It's that time of year! The time of year where the Make-A-Wish Foundation has their annual Season of Wishes fundraiser! Make-A-Wish needs the help of generous people like you to provide these wishes to kids with life-threatening illnesses.

I've only been volunteering with Make-A-Wish for about a year, but I've seen firsthand how amazing these wishes can be. It truly gives these kids and their families hope and joy, in a world often plagued with doctor's visits and hospital stays. Each and every one of these children deserve a chance to experience some happiness. This is where you come in!

This year I am helping to raise funds for Emmit, who wishes to go to Walt Disney World. Emmit just wants to be a normal kid and take in all of the amazing characters, food, and colors of Disney. His sponsorship page can be found here.

PLEASE please please take a moment to look at it, and if funds allow, please donate a few dollars. Every little bit will help Emmit get closer to his goal! He deserves it! Thank you so much for your generosity!!

Look at that adorable face!

I wouldn't be me if I didn't post this late, just like I did for Bria's announcement. Better late than never?
I can't believe it, but my best friend Kelsey is a mother times two now! Her adorable son Carter Jacob Biehl was born on November 6th at 12:59 pm. Bria is a big sister! They first announced it with this adorable (and now often duplicated) Facebook anouncement:

This is how Bria felt about the news at first:
"Whateeeevvss."

But now he's finally here!

I can't wait to meet my new "nephew"!!! I get to meet him over Thanksgiving weekend, so pictures of the two kiddos will be coming shortly!

Favorite New Song
"Bottom of the River"-Delta Rae

Favorite Funny
This is another gem sent to me from Joanna. I couldn't stop laughing!

Favorite Movie
Even though I didn't see this movie this week, I loved it so much I had to share it. I highly recommend seeing it!

Favorite Quote
“Change will not come if we wait for some other person, or if we wait for some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” ― President Barack Obama

Favorite Funny #2

Rilo Kiley showed up on my radar a few years ago when they were featured on an episode of Grey's Anatomy. I never physically saw the band back then-pictures, videos, or otherwise-but knew I liked the music. This is the video for "Portions for Foxes", the song featured on Season 1 Episode 1. (You can see my first Mind Blown post here.)












The part that blew my mind was when I found out who the lead singer is! It's Jenny Lewis, best known from Troop Beverly Hills and Big Girls Don't Cry...They Get Even! I assume most people won't know either of those movies, but if you do, compare the video and the picture! It's almost as shocking as when I found out the little girl who played Cindy Lou Who fronts The Pretty Reckless (and dresses like a street walker...)





Does anyone else recognize either of them and/or had their mind blown? Are there any other actors or singers whose past blew your mind?

Favorite App
I came across this app in an issue of Fitness Magazine. You can earn money for certain charities just by walking, biking, or running. If you already do any of those activities, why not download this? It's free.

Favorite New Restaurant
This restaurant just opened in Uptown, and it is amazing! It's a shame they just opened, because they have such a great patio! (Check it out here.) The style of the restaurant is awesome, the food is delicious, and the staff are really friendly. I recommend checking it out!

Favorite Song
"Miss Me"-Andy Grammar

Favorite Video

Favorite Quote
“Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don't.”
- Steve Maraboli

It's time for round 2 of my pet peeves! Yay! (You can see round 1 here.) As I was compiling this list, I realized a lot of it revolves around work and people downtown. Does that really come as a surprise though? I mean, if you work in an office or downtown, you know what's up.

People who don't follow public restroom etiquette. I've ranted about this before. A whole post could be dedicated just to this topic. Ladies-there is public bathroom etiquette. I used to think there were unspoken rules, but it appears most women at my job don't know any of these. Most bathrooms at my workplace have 3 regular stalls and one handicap stall. If you're the only one in the bathroom, take one of the outside stalls! Do NOT take the middle stall. This makes the next person in have to take a stall next to you. Along the same line, if you come in and someone is already in an outside stall, DON'T take the one in the middle. If the other outside stall is available, you take it. Women on my floor are also extremely guilty of taking the stall next to me no matter what is open. I'm not sure why this bothers me as much as it does, but yeah...it does. So ladies, choose wisely!

