Napa Valley Dreaming

As promised, I've got some gorgeous (at least I think they are) pictures from our trip to Napa this past weekend. NTP got a hold of my camera and was semi-paparazzi all day so I apologize that there are quite a few photos of me. I guess he likes me or something. Who knew?? Also, I'm warning you, there are a LOT of photos! And these aren't even half of what we took! Anyway, here's some eye candy! Hope you like them as much as I do!









This was definitely my favorite vineyard. The majority of photos come from here. The people were so nice and laid back and it was absolutely gorgeous. I highly recommend visiting this vineyard for anyone thinking of making a trip to Napa!



The BBQ made my day, if you can't tell.



Had to include a photo of the deliciousness.









The sun came out and it got a little toasty so I changed into my new Lilly frock. :)



This is Beringer Winery.









This is inside Castello di Amarosa, where The Bachelor is filmed.











That's the last one I'll bore y'all with. If you made it this far, yay! I hope your fingers aren't too tired from scrolling. Hope you enjoyed the photos and if you can, go to Napa ASAP!

Nautical(ish) Lovin'

Yet again, I've been horrible about blogging. Sorry! I really do intend to get back into the swing of things.

NTP and I went to Napa Valley this past weekend and had an AMAZING time! Wine tastings, exploring, photo-shoots, and Easter! It was truly gorgeous and I actually had to hold back tears when we started the drive back to LA. We must have taken at least a hundred photos and I plan on uploading them tomorrow on my day off so HOPEFULLY I'll have a post up with those very very soon! Stay tuned!

Until then... I thought I'd share my OOTD! It's definitely spring here in Cali and I love seeing all the roses this state is known for blooming everywhere I look. And with spring comes dresses! Yay! Here's one of the outfits I'm loving now!


That would be me ready to take on the day!


My handy-dandy monogrammed Lands End tote!



I LOVE a good wedge and these beauties are from Payless! Can you believe it!?

I hope y'all are having a wonderful week so far! Less than a month until I move back to the Southeast! YYAAAYYYY!!!! (I'm a tad excited in case you can't already tell.)

Channeling my inner Farrah Fawcett

Y'all know how I've been raving about my love for high-waist jeans. Now I'm not talking granny pants, mind you. Well I was feeling very 70's today so I decided to channel my inner Farrah Fawcett, who I used to LOVE when I was little bitty. My mom was a fan, which of course meant I was too.

Here's my OOTD!



And here's a couple photos of the lovely and much-missed Farrah back in the day.





Love, hugs, and the 70's...

Sprite and the Bridge to Nowhere

Dear Sprite,

I'll be depending on you for the next couple of days. You know who is coming and she's already rearing her ugly head. So to avoid the nausea and hold me over until I get my appetite back (does anyone else LOSE their appetite when it's that time of the month or am I abnormal!?). Also, I'm going camping tonight so I'm really, really, REALLY going to need you to work your carbonated magic. Got it? You're the best.

Sincerely,
The girl that really hates this time of the month.

Ok, sorry about that. I'm struggling today. But on the camping note... we're going on an adventure to find the Bridge to Nowhere! Not the Sarah Palin bridge - the SoCal bridge! Here's a picture.



From what I hear, the Governor of California back in the 1930s ordered a bridge to be built in the San Gabriel mountains. The bridge was obviously meant to connect to a road on each side creating a mountain pass. However, for some reason the road was never built and now there is a bridge in the middle of nowhere! So of course we feel the need to go hike to it, and... ummm... bungee jump off of it! I'm not even crazy about roller coasters so I am definitely not jumping off a bridge while attached to a cord. No thank you. But of course, NTP is. "It's on his bucket list" which is another way of saying, "I really want to do this and I know if I say it's on my bucket list you'll let me." So tonight a bunch of us will be setting up camp in the wilderness and tomorrow morning, bright and early, we'll trek across the mountain (unless my "visitor" decides to incapacitate me), cross a river multiple times, and I'll tape the crazies jump off the bridge.

"And if they told you to jump off a bridge would you do that too!?"

Apparently yes.

