Drawings!

So, recently I have gotten back into sketching and have been posting a few sketches on Twitter, Facebook, and even sold a few for a charity auction. I SO enjoy sitting down, putting on my "Angsty Sketching" playlist, and just drawing. I have also had a few requests to mail people some sketches, which is totally not a problem! I don't even mind customizing them, if someone has a favorite quote or something they would like. So I decided to post a few drawings here on my blog, and if anyone is interested, don't hesitate to let me know!

True Colors?

"Be confident. Too many days are wasted comparing ourselves to others and wishing to be something we aren’t. Everybody has their own strengths and weaknesses, and it is only when you accept everything you are--and aren’t--that you will truly succeed."

I love this quote. I wish that we could all live by this quote. I wish I could live by this quote. Just even the first sentence. Be confident. It doesn’t say try to be confident or maybe be confident. It is a direct request, a command. If only it were that easy to speak confidence into existence. The next part says “too many days are wasted comparing ourselves to others and wishing to be something we aren’t”. First of all it says that comparing ourselves is a waste of time. How true. Don’t we all compare ourselves though? I can’t even begin to think of how many times I find myself comparing myself to other girls on TV or in advertisements. “If only I had hair like hers, or a waist like hers, or a face like hers”. Well, “everybody has their own strengths and weaknesses,” believe it or not! While you are busy comparing yourself to another persons appearance, maybe someone else is comparing themselves to you. Maybe someone longs to have legs like yours, even though you think they are lanky and chickeny. Or maybe someone admires your arms, even though you think they are too bulky and muscley. But better yet, what if someone admires your personality, your compassion or your sense of humor? When we truly know ourselves, inside and out, we can better understand our strengths and even being to accept our weaknesses. So why do we continue to compare ourselves to other people who are comparing themselves to other people and so on and so forth? Why can’t we accept that we are beautiful in our own ways with our own strengths and weaknesses? Why is it so hard to have confidence in ourselves? And lastly, is there really a person out there who has figured out the secret to understanding that true beauty comes from within? Would that person care to share? Don't be afriad to show your true colors!

Pediatric Oncology

Ever since I can remember, I have been fascinated with the St. Jude commercials! The faces of the children who looked so hopeful, yet so sick was always interesting to me. How could those children smile when they were fighting such a hard battle? I think that those children are heroes and that's why I've always found pediatric oncology interesting. However, I thought a lot of things were interesting as a child, ice skating, roller blading, tree climbing...all of those things were potential professions in my 7 year old mind. Now, as a 22 year old, I have officially signed up for classes in nursing school and am looking SO forward to working in a hospital soon. I know I have to do my rotations and who knows, maybe I will end up loving cardio or neuro. But as for now, I cannot wait to work in pediatric oncology and work with little heroes every day!

But why?

Much like an annoying 6 year old, I’m a curious person, and lately I have had lots of question, so I decided to compile a list of 25 things that I don’t understand. Enjoy!

25 things that confuse me:
1. Why do we take required naps in kindergarten when our toughest activity is coloring, but we have no time for naps in high school?
2. Why doesn’t glue stick to the inside of the bottle?
3. Why do boys have adams apples?
4. Why do paper cuts hurt so much?
5. Why do teachers assign so much homework if they just complain about grading it?
6. What makes a fruit a fruit, and a vegetable a vegetable? Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable?
7. If birds can fly as high as they want, then why do the fly low enough to get hit by cars?
8. Why do onions make you cry?
9. What the heck is leap year and why?
10. How does the internet work?
11. Why do you always have to pee when you’re hiding during Hide and Go Seek?
12. What’s the deal with jellyfish? I can see through them, but I don’t see a brain.
13. Who says money can’t buy happiness? I think they’re wrong.
14. Why do doctors leave the room when you’re changing if they are gonna see you naked anyways?
15. When Athiests go to court, do they have to swear on the Bible?
16. Where did Donkey Kong get his name? He is not a donkey.
17. Who discovered milk and what were they thinking?
18. Why don’t we digest corn? Are we really supposed to be eating it?
19. Why are yawns contagious?
20. Why does your heart stop when you sneeze?
21. Why has no one figured out how to make a windshield wiper that can reach that little triangle on the windshield?
22. Why do men have nipples?
23. Why are most foods that taste so good usually so bad for you?
24. Why do doughnuts have holes? I want my moneys worth!
25. How is Casey Anthony walking free? And who killed her daughter?