Slow walkers in the skyway. I by nature walk fast because I have short legs. I get it that not everyone walking the skyways has somewhere to be in a hurry. But for the love of God, pick up the pace a little! If you're walking slow AND four people wide, I will pull my hair out. I feel it's common courtesy to make sure you aren't hogging the skyway. I guess it's not.

Downtown jaywalkers. Ok, I'm guilty of jaywalking too. Sometimes there's no reason to follow the lines on the road that closely. But people downtown take it to a whole new level. They run in front of cars and buses. They can't be bothered to wait the 2.2 seconds it'll take for the walk sign to appear. How are people always running so late?

People who use the handicap button for doors when they don't need to. It's one thing if you have a ton of bags with you, or your arms are full for whatever reason. But I've seen people press this button out of pure laziness, patiently waiting for the door to open. In that time, I've gone through both sets of doors with little to no effort. Come on people.

People who walk on the left side of a hallway/skyway. Again-this may just be me, but I treat hallways and skyways the same as I would the road. I stick to the right side no matter what. Other people seem to have different ideas. They walk on the left side, often the opposite direction as me and around blind curves where I inevitably run into them-because I'm walking on the right side! One of those awkward dances ensues and I walk away flustered. Let's avoid these moments by walking on the right side people.

Holy guacamole! It's been weeks since I've posted! No worries friends. I've crawled out from under the rock I was living and am now back to blog random thoughts. In a hopefully not-creepy post, I start with another ode to my friend Joanna.

Despite the fact I don't work by her anymore, my old coworker Joanna still gives me some of the best laughs of the day. There was a particular exchange last week that was done in true Joanna style, so I had to share it. The topic? Massages with flowers.

It all started by Joanna posting this picture on her Facebook:

Naturally, I had to like it. That spurred an email with a collage she made for her Tumblr site.
Really? Do people really get massages like that? Granted I've only gotten one professional massage in my life, but it was in Mexico on the beach and I STILL didn't have flowers surrounding me. That being said, Joanna countered with this response:

THIS IS AN OUTRAGE!!!!!!!!!!

Just google "groupon massage" and look at the image results. It's RIDICULOUS. They're mostly lighter skinned females. Really no ladies of color or dudes to be found. I only saw like two or three!

I not only noticed what she had mentioned, but one other element: if there weren't flowers around the person being massaged, they were in the women's hair. Seriously! Wtf? Joanna's last response:

Next time I get a massage I'll ask if they have any flowers. I'm sure the masseuse will be like, "what the hell are you talking about?" and then I'll ask if they had a section in massage school about flower selection for clients.

I understand I may be the only person who thinks this is funny, because I know Joanna and her sense of humor. But come on! Who notices that kind of stuff? Joanna does. And for that, I thank her.

Favorite Song

It's no surprise that I'm a huge Imagine Dragons fan. My brother said he doesn't know who they are, but he knows I tweet about them ALL the time. Hey, when it's love, you just know! Their debut album Night Visions came out on September 4th, and naturally I got it immediately. This is by far my favorite song.

"Bleeding Out"-Imagine Dragons

Favorite Quote

Favorite Funny

Favorite New Lunch Spot

People's Organic Cafe

Favorite Fall Premiere

When I wrote my Do Gooder post, I asked that everyone take a little time out of their day to help others. My good friend Lindsay is doing just that and then some, no doubt changing a lot of lives along the way. She is currently living in Kenya, working as an HIV/AIDS educator (and in my mind, as Super Woman) for the Peace Corps. She has done so much already, and she's only halfway through her stay! (Is that right Lindsay? What does your homemade calendar say?)

She has built a garden, worked on a resource center for her community, and is teaching the local women how to make jewelry to sell. The crazy part-they make some of the beads from magazine clippings! Take a look at the gorgeous bracelet she gave me:

(I feel guilty I didn't pay for it!)

