christmas.

Truly, this was one the best christmases I have ever had.

As some of you may know, my parents finalized their divorce last year, so holidays have been an adjustment in my house. 

But if anything, I think this adjustment has made me love my family even more.

On Christmas Eve, my mama and I went to the Christmas Eve service at our new church, and it was without a doubt the best Christmas Eve service I've ever been to. Later my sister, brother-in-law and niece came over, and we had dinner and opened presents. Then, as is our yearly tradition, we went to look at a house that has the most INSANE lights display I've ever seen. It puts Clark Griswald to shame. 

And, ok. Honestly y'all, every Christmas I swear I am the last kid on earth to open presents. Every year my parents always made us wait, while they woke up, while they made coffee, while they stuffed our stockings. It hasn't bothered me as I've gotten older, I like a lazy Christmas morning now.

But this year I woke up and my mom wasn't even home. 

Granted, she was out feeding our neighbors dogs, but still.

So I turned on the BBC Doctor Who marathon, and it felt like the Doctor was my family for a little while.

That was nice.

Then she and I opened presents, and I have to tell you. My mom is so sweet it makes me cry. Literally. I love her.

Later that morning I went to my dad's and opened presents, then spent the day watching Christmas movies.

And in my stocking I found this.

Betcha didn't know I have a weakness for the Biebs.

Well I do.

(I brushed my teeth with it this morning. It was life changing.)

The day after Christmas I woke up at 6:30 because I am a mad woman, and went shopping.

IT WAS A SUCCESSFUL SHOPPING DAY.

(today I went shopping again with my mom and bought more things. i have an addiction. send help.)

Do you celebrate Christmas?

If you do, how was it?

If you don't, how was your weekend?

ha, remember when i blogged?

Lately I guess I just haven't had much to say.

(unless you follow me on tumblr, in which case I seem to always have something to say.)

So here's the run down of life lately.

-Christmas break is the bee's knees y'all. Like I think I know why people drop out of school. 

-I've been working. A lot.

-I got to hang out with this little niece of mine:

-I've gotten to see quite a bit (though never enough) of the lovely Kate. 

-I've been embroidering. A lot.

-The kids I nanny for got me the COOLEST Christmas present:

-I got a new hat, that I can't seem to take off.

-I've seen several lovely friends since I've been home, and tomorrow I get to see my dear friend Lydia for the first time in MONTHS.

-In less than two weeks, I get to see RAVEN!

-I've been finding some absolute gems while thrifting:

-And I watched the season finale of Misfits.

So far it's been a pretty quiet Christmas break over here in the Clark household.

I've been loving it.

Are you enjoying your holiday season?

end of the semester.

One more final and I'm outta here. 

Reasons I'm excited to be done with school:

- I won't have to freeze to death in my own home, because my mom can afford to keep our heater above like 60 degrees.

- I won't have any responsibilities for an entire month. I am horrible with responsibility. (I am/will make a terrible adult.)

- I will be able to eat real food. It's at that point in the semester when I don't want to buy any new food because I can't eat it all in time, so I'm attempting to live off the food I have left. But eating cookie dough and peanut butter pretzels for every meal might literally kill me.*

- It means it's almost time for me to see Raven.

- I can watch as much television as I want and no one can say, "Abbi, don't you have something else you could be doing?" Not now I don't.

Reasons I'm not excited to be done with school:

- Hahahahaha. Just kidding. There aren't any. 

* I'm kidding, kind of.

unorganized.

I'm messy.

Sloppy, unorganized, unkempt, whatever you want to call it...

I am. 

God bless the man who someday marries me.

And let's hope that he's not messy too, or else TLC will be contracting a new show for us just weeks into our marriage. 

I actually love organization, I'm just too lazy to keep up with it.

And with the semester coming to a close, my room has been worse than ever before. 

Love me through it, y'all. 

So yesterday I finally broke down and cleaned it. 

(My procrastination about cleaning usually looks something like this.)

And then I remembered how lovely my room can look when it's clean. 

(Line from a Hercules song next to a Bible verse. Nailed it.)

Someday I'll learn to pick up things as I go, rather than waiting 3 weeks then spending hours cleaning.

But that day is not today. 

I'm going to miss this little room during Christmas break. 

recent snapshots and a list.

In honor of today, here's my little thankful list.

1. My family. This was the first thanksgiving we've ever done at my mama's house, and it's been wonderful. 

2. My roommates. I love those crazy girls.

3. Watching the UT A&M game with my grandma, who has the best commentary. (hook 'em, boys!)

4.My faith. The Lord has blessed me above and beyond anything I could have ever imagined.

