Boys Will Be Boys

This weekend, I finally got to see Patrick after almost 2 months (we have been truly blessed in that last semester, we saw each other about every 3 weeks, so this was the longest we had gone during the school year). I drove down Friday after my calc exam and we hung out with Patrick's sponsor family after he made some delicious pizza for dinner. We hung around until it was time for Patrick to head back to the Academy. He had practice bright and early Saturday morning. He was done his 7am practice a  little earlier than normal. We went out to breakfast at the double T diner. It was delicious!! Well, I don't know how truly good it was, but they had cannolis which gave them extra bonus points. We headed back to his sponsors to hang around until his second practice. While Patrick was on the water, I hung out with Jenn. We went to Whole Foods to get a delicious lunch, then we headed back to DTA to eat. It got a little chilly so we ate inside on the yard. We had the intentions of going shopping but we ended up just sitting and talking and lost track of time. Patrick finished up and we went out to get delicious crepes from Sofis! After that, we watched the Lady Mids (?) beat Holy Cross in the Patriot League championship basketball game! They definitely are not the lady blue hens, but the game was fun. Jenn left after the game and we went to a house that one of Patrick's friends' parents rented for the crew team for the week. They had an amazing dinner set up and the house was gorgeous! Liam's mom was absolutely amazing and I thought it was adorable that Liam, his mom, and his dad all were wearing blue and white. They matched perfectly! (sorry Liam).

The highlight of my WHOLE trip was getting to spend time with some truly important people. My readers really mean a lot to me and I know I've kept these particular readers on the edge of their seats waiting for my next post. I thought I would dedicate a section of this post to these wonderful, upstanding young fellows.

Liam, Evan, Austin, Jack, Jordan, Patrick, Conor, and Danny

These fine young gentlemen make up with Freshman lightweight 1st boat. They enjoy long walks on the yard, erging, and reading blogs. Perrier is the beverage of choice for these lovely midshipman. They will graduate in 4 years from the United States Naval Academy and have some very big plans for the future (ask Austin, he has some very well thought out plans). I don't know where my blog would be today without these 7 readers. Thank you for reading and enlightening me to some lovely dinner conversation, boys!

With that said, I have one more picture to upload, thanks to Jack!

He's always looking out for me!

I have so much more to write about but I am exhausted!

You are 16, going on 17.

Okay, while the title may seem irrelevant to the post, I'm not crazy. Just wait a bit.

This weekend was awesome. It was a much needed break to my still-going-on winter break lounging around my house being lazy. Friday, I started my trip with a ride to my cousin's house. She lives in Joppatowne, Maryland with her husband and three girls. They are absolutely amazing!!! We made cool bracelets, ate chinese, made rice crispy treats, and a ton of other things. It was a blast to finally visit them at home. And I just have to say, her youngest, Lily, is absolutely hysterical.

Saturday, I woke up to (unexpected by me) snow. Madison came in the room saying there was a ton of snow and it wasn't stopping. I got so worried! I was supposed to be in Annapolis by 10 and how could I drive?! It turned out that it wasn't so bad outside and it wasn't snowing anymore. It was actually pretty. After an entertaining breakfast (Lily wanted all of the grapes but would stick them in her mouth and then give them to the dog), we went out to start my car. Turns out, quite a bit of snow had fallen and we needed to clean it off. Their neighbor must've thought we looked a little helpless and he offered his ice scraper to us. Upon it's return, he suggested I invest in one since it tends to snow around there. Sorry bud, I don't live there and didn't think it was going to snow that much. I said I'd look into one on my trip which he shot down saying everyone was going to be out buying them. Thanks, bro. Then I was off! The trip to Annapolis was much easier than expected, though I didn't arrive until 11. I picked Patrick up and we waited by Starbuck's to meet a friend. After Starbuck's, we went to whole foods and got some food for me for later. Yum!!! Then we went to P.F. Chang's for lunch. It was great! Our waiter was super talkative, it was funny. Then we headed over to Patrick's sponsor's to relax. We watched Off Their Rockers and some other Betty White stuff and talked to his sponsor parents. They crack me up. It was time to head back to the Academy. I always hate that part, but it's not nearly as bad when you know you'll be back tomorrow. After a quick goodbye, Patrick left with his shit ton of stuff from home, and I was on my way to the lovely Michelle's house. First of all, let me say, she has the most ADORABLE dogs. I am in love!! We stayed up talking a bit later than I should have but it was definitely worth it.

