want a new instant bff?

well meet katie.

yes, katie from katie did what! 

M & i are probably skipping along on some street in nyc right now. eating ungodly amounts of carbs & taking even more ungodly amounts of pictures. but while we're away, katie stopped by to say wassup, show of your killer dream bod, & share with you five things you may already, or may not, know about her. she's pretty amazing & could talk about sugar peas & make you laugh. so don't be shy & go say hi {HA that rhymed!} 

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Hey guys! I’m Katie and I blog about life, fashion, love and anything else that comes into my mind over at Katie Did What. While Laurie is off having adventures in New York City (I’m slightly jealous) she asked me to keep you entertained! So. I thought it’d be fun to share 5 random facts about me. Maybe you can relate to some of these and we can be BFF’s? Yes, I think I’d like that. Let’s get to it!

1. I watch the Bachelor/Bachelorette with my husband and he provides hilarious commentary. I do recommend if you have a significant other to watch the show with them. It’s pretty much the most entertaining thing ever.

2. Shopping is my favorite cardio, and I would absolutely choose it over most other activities any day. Luckily, I married a man who won’t let me do it every single day. Because that could get very dangerous! ;)

3. I hate tomatoes but I love all food that is made out of or includes tomatoes. I love bruschetta, salsa, ketchup, marinara sauce, I even love eating tomatoes on Panini and Caprese salad, but I will gag if I have to just eat a straight tomato. I am a conundrum.

4. My favorite food is kettle corn. I could eat it every day, and I practically do.

5. I used to hate cats. HATE them. Well, mostly I was afraid of them, and their claws, and thought they were mean. And then I met Zack, and he had two cats, and now they are my children and I love them more than most things.

Thanks for having me, Laurie, and thanks for reading! I do hope you’ll come say hey to me at my blog for even more randomness and fun! :)

xo

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interesting stories while living abroad

right now M & i are on our way to manhattan, getting ready to take over the city. we may never come back ;) today, chelsea is taking over my blog once again. it's no secret that her blog is one of my favorites, so i might be biased when i say -- if you haven't met chelsea, you must be living under a rock -- kidding, but seriously, make sure you head over to her blog & say hey! today she's sharing some interesting {& hilarious!} stories from her years of living in korea. be prepared to laugh & become instant friends with chelsea, like i did :)

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Hey there! I’m Chelsea and I blog over at Lost in Travels. While Laurie is off exploring NYC with her man (I admit I'm a tad bitter she's not on a plane to see me in Korea right now!), I thought that I would share a little bit about myself and some of my most...interesting stories from living abroad. First things first. A backstory. After my man and I got hitched two years ago we started getting cold sweats every time we thought about ‘settling down’. You know, buy a car, a house, start making mini me’s. The things that I always thought that I would be chomping at the bit to do. So what did we do instead? Sold all of our belongings that wouldn’t fit in two 50-pound bags and took the first flight to South Korea to teach English to snot nosed adorable little kids. So as you can imagine, living and traveling abroad can be a good source for lots of interesting stories and experiences. Some of my favorites have been:

That time we went Geisha hunting-We had heard that in the area of Gion, in the city of Kyoto, Japan, a hard looking tourist could see geishas roaming the streets. Well, with plenty of time to kill we decided to try our luck…every night. With the old streets of Kyoto lined with lanterns and crowded with camera carrying tourists, and still no site of a Geisha, I was starting to think that this ‘geisha’ character was just a mythical creature created by Japan to boost tourism. We never were able to find any but I did manage to freak out some innocent ladies as I tracked them down, waiting for them to turn around so I could confirm whether or not we had accomplished our goal.

That time when my student tried to cop a feel- I’ve come to learn that the Korean culture is a little...blunt (I’ve learned this the hard way by students telling me I look pregnant or bosses telling me I’m wearing too much makeup). So I shouldn’t have been surprised when the following scene took place: One day in my 6 year old kindergarten class, we were playing a simple game of 'find that shape,'  I was yelling out triangle, square, rectangle and they were all doing really well at finding that particular shape in the room.  When it came time for 'circle' one little boy, John, ran up to me and grabbed my boobs.  Later when a Korean teacher asked him why he would do that his answer was simple.  'They're bigger than my mom's.'

That time when we were awoken by soldiers- We decided to take a road trip up the east coast of Korea, stopping to camp along the way and end up at our final destination:the DMZ, which is the separation between North and South Korea. Well, when you drive towards the northern part of the country, barbed wire starts to surround the beach front for protection against the North. This made finding a camping area more difficult but after much searching, we finally found a gem complete with a pristine beach and sunset views. We decided not to go to the main area of the beach and instead found a side road leading to a more secluded spot. Little did we know, we were nestled right in the middle of two military outposts. Our first encounter with the soldiers was when I saw two shadows walking down the beach...and then realized they had huge military rifles slung over their shoulders. Even if they were part of the military, it's still not the most settling sight. Later that night as we were getting ready for bed we hear a 'Shilehamnida' (excuse me). Once they saw hubs head peak out of the tent and realized we were foreigners, I could hear the soldiers start laughing and give him the go ahead to sleep there.