Lindsay just set up an Etsy page for the Mulembe Craft Co and I ask that everyone PLEASE take a look and see if anything strikes your fancy! Each piece is unique, beautiful, and will help her community.

Another way you can help-if you have any magazines with colorful pages, please give them to me! I'm in the process of writing Lindsay a letter, and will send her what magazine pages I have.

If you're interested in Lindsay's endeavors in Kenya, follow her blog The Journey is the Reward. Thank you everyone!!

Favorite Song
"Kill Your Heroes"-AWOLNATION

Favorite Dress

Favorite Lyrics
"Modern Love" Matt Nathanson

She said this talking
Kind of wears me out
And all these salesmen
Baby, make me tired

They're no good, to tell you the truth, she said
I've been gettin' used to liars
They send me love songs, with store bought words
They make promises, like politicians

This modern love is not enough
She said, watch your back
I'm nobody's girlfriend
This modern love is not enough
They said one big exhale never did me no, good

I'd let em in, I
Oh man, I'd let em win
I'd burn my house down
Just to hear them scream my name
I've carried hopes
And heavy daydreams she said
But I'm done with sleeping

Take the phone calls
Take this circus
Take the drama, cause baby it's worthless

Favorite Funny

Favorite Jewelry
Trinity Knot Claddagh Ring

While I feel I'm a very opinionated person, I generally try to stay away from preaching on my soapbox. However, if there's one thing I'm passionate about and want to spread the word on, it's volunteering for good causes.

Trust me. I know how easy it is to say you don't have time in your schedule, and you have other important things to tend to. Hell, even if they're not that important, I get how your own life activities may take precedence over volunteering. I'm guilty of it too. Waking up Saturday mornings to volunteer at Feline Rescue is a challenge most weekends. But once I'm there, knowing my seemingly measly 2 hour shift can help make a difference, I'm happy I woke up and went.

There are so many organizations and good causes out there that need help. Even if you can only spare 1 hour a month, it can do a lot of good. I deeply encourage everyone to take a look at



This site directed me to Feline Rescue, and also opened my eyes to the many volunteer opportunities around the Twin Cities. You can enter in your location and keywords to find organizations. It can be for animals, the environment, food pantries, battered women's shelters, etc. You name it, you can find it.

You don't have to stop there. If there are causes you know you'd love to help with, reach out to someone in that organization. I went to the Make A Wish website on my own, and am now a wish granter. While I haven't turned in my application for the Ronald McDonald House Charities yet (procrastination at its finest), I do simple things like collect pop tabs. (It's real folks. As someone who has stayed at one of their houses before, I can tell you it is an amazing charity. I could slap every person who laughs at me and says it's not "real".)

Random tangent aside, please see if you can fit a little volunteer work in your schedule. You'll be surprised how great it feels to help out. :)

Let me drop a disclaimer: my rant does not come from jealousy, bitterness, or envy. I love love. I'm happy for people in love. It's a beautiful thing. This rant comes from straight up hatred. To all of my good friends who do this-I love you, but you have to stop! I highly doubt I'm the first person to say this, so take heed.

Sure, I'm single. I'm nowhere remotely near being in love. But I pray on all that is holy that when I am I will never be like this:

Yes, it looks harmless, but come on. Chances are, if you're in love, you're talking to and/or seeing your significant other on a daily basis. If you feel a sudden urge to express your love, there are other means. Try a phone call, text message, or even a private message. Hell, go over to their house and say it face to face if it strikes you that hard. But for the love of God, stop blowing up my newsfeed with your personal declarations of love. That should be between you and your significant other-not all 855 friends on your list. I'll let you have your engagement, wedding, and anniversary posts. Those are one time special occasions that I have no problem with you sharing. But there's no need to constantly blast "I love you baby" on your boyfriend's wall. (I was going to include girlfriend to that mix, but I've never seen a guy spam his girlfriend's wall with love messages. Not saying it can't happen-just haven't seen it.)

