About 4 years ago to the day I graduated from the best university in the world, if you want to know my educated opinion, Auburn University.

It is hard to come down from the college way of living. Partying all the time, learning new things everyday and not having a care in the world. When I noticed it has been that long I was taken back because I thought of all things I have now that I didn't the day I left Auburn...

To start I'm still paying off my loan from Auburn as well as my debt from learning the hard way that buying things you can't afford on a credit card really add up. I have experienced the type of moments that take your breath away and I'm not talking about the good ones. I found myself having to be more independent than I thought I would ever be and it scared me. BUT... I have traveled to places I've always wanted to go and have no plans of stopping. I adopted a dog that does not only make me smile everyday but has helped me lose 10 lbs over the past year by forcing me to take long walks twice a day. And I am surrounded by the same amazing group of best friends I had the day I left Auburn.

So let it be known...

The 4 years after college go by faster than the college experience itself but if you surround yourself with great people, a good dog and a lot of wine its not that bad.

My first word was most likely food related but my second was ‘Mum’. On Mother’s Day I always end up turning it into a day for me, a day to reflect how lucky I am to have a Mother that knows everything about me and still keeps loving me more and more every day. My Great-Grandmother, Grandmother and my Mom all found soul mates through their relationships with their mothers and this is one family tradition I am happy to carry on.

So let it be known….

I LOVE MY MUM!!

In the new SATC movie there is a quick clip on the preview of the girls flying first class on a Middle Eastern airline, probably Emirates. I'm a total sucker for upgraded air travel, I don't even think twice if I'm offered an upgrade for a few hundred more on an international flight. Emirates currently have the best first class cabins in the world. For the average price tag of about $4000 one way from Heathrow to Dubai you can have your own cabin, access to the first class bathrooms (which include a shower), 23 inch TV, premium cuisine and champagne…just to name a few. The best perk, they fail to list, is the total avoidance of badly behaved children or obnoxious adults.

First Class

Economy

First Class

Economy

So let it be known...

There a lot of options to upgrade in life but when it comes to international air travel it shouldn't be an option it should be a MUST! (Just ask my dad)

'Settle' is one of those words that can have several different meanings, some which are the total opposite of one another. You can be settled, settling or unsettled. At the current moment I have friends that are in all of these stages and I am coasting somewhere between all three.

Which one are you?

Settled

Settling

Unsettled

So let it be known...

When you are thinking about settling or find yourself in a state of being unsettled just think of nice it would be for your life to be a Norman Rockwell painting....I call shotgun!

Over the past month I have played a good bit of cards and I forgot how much fun you can have with a simple deck. A few weeks ago my mom and I had a drink or two and ended up playing ‘Go Fish’ and ‘Snap’ for at least an hour or two. We laughed and talked through the whole game and actually had a really great time.

Then this past weekend on my amazing girls trip in Savannah we ended up playing cards twice and I think we were all surprised how much fun we had. We actually giggled and talked as a group more during our games than any other part of the trip.

So let it be known..

Playing cards have been around since the 9^th century and with a cold beer in one hand and cards in the other it's easy to see why

With my birthday coming up this Friday I will start reminding people that I don’t like to be surprised in any shape form or fashion. The worst is at a restaurant and they all come over and sing around some excuse of a dessert. I’m not even a fan of surprises that involve a large gift or a a surprise trip…this actually hasn’t happened to me but the thought of it gives me nausea. But with all this said I do consider myself always up for anything…just as long as I have some time to digest it. Hmm did I just describe a plot for an anxiety commercial!?

My Worst Nightmare

But what I do love about birthdays are the cards. We never really give or get big presents for any occasion in my family but cards are never to be missed. Big ones, small ones, handmade ones, ones that don’t make sense but they all make me smile. The old lady in me keeps cards around about a good month after my birthday has passed, maybe I will get one like this in the coming days...

Cute Papyrus card

So let it be known…

If the waiters come out to sing on my birthday I will be livid but get me a card I’ll love you forever

So in a few days I will be….GULP….26 years old. In recent years this number started to scare me and I wasn’t really sure why. But after a glass of wine I started to think about it and I realized when I was a little girl 26 was the age that I decided I was going to be married and have my first baby. It’s funny how when you’re a little girl and you plan out your life it all seems so easy. But it also doesn’t help that at my Alma Mater, AUBURN (war eagle!), you are considered an old maid if you aren’t married or with the one you are going to marry by, at least, 26. Now do I really think I'm going to end up single forever? Not at all but just in case I decided to have a little look to see if I do end up an old maid what type of company I would be in.

Coco Chanel

Queen Elizabeth

Miss Piggy

So let it be known…

That on the closing days of my 25^th year it finally clicked that my childhood dreams are just that, childish