Sunday, I woke up at 6:30 to do my hair and makeup and get dressed for pictures!! After going to bed at 1, I was exhausted. I left a bit earlier than necessary, not accounting for the fact most normal people are asleep at that time on Sundays. I found a great parking spot right by gate 1 and even managed to park there for longer than 2 hours, lucky me. I met Patrick on my favorite walkway, that happens to be musical (not really, I just think it sounds funny which Patrick finds entertaining). We walked over to Bancroft and were met almost immediately by the lovely Megan Rossovskij ( megancable.com ). We had an absolute blast during our photo session! It was freezing but she still managed to deal with our silliness (I hope we didn't scare her off). At one point, I suggested going on these awesome benches and doing the whole Sound of Music "You are 16, going on 17" bench dancing while holding hands picture, but it was shot down. It did get Megan to sing a bit for us, though. Okay, maybe only a line or two, but still. The few pictures I've seen so far were amazing and now I'm anxiously awaiting the rest! She was awesome to work with, and we definitely would love to do another session when we get the chance (in the spring, perhaps?). After our two hours with Megan were up, who is hilarious by the way, we were a bit hungry. She suggested, well demanded, we try Sofi's crepes ASAP. So we said our goodbyes, I ran to my car to change, and ordered some crepes for our brunch. We ate in Dalghren and were awkwardly quiet because some football player was having an interview behind us. The quietness made it even more awkward! But, we enjoyed our crepes and it was nice to just relax. Then we headed over to mass in a part of the chapel I had never seen before. It was just as beautiful as the main part! We sat there and froze, even though we were inside with our coats on. Bad circulation is not something I would suggest having while spending time in 25 degree weather. After mass, it was time to go, unfortunately. But the weekend had been more than a success. It was absolutely perfect! And I'm really thankful Patrick decided to put up with my picture idea and have fun with it. He's pretty awesome. The drive home was crazy because I was exhausted. But, I finally made it safe and sound.

Now, I'm waiting to see if Megan lets us sneak a peek at any more pictures. I'm in love already after only 2 pictures! I can't wait for a blogpost dedicated to our photo session!

unbeaTEN: a Decade of Dominance. Oh and the End of my First semester at College

Well, these past few days have been pretty awesome. Wednesday was my last day of classes this semester. Thursday was spent "studying". By studying, I mean goofing around and having a blast with my friends before we left for school. Friday, I got my bio and chem finals out of the way. WOOHOO!!!! No more chem until next semester!!!! And then my daddy came to get me and move me out of my dorm. So I am officially back home!! When I got home, I had a package waiting for me!

It's a beautiful ornament for the usnagfs ornament exchange:) Brittany made it perfectly!! And it just so happens to also have the lyrics to one of my all time favorite songs on it which is also the title of my blog! I am in love with it!!

I showered and tried to get to bed at a decent time (I failed miserably) because I was going to have an early day. Oh wait. I almost forgot. December 9th also happens to be a special day for another reason. It just to happens to be a certain boy's birthday...the first one spent at the Academy and the first of many we won't be spending together. But that's okay:) It will always be one of my favorite days of the year!! And with that being said, you must be wondering about his birthday present...

