282 Days 'til the Wedding!

My fiance and I met in the beginning of the year. He lived with several over guys who would host people weekly for "Steak Saturdays" - folks could bring their own food and drink and grill out at their house for the evening. It was always a good time! My sister had a friend who had gone to college with several of the roommates, and invited us over one evening to hang out. My sister had been over several times that fall while I was traveling for work and I was anxious to meet the famous "Weezy" guys.

We had gotten dinner with some other friends earlier that night, ran into a guy I had been dating briefly,  the waiter had spilled beers all over me... the night wasn't going so well. But, when we got to the "Weezy" the night turned around. The guys had made a fire in the backyard and we had a great time getting to know each other.

Logan and I hung out in the group a few times when I extended a blanket invitation to  a Super Bowl party Bonnie and I were hosting. I knew a few of the roommates already had plans to go to another party, but Logan was able to make it. We had a great time hanging out that night and we decided to go on our first official date later that week before I had to leave for a swim meet. We went to the White Hart Cafe for tea and stayed until closing. I even missed the Duke/Carolina game that night to go out with him :) After that, we were inseparable. 

Our first photo together - after the short hike to the top of Liberty Mtn. overlooking Lynchburg.

My favorite photo of us - on Easter 2012

Logan proposed on Sept. 26 on the top of a mountain. It was just the two of us, and I felt like I was on top of the world. We had been discussing taking the next step for a little while - although it sounded like we moved pretty quickly - but we are both so excited to start our life together, officially!

Wedding planning is coming along smoothly so far - I had so much planned out in my head it was pretty easy :) I'll update more on that later! 

The To-Do List

With a job like Admissions, I wear several different hats. I am the supervisor of the Hostessing Program and work with student workers. I am a recruiter, not only traveling to visit students, but also assisting them through the application process. I am an Admissions Officer, reading applications and making decisions about whether or not to admit a student. I am a Financial Aid Officer, working with a student to navigate her financial aid package and find supplemental scholarships.

My supervisors don't believe in micro-managing (lucky me!) so that leaves me entirely responsible for getting tasks done and staying on top of deadlines. Many people struggle with this, but after balancing academics, athletics, and social activities in college, I have found methods that work best for me.

I'm a list maker.

I like being able to visualize what I need to get done. Although sometimes I can find the list daunting and overwhelming, I almost always find that once I sit down and begin to accomplish tasks, they get done faster than what I think. I am always making lists -- what to do at work, what to do at home, what needs to be done before the weekend, what needs to get packed, what needs to get purchased, what bills need to get paid... I try to keep these lists consolidated to one location, but sometimes they end up all over the place. But, nothing feels better than looking at a page of chores crossed off your list.

In the past, I've kept small notebooks in my purse so I could take notes whenever I needed. For example:

The Pixel Journal from Kate Spade - $28 

I would jot down recipes I saw in magazines, made reminders for myself, wrote down phone numbers and email addresses, and always had paper available to toss out old gum or give my information to others. I've accumulated many over the past couple of years and keep them on my bookshelf. They are decorative and cute much longer after I'm writing in them.

I've never been very good about using my phone - although the Reminders app on my iPhone is helpful. It's too easy for my phone not to be around, or charged, or without service and honestly, I still have a phobia that it'll shut down "Revolution" style and I'll be stranded without my schedule for the day.

Most recently, I've been using my Lilly Pulitzer planner. I can jot down appointments, goals, and countdowns on appropriate days, keep running lists, and of course, it's so cute!

Large Agenda from Lilly Pulitzer - $26

My personal strategy is to alternate between daunting tasks and easy tasks. I'll knock out a bigger project I've been avoiding, then do a mindless simple task. It helps keep my motivation up and gives lots of breaks during the day. Best of luck to you!

The Beginning!

This is an experiment - and we'll see how long it lasts! I think Blogging might be a good way for me to work somethings out rather than letting it all roll around inside of my head.

To say I have a lot going on might be an understatement. I'm in college admissions, which means the rules of a regular 40 hour work-week don't apply to me. In the fall, I'm on the road for 6-8 weeks straight. In the winter, I'm working more than 40 hours per week and often coming in for programming on Saturdays and Sundays. In the spring, I'm back on the road for 4-6 more weeks and still spending free time on campus. And in the summer, I finally get to relax.

I took a year off from education after I finished my undergraduate, but wanted to earn my MBA before things got away from me. I am doing a program part-time in the evenings and am on track to finish in August of 2013.

I am recently engaged and planning a wedding for August of 2013, after I finish my schooling. My fiance is in the Army and is stationed about 10 hours away from me, and we're working through the long-distance until our wedding finally gets here.

I live in my hometown with my sister and a friend from college. My friend and I help to coach the college swim team we both swam for during our time at Sweet Briar, and my sister and I are active in our home church.

This blog will serve as an account of how I personally manage my time, projects I work on for work, church, swimming, wedding, and school, how we decorate and organize our apartment, and much more!

I hope you enjoy!