nash-vegas, we love ya!

Traveling is by far one of my favorite things to do. However, travel as a college kid is H-A-R-D hard. Mostly because we have no money. Because we're in college. Anyhow, I'm thankful for the trip that Patrick and I got to take to Nash-vegas!

Though in our home state of Tennessee, Nashville was a beautiful little getaway. We had the opportunity to stay with our friends Paige and Cody. Cody is Patrick's roommate, and Paige is my future roommate. They just so happen to be dating which makes things perfect. They welcomed us into their homes, and we had a fantastic few days!

Day 1:
We arrived mid-afternoon at Cody's house. We were met there by him and Paige, and we got to meet Cody's mom! From there we headed to Paige's place and made homemade pizzas. We concocted several different things, and they were all delicious! After our lovely homemade dinner we headed to Climb Nashville. I wasn't too ecstatic about climbing because I'm a weakling, but I had a blast! There were walls that had all different difficulty levels, along with bouldering walls and more difficult things! You had a harness and whatnot as well, so I didn't feel like I was fighting death the entire time.
Here is a glimpse of Climb Nashville:

After climbing we went back to Paige's and played hours worth of Mario Kart. It was a good little first day.

Day 2:

We woke up kind of late, but we got the day started. We headed over to Cody's for lunch and had some delicious leftovers. After eating we headed to the city. We walked around and saw a lot of the local Nashville spots. We went into a boot store and the Preds shop. After that we walked to the river and took a few pictures with the strip behind us. 

Here is the batman building:

The four of us; Patrick and I:

After that we went and enjoyed some appetizers at a place called Demos'. Patrick and I got some cheesy garlic bread, and Paige and Cody got some soup. And of course we both devoured their famous rolls. After enjoying appetizers at Demos' we headed across Nashville to enjoy dinner at a place called Maggianos. It was so delicious, and we made it out of there only spending $2.25 for the four of us! We did pretty good. 

Here's a cute couple pic of Maggianos:

After all of our good eating, we headed back to Paige's and played some more games on the Wii and watched a movie. Our time was flying by. 

Day 3:

Our third day was just a free day. Cody and Patrick joined us fairly early, and we just hung around Paige's. We had some leftovers for lunch, and then maximized our laziness. We played Volopoly, but didn't finish. I was of course coming in last place. Losing games is my specialty! Before we could finish we had to go to dinner at Cody's house. His mom made delicious turkey enchiladas. After dinner we headed to the Grand Ol' Opry to see the lights. They were incredible. 

Here is my photo documentation of all of its wonder:

I may be biased, but this one's my favorite: 

After exploring, we went back to Cody's and played Life. I almost won, but Paige beat me out. Then we went back to Paige and finished our game of Monopoly. Cody killed everyone. We then played some more Mario Kart, but we were all exhausted. 

Day 4:

The fourth day wasn't really a full day. We got to explore the Bass Pro shop (mostly for Patrick) and then ate lunch at Rainforest Cafe (mostly for me). The food at Rainforest is always good, and it makes me feel like a kid to go eat there! It was so great. Then we said our goodbyes and parted ways. 

I'm so glad that Patrick and I have such amazing friends, and that we were able to invade their area for a little bit! It was so much fun and was the perfect little getaway. Thanks, Cody and Paige, for allowing us to come! 

And, see ya later Nashville! We can't wait to come back. 

xoxo, Liv

first semester: check!

So, the last month has been so hectic. I haven't had time to blog at all, which is sad. Every time I go to write a new post, I figure out how much I love it. After that, I vow to write religiously. However, every time I don't. I want this time to be different, but who knows if it actually will be.

This post is going to be a jumbled mess of everything. But that's okay. My life is also a sort of jumbled mess, so I'm sure this will depict my life pretty accurately. Let's reflect on the past semester.

I started out with a rough time. I'm not going to go into detail about it, because that's way too much for me to go into AGAIN, and I've realized that nobody actually cares.. I was involved in engineering (blech) and band (even more blech). But, some good things came out of it! I made an amazing friend in band. Her name is Melanie. I don't know if I've talked about her yet, but I'm so thankful for her! I wouldn't have gotten through any of band if it wasn't for her. We are very similar yet very different. We shared one important thing though: we both hated band. Luckily, even with band being over, we still talk! And I think we'll continue to talk, because she's a quality gal. 

Here's Mel and I.

Through all of the stress and craziness of being an engineering major involved in the biggest student organization on campus, I still managed to make some time for fun! I got to attend my first college sporting event as something besides a bando. Unfortunately, it wasn't football. However, it was basketball, which is almost as fun as football! (And a lot shorter which, if you ask me, is a massive plus.) I had many-a-nights spent out at cereal bar (better known as The Knoxville Pearl which is a hole in the wall that's TOTALLY worth going to if you're in the area for more than a day) and took my fair share of trips to Ritas and Coolato Gelato (both quality dessert places). I got to experience Knoxville's great eateries and burn some calories at the infamous Jump Jam. I also took some time to explore the surrounding mountains by going hiking with my darling and two of our friends! I know I spent a great amount of time unnecessarily complaining about this semester, but it was actually fun. 

Basketball pictures

Cereal bar

Hiking to Chimney Tops 

Along with doing fun things, and meeting Melanie, I've also made some more quality friendships. Some friendships have fallen apart, but only for others to fall into place. I've met some sweet girls who were willing to take me in and allow me to live with them next year! It was iffy, especially since I only knew one of them, Paige, at first. However, upon meeting the second, Grace, I knew things were going to work perfectly! I don't really know the third, Holly, as well, but from what I've seen she's a sweetheart. No girls can get along 100% of the time, but I don't foresee any issues. They're beautiful girls with beautiful personalities. They're a positive influence on me and help bring me up, even if they don't see it. I've finally learned to surround myself with positive people. You just feel better about yourself and life when you go about it with a positive outlook and have people to build you up. I think meeting them is what I was most thankful for this semester. I wish it would've happened earlier rather than later, but I suppose everything happens at a certain time for a certain reason, and I'm not going to question it. God put me, and them, there for a reason. 

Here's a 'Merry Christmas' photo from Paige, Grace, and I

Although not in grave detail, this is a pretty good timeline of my semester. It has definitely come to a close, and I've never been happier. I made good grades, pulling out an A- in engineering, which I NEVER thought I would do. Complaints have been common, but overall I'm thankful for the first semester that I had. All of the challenges and difficulties I faced helped shape me into the individual I am now. I've learned what (and who) is really important in my life. I've discontinued trying to be someone I'm not, and I've just accepted the fact that maybe not everyone is going to like who I'm meant to be. And that's okay. I may not have been happy 100% of the time, but through the tears I've bettered myself. And I wouldn't change a single thing. 

xoxo, 

Liv