WeekEND

Sorry for the absence, I've been trying to find creative ways to breathe out of my face. 

I've found that hot Whiskey combined with Mucinex is a top contender to accomplish this. Unfortunately, I haven't had as much as a sniffle all year, and now the one weekend Evan shipped off I've been dying a slow painful sinus death. Hopefully, I will be back tomorrow with details! (Not of my cold silly, of Evan deploying!)

It's Friday!!! - Right?

Today is my Friday! I asked to be off work tomorrow since Evan is leaving Saturday. We already have plans to eat breakfast at IHop. Who knows what else we will end up doing. I know Evan still hasn't packed his bag yet...so we will probably we packing and running to the store to grab some last minute stuff. 

Pictures from my iPhone this week.

As you can see I was clearly obsessed with shoes, naps, and Scout this week. I believe its safe to say Scout is generally on this list every week. Look how cute he is. 

I'm doing a photo a day this May. I didn't hop on the band wagon in April, since I didn't realize what it was before April was half-way over, but May is a totally different story! I'm excited :) 

Control Freak

Yesterday I was a hot mess. 

I went from feeling like the deployment wasn't anywhere immanent, to a flow blown smack in the face. It was like an atomic bomb hit without warning, and I totally panicked. I just reacted how I normally do in these situations: angry. I was angry at the Chick-fil-a kid who took our order wrong. I was angry at a mom teaching her toddler "chick-en...chick-en" over and over again while we ate. I was angry that there was traffic. I was angry that Tractor Supply didn't have live baby peeps for me to see. I was angry when Evan told me "I love you." I was angry that other people were -in general- alive and in my line of vision. 

I was really pleasant to be around. 

After I apologized for being crazy, and thanked Evan for not divorcing me, I had to take a minute and just sit with the reality of the situation. Its happening and there isn't anything I can do to stop it. You feel out of control and helpless, because lets be honest, we're humans, and humans love being in control. Being in control means sanity, safety, and stability. With a deployment no one is in control. You can try to do things to make yourself think you're sane, safe, and stable, but until you come with the truth, you are just lying to yourself. Yesterday when we got home, Evan and I watched a Band of Brothers to specifically find this dialogue. It went along with exactly what we need to do when letting go of control and facing our fears.

BLITHE
When I landed on D-day, lieutenant, I found myself in a ditch all by myself and I... fell asleep. I think it was those airsickness pills they gave us.

SPEIRS
Uh huh.

BLITHE
But when I woke up, I didn't really... try to find my unit. To fight. I just kind of... stayed put.

SPEIRS
You know why you stayed in that ditch, Blithe?

BLITHE
I was scared, sir.

SPEIRS
We're all scared. It's because you still have hope.

BLITHE
You don't, sir?

SPEIRS
Here's the way I see it. There's only one way for me to fight this war, and that's to accept the fact... that I'm already dead.

Sometimes I get disappointed with myself when I act so angry, to feel in control for no reason. In the moment I feel justified, anyone that crosses me is going to have to deal with it, without the polite, socially aware part of my brain turned on. I'm in control if I'm angry; I won't cry, because crying means I'm weak. Crying means I've lost the game; its beat me. If I'm angry that the Army is sending Evan to war, it means I don't feel responsible or a part of the choice we made as couple to serve in the military. It doesn't really matter what you do: clean your house obsessively, buy clothes, party, drink, have a new boyfriend every week, or fill every moment of your day with something to do, the facts are still there: You aren't in control, there isn't anything you can do to change it. It hurts to face the truth. It isn't any fun, that's why most of us would rather avoid it than face it. Letting go of control means we will see all of the things we absolutely suck at, we will see how weak we are, and will have to deal with the very things we avoid like the plague. 

Lt. Speirs knew that to be a good soldier, you had to let go.When you come to terms with that fact that you're already dead, the threads that hold you back and muddle your mind, will be cut loose. Good soldiers are already dead. As wives, when you accept the fact that your husband might not come home, as awful as it sounds, makes it easier. It gives you peace that God won't ever give you more than you can handle. For me, it makes the stress and worry of deployment a lot lighter. I still worry, but I give myself a line that I can't cross in my mind. This is the line of healthy devotion and delusive hysteria. Worrying over that certain amount won't do anything except add wrinkles to my pretty face and shorten my life. I'm not going to be caught frozen scared, wallowing in my hole of worry and sorrow. I've come to terms with the fact that my husband is already dead. Is it scary? It's terrifying. As I sit here, I'm forcing myself to let it all go and be completely OK with realizing I'm not in control. 