5. That I get to see Raven in January!

6. Kenny Warmold. We saw Footloose tonight and...I am grateful for his face. Amen.

7. Red lipstick :)

8. The incredible friends I have met through blogging. You all mean the world to me. 

I hope y'all have had spectacular day. What are you thankful for?

from books to movies.

Did you guys SEE The Hunger Games trailer?
It has been days and I am still thinking about it.

I think I have now watched it roughly 35 times. 

I love everything about it.

But you know what I love most about it?

The fact that I love it.

Does that make sense?

I am notorious for hating movies if they were originally books, because I always love the book more.
I am unbelievably picky when it comes to the movie, so usually I already dislike it by the time the trailer is out.
And while I have definitely found some things I dislike about THG trailer (hello, Haymitch's hair??) overall, I am extremely impressed.

And the trailer has got me thinking about other books that have been turned into movies.
So here's a few that come to mind, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

My Sister's Keeper

Yes, yes, the ending is ridiculous. 

But I really do love this movie. 

And honestly, (for those of you who have read it and know what I'm talking about) I think if they had kept the original ending in the movie, all of America would have had a heart attack. I know I did when I read it, and seeing it on screen would have made it a thousand times worse.

In Her Shoes

I really love this movie, and I really love this book.

I think if you've read the book, it somehow makes the movie ever better. It's like you know a little secret about the characters that other people don't.

Fair warning though, if you haven't read the book, it is good but much more graphic than the movie.

Memoirs of a Geisha

Wonderful book. Confusing movie.

I first saw this with a friend who hadn't read the book, and if I hadn't read it, we both would have been totally lost. If you have background knowledge of it, I guess it makes sense. But bottom line, whether or not you see the movie, read the book and read it first.

White Oleander

This is possibly my favorite book of all time.

And the movie just doesn't do the book any sort of justice.

Read this book.

P.S. I Love You

Unpopular opinion: I hate this movie.

I never even made it through the whole thing.

I was given the book as a Christmas gift years before it was ever a movie, and I stayed up all night Christmas Eve reading till I finished it, and I think I cried the entire time.

It is BEAUTIFUL book, everyone should read it.

And this movie...I can't even. 

I could go on and on about other adaptations (The Life Before Her Eyes, Never Let Me Go, etc.) or rant about how I'm scared they're going to ruin some of my favorite books in the future (The Host, Delirium, Before I Fall) but we'd be here all day. 

I guess taking something I love and trying to put it on film makes me nervous, because of things like this :)

Have you seen/read any of these? Do you agree? What are some of your favorite and least favorite adaptations?

my dad is going to kill me.

My poor, sweet father shares a Netflix account with me.

And if he logged on today, this is what he surely saw:

I'm screwing up the recommendations Netflix gives him, big time.

I'll never forget the time he called me to complain about it:

"Abbi, Netflix would like to offer me suggestions about what to watch that is similar to Hannah Montana, season 3. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

And this weekend, my roommates and I had a much deserved girl's night, which actually just turned into girl's weekend.

(We just finished Bride Wars, up next is The Holiday.)

So we watched a lot of things that are not exactly Dad material.

I'm expecting a call any minute now:

"Abbi, why are Tangled and Jesus Christ Superstar now in our instant queue?"

Those folks over at Netflix are going to think my dad is gay.

Oops.

reading like a mad man.

Lately, I have been devouring books like nobody's business.

(Not literally, that would be weird. And also gross, paper tastes bad.)

First was Divergent, which I physically could not put down. Except for the one time I threw it across the room because I was so angry. And y'all, it made me feel feelings. 

Then I read Anna and the French Kiss, which I think everyone should read. It's great. Great in that horrible way that makes you hate your life because your life is not that book.

Then, Lola and the Boy Next Door, the companion to Anna and the French Kiss. Also completely wonderful.

And then, on Wednesday, I read Crossed. 

If you read Lauren's blog, (which, why wouldn't you?) I'm sure you have already seen her spectacular post on it. 

I thought Divergent made me feel feelings?

No.

Crossed made me feel all the feelings.

As in, sweet Lauren and I exchanged over 200 texts in one day about Crossed. 

So...if you haven't read it, go read Matched, then read Crossed.

And now, I'm searching for my next book.

Do you have any suggestions, dear readers?

What have you been reading lately?

I'll read anything and everything. 

PS. Wow, can you tell I like YA lit?

being creepy.

Sometimes I wonder if I'm too creepy.

This is a conversation I feel like I am constantly having with the friends I've made online.

I started reading blogs religiously my freshman year of college, when I didn't have a blog or a tumblr or even a bloglovin account. 