If you are really in love, you don't need to flaunt it on social media to prove it to others. Keep the lovefest to yourselves friends. I think a lot of people will thank you for it.

*Names have been blacked out to protect their identity. I don't hate ya. I just hate your damn posts people.*

I know I'm not the poster child for happy. Find me in the morning and you will most likely hear me say I'm wearing my crabby pants. Usually a lack of sleep or a weekend gone too quickly will cause my sour mood.

But all of that aside, I know it's important to recognize how blessed I am. I wish i could remember where I heard of this idea, but it's the "3 a day" rule. It's simple, and I think everyone should do it. Whether you're happy, sad, mad, or indifferent, take a moment daily to recognize 3 things you're grateful for. It doesn't have to be something big or grand. You can be grateful for good conversation with a friend. You can be grateful that you remembered your umbrella on a rainy day. (And for me, I'd be grateful it didn't flip inside out in the wind a la the movies.) By all means, be happy for the big things too! For your health, the means to provide for yourself, your education, you pets, whatever! That's the great thing about this little exercise, and about life in general. You can appreciate your blessings in all sizes! :)

This pretty much always improves my mood. What's there to be crabby about when you realize how good you have it? (Trust me-you'll find that you don't have it nearly as bad as you thought. And if you still feel you do? It can only go up!) Something else in my feel good arsenal? Brett Dennen's "Blessed". Try to listen to this song and not smile. I dare you!

I welcome the sun
The clouds and rain
The wind that sweeps the sky clean and lets the sun shine again
This is the most magnificent life has ever been
Here is heaven and earth and the brilliant sky in between
Blessed is this life and I'm gonna celebrate being alive
Blessed is this life and I'm gonna celebrate being alive
I dwell in the darkness
I let in the light
I sleep in the afternoon and become the noise in the night
I trespass in temptation suffer in sacrifice
But I awake each day with the new sunrise
Blessed is this life oh, and I'm gonna celebrate being alive

Take your moment to find your 3 a day!

Another week down, another collection of my favorites!

Favorite Song
"The Light"-Sara Bareilles

Favorite Laugh
I don't know what country this is in. I don't know what is going on. But every time I watch this short clip, it makes me laugh. Have you ever seen such a thing?

Favorite Look
Glitter ombre nails

Favorite Recipe
Southwestern Turkey Meatballs with Creamy Cilantro Dipping Sauce

I found this recipe on Skinny Taste and made it for a potluck. It was a hit, and is definitely an appetizer I'll make again!

Favorite Quote

“A college student at a recent OU football game challenged a senior citizen sitting next to him, saying it was impossible for their generation to understand his. "You grew up in a different world," the student said, loud enough for the whole crowd to hear. "Today we have television, jet planes, space travel, man has walked on the Moon, our spaceships have visited Mars, we even have nuclear energy, electric and hydrogen cars, computers with light-speed processing .... and uh.." Taking advantage of a pause in the student's litany, the geezer said, "You're right. We didn't have those things when we were young; so we invented them, you little twit! What are you doing for the next generation??" - Unknown

I was watching tv the other night, and the most random thought popped in my head. "Remember those Barbie fashion plates you loved as a kid?" I'm not sure what prompted me to think this, but it got the wheels turning. I started reminiscing over all my favorite toys as a kid, and I got a great giggle Googling them. I'm telling you. They just don't make toys like these anymore! What I loved the most:

Barbie Fashion Plates
I couldn't find a picture of the Barbie set, but this picture still provides the flashback.

Puppy in My Pocket
Ahh I loved these. I had every one in this picture. They came in individual wrappers,like baseball cards, with information on the puppy. So tiny and cute!

Polly Pocket
I'm talking the original Polly Pocket here, when she actually could fit in your pocket. The obvious downfall was the ease to losing pieces, but they were still fun to me! I also had this exact one. So boooy am I reminiscing right now.

What toys do you remember from your childhood?