Saturday morning, I was awake at 6am. I was out of my house and into a car by 6:31. By 10:30 I was in the parking lot at Redskins Stadium, ready to freeze my butt off for the next few hours. I happened to be at a very particular football game. It is one of the biggest rivalries, if not the biggest, in college football. I got to walk around and find where my seat was. Then I went down to sit at the 50 yard line to watch students from both schools parade on to the field. Yep, I was at the Army-Navy game. And no, my boyfriend did not know. I had ridden down with his parents. His mom forgot one or two times that he didn't know I would be there and would ask whether I talked to him or knew if he was there yet. It was quite entertaining. After the march on, he said he'd be able to find his parents. I was so worried he would see me before I saw him. Uh oh. He told us he was standing where we were but we hadn't found him yet. I started frantically looking and spotted him! I told his mom and made a mad dash for it while he was looking the other way. I went up behind him and covered his eyes. He couldn't even guess who it might be! He turned around, surprised, and gave me a kiss! I couldn't be happier:) He said he had NO idea what so ever that I would be at the game. I successfully surprised him, something I never thought I would be able to pull off:) While we couldn't sit together, it was amazing to get to see him again so soon! I did get to sit next to a retired subs officer and his family. He was quite entertaining haha. And, I got to witness the 10th Navy win against Army!! 10 years in a row. One whole decade. I cannot imagine how it feels to lose that much. Kudos to Navy for kicking some black night butt. We said our goodbyes after the game, but they weren't so bad since I'd be seeing him again in exactly a week!!! And, we got to text all night, which is very rare! I was one happy camper.

Today, I slept in till 2, a record for me! I will say I was up until 1:30, and quite exhausted from the Army-Navy game. At 4, I had an interview to nanny for one of my mom's students. I got the job! I start tomorrow and cannot wait!! I will finally be making some money, but not only that, I LOVE kids. Anyone who knows me knows I kind of have an obsession. So this is the perfect job for me! I cannot wait to start!! Then my mommy and I went shopping.  I love spending time with her and really miss it at school. Then, we came home, ordered dinner since everyone was too exhausted to cook, and I worked on a little present I'm making. This weekend was very successful if I do say so myself! I now have to finish all of my christmas presents in the next two weeks and I need to go dress shopping! I LOVE getting dressed up more than anything:) And in less than one week, Patrick will be home for 3 whole weeks!!!! Yay!! I will leave you on that happy note!!

“Sometimes you have to be apart from people you love, but that doesn't make you love them any less. Sometimes you love them more.”

Wow. This weekend was wonderful. Two banging weekends in a row is unheard of for me! Friday afternoon, my parents came down to look at the apartment complex I will be living in next year. They fell in love just as much as I did. (Thank gosh) Then we were off to my Aunt's surprise 50th birthday! It was a blast to see most of my cousins! Since everyone is getting older, it has been really hard to get the majority of us together. Out of the 17 grandchildren, I think we were missing 4 which isn't too bad at all (seeing as one just had twins and another is stationed in South Carolina with her husband). Then I spent the night in the hotel with my parents, relaxing away from my dorm.

Saturday, we went to watch (the second half of) Patrick's crew race. It was a scrimmage between Navy, Delaware, and Penn. Navy's freshman lightweights killed every piece! If I'm correct, Navy went 18 for 18 for the day. Go Navy!! But want to know what the best part of the day was? Patrick getting to come back to Delaware with me! After the race, I hung around with his mom and grandmom while everything was getting cleaned up. Then we met my family (who was buying candy to make yummy treats this winter) for dinner at a lovely Italian place. Then, it was back to my dorm!!! I never thought Patrick would get the chance to see my dorm, let alone freshman year. He got to meet most of my friends, which really meant a lot to me. He finally got to put faces with names. He happened to get mad at me once, though. I told him, after we were on our way to the dining hall, that I would've liked for him to wear his uniform. He almost turned and ran back to the dorm to change. Why the crazy dude would ever want to be in his uniform longer than necessary (regardless of how bangin he looks), is beyond me! But we had such an awesome time.

