I'll be in Farmville, Virginia today and tomorrow; speaking at my alma mater this afternoon about life after graduation and all the weird and wonderful things you can do with an English degree. Wish me luck!
I might even share some excerpts from my speech here on the blog when I get back. Until then, stay tuned for a post tomorrow about my first 30 days of Pure Barre.
Happy Tuesday!
Photo from our engagement shoot at Longwood, by V.A. Photography.
We're in Farmville this weekend for the Hampden-Sydney vs. Randolph-Macon game on Saturday. Going to two different schools in the same town was such a perfect situation for the early years of my relationship with Rob--we both had our own space and our own groups of friends, but it was so easy to see each other, and it's so fun now to go back and visit Longwood whenever we're in town for a Hampden-Sydney event. I like sharing a college town with my husband.
Last year we missed lots of fun weekends like this one, but all throughout our college years and right after graduation, we were always tailgating with friends for HSC football games. My twenty-first birthday party was actually a tailgate at Hampden-Sydney!
To prepare for The Game (and because I can't resist any excuse for wine and food), I put together an early tailgate for La Crema--because whether you're at the game or just in your backyard, you can throw a quick, easy, and beautiful party. Even the neighbor's dog, Bentley, couldn't resist showing up and begging for a chicken wing or two.
This post is sponsored by La Crema. For tips on throwing a great tailgate of your own, check out my post on their blog today!
Photos by Sarah Gatrell of Photo + Love.
It was fall of my junior year and my roommates and I had made a conscious decision to take Halloween really seriously. We talked about our costumes and made plans and spent hours at the gym because it was college and the plans and costumes involved crop tops and short skirts.
2008 was the year of Lady Gaga, and we must have listened to "Just Dance" eight times while we got ready. Raquel was a baseball player, I was a sailor, and Michele was, well, Lady Gaga. We headed to a high school friend's dorm suite at Hampden-Sydney, where there was a good mix of friends old and new; and one of those coolers with a spout, full of something we all still refer to fondly as "Black Drank."
He was friendly, but quiet, and at first I didn't realize that he was tall because he was already seated when we arrived. I took the empty seat next to him and barely even remember our first words to one another. I'm sure I forgot his name immediately, because I'm horrible with names, but I do remember proudly (and oddly) boasting that I knew exactly what cologne he was wearing. Aqua di Gio by Giorgio Armani remains one of my favorite scents to this day.
We began a natural but cautious friendship before realizing a few months later that we were dating. Life with Rob felt magical because I never knew him and then, suddenly, I met him and in the very best way, it felt as though he had always been there.
Amid the Halloween chaos of Black Drank and endless games of Quarters, someone snapped a photo of me and my husband from across the table.
Happy Halloween.