Loving White Pants

Spring is here! Time to break out those white pants/shorts/skirts and give them some fresh air! It's no secret I love vintage fashion and right now I'm loving high-waisted white pants. They're so flattering and show off your girlish figure perfectly while being very modest and classy at the same time. Who doesn't love that!? So I thought I'd share some of my favorite looks. I have no idea where to find any of these - I'm on the hunt for a pair myself, so if you see some, LET ME KNOW! Thanks beautiful ladies. :) Hope y'all enjoy the eye-candy!



I know these are shorts, but how cute are they!?







Sigh...

And the changes continue...

Welllll... apparently MBA programs require a minimum of two years, post-grad, full-time, professional experience before admittance into their programs. So now that I've paid over $300 for the various entrance exams, have been studying my butt off, and have been freaking out non-stop over which school, online or on-campus, etc... I can't go for another year or two anyway. I talked to an FSU admissions officer yesterday and they want FIVE years minimum experience. I'm crushed. I would like to think I'm strong and that this is just another thing I can bounce back from, but I'm exhausted. From moving cross-country to California, to spending six depressing months looking EVERYWHERE for a job, to deciding to move back to the southeast and all of the unknowns that come with that, like where am I going to live, what am I going to do, is it going to take that long to find a job again, how long will I go without seeing NTP, oh yeah, and ANOTHER flipping surgery... I'm simply worn out. I obviously do not handle change or stress as well as I thought. I just want to know what I'll be doing in two months. I want that stability back. I thought I'd get it by going back to school. I'd be studying and working towards a goal. Instead, I'm studying for pretty difficult tests just so I can wait however many years until I have enough experience. And what really stinks, is by then I would like to think I'll have a full-time job and be married or close to it. That's not the time I want to be going back to school. Unfortunately, that's how these programs are designed.

I'm sorry to go on and on ranting. I have a lot to be thankful for. I really do. I'm just seriously struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

NTP walked in on me crying last night. He grabbed the car keys, told me to put on a jacket, and took me to Chili's for my favorites - a strawberry margarita, skillet queso, and a chocolate molten lava cake. It's the little things, right?

Big Changes

Oh boy, where to begin. Well I guess I'll just get down to it. I've decided to go back to school and get a Master's Degree. SURPRISE! I'm hoping to get an MBA. Another surprise coming from a girl with communications and poli sci degrees. I just figured that with my two bachelor's and with a Master's in Business, so many more doors will open, the potential for advancement will be greater, the PAY will be better (although just about anything would be more than I'm making now), there will be more stability, and I'll be more marketable! Plus, I'm a nerd and I miss school. I like learning. Sure, I complain as much as any other student, but I do enjoy it. Not sure how I'm going to enjoy accounting classes, but we'll see.

Unfortunately, I made my choice a little late. A lot of deadlines for my top schools have already passed. However, I think I've got it narrowed down to three choices.

1. Kennesaw State University outside Atlanta. From what I can tell this looks like a great school with a great program and the best part is I can finish in 18 months. LOVE that. I'm waiting to hear back from an admissions officer on exactly what they're looking for in an applicant. Website just says professional experience, undergrad transcripts, and GMAT scores. Since I was a business major in college, I'm just wondering if I need to take prereqs or anything.

2. FSU!! GO NOLES! Of course my alma mater is still in the running. I missed the deadline for their accelerated program on-campus, but I can still make the deadline for their online program. Only problem is it takes 28 months to complete because they only allow you to take 2 classes each semester. Boo. We'll see if there's a way around that.

3. And lastly, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. This school would be great if I got a certain job that may or may not happen in Blue Ridge. (This job would include my own cabin in the mountains rent free!) However, I'm not putting all of my eggs in this basket (haha Easter reference. ok corny).

So that's how it's looking right now. I'm studying like crazy for the GRE and the GMAT and I won't lie, all of this math is super intimidating. I'm so lucky to have a math-genius mom and boyfriend.

Say some prayers for me! I'm really praying that everything works out just how it's supposed to and things FINALLY start falling into place. I'm so sick of instability.

Love, hugs, and getting my nerd on...