thanksgiving, yo + stream of consciousness

Thanksgiving came and went with much feasting, bonding with the fam, running the turkey trot (and getting beat by my brother..shh lets keep that on the DL.), catching up with friends, and just relaxing. Not to mention kayaking with friends in the LSU lakes and going to the football game. so much fun!! The only thing is, I'm always so so so tired when I go home for break. going home is so much fun, but it just wears me out! I can't wait for Christmas break because a.) it will be much much longer and I'll have time to actually relax and b.) I'll be finished with exams and everything stressful! I must say though that I might experience a little separation anxiety when I'm gone from clemson, I just love it here! (sometimes a little too much...can't help it, I'm just obnoxious about things that I love...running, guitar, tridelt, clemson...the list goes on) Anyway, now I'm ready to bundle up, hunker down, and get to doing some work so I can enjoy christmas. Before I left, we watched "It's a Wonderful Life". that is one of my all time favorite movies. EVER. It's a classic. soo soo soo good. it made me get super pumped for Christmas. 

And since it's that time of year, I'll reflect on what makes me happy, and what I am so thankful to have in my life:

family

my siblings

friends {old and new}

Clemson

my faith

music

nature

decorative socks

fresh note cards

goooooood food

the ability to run

warm showers

grannie's cookies  

AND SO MUCH MORE. life is awesome. 

Ultimate Adventure Bucket List-National Geographic

I want to go on intense adventures like these. scratch that, I can't wait to go on intense adventures like this.

I love perusing through the National Geographic website. It makes me crave the open sky, wind through my hair, and a carefree-ness that's difficult to encounter in everyday life.

CAN'T WAIT FOR ALL THE ADVENTURES IN STORE!

whoop whoop

Ultimate Adventure Bucket List - Kayak the Yarlung Tsangpo, Tibet -- National Geographic

last minute road trippin'

a previously booked weekend suddenly cleared up and we spontaneously decided to go home with my friend back to Georgia. a road trip and super chill weekend with some of my Clemson best friends...it just doesn't get better than that! 

sooo highhhh on LIFE.

hahahah this song. so hilarious.

I love clemson. Today I was walking on library bridge and there was music blaring with people giving free high fives saying, "have a great friday!" gosh I love it!

I made it through this week alive! This week has been so rough. it's left me feeling beaten, worn, and sad. BUT NOT ANYMORE. Today's been an awesome day. This weekend is rags to riches, the last home football game, and not to mention it's 11.11.11! yeah!! Rags to Riches is the tridelt semiformal function. The first night (last night) is rags where we all dressed as homeless people, and tonight is riches where we all dress in semiformal attire. SO MUCH FUN. {no worries, I'll post some pics later}

With today as 11.11.11, I feel as though I should be doing something significant. But I look around at my life today, and I'm perfectly content. What more could I wish for? 

Have a SPECTACULAR weekend my friends!

may all your wishes come true

Life's a lot like water skiing.

this is me slaloming last summer. I've been water skiing since I was 6. 

it's so fuuuuuuuun!

I know I talk about this all the time, but I realize more and more each day the importance of a strong reliance on God. Call me cheesy, but it's true. I've been feeling worried about every little aspect of my life a lot today for some reason. Then I just stopped for a moment and thought...wait a second, I don't need to waste my time worrying. Worrying is just like rocking in a rocking chair; you move a lot but you really don't go anywhere. Dear readers, I'm ready to go somewhere. 

I can just see myself struggling. I imagine myself trying to water ski without holding on to the rope. Each time I get up successfully and then suddenly decide it'll be a good idea to let go because I think I can do it on my own. however, I just begin to sink back into the water as soon as I let go of the rope.

you see, I think we all just forget to hold to the rope sometimes. 

so today, I offer my worries up to God. Because He'll pull me through as long as I hold on.

remember, life is good. and God is very very good!

Have a splendid Tuesday my friends!

charlotte for the weekend.

This past weekend, I went home with my roommate, Lauren. It was my first time visiting North Carolina, and I must say it was a good, relaxing time. We chilled for the most part on friday and sunday. However, we visited her beautiful family farm on Saturday for a party for her parent's 5th grade sunday school class complete with hayrides, bonfire, s'mores, more stars than you could count, and little kids running around and playing. 