Dropping him off at the Academy was a little harder than usual. It was the first time (I think) I dropped him off when it was light out. And it was quick. I was in and out of the gate in fewer than 20 minutes. I did not like it. And in case you haven't seen my facebook, I really dislike when the Academy decides to steal my boyfriend back. But he actually loves me, not you! So take that, silly Academy. Going over the bay bridge, I got to see one of the most amazing sunsets ever. It was behind me and these beautiful clouds were in front of me. While I always hate saying "see you later", the sunset was a little piece of mind. I took it as a good sign, everything would be okay, no matter what. I got back to school safe and sound, albeit a bit tired. The weekend was well worth some heavy eyelids.

If nothing else, this weekend showed me the truth behind the quote “Sometimes you have to be apart from people you love, but that doesn't make you love them any less. Sometimes you love them more.” I have been so lucky to see Patrick fairly often. Each time I see him, I love him even more, which I didn't think was possible. I am truly blessed to be dating such a wonderful guy, who just happens to be my best friend. And, while I do have a love-hate relationship with the Academy, I could not possibly be more proud of Patrick. (and for all you rowers reading this right now, be jealous. Morrow, I know you are.)


Just for kicks, I'll post some lovely pictures of us:)

He decided to change his face last minute, thanks babe.

My Midshipman is finally at Delaware!!

Surprise kiss! I had the biggest smile on my face

Rain, Rain Go Away

I've figured out that I have the time (and remember) to write a post about once a week. Yay! This past week, not much happened... except the HUGE drop in temperature that brought the weather from fall to winter. I hate the cold! Especially when I don't have my winter coats or gloves with me. I have terrible circulation in my hands (it is called something I can't spell haha) so they are freezing, even inside!

Thursday night, I had the pleasure of playing in a soccer team. In the freezing cold. When it was supposed to rain. With people I didn't know. If you can't tell, I'm a bit bitter. It was pouring all day and freezing so I was hoping and praying the intramural soccer gane might be postponed or cancelled. But no, I got to freeze my butt off playing in a game with people I didn't know. Can't you tell I love doing things when I'm cold?

Friday night, I stayed in and did a little pampering. Yes, it is halloween weekend, but I felt no need to dress like a floozy (I am an 80 year old grandma at heart) in sub 35 degree weather. Plus, I was visiting my lovely boyfriend on Saturday and wanted to be sure I looked good:) So I showered, figured out what I was going to do with my hair, and gave myself a pedicure. Since the forecast was a rainy day Saturday, I couldn't straighten my hair like I originally planned so I left it natural in its semi-curly state.

Saturday I was off to Annapolis! I got up bright and early (sans the bright) and was out of my room by 8:30. I got to spend a lovely car ride with Patrick's Aunt Amy to get my car at his grandparents house. She had the most adorable bull dog in her car! Lulu was staying with her for a week. I fell in love:) Anyway, the ride down to Annapolis had to be the most scary car ride ever. For some reason, every huge truck in the Northeast decided to drive down 301 yesterday. I think every single one of them was out to get me. One cause me to be completely blinded by the water it splashed up on my windshield. That was hands down the scariest moment of my life. Another decided it wanted to pass ME and then slow down so I could pass him...uhm? But I finally made it to Naptown.

 By this time, I really had to go to the bathroom (thank you small bladder). Annapolis has NOWHERE you can park and just run in for the bathroom. I had to drive all the way back to the far side of town to find a supermarket and use their bathroom. I was a lot earlier than I expected. By the time I got back over and parked and walked to the yard, Patrick was strolling right out of the gate. Boy, did he look good. I was so happy to see him! Yes, I did see him last weekend, but we were finally getting the chance to hang out alone. It was almost like we were back home and it was senior year again. We watched movies all day and then went out to an amazing dinner that night! So good! Then we had a little bit of extra time before he had to be back on the yard (dinner took about 3 hours) so we sat and just talked, which is my absolute favorite thing to do. Then it was time to drop him off once again. Patrick wanted to try and get in through gate 8, which we were pretty sure we couldn't do. And we were right. We had the shortest goodbye ever. He literally hopped out of the car and was gone. Leaving this time was the hardest, for me, that it has ever been, next to I-day. I'm not sure why but I'll just say the ride home was a long one.