I just bookmarked them on my computer (I had over 150 saved) and every day I would read them.

And I remember the first time I told someone I knew in real life about something I read on someone's blog, I used the words "my friend."

And inwardly I thought, "Who do I think I am? I don't know this person, and they have no idea who I am. Tone it down, psycho."

I also remember the first time I tweeted something to a blogger I followed. 

I panicked, hoping they wouldn't block/report me to twitter because they didn't know me and I had tried to contact them. 

The same with the first time I ever emailed a blogger, but that was anxiety x10000.

But you know what?

I have never received anything but unbelievably kind messages back. 

And now I am proud to call some of those people my very best friends in the world.

And when I started getting a few messages from people I didn't know, I was ecstatic.

I think in the blogging world, we tend to start every comment and message with "Not to be creepy, but..."

And I get why we do it. People have different reactions, and we don't want Chris Hansen banging down our door, questioning our motives while the cops wait outside with handcuffs, ready to tackle us if we run.

But you know what else?

I don't think we're being shady.

Part of writing a blog is putting yourself out there for others to read it.

That's what the comment button is for.

Now, if you watch the person who walks past your house every day from the window, and then go put a letter in their mailbox telling them all the things you like about them, that might be crossing a line.

Also, don't:

"great pics. that sweater looks sexy. follow back?"

(If you have instagram, you know what I'm talking about. There are some major weirdos on there.)

So next time you go to write a complementary email or comment, skip the "Hope I'm not being creepy..."

(Unless you really are being creepy.)

I have now typed the word creepy so many times that it's starting to look weird.

pictures from the pumpkin patch.

I love these girls with all that I am.

snow day!

On Wednesday I woke up to a phone call at 6:20 AM.

"This is the UNC Emergency Alert System. Campus closed."

My university is nicknamed "University that Never Closes."

As in, my campus hasn't closed for a snow day in over 25 years.

So I jumped out of bed, and ran in the living room where all 5 of my roommates were standing, looking at all the snow outside.

It was insanity.

And once the gravity of the situation set it, we were ecstatic.

We ran around jumping and screaming and probably woke up some of our neighbors.

After going back to bed, we woke up and made pancakes and muffins.

Then got on our snow gear to go outside and play. 

We threw snowballs...

stood on the tree that was knocked over by heavy snow...

 buried Jayme in the snow...

and built a snowman.

Then we made cookies, drank tea, and watched Love Actually. 

Even though we lost power for a few hours (THAT RHYMES!) it was still just as perfect as the rest of the day. We ate dinner on the floor in the living by candlelight.

You know how in Groundhog Day, Bill Murray keeps having the same day over and over again?

If I could choose one day to do over and over again, it would be this one.

birthday week.

Y'all. I've got to be honest.

I really love my birthday.

For those of you who know me in real life know that my birthday is my favorite day of the year. 

And this year was no exception. But this year, it was more like birthday week. 

I started off birthday week by going home for the weekend to celebrate with my family.

On Friday night, I went over to my sister's house. She made me the best cupcakes. And you guys, it is officially fall back home. Beautiful, beautiful fall. 

On Saturday, I saw my brother, went shopping and spent a little birthday money, and to be honest, felt a little like Amy Pond...

I am super against mirror pictures, but it felt necessary to document. How many times in a girl's life does she get to feel like the mad, impossible Amelia Pond?!

My mother had been teasing me for weeks about a birthday surprise she had planned for weeks, and I knew that my dearest Kate was in on it, too. 

So on Saturday night, we drove down to Golden and met Kate at Art on the Brix!

I had never been before, but basically, they have food and drinks and you're given a canvas and paints and you just paint! The theme that night was aspen trees. 

Y'all, I cannot even tell you how fun it was. And Kate made me some scones, so that someday we can go out for texting and scones. (Best ever, right Whovians?)

And naturally, I had to include a tiny little TARDIS in my painting.

On Sunday I had brunch at my dad's, and he gave me the most incredible green rain boots that I've been coveting for months. I've barely taken them off since. And it's only rained once since I got them.

All this, and my birthday hadn't even happened yet!

My actual birthday was wonderful too. 

In my 8 AM class, my sweet friend Missy surprised me with my favorite drink from Starbucks!

And my roommate Ryan made and decorated cupcakes.

And Paige gave me the best book possibly ever written. 

And I'm anxiously awaiting some birthday mail from Raven!

Every year on my birthday I'm reminded of how I have the best friends in the world.

Thanks thanks thanks to all of you who sent me the sweetest birthday wishes. 

20 years of life is feeling pretty great.