Sorry to all my loyal readers who have just been dying for some more ramblings. I've been absent from the blog for far too long, but I'm back now! Here is this week's edition of my Friday Favorites:

Favorite Quote

Favorite Commercial

Favorite Laugh

Try as I might, I've been unable to watch this without crying from laughing so hard! The chick in the red makes me lose it every time.

Favorite Movie

Favorite Random Fact

Escalator is one of many words that were originally trademarks but have become ordinary words found in dictionaries. Some other words which were originally trademarks and have now passed into common use are: aspirin, autoharp, band-aids, breathalyzer, cellophane, Coke (in some areas, at least), corn flakes, cube steak, ditto, dry ice, dumpster, formica, Frisbee, granola, gunk, jeep, kerosene, Kleenex, mace, nylon, ping-pong (also an onomatopoeia), popsicle, Q-tip, rollerblade, rolodex, Scotch tape, sheetrock, spandex, styrofoam, tabloid, thermos, trampoline, yo-yo, xerox, and zipper.

A few years ago, I discovered I have a very useless "talent". This talent certainly won't save the world, but it has helped a few frazzled friends from time to time. If you need help naming a song, or figuring out who sings it, I can find that for you. I can watch a movie with a fairly obscure actor and name at least one other movie he/she has been in. I give myself bonus points for knowing who they are, even under heavy disguise. If only I could use this gift to remember real life important facts...

The newest facet to this talent is knowing who voices certain commercials. Here are the latest examples of this amazing gift of mine...

This one may not come as a shocker to most. I think he has a very distinctive voice. Maybe it's my years being obsessed with The Office. Maybe it's the fact the ads are played all day when I listen to Pandora. Either way, it's easy to hear that John Krasinski is the voice behind the esurance ads.



I was almost certain I recognized this voice in two separate commercials. While most people, including my roommate, didn't believe me, a recent Google search proved I was right. Tim Allen is the voice for both the Michigan ads and the Chevy Cruze commercial.





I was pretty psyched to figure out I was right on this next one. Zach Woods, who plays Gabe on The Office, is the zombie on the Starburst commercial. This one makes me giggle every time.



Are there any other commercials you can think of that have a familiar voice?

I wouldn't say I have a difficult name. In fact, I probably have the easiest name in the world. Two a's, two n's, and you're done. Yet somehow, everyone has a hard time understanding what my name is. When I get coffee at Caribou, I get asked at least three times. "Ava?" "Ala?" "Amber?" "Abba?" (Yes, I actually got called Abba before.) Or I get the "What? I'm sorry, what? I'm sorry. I'm having a hard time hearing you." Whaaat? Do I have some speech impediment that only comes out when I say my name? Perhaps if that second a wasn't on there and my name was just Ann, it'd be much easier to understand.

In honor of my ridiculously difficult name, I thought I'd find every song I could with the name Anna in it. Is the name hard to understand in these songs people?? Ok. Done with my rant. :)

"Anna Begins"-Counting Crows
"Anna (Go To Him)"-The Beatles
"Anna's Song"-Marvin Gaye (I have to admit-this song made me blush. Wowza!)
"Anna"-Bad Company
"Anna Molly"-Incubus (Hey, it still has Anna in it!)

My fave out of them all

As part of Capella's Healthy Living initiative, O'Neal Hampton, a contestant from Season 9 of The Biggest Loser, came to speak on site. Aside from walking away with a brand new Biggest Loser cookbook, I walked away more inspired than ever. Here are some of his great points:

"Nothing tastes as good as health feels."
He showed a clip of a temptation challenge from his season-he was stuck in a room with junk food and tempted to eat some. He initially took some fries, but told himself it wasn't worth it and walked away. When asked about that moment at the event today, that quote was his response. I need to remember that next time I want to shove Taco Bell in my face.

"Everyone needs a lion in their lives."
He had an interesting analogy. He started by saying that, if a lion and tiger were fighting for the same meat, the tiger would win. Pit 10 tigers against 4 lions, the lions would come out on top. That's because tigers go into it as individuals, but lions work together for the end goal. Basically, he's saying that everyone needs a support system in this weight loss journey. Find yours.

