even left the house every single day. Once to get coffee + a new book, the rest to be a real productive person. 

So -- week two:

one :: get to the new kickboxing gym I found. The first class is free -- so I can decide if that's my gym to join in February. They have flexible membership options but no website. The lack of website really gives me pause -- but they have so many positive reviews on their Facebook page. What's the harm in taking a free class anyways?

two :: drink three of my big Tervis tumblers full of water every day. Hand-in-hand with my February goal for no cokes all month -- more water is always important. I need to get in the habit before it gets to be summer because I always forget to hydrate in the summer. 

three :: read through + figure out the Tone It Up Nutrition Plan. I really want to commit to this -- but even as I write this goal I start to back out of it. Everyone raves about this + I need to check it out. 

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I have a little bit of a rant for your Monday Motivation. Why do you feel bad on Valentine's Day being a single person? Why should you? Valentine's Day seems like it's a lot of pressure for those in a relationship -- but it shouldn't be if you're not. Why not take Valentine's + celebrate yourself? Love yourself. How can you love someone else if you don't love yourself? You are awesome. Just ask Kid President. Take Valentine's Day + be your own reason to dance! Get a manicure, make yourself some coffee, buy that pair of shoes you wanted -- whatever you do -- just take the day to celebrate yourself. 

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