Tick-Tock Tick-Tock

The big D-day is this weekend.

I was a bad Army wife already (no surprise there) and announced "the day" on Facebook, only to get reprimanded that we're not supposed to post dates. I felt like a little kid in trouble at school for not following "the code" that all Army wives are supposed to know. Its like getting detention in high school for not paying attention all over again. Whatever, if we're being honest with ourselves, the Army will probably change it another 4 times until then. And I know I'm totally right on the that one! 

Not to sound like a broken record here, but it doesn't really feel like its deployment time again. I better warm up to the idea pretty quickly, seeing as its happening like - this week. I'm also sorry that this week is like military week on the blog, but hey this whats going on around these parts. Believe me, I wish I could be writing about something completely different. Yesterday we sat around wondering what we should do all day. Story of our lives. We ended up just hanging out and talking, while I snapped pictures.

 ^^^
Loves being my model

After Evan became tried of being my model, we went to Wal-Mart to pick up a few things Evan needed before he leaves. I needed a few things for our Thanksgiving dinner we're having tomorrow. I figured since he wouldn't be home for Thanksgiving we needed to celebrate it now. Plus, who wouldn't want an excuse to have some delicious food before he leaves! I'm feeling a little blue at the thought of Evan leaving, but on the other hand, the sooner we get goodbye over with, the sooner we get to say hello again.

I'm personally ready for the hello already.

Sacrifices

Ask almost any proud American if our military makes sacrifices, and they will readily agree with you along with a "Bring our troops home, with a God Bless America" to boot. Let me preface what I'm about to say by stating this isn't a pity party or to make you feel guilty, I'm just being real here. Also I'm not trying to scare the poop out of those who are in the military, thinking about joining, or getting ready to deploy. There are so many positives that outweigh the negatives, its just a very unique job environment. The top 3 ways most civilians think soldiers make sacrifices would be: 

1. Soldiers are away from their families. - Even when soldiers aren't deployed they are away from their families a lot. Evan normally works a 10 hour day, sometimes its longer. On top of these long days, when they aren't deployed they are in schools and training which often take them away from home. The Army trumps family a lot.

2. Soldiers are in 3rd world countries fighting for our freedom. - Would you just love to vacation in the dirtiest, hottest, coldest, and most foreign place on earth where everyone is trying to kill you? I'm betting the answer is no. Well this is where they go. During the day it easily reaches 100 + degrees and then drops below freezing at night; try camping in those conditions. During the day (100+ degrees remember) they wear full gear on patrol, which easily weighs 80-100 pounds. There isn't a bus, they walk. Walking itself is dangerous. IEDs are a major problem, and probably cause the majority of deaths. One bad step and you're legless, or worse, dead. You don't have any personal space or privacy. Evan had an average of 1 (cold) shower a month last deployment. You get to eat the exact same meal of jello eggs for breakfast, an MRE for lunch, and some form of "steaks" for dinner, everyday for a year. Some vacation huh?

3. Soldiers don't make much money. - So we're not millionaires, but we aren't doing half bad compared to most people our age. I'm so proud of us that we live below our income, and are paying off debt like its nobody's business! I guess in retrospect to what these guys go through the pay isn't exactly awesome, but Evan doesn't do his job because of the big bucks. To sound totally cliche, he does it because of what it means to be an American solider.

All of the above are true, but in my mind these aren't necessarily the important ones. Every person that chooses to join the military knows all of those sacrifices before they sign on the dotted line. There are other sacrifices that most of the population don't realize. Heck I didn't even realize these things myself until after a full 1 1/2 years in the Army. The mental burden of being a soldier, as I see it, is the ultimate sacrifice.

I'm no psychologist, but I know soldiers are impacted forever in war. I was a history major, I've studied the stories without a cushie layer to soften the blow. I fully understand the reality of war. Evan and I were watching a documentary on the Korean War last week. As I sat on the couch, I watched with a weak heart as strong, tough vets were trying their hardest to not break down while being interviewed. They can tell their story, but no one else, except fellow soldiers understand what its like. Most of them admitted they hadn't told anyone the stories they were telling in their interviews. It was breaking my heart to watch these guys relive the absolute horror of war. My mind kept racing with a million devastating thoughts. I can't imagine using my (dead) best friend as a sand bag. I can't imagine coming face to face with another living person and then killing them. I can't imagine looking down realizing my legs have been blown off my body. I can't imagine seeing my friends slowly die of horrible, painful wounds. I can't imagine...Then I realized I had a person, my husband sitting beside me, who might have gone through these very unimaginable things. A veil of anguish and inadequacy fell over me.

