Say Cheese!

"Oh Darling, don't you ever grow up, don't you every grow up, just stay this little.

Oh Darling don't you ever grow up, it could stay this simple." ~ T. Swift

My advice: Don't listen to Taylor Swift's "Never Grow Up" without a tissue. Even when she's 25 this is going to be her ring tone on my phone. I know she's not little anymore, but I'd do anything to have her back in the sixth grade at St. Alphonsus. This weekend my little sister Katie had her Junior Prom. I repeat - JUNIOR Prom. Where has the time gone?

I've been blessed with the prettiest little sister anyone could ever have, I'm so proud of her, and I wish every day that I could have a heart like hers.

In addition to Prom, Brad and I jumped in the car at 5 p.m. last Friday afternoon to rush home. It wasn't so bad though because 1. We were in route to be in great company with an unbelievably fun weekend in store and 2. He had a a few cold Abita Strawberry iced down for the drive.

Summertime in South Mississippi:
it's the most wonderful time of the year.

I love surprise parties! Brad and I were invited to a surprise birthday party in honor of my good friend Kristi's 25th birthday. It was a blast (from what I remember). Anytime I can be around members of "the circle", my day is made. In addition to T-shirts and huggers, I think personalized M&M's have been added to my "Things Necessary for a Party" list. They were too pretty to eat!

A Dee Gee, a Chi O and a Tri Delt walk into a bar...

After we saw Katie off to Prom, we headed downtown to see Karen Waldrup at Mosaic's. Initially this was the reason I had planned to be on the coast but then we got Kristi's invitation and found out about Katie's prom falling on the same weekend - it just happened where we were able to be in town and do it all! A box of wine, a bucket of beer and a bottle of Jameson later at Phoenicia's, and we were off to see Karen!

It very much could have been deliriousness but one late night in college, while on goodness knows what floor of the library attempting to study something that I'm sure doesn't apply to my current job, me, Karen and Kim "Awesome" hid behind a desk facing the only elevator on the floor. When the doors opened and someone stepped out of the elevator, we'd raise one of our phone's and take the person's picture. Except, it wasn't just a flash that went off - the phone obnoxiously rang out, "SAY CHEESE!" followed by a pretty loud clicking flash noise. We got some of the best pictures that night and we laughed until we cried. To this day, when we take a picture, we can't help but exclaim, "SAY CHEESE!" And yes, I realize this was probably funnier if you were there.

Even though Karen only played "Midnight Queen" once... :) I wish her all the luck in the world. She has a great talent. If you haven't gotten a chance to see her live, check out her website and plan a night to be entertained!

In my heaven...

In my heaven it will be Sunday year round and everyone who I love will be at my parent's pool for a seafood boil, outside speakers blaring, swimming, laughing... (all I'll need to add will be a swim-up bar). It's simple. It's by far when I'm my most happiest, and it's my favorite place to be.

Here's to a summer full of Crab and Crawfish Sundays!

She Said Yes to the Dress!

Wikipedia states (and according to Brad Boudreaux, all information listed on Wikipedia is 100% fact) St. Patrick's Day is "generally characterized by the attendance of church services, wearing of green attire, public parades and processions, and (get this Tara Moe) the lifting of Lenten restrictions on eating and drinking alcohol, which is often proscribed during the rest of the season."

Had we read this little tidbit of information, Moe Moe (who has given up alcohol for Lent) may have partaken in the pre-game wedding dress shopping festivities, which consisted of Winky, the Bride-to-Be's momma, popping a couple bottles of champagne in the gas station parking lot, located in Lamar County (a dry county might I add), before our drive to Imaginations in Brookhaven.

My personal opinion: Imaginations is the epitome of a wedding dress store. I can name five people off the top of my head who have visited this shop to purchase their dress. The service, the hospitality, the dress selection and the employees' level of patience and assistance are beyond top-notch. In February of 2009, I made a trip to this store because my best friend Marie, who traveled there to accompany her now sister-in-law, suggested I give it a shot. In January of 2011, I took the same drive with Marie, when it was her time to find the dress of her dreams, and approximately a year and a month later, I had the honor to take this trip, once again, with Amanda.

Mimosas (minus the orange juice) in tow, Tara, Amanda's Maid of Honor (we like to refer to ourselves as the "of honors"), myself, Winky and Amanda, departed from Hattiesburg at 8 a.m. on March 17 to arrive at Imaginations for Amanda's 10 a.m. appointment. Dress after dress, it was obvious from the beginning, that dress number two was THE dress (pictures to be posted after her November 17 wedding day). If someone could take me back to the moment Amanda and I became sorority sisters, never would I have guessed that I would be there by her side to experience this moment. She is going to be one of the most beautiful brides I've ever seen.

On this last trip to Imaginations, I learned a very important lesson:

When driving with champagne in your middle console, use SOLO cups. Wine glasses turn over too easy and result in lots of stickiness and your air conditioner to perform some sort of "Saturday Night Fever" strobe light dance. No, it didn't short out but Tara and I were a little concerned. It gave us a good laugh.

Fantastic "Five" WICKED Weekend

Sometime many, many months ago, the Fantastic Four, which consists of myself, Erin, Leah and Roz, planned a trip to Birmingham to see the musical Wicked. We crossed days off of our calendars for what seemed like forever!

On our way to Birmingham one of us raised the question: When did we become friends?

After unsuccessfully trying to pinpoint the exact moment, we settled on the conclusion that the friendship we have naturally happened. Somehow, no matter how different we were -- and there couldn't be four that were so different -- we gravitated toward each other.

Leah, Erin and Roz pledged Delta Gamma, became close friends and then I entered the picture a year later. They'd all agree that this is when the party started. We've been through fun times, hard times, arguments... the whole nine yards throughout the years as we've been friends. In 2009, Roz was married in June, Leah in August, myself in November and Erin the following May. Wedding showers, bachelorette parties, "Will you be my bridesmaid?" moments and the like were all jam-packed into a short amount of time. You see, there's something about this small group of friends that I have. In the past, we've been scattered across the country. One moves here and one moves there, we go months without talking, but when we finally gather together, it's like time hasn't passed and we are right back where we left off. As we get older, their friendship genuinely means more to me each and every day and I hope that I make a point, more often then not, to let them know how much I value each one of them. As Carrie from Sex & the City pointed out: "It's hard to find people who would love you no matter what. I was lucky enough to find three of them."

Since we've all moved back down south, it's been easier to see one another. The last couple of times we've been together, for our annual Christmas gathering and Wicked, something has been a little different. Leah broke the news to us at the end of last year that her and Jerod were expecting a baby! Lillian Katheryn will be here this summer!

We all stayed the night with Leah Friday night before setting off to Birmingham and we were able to see what Leah has done so far on the nursery. There's no denying she's pregnant and even more this time than last, it was so real. She's having a baby and soon there will be five of us! Lillian's "aunts" can not wait to spoil her!

Baby Lillian and her Aunt Roz pose for their very first photo together.

As Glinda and Elphaba sang "For Good" during the end of Wicked, I couldn't help but shed a little tear (and I know I wasn't the only one). Because I knew THEM, I have been changed for good.