Before the party got started, we went fishing with Lauren's grandfather on the farm. My one catch of the evening didn't hold a candle to LJ's 12 or 14 fish. yes, I'm the family embarrassment when it comes to fishing... regardless, it was a blast and a half especially with her absolutely adorable grandfather. He waited on us like a true southern gentlemen. no matter how we protested, he insisted that he bait our lines and take the fish off the hook for us (granted, this didn't happen too often for me...). Secretly, I think these are my favorite parts of fishing: baiting, casting, and taking the fish off; probably just because these are the only parts of fishing that I actually get some action (well besides the taking the fish off part). I'm a really good caster. promise.

The beautiful 130 year old family farm was probably my most favorite part. I just love old houses. they are so interesting and cool! I wish those walls could have told me the abundant stories that must have occurred there over the many years of its existence. Lauren and I sat on the rocking chairs in the kitchen to warm up for a bit and it just made me feel like I was 80 years old. I decided then and there that I was going to sit in a rocking chair in my farm house much like that one when I get really old and grey and just observe life and order my family around. It's gonna be great. 

All the fresh air, the wide open spaces, picking up pecans with her pawpaw, fishing, the bonfire, the rocking chairs. I just loved it. Lauren's family was so hospitable and very nice, and I'm thankful they invited me back to Charlotte for the weekend! 

Have a spectacular week my friends! I hope your weekend was stellar

Fit for adventure.

I saw this on the side of my chacos box. makes me want to live it up.

which is why I've decided to take a leisure skills class. 

for now, it's between shag, whitewater kayaking, marathon training, rock climbing, camping/backpacking, fly fishing, and photography (there are so many cool options to choose from!!)

but I think I'm leaning towards whitewater kayaking. 

IT'S GONNA BE AWESOME.

my thoughts on thoughts

thought provoking picture. why were my friends posed like this? 

it was completely candid. promise.

I realize that this blog is full of little realizations. it's truly been a method of discovery. Anytime I have a post that starts with "thoughts on..." it simply means that I've realized something that I find fits into the bigger picture of things. Other people probably look at these little realizations and just think, "wow, there's so much she doesn't even know yet. Just WAIT until life hits her. she'll be amazed" or maybe they think "wow this girl is so naive and idealistic, can't WAIT for life to hit her." Either way, life hits me, and I'm left to think it through.

Isn't it funny how much we don't know? We humans live our lives and get caught up in so many things only to realize that we don't have any control at all. Then we analyze the bejesus out of these things and think we have a grasp on life. Silly humans, we know nothing. 

I bet all the angels and saints up in heaven are just laughing to death up there. I can just see all the angels sitting around talking and watching. I see them saying things like, "aw there goes that Kat girl again thinking she's so cool and thinking she has all of this figured out. oh  man. little does she know..." 

Why do we get so narrowly focused on all of these things that don't matter? there is so much more. this life is just like a pair of pants that you've grown into and have gotten a little too snug. It's comfortable and it's what we're used to, but we're meant for a bigger size. That's my point my friends! we're meant for such bigger and better things. and I can't wait to see these things.

so that's my goal for the week. to focus on the bigger picture. let the bigger picture humbly remind me that I really don't know anything at all. 

into the night

I just don't know what's wrong today. I feel myself sinking into that hole again. I have a hypothesis. I've said it before, and I'll say it again...I believe that my mood is 100% reliant on the weather/time of year. I looked up my old blog stats from the past year and a half and it showed that my posts have been consistently and noticeably much better (with many more readers and general views) during the spring/summer months than the late fall/winter months. So with the onset of all of this cold weather, this little dip is to be expected I guess. Then again, maybe it's not that at all. maybe it's just the fact that I have oodles and bunches of homework and projects this week and I'm stressed out. or maybe its the fact that I slept through my physics class this morning. or maybe it's that I'm so far away from my family. or maybe it's the stress of making sure next semester's schedule is just right. or maybe it's the pile of laundry I need to do. or maybe its just the fact that it's late and I have an essay looming over my head all day. it's like a little monster eating away at my insides and I don't know why. honestly the only time I was feeling good today was during church celebrating all saints day. 

regardless, happiness is a choice. Part of me wants to make this choice but part of me wants to sink in this little hole and sleep. I have so much to be thankful for, I have no reason to be feeling this way. 

tomorrow will be better.I've already decided.

now off to finish this bodacious essay!

it's gonna be just ggggggggggggrrrrrrrreat!