"Don't let the past creep into the present and manipulate your future."
You shouldn't let your past mistakes ruin your future success. Don't look in the metaphorical rearview mirror to what you did wrong in the past. Rather, look out over the dashboard to all the possibilities in the future. Sure it's corny, but he's totally right. It's never too late to start making smarter choices.

Find your eternal happiness.
If being healthy brings you ultimate happiness, you should do what you can to achieve it.

O'Neal started his own foundation to give back to Minnesota and his community. I recommend everyone take a look at his site, because he truly is so inspiring!
Hampton Wellness Foundation

Favorite Song
"I Forgive You"-Kelly Clarkson

Favorite Part of Working Downtown
Food trucks-Vellee Deli is my fave so far!

Favorite Glee Cover
"Shake It Out"-Florence+the Machine

Favorite Picture

It's no secret that I'm a teeny tiny person. God bless everyone who guesses I'm 5'3 or 5'4. I'll take every inch you want to give me. Being a short person, especially with a short torso, it's hard to wear certain clothes. (I'm sure tall people can say the same thing.) There are a few trends that I've tried and look absolutely ridiculous in. Here are some, just to name a few:

Cropped Pants
Uh, yeah. Can you imagine me with my short legs in these? They'd make me look about 3 feet tall. But I adore this style and am completely jealous of people who can rock it out. Curse you short legs!





























Belted Tops and Tunics
Belted tops and tunics create a twofer of ridiculousness. This is where the short torso really screws me. Again, I love these styles and think they're so cute, but I could never pull them off. Son of a...


Leggings
Two words: no butt.

I generally understand why women love rockstars. (Should I even call them rockstars anymore? Musicians? Boy bands? Guys who can sing and/or play instruments?) I digress. There's something about their talent and passion that is sexy. But this is not always the case.

Sure, some of them are genuinely sexy. Adam Levine anyone? (This, by the way, is not disputable. It is a cold hard fact, and I will defend it to the ground.) Others, while being incredibly talented, just don't have the face you would expect for a lead singer. Hey, I'm all for awkward looking bass players. Or guitar players. Or drummers. If you have someone who just stands there and plays the tambourine or the cowbell, by all means, sign on a weird looking dude. Just not the lead singer. I need someone to oogle. And I am in no way being sexist here. Sex sells music for both men and women. Just saying. (Sidenote: I'm really not this shallow in real life. Promise.)

I can think of 3 male singers right off the bat whose voices I absolutely love, but their faces just don't match what I expected. Maybe this is another area in my life where I need to lower my expectations. Who knows.

In no particular order:

Band: Snow Patrol
Singer: Gary Lightbody

I LOVE Snow Patrol. It goes well beyond "Chasing Cars" too, although I will say that is the only song I can think of that I never ever got sick of. Ever. Songs like "Run" really demonstrate the sweetness and raw emotion to his voice. There's something I find so sexy about it, and I can't explain it. My first glimpse into what he looked like came with the "Chasing Cars" music video. Woah! Not what I expected at all! I'm pretty sure he's Irish, and he looks it, but yeah. Not what I expected. What do you think?











Band: Jimmy Eat World
Singer: Jim Adkins

Jimmy Eat World will always define a time of my life. I listened to them pretty much non-stop in college, along with DMB and Dashboard Confessional. While I had heard their songs on the radio, it wasn't until my brother played "Faster" for me that I became hooked. I can't explain what I find so sexy about his voice, but wow, that unibrow? Yikes. Often times his hair is just a big 'ol mess too. I get that musicians often look disheveled, but a good haircut and some tweezing would do this guy wonders. It would be a step in the right direction.