You see, Evan doesn't talk about Afghanistan. He talks about what his job was there, the funny things - like huge rooms full of weed, but its just surface things. Hes not being fake or trying to hide anything, hes just not comfortable with talking about it, even to me. I don't ask because there are some things that are OK left unspoken. I don't expect him to want to talk with me about it. The only people who know what he went through are his guys. They already know without speaking. Those guys will always have an steadfast bond because of the life-changing experiences that they have gone through together. I know not a day goes by that he doesn't think about the guys that didn't come home. Why can five guys step over an IED, but the sixth set it off? The question of "Why did I survive?" is a constant pain of guilt and torment for any soldier of war. Not only are these men willing to die for their country, but they are willing to take on a silent, struggle daily that none of us can imagine, only to sleep with dreams full of nightmares. Questions that can never be answered and moments that can never be erased from their eyes, minds, and hearts.

Evan and thousands of others will forever live with the mental battle of being a soldier. The battle of living with the impact of war, the things they saw, did, and didn't do. It is so our children will never have to see war. So our babies will never have to wear 80+ pounds of gear through the desert, praying they don't step on an IED. That sacrifice is one that Evan is willing to carry. Hes carrying it for me, for you, and for the future generation of people. So the next time you want to thank a soldier for their sacrifices, know it isn't just being away from their families, being deployed, or not getting paid enough. I hope this gives you a little insight to truly know what the real sacrifices our soldiers make everyday. 

Meredith Currently...

Obsessing over...this dress.

Wishing for...Free People Clothing. 

Thinking about...how the heck I'm going to fulfill my cross-cultural experience for school. (For those of you who might not know what a "Cross-Cultural Experience" is, its basically visiting another country outside the US and getting "culturalized.") Yes, Asbury is still haunting me. It's hanging on my shoulders driving me crazy. It's literately been 1 1/2 since I graduated and I still don't have this done. Its not really all my fault. OK so maybe I put it off a little longer than I should have, but it shouldn't be this hard to go somewhere. Really, I just want to jump on a plane and visit somewhere awesome (think England, Germany, France, etc.) but the problem is I really don't want to go alone. Most of my friends are either married, getting married, or graduating which means money isn't falling out of their pockets at the moment. Calling all single and independently wealthy friends. My time of need is now.

Anticipating...Next week. It will most likely be Evan's last week here before he deploys, so there will a lot of packing, last minute adventures, and getting use to a new routine. 

Listening to...

Wishing for...time to slow the heck down. I'm sure a few weeks from now I will be wishing time for zip by, and fast forward to December, but I guess that is one of the hardships of life...not having a time machine. 

Check out Lyds Currently posts....they are always so simple but fun. I thought I would try making one, maybe you'll see more of these around here more often! Happy Sunday! 

It's so easy to fall in love

I've mentioned Lisa a few times, so I figured it was time we put a face to the name.

Lisa is a fellow Army wife, and her husband Korey works with Evan. They are deploying together in a few weeks, which leaves Lisa and I together to make dinner, have puppy play dates, and shop until we drop. (We both have a weakness for clothes...we apologize to our husband's bank accounts ahead of time) She is super sweet, funny, and the girl knows what she wants. I feel like I've known Lisa and Korey since college, when in reality its been maybe 4 months. They are so down to earth, they make everyone around them feel like old friends. Even more importantly, they really love each other. In a strange way their relationship functions creepily similar to Evan and I's. This summer they will be married a year! We decided we should take some pictures before the guys leave, if I do say so myself, Korey and Lisa rocked it!

(Please click on the pictures to view them, they look 10x better that way)

Korey and Lisa made Evan and I dinner last night after we took pictures. All I can say is Korey is a grill master, because he made me the best burger I've had in a very long time. I'm all ready dreading saying goodbye from these guys!

Thrifty Thursday

Oh honey, I'll find you a deal. Don't worry your pretty little mind about that.

 ^ ^ Old bedroom dresser turned into a TV stand. ^ ^

I know these are crappy pictures but this is my vintage bedroom set.

(Not my pictures, but this is my set)

 It looks way cooler in person, I promise. 

