3 month hiatus

Wow, has it been 3 months since I last visited my blog??? How can that be!? I hopped on the new job train at the end of March and never got off! The past few months have flown by full of new people, new responsibilities, and lots of new stress!

I just got back from my first ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim as the new awards coordinator for ALSC. I was there for 6 days and I worked my ass off every one of them. I also had the best time and learned so much more about my new job. We have four big programs at the conference every year and they are all awards related. The biggest is our Newbery-Caldecott Awards Banquet where we honor the award winning authors and illustrators. Over 1,000 people attend the event, it takes months to plan and it is HUGE!

I didn't have time to take very many photos when I was there. Actually, I took just one for Sean. Disneyland palm trees!

More updates to come! Plus lots of new photos of the newish apartment! :)

big news !!!

I have been running a mile a minute the past month, sorry I have been MIA! But it has all paid off because I have some exciting news...drum roll please....

I GOT A NEW JOB! Yay me!

I got the official offer yesterday and I said, "hell yes!" - not really, but in my mind I totally did. About the job - I will still be working at the American Library Association - I like this place, great work hours, great vacation time, great downtown location! I will be moving to the Association for Library Service to Children and I will be their NEW Awards Coordinator!

I will be coordinating their 10+ awards, scholarship, and grants, and all of their events that are held at our two conferences each year. If you are familiar with children's books or read a lot as a kid (like me - major bookworm) then the names of the Newbery Award and the Caldecott Award might sound familiar. When I was growing up books like The Giver, Shiloh, and Polar Express were given these awards and I remember loving these books so much!

This is like a dream job to have at ALA and the children's division is where I dreamed of being after my grant was over in September. I don't think I could be happier right now, I have been smiling ear to ear ever since the interview last Monday. I start full-time April 2nd! I know this is going to be challenging and I will be taking on major responsibilities, but I am sooooo READY for that! I'm a working girl through and through - so my posts might dwindle over the next few weeks but I'll try to catch up on the weekends! Thank you to Erin and Sean for pushing me to apply for this amazing job!

My crazy happy face - :)

 

ikea weekend

I am tired, tired, tired from a weekend of fixing up our apartment. We went to Ikea TWICE! Nightmare, that place just makes me dizzy. It was fun to pick out stuff with Sean but why do people think they have to bring their entire families there!?? And don't shop with a cart or you will get stuck behind a herd of super slow families of 10+! Ugh...anyhoo we got new bedding, curtains and a panel system...crazy new thing, see here. Sean got his chest of drawers he desperately needed, we got a big rug for the living room and some other randoms.

example of panel system - Ikea

We had a freaktastic dinner Saturday night that made the whole weekend totally perfect. We ate at Sable Kitchen + Bar and OMG the food was so yummy - duck fat fries, espresso steak, duck leg with pork ragout! The head chef is from a season of Top Chef and we saw her as we were leaving! She thanked us for coming...haha. We had drinks and apps at Devon Seafood Grill before and I drank wine and champagne all night! Taking in the late Vday holiday was so fun. Future guests, we are so going to take you to Sable! Now back to work and finishing the apartment so I can show pics soon. The bathroom is FAR from being done but the tub is beautiful!!!

 

redoooo it | bath time

So President's weekend has finally come and this means that I am off Monday and Sean got THREE days off in a row to spend all weekend with me! And it's about time we finish our bathroom! The tub is in desperate need of a makeover and we are adding new bathroom accessories to spruce it up. I do have to say though...I've realized that I just can't win with this bathroom, no matter how much I change it. There are cracks in the tile, paint droppings on the floor, 2 big holes above the toilet that can be mistaken for bullet holes....shall I go on?

And check this bathroom out, I can't believe I found this on Apartment Therapy! To give you an idea of what we are working with - this bathroom has our EXACT tile. Yellow with a black trim. See the pedestal sink? That was like ours. You will also notice all the black fixtures...well for some reason all of ours are (very poorly) painted white! I want ours to be black and I know it is going to take a lot of elbow grease!

So can you kinda get an idea of what I am working with here? Don't you think the new shower curtain is perfect for the colors? I know I need to stay positive and think on the brighter side - we got a brand new toilet, sink and vanity and the bathroom has a window! Can't wait to show you all the before and after pics! Happy weekend loves!

 

you stress me out anthropologie!

I have a very BIG love/hate relationship with Anthropologie, as you can see from the letter I wrote them a few months ago....well of course they have made me mad again! Since I am off work Monday, Sean and I decided that this would be the weekend to finish redoing our bathroom. We are going to resurface the tub and fixtures, touch up the horrible paint job, add a shelf or two, add new bath mats and get the Anthro shower curtain that will tie it all together.