Happy 235th Birthday to America, Happy 22nd Birthday to Me!

Happy family vacation/4^th of July/birthday weekend to me! Today I got back from family vacation, and boy is it good to be home! My parents and I, along with another family and their adorable 2 year old son, went to Ocean Isle Beach this past weekend for a vacation and a wedding. One of our friends got married on Sunday, so we spent the weekend relaxing, spending time together, and enjoying the wedding festivities. It was an absolutely beautiful wedding and so different from any other wedding I’d ever been to! On the 4^th of July, which is arguably my favorite holiday, we went into town and watched a little parade and got ice cream…for breakfast. Then we spent the rest of the day relaxing, playing games, and hanging out before an indoor cookout, followed by some fireworks on the beach. It was fun to get to hang out with my family when my dad wasn’t stressed about work or waking up at 5am to go run a triathlon, and my mom wasn’t sitting by the computer waiting to receive an e-mail from work that she could complain about. We actually all got along and no one killed anyone. Yay! Then Tuesday was my birthday! I have mixed feelings about this birthday. Don’t get me wrong, it was a great day and I had a blast with my family and 2 best friends. I just don’t think I want to get older. But I can’t stop time, so 22 I will be. For a whole year! Luckily, as old as I may turn each year, America will always turn older than me the day before ;)

E! True Hollywood Story

“I’m the greatest star- I am by far, but no one knows it!”

I would say it was right around the time that Kelly Clarkson won American Idol that I began to feel a desire to make something of myself. Kelly winning showed that an ordinary girl from an ordinary town could make something of herself and win over America with talent and a sweet personality! As abnormal and strange as this may sound, ever since then I realize that I kept a mental montage in my head of what my E! True Hollywood story would look like someday. I imagined my Dad talking about my dance recitals when I was younger- about how I was shy until you got to know me and then my personality would really shine through. Or I could picture my Mom talking about how I have always been very dramatic and light up on stage or in front of people. Heck, I could even picture my 7th grade English teacher talking about how she had to yell at me to stop singing in the middle of class. It wasn’t until recently when I talked to my friends that I realized that most people aren’t thinking of their Hollywood story. I think my overwhelming desire to be a part of something big is much stronger than most people my age. And some days I think “it’s gonna happen. I’m going to get discovered somehow.” And other days I get discouraged thinking about Selena Gomez, Lucy Hale, Chloe Moretz, Dakota Fanning, and other child stars who are much younger than me who have already established themselves. I’m going to be 22 in less than a week and I have done nothing. I probably will do nothing in the acting world because that kind of thing happens to other people. And although that may be true, I can’t help but to think of what could be. Maybe I need to grow up and get my head out of the clouds and face reality, or maybe it’s okay to dream just a little bit longer.

Pinkies Up! It's Fancy Dinner.

Since 2006 my two best friends and I have had a tradition called “fancy dinner”. It all came about because one day we decided that we wanted to dress up and have dinner using the nice plates. However, since then fancy dinner has changed. Sometimes we dress up, sometimes we wear pajamas, sometimes we cook, sometimes we get take out. No matter what, we always use the nice plates. It’s funny because the three of us eat together all the time; we go out to lunch or out to dinner or just hang out all the time. Really the only thing that’s different is that we call it “fancy dinner” and we stay home to eat.
Anyways, we had fancy dinner tonight and we actually dressed up and cooked dinner and dessert- the dinner was grilled cheese and canned peaches, but it was dinner nonetheless! So after we cooked our grilled cheeses and opened the can of peaches, we got out the fancy champagne glasses, filled them with water, and took our fancy selves to the dining room for a nice dinner. Of course, like most of the recent fancy dinners, to dinner conversation quickly turned to things that could be considered less than appropriate dinner conversation. But we laughed, ate, sang, and even tried our special dessert (don’t worry, this dessert will be getting a blog post of its own soon).
I love these girls and I love fancy dinner, and I especially love that we can get together and do anything at all and still have a good time!

2006. Our first fancy dinner. We set up a table outside and lit candles and got all dressy. We ate takeout from a burger place.

2007. Fancy spaghetti dinner.

2008. Fettucini alfredo and grapples for fancy dinner. We decided not to dress up.

2009. Dressed up. Takeout grilled cheese and fries.

2010. Lots of awkward dinner conversation!

2011. Tonight's fancy dinner! :)