It's an Art Deco Kent Coffey Perspecta bedroom set. When I was shopping for furniture for our house, I knew didn't want any cheap pressed wood junk. It can be pricey, not to mention the wear and tear of the Army moving us a lot doesn't exactly hold up well. I knew I could get solid wood (even if it was a little out of date and beat up) for next to nothing. I found this set in a thrift store for $250 with a metal bed frame, minus the night stands. They had sold the night stands separately when someone was interested in them, and the set had been sitting there awhile (I'm still mad about that). At the time I had no idea that the set was considered vintage designer furniture. I simply picked it because I thought the details of the X's were neat, I loved the art-deco streamline look, and the amount of drawers the two dressers were an added bonus. 

 A few nights after purchasing my bedroom set I was on craigslist and noticed a lone dresser that looked exactly like mine, only it was listed for $500, labeled as a rare Kent Coffey piece. My mom and I acted liked two kids trying to not explode when we realized my bedroom set was the exact same! Many of these sets sell for a  minimum of $1,000 (even with my set not having end tables). Money in the bank for this girl. I'm not selling it anytime soon, but its nice to know I can actually make money back, instead of having to throw it away or practically give it away. Just another reason why I love thrifting. 

Research old furniture that has names, usually located on the inside of a drawer, before you buy them. Today its easier than ever, especially with smart phones. You never know what you might have! I simply got lucky the first time around. My TV stand (first picture) I snagged it off a lady through craigslist for $60, who didn't know what she had. I happened to not mention I knew exactly what it was...oops. 

Hugh Hefner is off for the summer

1. Today Evan and I are getting our pictures taken by the amazing Lisette Price. 

So. Freaking. Pumped.  
I've changed our outfit choices about 281 times, made Evan roam Hobby Lobby's aisles for the perfect prop, changed the location (twice), and have been generally stressing over it all. Maybe I'm more suited to be behind the camera instead of in front of it.

2. Don't let your husband do this to you:

 Sometimes we're really bored. Evan burnt the end of a candy cig, and made me sit outside to take my picture. Why you ask? So he could send it to my mom to "tell on me." At the time it seemed really funny, but now as I type this I'm realizing just how weird we are, which makes it still funny. Please notice I'm wearing Evan's Hugh Hefner robe to make the picture that much classier.

 3. I love having funny friends.

4. Scout looks like a mammoth dog in this picture.

He has been inhaling all his dog food in the morning after I leave for work, while Evan is still sleeping. Hes hoping that Evan will think I didn't feed him, so he will feed him again. Sneaky, sneaky.

5. In exactly 5 weeks I'll be done with work for the summer! 

I don't think I can correctly convey in words about how excited I am. I'm so lucky to have a job that "lets out" for summer, its probably my favorite part of working in a high school. For our entire lives we "get out" for the summer, then as soon as we're responsible adults we're forced to sit inside of white walls, staring longingly out of barred windows. I just might go crazy if that was the case. Here is to tans coming my way soon!

New York City Saved My Ass

The first time I visited New York City I absolutely hated it. 

I was on my senior trip in high school. I was adamant that I wasn't going. After many weeks of begging and groveling, my friends talked me into taking one for the team, going to New York, making some good memories, and experiencing the Big Apple. I couldn't think of a worse place to live. It was so overwhelming. Every minute I was surrounded by people, lights, cars, and billboards, the more my grievance I felt. To be honest the trip was complete waste of time and money. Looking back a lot of the things we did, were stupid. We could have done most of stuff we saw in the middle of Ohio for goodness sake. By the time I got home I vowed to never visit New York City again.

Fast forward 3 years later. 

I wanted to graduate a semester early. Evan was on his first deployment, and when he arrived home in April I wanted to be completely done with school, not to mention I could save lots of money. So, that summer I signed up for a Communications class over the summer. The class was a trip to New York City. I was less than thrilled, but it got me 3 credit hours in a weeks time. I dreaded another entire week in city hell. I convinced myself to prepare for the worst. This time around New York was a completely different place. It was thrilling, exciting, unique, and historical. We ate at a little hole in the wall restaurant in Little Italy, haggled in China town, were dazzled by Broadway, stalked met Will Ferrell, shopped till we dropped, appeared on TV, stood on top of the Empire State Building, and did a thousand other things that completely changed my opinion on New York. I loved all of it, and I didn't want to leave! 