So I go to order the shower curtain Tuesday so it will be here by Friday and to my HORROR it was not on the site anymore! They SOLD OUT! Are you effing kidding me!? Just when I have the money and it is the perfect time to buy the effing thing is GONE. I am cursing and crying to Sean, and of course he is like "it will be okay, we will find a new one, stop freaking out...."

Ugh, so I am depressed and sad and try to move on...well knowing me I obsess about it all day Wednesday and decide that I am going to find that damn shower curtain even if it kills me! The first place I check out is eBay and WHALA there it is! So of course I go nuts and buy it because the ad says it is the last one they have (supposedly) and now I am super happy! Sorry for such a long and overly dramatic story but I was really upset when I went to go buy it on Anthro's site. You stress me out Anthropologie!

happy love day!

Our new neighbor is this old man named John and he likes to decorate his door for EVERY holiday. I'm going to try and snap pics of every season and post here for you. So we will begin with Valentine's Day! Cute right?

And here is what I got my sweetie. We don't do a big Valentine's Day so we always do something small but cute. Sean got a promotion at work, he is Pub Manager now, which means he is basically in charge of all aspects of the bar and alcohol inventory. I think it's perfect for him and fun too! Well he has now been working even longer hours and I thought he could use some of his favorite granola bars from Trader Joe's. He LOVES these and I do too, but this box is only for him. I am not allowed to touch it! Ha ha...

And one of our favorite movies is I Love You, Man and if you have seen it you know why I bought this card! Plus the city looks like Chicago!

working out sucks

Today is officially my "get with it and lose some pounds" day. I took a two week break from the gym due to traveling, awesome TV, double sicknesses and being just plain tired. But now I feel better, my mood is up and I can't wait to workout again.

And it was perfect timing for me when I picked up this book, Working Out Sucks, at work last week and it has really started to motivate me. I have to say that I really like this book, it is funny and very honest and makes you go "duh, I need to get off my lazy ass!"

I'll keep posting more quotes from this book but for now I'll start with this one that made me laugh out loud:

...thanks to smartphone technology, you can now order a movie, get a large pizza with cheese-jammed crust, download a newspaper, walk your avatar dog, and talk to your friends and family without exercising anything more than your thumbs...

This made me laugh because I LOVE my Pizza Hut app on my phone...ha ha ha.

hunger games!!!

So I've always wondered what it felt like for fans of Harry Potter and the Twilight books to have to wait for the movies to come out...were they anxious, excited, full of glee!? Well now I know and yes they were! Every time I see a photo or a trailer or one of the stars from the movie I get sooooo excited! I am completely obsessed with these books and the characters and the story. I am so obsessed with them I will talk to ANYONE about how amazing the books are. For example:

I'm getting on the L and find a seat next to this girl who is probably about my age (I always try to find a seat next to a girl, safety first!). She had a punkish cool style to her, short bright red hair and cool biker boots. Anyhoo, I sit down next to her and pull out my current book (I'm reading Pet Sematary...it's creepy) and I see her pull out none other than THE HUNGER GAMES. Eyes wide and grinning I turned to her and said "Oh my god, I LOVE that book!" She kinda gave me a -I can't believe this girl is talking to me- look but then I think she realized I was a normal person....ha ha. She smiled back and said, "I actually just bought it, my roommates are obsessed with all the books." I'm thinking, tone it down Caroline, don't FREAK this girl out. I finished the small convo by saying (with a big grin on my face because that is what these books have done to me whenever I get a chance to talk about them) "They are the best books...you'll really like them." Then we both go to reading our said books and I couldn't help but feel utter jealousy that she was starting on page ONE of THE HUNGER GAMES.

See how these books have made me crazy! I feel like I need to find like a Hunger Games support group in Chicago where I can discuss the books until my head hurts. Sigh...if only a group like that really existed.

confetti system

Who needs a confetti system? I need a confetti system! I feel like I should hang these all over our house and my office. I LOVE CONFETTI...

Anyways, wouldn't these be a super fun and different addition to wedding decor - it's bright and it sparkles. So. Fun.

hollywood issue

It's that time of year for Vanity Fair's Hollywood issue and I jumped for joy when I saw my Hunger Games girl, Jennifer Lawrence, on the cover with my The Help favorite, Jessica Chastain. You ladies look HOT!

I have been collecting the Hollywood issues ever since I was a kid. The first one I bought was in 1997 and it had Kate Winslet and Claire Danes on the cover, two of my all time favorite actresses at the time and still are today. Look how young Kate looks! And Renée Zellweger! Wouldn't it be fun to get all dressed up with your friends and pose like this! 

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still sicky

Why do I still have this dumb cold!? I was feeling much better before our Houston weekend trip and then Sunday night I was super sick again. Blerg...I am hoping once I get some full time rest this weekend I will be ready to rock and roll on Monday! So I'm just posting pics today from our weekend in Houston. The wedding was beautiful and Hotel ZaZa was soooooo much fun. Great hotel! It was wonderful to see all my girls and spend 3 FULL days with my handsome man! Happy weekend loves!