Unfortunately, the weather prohibited us from getting the pictures done I had been SO excited for. But, we can reschedule and hopefully the next day we plan will be picture perfect.

My life in a nutshell...

Okay, so keeping up with my blog hasn't been the easiest. I have tons of studying and homework to do (thank you, chemistry) along with tons of other things. I made it to the gym the other day after my run. I decided I was going to do a killer work out with Amanda (poor her). So we actually lifted. Like track practice lifting. Now my shoulders are so sore and have so many knots, I really need a back rub! And my feet are not very happy with all of this walking. I can't really remedy that too easily though. I refuse to take the bus unless it's absolutely necessary because it gets me at least a little work out.

On a different note,  a few different issues, both good and bad, have caused me to really start getting to know one of the other usnagfs. While we talked before, I can't believe how close Lauren and I are getting. She's beyond amazing and so helpful! I'm so thankful to have her to talk to! In other usna news, Patrick and I are having a wonderful opportunity next weekend! I cannot wait. I've had my outfit picked out for two weeks already! And I am so excited to finally meet Miss Megan! I am so so so EXCITED!!!

In a little bit, I get to go to the mall! I am pumped, it is way better than my mall at home! I love trying dresses on:) After that, I need to be sure I have all my stuff ready for tomorrow! I get to go to the Navy homecoming game vs. ECU with my second mother, little sister I never had, and best friend. I am stoked! (yes, I did just say stoked.) I'll be rocking my Navy crew t-shirt, ohhh yeahhhh:)

My decision to try to stand up while on facebook, twitter, blogging has become an epic fail. You burn a significantly greater amount of calories standing as opposed to sitting. I did dance around my room today! Thank you exercise science for teaching me so much awesome stuff, then making me feel really terrible about myself hahah.

Jersey girls don't pump gas!