Everyday is a new challenge, a new adventure, and a new story to be told. We can't wait to see what happens next!

Thanks so much for having me Laurie! And I hope you'll stop by my blog where I talk about our daily lives as expats in the land of kimchi, along with documenting our world travels. Be sure to say hi, I would love to hear from you!
(you can also check out Laurie's guest post on my blog HERE and my previous guest post on Laurie's blog HERE)

update

we're successfully moved into my in-law's basement!!! our time here will be short. the place we were moving to won't be ready until the beginning of july. so for now, we're bunkered down here with only the bare minimum. to be honest, i like it. a lot. kodi & maggie are enjoying their stay here too. lots of treats from their "grandpa".

us & our mighty uhaul!

okay, now it's bedtime. got a long & fun-filled day tomorrow. we leave in six hours for new york!

xoxo

-L

one nation under God

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don't forget what today means. while you're grilling out, swimming in the 

lake or shopping the sales at the mall, remember the real importance of memorial day. 

remember to honor the men & women who selflessly serve our country so that you may have such freedoms. thousands have served our country, some paying the ultimate sacrifice with their lives. how do we say thank you when it seems so little, when they all have given so much. 

lets keep this country great in their honor & continue to be one nation under God. 

thank you to all who have served. thank you to their families & those that have sacrificed their lives so that we may live in this great country. thank you that i can serve & worship God freely & without fear. thank you from the bottom of my heart.

happy memorial day.

friday's letters {24}

dear maggie you got groomed yesterday & dang! do you look good or what. okay, you might lean more towards "or what". i told the groomer i wanted her hair short. it's basically summer, so girlfriend will get hot. well, shame on me, but i assumed the groomer would do a cocker cut on maggie, just making her hair shorter all around.... nope. she went shoooort. even got rid of her skirt. so now maggie looks like Donkey from shrek the movie.

dear packing we have officially run out of boxes & tape. hmmmm... what now?
dear dinner with friends it's been long overdue. i can't wait to see you tonight & eat all your food ;)
dear new york this time next week we will probably working on our second breakfast & hitting up central park for some fun.

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dear M i know you're tickled pink right now -- it's your last day of school! your summer vacation begins at 4pm. i'm ready to be lazy & do nothing with you, because even doing nothing is fun with you. xo

happy friday! no big plans for us this weekend, oh wait, we're moving ha! any big plans for memorial weekend?

linking up with ashley, lauren & kerry

lately {19}

one // jury summons. yuck.

two // family cookout. love taking silly pictures.

three // M ordering yesterday's sonic shakes.

four // exploring another part of the lake.

five // M checking the sugar count in some juice.

six // my first taste of sugar in seven days.

okay, so lately things have been weird. each day has been focused on something different than the last. we've yet to start packing, but have have collected boxes & packing paper. so any minute we will get the party started. also, lately i haven't been allowed to have any sugar. including bread. i'm on strict instructions from my doc that for the next six weeks i'm to stay away from sugar, processed foods & most diary products. which means lately my diet has consisted of raw salads, fresh veggies & fish {aka rabbit food}. but yesterday M & i visited our friend sonic, & got ourselves milkshakes. we asked if they had sugar-free shakes. i'm pretty sure someone laugh in the background, but it was worth a try. so instead i enjoyed a small peanut butter cookie shake. it's already been a week of the new diet & it's been hard. splurging is okay if it's done in moderation, right? 

what have you been up to lately?

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that time it stormed & we got no sleep

raise your hand if your scared of thunderstorms -- kodi & maggie raising both paws in the distance. i personally enjoy thunderstorms. they are oddly comforting. they are also reminders that mother earth can be unpredictable & extremely dangerous. another reminder that our God created such phenomenons & He's capable of anything.

we had some nasty storms the other night. storms that weren't predicted & even when we were checking the weather, it said it was "partly cloudy." umm, get your facts right weather man. around 1am kodi & maggie were frantic. kodi's running around the house trying to locate the tiniest corner to hide in, while maggie refuses to leave our side. it wasn't until three hours later did the thunder stop & we were finally able to get some sleep.

the next morning we ventured outside & sure enough the lake overflowed. both pups were really confused. maggie's favorite spot to sniff is the fire pit, but if you noticed it's totally submerged. she wasn't fond with that. kodi was over the moon though -- there's more water for her to play in; what's not to love about that? fortunately is only took a day to drain back to its normal size, but the yard it still super soggy & wet. waiting for mr. sun to come out & dry it up so we can play.