At the time I was 40 pounds heavier than I am now. I knew I was overweight, but I wasn't exactly motivated to change for a long period of time. Diets would last for a few weeks, until I'd cave and eat half of a chocolate cake. It was a vicious, degrading cycle. This is when New York saved my life. The very place I had once despised, became my liberator. Looking back losing weight all started in New York for a number of reasons. In New York there is a law that requires all restaurants to show the amount of calories in all food (on the menu) and on all packages. I immediately become very aware of what I was eating. I quickly noticed myself picking up a regular black coffee instead of a sugar infused latte. Up until then, I was unaware of just how many calories were packed into the food I normally ate. Secondly, in New York you walk everywhere. Even if you're taking the subway, you walk to get the subway. I had blisters all over my feet since I wasn't use to walking so much. Despite the pain of walking, I loved it. You had time to observe and appreciate your surroundings, instead of whizzing past them in a car. I ate lots of yummy food like Magnolia Bakery's cupcakes, pasta, etc. but I balanced it out by spreading it out, instead of eating everything I wanted at every meal. When I had pasta for dinner, I chose fruit for dessert. When I had soup for lunch, I had a cupcake for a snack. I stopped overeating. (Which I usually did --no joke-- daily)  In New York who wants to stuff themselves, and then be forced to walk 10 + blocks home? I learned that lesson fast! At the end of the week I noticed I felt lighter. I stepped on to the dreaded scale and noticed I had lost almost 5 pounds! From then on, I started walking, picking better food choices, and letting myself have a treat every other day, before I turned into a chocolate crack addict. It started by accident, but snowballed into one of the greatest things to change me, not only physically, but mentally too. 

Dear New York,

We started off our relationship kind of rocky. At first I thought you were obnoxious, loud, and your hygiene was less than satisfactory. I judge you too quickly, and for that I'm truly sorry. Yeah, you can be a little over the top and exorbitant, but I think we can find a middle ground. Your positives more than outweigh your negatives; I should have seen it sooner. For example, your the best cook I've ever met, and the clothes you find are out of this world! You are the most unique person I've ever met, and I totally mean that in a good way. I promise I'll visit again, sorry I stayed away for so long.

Love, Meredith     

Another Saturday Night

Our Saturday was the usual here. A lot of sleeping in occurred with fluffy stack of pancakes to follow.

Scout enjoy them too!

After breakfast we decided that we would head down to Nashville and check out the Opry Mall. It is located right beside Bass Pro Shop which makes it a prime location. (Drop your husband off at Bass Pro and you can shop without playing 20 questions before you purchase anything!) I'm just kidding, actually Evan is usually a pretty good shopper as long as I buy him a pretzel and slushie at some point. The original mall was flooded and they had to completely re-renovate the entire mall. It just opened back up a few weeks ago. We got there early, but it was still packed! The first store I walked into my eyes and this top connected; It was meant to be. I did the first thing I always do, look at the price tag. $200 stared back at me. I told Evan we should just leave this store now, because I didn't want to look around and have my heart broken. The mall itself is really nice, most of the stores are high end, but there are places like Forever 21 too. I might want to add that the Forever 21 was HUGE! I'm talking as big as a normal Wal-Mart. I was standing there trying to not look like I was from po-dunk town Pennsylvania, but I failed. I didn't even know where to start! It wasn't a bad problem to have.

A lot of the basic tops I have are either too big, or washed to ruins. I got these 2 v-necks at J. Crew for $14 each. I was also looking for jeans, but I had no luck in that department.

Delicate lace skirt from Banana Republic for $20. 

We got home and took a nap, because spending money takes it out of you. Made tacos for dinner and then let Scout being weird to entertain us. (We also bought pop with chips and dip...rebellious I know)

Something I never want to do again.

Is plan a wedding.

As wedding season is rapidly approaching all my newly engaged friends are planning weddings and getting married. The hype of wedding season is in full swing! Don't get me wrong, I love weddings, and I loved my wedding, I just don't want anything to do with the actual planning part. Just the show up, fun, cake-eating, dancing, and being in love part. Not that I really "planned" mine in the first place, but still. I really can't think of anything more stressful to do. On a scale of fun it ranked somewhere around...oh I don't know...slowly pulling my eyelashes off one by one. I'm sure there has to be another girl out there in the world who didn't find anything appealing about wedding planning. Are you out there?!?!