Okay...this post isn't going to be all about pumping gas. We will get to that later. Yesterday, my roommate, Lauren, accompanied me on an adventure to the Naval Academy. It started out with me awaking bright and early (for a saturday, 8am) to walk over to the Marriott and pick up my car which Patrick's grandparents dropped off (I keep it there to save on insurance and parking at school). They are so sweet to let me keep it there! When I got back to my dorm, Lauren was trying to get Katie, our suitemate, out of bed. She had a rough night and kept, uhhh, getting sick all morning. She ended up staying at school, forcing Lauren to be stuck alone with Patrick and me. We finally left around 10 but only a short while later, we stopped at Wawa for breakfast and coffee (if chips, for Lauren, and a soft pretzel, for me, count as breakfast). Then we were on the road! I do have to say, they couldn't have more signs on 301 for the Bay Bridge. They are quite literally every 2 miles! But, it was awesome once the numbers started getting down below 18 miles! Oh! And in Delaware and Maryland, the speed limit is 55 freaking mph. What?! In Jersey, its 65 and no one goes below 80! Anyway, we finally got to the bridge which happened to be really scary because it was a lot longer than I remembered. Then we were almost there! We parked by St. John's college and rushed onto the yard. For someone who only drinks water, the diuretic effect of caffeine in coffee was not a good thing. We ran onto the yard and into the closest bathroom. Then Lauren and I walked around the gift shop while waiting for Patrick to be ready to go. We met him at Tecumseh, well a little south of him. Lauren Boudreau was coming as well so we waited for her (we technically weren't in T-court, which is where I said we were, so it took her a few minutes to find us). Then Josh snuck up on her and they scurried off to walk around. She is one of the sweetest girls I've ever met! Then Patrick, Lauren, and I walked into John Paul Jones' crypt and tried to spot the bride of the wedding that was going on later. We walked into town and had lunch at Moe's. We decided to go to the Marine Base and look around. I decided I didn't want to try the O-course which meant putting Patrick's pants and boots on. We tried to figure out what we wanted to do next. One of the other lightweight rowers, Nordgaard (I have no idea how to spell it), invited us over to his sponsors house. We got to hang out there for a bit, and play with their kids. I also do have to say I beat Lauren in air hockey, Helllll yeahhhhh! The sponsor family left us to go to a block party. We hung around the house for a bit. Patrick was his silly old self and I found myself hysterically laughing the whole time we were in the kitchen. He tried to make easy mac, which he thought was a poor excuse for mac & cheese. He was appalled I LIVE on that stuff at school. Then Lauren and Nordgaard (Erik-I think he's a viking...) came up from the basement to eat on the deck with us. It was gorgeous. After that, we went to the block party for a bit. Lauren decided she wanted a tour of the yard so we dropped them off. We went to Patrick's real sponsors house so I could meet them. They are hilarious! We were laughing the whole time! Then it was time for Patrick to go back on the yard. The goof left his bag with his ID at the house so we turned around to go back and get it. Then, we got lost (I made a wrong turn) going back to the yard. We didn't get to Gate 1 until 23:30! oops. But he made it back safe and not  in trouble, and Lauren and Erik were there waiting for us. We said our goodbyes and were back on the road. We stopped at Wawa again so I could get a coke (I never drink soda!) and some candy/food to stay awake. I also needed gas. Little did I know, I'd have to pump it myself! We spent about 15 minutes trying to get the gas cap off of my car. It had to be the funniest thing for someone to watch. Finally, we figured it out and we were pumpin' away! Then we were on the road once again! Lauren (who said she can't sleep in the car) passed out. I was all alone on this creepy road, not another car in sight, with a ton of fog. I was pretty darn scared. Then, all of a sudden...we were on a bridge?! We had already gone over the Bay Bridge when Lauren was awake. I was scared to death when all of a sudden the "cage" was over my car and I realized we were on a bridge. Don't ask how I didn't notice, I don't know. But I have never been so scared in my life. I know I shouldn't admit this, but I had Patrick text me for awhile to be sure I was wide awake. Thank gosh for him! He stayed up way past lights out to make sure I was safe. We got back to Newark and had to find the parking lot I was keeping my car for the night. We were totally opposite from my dorm and had to take the Hen after 10 back with all of the lovely drunk kids. We didn't realize how long this bus route was and got off at Trabant to walk back. We were exhausted. I finally got to bed at 3am after 19 hours awake! And boy, did I need some sleep. Today, I had to drop my car off at Patrick's grandparents and forgot when I needed gas that I would have to pump it again, this time without the aid of Lauren. Oh joy! But I was slightly less challenged at it this time. Overall, the past 24 hours were amazing! I had a blast and can't wait to go back! Plus, I guess I enjoyed seeing my boyfriend too... <3

home sweet school?

(weird picture, I know, but it was the only one I could find of my two favorite schools!)

Last night, I got back to school from the most amazing weekend ever! Patrick got TWO overnights! What?! It was such an amazing surprise for all of us! Not to brag, but he really is the best boyfriend anyone could ask for. We lounged around, watched movies, and hung out in DTA. Its so gorgeous there! I can't wait to go back! It was just such a perfect weekend, I can't even describe it!

Then I get to come back to the best roommate ever, my lovely suitemate, and Alex. Even though I've only known them for a week, I missed them already!!! Thank gosh they were up for a snuggle sesh and a walk:)  Plus all the girls on my floor filled me in on the goings on of the weekend. I love our floor <3

I have one class today at 1230 and its psych which I love. I can't wait for more picture perfect weekends with the boy and more drives back to see my amazing friends <3 I can already tell how amazing this year is going to be...