 my heart goes out to the families & residents of oklahoma. watching the news last night tore me up & i wept for those who lost loved ones. i'm praying throughout the day for peace & comfort to cover all those hurting where ever you are.

weekend recap // cookout style

isn't there a saying like, "the first day of summer isn't until the first cookout"? no? well that should definitely be a saying.

can we agree that my sisters are going to grow up breaking so many hearts.

little sisters & cousins.

me & my full-time best friend/sister-in-law.

we have such a rad family. 

this weekend M & i invited our family over for a cookout. sort of a last hurrah!  before we move out THIS saturday. yes, the day keeps moving closer & closer. originally the moving date was the 30th, but we'll be in nyc that day, so it moved to the 27th, which has finally & officially moved to the 25th. cross your fingers it doesn't move to tomorrow -- i joke. i joke. cookouts are, & will forever be, one of the most timeless family events ever. it's a given that you will have fun. you will laugh, share stories & eat till you hurt. it's just time to be together, & wants more important than that.

planning any cookouts soon?
if so, can i come ;)

xoxo

shio from sweetness a boos said i was one of her top 5 favorite blogs to read! say whaaaat?! 

i love her & can't say how flattered & honored i am :) 

be sure to check out her post spotlighting her top 5 6 favorite blogs.

friday's letter {23} belated edition

dear friday you were nuts yesterday. it was one of those days that was long, but fast at the same time. you know what i mean?

dear oversea bff i love our google chats. too bad we have a small window of opportunity since there's a 14 hour time difference, but i'll take it :)
dear jury summons i can't remember what my initial reaction was, but i think it was something like annoyed, frustrated with a pinch of excitement? fortunately you don't fall on any of our vacations. otherwise my reaction would have leaned more towards angry with no such pinch of excitement.

dear kodi i caught you red handed. you looked so pitiful & immediately knew you were in trouble. 

dear M i think you're obsessed with naked & bolthouse farms juice. & kroger's "buy one get one" deal has only encouraged it.

dear late night movie date you were so much fun! even though i didn't get to see gatsby, start trek was still highly entertaining. getting home after midnight was thrilling. made me feel young again :/ #marriedfolk

hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
we're hoping the rain holds off for our family cookout.

xoxo
-L

lately {18}

{1} lately the weather has been delightful. yesterday it was 83 degrees with the perfect amount of wind blowing in the background. they say today's going to be 87! it's enabled me to take walks & spend large amounts of time outside. it's where i've developed a nasty farmer's tan. i'm too embarrassed to show a picture of my two-toned body. 

{2} as many of you know, i wuv my pups. i can never have too many pictures with them.

{3} a quick snap of me & my biggest role model. i love my mom more & more each day.

{4} aqua terra -- a hidden gem in our town. we only eat there on special occasions. on mother's day we made sure to hit that place up! that's where M & i shared a delicious cheese platter & i ate the most mouth watering sea scallops ever. i can still taste them. mmm.

{5} all the moms front & center at church being blessed.

{6} lately we've been soaking up as much time with our little lake as possible. we have only 13 days left here & we've yet to find a place or even started packing. i keep telling myself "maybe tomorrow". #nahhh 

what have you been up to lately?

say yes to love

happy hump day friends!

this past weekend my dad shared this video with me. i had seen the first part when it came out a year ago {part one} & when i found out there was a part two, i was tickled.

such a sweet video that can't do anything but make you teary-eyed & smile ear to ear.

enjoy!

what's currently on my mind

a much needed pedicure

my new favorite irish cream tea

planning our trip to nyc

His presence

how i'm craving to chop my hair again {pixie?}

packing//moving//unpacking

family time

tomorrow marks 10 months of marriage

the great gatsby -- who hasn't seen it yet & wants to join me?

this weekend's cookout

capturing moments like these^^^

the list could go on & on. what's on your mind?

moms know best

it's always hard to share our time with our families now that we're married & all. but yesterday we made it our mission to spend time with both of our moms. they deserve so much more than they receive. mom's are the glue to every family. they are the heavy & the good. & they really do know best. 

thanks mom{s} for being our real one true loves.

hope everyone had a beautiful weekend.

-L

it's friday

friday, gotta get down on friday.... too old? yea, i thought so.

i'm not doing a friday's letters today. i just got home from a long day at work & i'm not really feeling it. instead i thought i'd share where M & i are off to at the end of the month.

picture taken from my first visit to new york

we're booking our flights & hotel tonight!
we're a little excited ;)

anyone going on or been on any spontaneous trips lately?

happy friday friends!!!