Band: Fall Out Boy
Singer: Patrick Stump

Honestly, do I really need to say much here? I wouldn't say his voice is always sexy per se, but there is something about it I love. I'm not super into Fall Out Boy, but there are some songs I really like. I just...I...I don't really know what to say about his looks without sounding super mean and shallow. I guess I can say he fit the part for the style their band was going for. While searching for photos, I did see that he has since lost weight, cut his hair, and got rid of those God awful sideburns. He's still an awkward looking dude though. But hey, the band broke up, so I guess he might not apply to my list anymore.

Are there any other guys that can fit into this list?

If you're like me, this week has been the longest week ever. (Ok, I say that almost every week, but it still felt that way!) I cannot believe that we're at the end of April already. Where is 2012 going?? Time flies way too fast. Another week gone-another list of Friday favorites!

Favorite Laugh

The 21 Absolute Worst Things In The World






















Favorite YouTube Video


Favorite Fix



























Favorite Work Perk

Communal gum bowl




























Favorite Quote

“Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature,nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. To keep our faces toward change and behave like free spiritsin the presence of fate is strength undefeatable.”- Helen Keller

For a good 6 years, I have been a huge, gigantic, GINORMOUS fan of Ingrid Michaelson. While most people I know don't have a clue who she is, or only know "The Way I Am" from the radio, I have been not-so-secretly mildly obsessed with her. I'll admit that I first came across her music on Grey's Anatomy, but boy did it make such an impact! I could tell you exact scenes where some of her music was played...("Keep Breathing" was played when Christina found out Burke left her. "Turn To Stone" was played when Izzie and Alex got married. If you don't know the show, I'd imagine this all sounds pretty dumb right about now.) She has an incredible voice, heartfelt lyrics, and she can even play the ukelele! That's talent.

On Monday, April 16, 2012, I fulfilled a dream of mine. Thanks to my friend Jeff, I got to see Ingrid in concert at the Guthrie. Words cannot express how amazing she was, how amazing the show was, and how happy I was to finally see her in the flesh. (Damn you Tessa for this being your 6th concert.) My phone didn't take the clearest pictures or videos, but they will help me remember this moment forever. I heart Ingrid Michaelson.

Playlist

1. Fire
2. Soldier
3. Parachute
4. Do It Now
5. Blood Brothers
6. Ghost
7. Keep Warm
8. The Way I Am
9. San Francisco
10. This Is War
11. In The Sea
12. Overboard
13. Black and Blue
14. Ribbons
15. Maybe
16. You And I
17. The Chain (one of my faves...SO happy she closed with this)



The Guthrie



Harper Blynn, her opening act



Love her!



Eee, there she is!





The end of "The Chain"

*Yes, that is absolutely me cheering at the end. Have I not already said how much I love her?*

I'm going to make a bold statment and say that Hootie & The Blowfish and Sister Hazel are two of the best bands to come out of the 90's. Completely underrated. Aside from their more popular hits, both bands had some beautiful ballads and rocking tunes. We're not talking hard rock here, of course, but they were still fun songs. I had a huge Hootie phase, and Sister Hazel more than defines my high school career. (Ok, so Fortress was released in 2000, my freshmen year of high school, but they first came about in the 90's).

"Goodbye" is by far one of my favorite Hootie & The Blowfish songs ever. Why the one guy is shirtless in this video, I'll never know. Darius Rucker has so much emotion and soul in his voice that, I'm not ashamed to admit, he has brought me to tears several times. We're not talking full flowing, but tears to the eyes for sure. I adore this song.



"Champagne High" is definitely my favorite Sister Hazel song, and will always remind me of my high school crush Tim. Ahh, those were the days. Kelsey and Kristie-don't you agree? Love love love this song.

I can't believe the first week in April is almost over already! Time is flying by way too fast for my liking! On the upside, I keep coming across old and new favorites every day. Here are my favorites for this week!

Favorite Recipe

Ranch dressing recipe from The Picky Gourmet. Sooo tasty.






















Favorite Song I Forgot I Had On My iPod

"Disintegration"-Jimmy Eat World



Favorite Shoes

Champagne Glitter Pump from Windsor





























Favorite New Way To Waste Time

Draw Something app























Favorite Quote