 Anyway Evan proposed at the end of March 2010. We didn't really know when we could get married. Being in the Army it makes things a lot more complicated and well...stupid. So for a few months I tried in vain to plan a wedding. At first I was pumped, I mean wedding planning is what every girl DREAMS about! We all know the running joke of girls having their "Pinterest Wedding" board filled before they even have a boyfriend. I had thought about getting married and planning a wedding for so long that it seemed easy. It seemed easy to choose centerpieces, dresses, and flowers on Pinterest or Etsy, but when it comes down to choosing the things for your actual wedding day -- that's when it gets tough. I quickly realized that 90% of the stuff they say you should care about -- I didn't.

via

Should the center pieces have roses or lilies? Should the bridesmaids wear heels or flats? Should Grandpa Joe sit with Aunt Betty or at Cousin Fred's table? Questions like this drove me up a wall. Do people really care about this kind of stuff? I wondered in disbelief. I kept wanting to scream "I don't care! Some else can pick!" But when it's your wedding, you have to care, and nobody wants to pick for you. 2 months of hypothetical planning later, I was done with this wedding nonsense. I was stressed out, overwhelmed, and withering on the ground licking my wedding wounds. I felt defeated. Millions of girls had planned a wedding, and had fun doing it! Why didn't I feel that way?

It boiled down to only a handful of things I cared about:

I wanted to be married in a church.

I wanted a dress.

I wanted a cake.

I wanted Evan there. (Kinda important)

That's it.

I broke down. I told my mom I'd be in Mexico, if you want to see me get married, buy a plane ticket. Needless to say she wasn't exactly thrilled. Luckily, things worked out a lot differently than any of us had planned. On a random Wednesday afternoon in June we decided to get married. No big deal, right? I might want to add that we also decided to get married that Saturday...as in 3 days later. I called my mom and innocently asked her if she had any plans on Saturday. Then I dropped the bomb and told her our scheme. She called me back several times asking if I was serious. After the initial shock, both of our families were on board with making this wedding happen. I told my mom to take the reins, and make the decisions, I trusted that she would make it awesome! (Just and FYI: My mom has excellent taste...think Martha Stewart on crack...not hard to picture) Before we knew it, we had a wedding ready for Saturday. I can't gush enough about how perfect it was, but it really was! There were a lot things that we went without, but what we had were the important things. 

If you don't want a big wedding, don't have one. If you don't want a white dress, have a pink one, If you don't want your annoying aunt there, invite her anyway. It's not worth creating hard feelings. If you want to go to the court house to tie the knot, track down the judge. Can't afford flaming desserts? Have a bonfire and roast marshmallows instead. Make your wedding yours, even if that means doing things a little differently. 

 The American dream of marriage has just become another excuse for a party or who can put on the best show. Marriage isn't something special anymore. Kim Kardashian got married as a publicity stunt to make money for goodness sake! How much more can you degrade marriage into a three ring circus? Society has peer pressured us into being more concerned about having the best of everything for our wedding day, because after all it's our one day! Rather than remembering it's more about the two people committing themselves to each other, fancy clothes or not. Whether you spent $2,000 or 200,000 in the end, the outcome will be the same: You're married. Nobody will remember what color of table cloths you had, flowers will be wilted and thrown away, the food will be eaten, the monogrammed napkins will be crumpled up, and your wedding dress will be hung in the back of a dark closet. (The next time you'll probably even look at your dress will be years later. You'll be brushing the dust off of it, as your daughter looks at you with horror about how ugly and ancient it looks.) So people, please save your money to pay off student loans, have it for a down payment on a house, or go on a once-in-a-lifetime honeymoon. Make your wedding special, have nice things, but don't lose sight of what a wedding is really about. Surround yourself with people who love you, make your vows special, and never ever let something as special as your wedding day become a money-pit pageant. 

"OK I'll try not to look like I'm dying"

via

This is what I look like when I Zumba.

My friend Lisa and I decided to try to Zumba for the first time a few weeks ago.

Um, we almost died.

We found ourselves standing in the hallway with one hand on our hip and another on the wall for support, while we tried to breathe. The muffled base of music pulsed through the wall jeering. We cringed at our watches...the class was only halfway over! There is no way we could make it! It also didn't help that my stomach and hips are incapable of moving independently. I'm that uncoordinated girl that everyone feels uncomfortable just watching me; Asbury didn't help me in that department.  Despite my lack of dancin skillz, I went and shook my booty like there was no tomorrow.  It was so much fun, but geez it is not for the faint hearted.