Rehearsal dinner at the Petroleum Club...fancy!

Erin + me - besties!

Saturday afternoon run in the park

I love this handsome guy!

Morgan, me, Katie, + Erin - go theta! the reception!

Got our Texas tex-mex fix - tacos!

eye candy

I heart Peeta....yum.


Have a great weekend!
Houston y'all!

cold | to | wedding

I have had the worst cold for the past week! It has totally put me behind on everything from working to blogging to exercising! Luckily I didn't have that big of an appetite but still! Grrrrr... But I guess it is kind of nice to hunker down on the couch for a week with some hot tea and watch lots of TV. I discovered Downton Abbey and The United States of Tara. Two very addicting new shows that I love, love, love!

Now I have to shop and pack like mad the next two days for my best friend's wedding this weekend! This happy couple is getting hitched on Saturday! Can't wait to see my wonderful friends on their happy day of love!

James + Mallory

I met Mallory my first day at the OU Theta house. I had just transferred and was so nervous about making new friends. I remember she had the coolest pixie haircut and pair of glasses. I thought, "this girl is totally going to be my friend." A year later we were neighbors and partied like rock stars together! Over the years she has become one of my closest friends, Mallory gives great advice and has the best sense of humor, and she is totally one of those girls that would do anything for her friends. She is the best and will be a beautiful bride on Saturday!

Mallory + me New Orleans!

destination houston

We are headed to Houston in two weeks for a wedding where I am a bridesmaid for my good friend Mallory. She tells me the weather is in the 60's so I'm coming prepared! I recently made some purchases from Old Navy this week, everything is 30% off! We are planning on visiting the Houston Zoo and if you can't tell, I'm really into animal prints right now....

golden globes 2012

Awards season has begun and that means red carpets, red carpets, red carpets! Every year I love to watch all the awards shows with my bff Erin. We text each other during the entire red carpet starting at 4 PM to the end of the awards show at 10 PM. Funny story about our ritual HERE...

I was very excited to see Laura Dern win for Enlightened, the best show ever. It's so uplifting, sweet and funny. I cheered when Octavia Davis won for The Help. I watched that movie twice this weekend! Loved it! "Eat my shit..." hahahaha. Those were really the only wins I was excited about, pretty disappointed in the rest of the winners. I was rooting for The Help, New Girl, Bridesmaids and Game of Thrones to win top honors. Oh well...but I did majorly cry when Michelle Williams accepted her award, she is so beautiful and gracious. I want to be her friend!

Now my fashion picks! I did not like a lot of the dress choices this year but there were a few that were edgy and stood out (FAVORITES), and a few that were just HOT dresses! Then you have those people where you wonder "Where are their stylists?" and "What is Kyle Richards doing at the Golden Globes??" See my style picks below and let me know what you think!

weight a go go

I've never been one to blame the holidays for "holiday weight" but this year I totally am. I definitely let myself go a little overboard with baking and drinking wine these past two months. Now it is time to get this shit under control! Thank goodness for the new gym that opened up in Lincoln Square. I just LOVE it! There are no excuses for me not to go after work because it is right off of the train.

I have been doing amazingly at the gym, going 4 to 5 times a week. My new hardcore workout routine consists of - 30 mins running, 15 mins doing arm weights and then an hour on the elliptical (watching an episode of Glee the first 45 mins and listening to my gym tunes the last 15 mins). I stretch, do 15 mins of abs and end by sitting in the sauna for about 10 mins. It has been really hard some days but I always feel amazing after.

The other tool that really helps me is my LoseIt! app on my iPhone. I would be lost without it because I think my main weakness (especially on weekends) is eating and drinking, so logging what I eat (and drink...yikes!) really shows me what bad habits I need to change.  Losing weight sucks the older we get, boys have it so easy! But I'm trying to stay positive!


*this post was inspired by my friend Erin, read her blog post here!

snow! finally...

The snow finally came to Chicago yesterday. It is so pretty! Here are a few pics from my venture home yesterday:

Church across the street from my work

Headed to the brown line

Walking home in our new hood

Home with the Cams looking at the falling snow

I love snow! Happy Friday!

brunch reception

To brunch or not to brunch....I have always wonder how a bride could pull off a brunch reception. I have never been to one myself so I just want to know what would her day be like? Would she wake up at 5:30am to start her wedding day? Everyone knows I am a morning person so that wouldn't bother me that much but what about the wedding party and guests? What time would you start the ceremony for it to be considered brunch - 10am, 11am, noon? I mean a mimosa fountain does sound kind of awesome and breakfast food is my fave...

My favorite place in Chicago for weddings is Salvage One and they have some pictures of a brunch reception on their website. The decor is so bright and fun, and the mini pancakes look so yummy! Oh, so many options for the big day!