Blogging Frustrations

Happy Wednesday everyone! So today I felt the need to get real and vent for a minute. Today I just feel inadequate; as an inadequate blogger. When I first started this blog, I had such high hopes of what it would become. However, I found that lately, I have been too concerned with the numbers game of followers, the quality of images, the "Read Worthy" content, and just being that cute, blonde who has the blog everyone will swoon over.
The fact of the matter is though, who cares and "Aint no one got time for that"- well atleast me. Between my job that consumes way over 40 hours a week, wedding planning in crunched time, ridiculously slow and old/aging computer, attempting to workout and cook which always turns into takeout and walking up the stairs to my place, blogging just doesnt fit in. I don't know how some of you do it, but I am trying to get better. I have been saying for the past 6 months that I am going to post more, that I will post more once I have my new computer, and that once things slow down I'll be back to my regular schedule.
I am not going to make a New Years goal, but just a personal one. So here's to you, for those who still follow and have gotten this far. I do this now for me, and for you. Any others that come along the way will be added to the nest.
Thanks for the vent session, you all really know how to listen!

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Sneak Peek

As most of you know, Mr. Manly and I just got engaged in November! We had the opportunity to work with Buffy Dekmar for our engagement session and just received some pictures back. Let me just quickly go on record to say how amazingly talented and wonderful she is to work with. I am so excited to share the pictures! But for now, we have a sneak peek. Enjoy!

*Also, you can check out our Wedding Page for more about us, engagement pictures, and guestbook.

Cody and Lindsay's Wedding Page

My Mostly unobtainable Christmas Wish List

Hello All! Is everyone getting your letters to Santa ready?  What is on your Christmas wish list this year? I feel lame in that most of my items are absolutely way too expensive to obtainable but a girl can dream right? So let's see below shall we?

1. / 2. / 3./ 4./ 5./ 6./ 7./8.

So there you have it! Happy Tuesday!

O' Silent Night

Hello Hello and Happy Monday all.. Who is ready for this week to be over so that we can all get the Christmas shenanigans underway? My hand is raised for yes. I hope everyone had a splendid weekend! So, as some of you know, I have been slowly getting into photography but have been doing design work for a little while. Projects include this little blog here and a new blog I am working on, www.themintowl.com . But as of late, in between wedding planning and being sick, I got to do this little guy below for my family. My two youngest brothers had the privilege of being our family models this year.

So all, Happy Holidays from my family to yours. We hope that your season is as Merry and Bright as you and that you all have a wonderful holiday.

Another Explanation/ Guess WHAT!?

Hello?... Is anyone still out there? Because I am so sorry... again... for not posting. But I have some explanations that I think/hope you can forgive me on. I think Pictures will tell the story.








I'm Engaged! You are looking at the Future MRS. MANLY! With the name to instill fear in all future children's friends and boyfriends. I am so so so happy and have been so busy wrapping my head around everything.

So how he proposed?
Cody asked me to take a half day off of work on November 1st, 2012. I honestly didnt think anything of it and thought he just wanted to take me to brunch or something random. But then I had to wake up at the break of dawn and was told to wear my warmest clothes... Okay? After an hour drive at 6 am, we are in the middle of an almost empty parking lot. And then I see it... The hot air balloon truck pull up... Mr. Manly was taking me on a surprise hot air balloon ride to watch the sunrise of Georgia. I was ecstatic... and then... we hear... "I am sorry.. but because of hurricane Sandy... it is too dangerous to go in these conditions"... Naturally bummed, I was completely fine with just the thought of it. But then Mr. Manly starts stressing out! We were in the car driving off and I had no idea why he was panicking. He tells me that he still wants to watch the sunrise and then it was like a cartoon lightbulb hit him.
His parents house was not far off, and they have a beautiful home with a private two story dock on the lake. On the dock, we watched the sunrise while being completely comfortable and happy in the other's company. I begin taking pictures of the sunrise on the lake when I hear Mr. Manly say my name. I turn around and there he is, on one knee, with a beautiful and stunning ring in his hand. I was completely shocked and had absolutely NO idea. Of course I said yes, and it has been the single, best decision of my life. I can not wait to be this man's wife. He makes me feel like the luckiest woman in the world and I am so in love with him :)

And that is how it happened. But I am making it a goal, as well as Mr. Manly pushing me to keep this goal, to write more. Blogging is my me time and I need to spend more time with all of you! So YAY! Let's get ready for wedding planning all!!

Anger and Anger Reflex

Via Via

So here's the situation... Have you ever had the experience where you are just having the absolute BEST day and then some jerk just does one thing to set it all off? No? Then I salute you for being perfect. But if you just thought "Yeah, and it totally sucked" well then let me just say that you are not alone my friend.

Situation 1: Yesterday I was having a blissfully, awesome day 'til I realized that I had left my gate key and had to buzz myself in. Three cars behind and waiting ten minutes, I decided to do an attention honk to let the guy in front of me know that he could follow me in since his gate person clearly wasn't answering. Mid-sentence of saying "I can let you in" I get a **8&* (*78&* **B * (Just use your imagination) *you! You *&%^& I repeated... "um...I was just trying to let you know that I can buzz you in if you follow me through the gate..." Awkward silence. Minutes later while throwing my groceries in a 10 yr old hissy fit manner... I just couldn't shake how MAD that guy made me... Are people really just that rude now? that they just tear into someone with explicates? Have I ever just ruined someone's day like that?

The Remedy? Side note remedy- I was rushing at target to try and print off a last minute picture as a gift. I was stressed, mad, and just honestly pissed that the machine wasn't working. Clearly about to miss my time window, I storm off to pay for the rest of my stuff. You know what the cashier said to me? "I am very sorry that it didn't work out, but sometimes these things just happen and are out of our control... But please don't let it ruin your whole day".This just stopped me in my tracks... at the end of the day, some things are just out of our control... and we cant let it ruin our whole day, or our whole outlook.

So to that, I say... Thank you Target cashier guy... for teaching me a very valuable lesson....

Miss Adventure 2012

Happy Monday Loves! I hope you all had a fantastic weekend, I can't wait to read about it on your blogs. This weekend, history was made. It was the First Annual Miss Adventure Trip among a group of close friends. And the worst part about this news? I was too busy relaxing and having fun to take too many photos.

Worst Blogger EVER!

But here are some that I do have! We took Friday off and headed down Thursday night to Perdido Key, Florida... Yes, I know what you are thinking... The beach in October? Well yes, it was awesome and perfect. It wasnt blazingly hot nor was there a crowd of people. You can see our view below for the perfectness that was beheld. The 7 of us took a day out on the Ocean Kayak's for a perfect day on the water and were able to replenish some of that lost summer color. When I get more pics I'll be sure to put them up!

How I Came to Fall In Love... Again (part2)

 

Thank You to all the wonderful comments on yesterday's post. It overjoys me that I have the most awesome readers. So I last left off on where I started feeling there was something more there between Cody and I after a VERY long and slow start. What began as growing feelings soon evolved into the most beautiful intimacy. I believe that many of us shy away from the word intimacy because most people refer to is as just physical intimacy and sex. But it is so so so much more than that. Today I am referring only to the emotional intimacy that began to take place.
For so long, I had a wall up. I was afraid to show who I really was, I was afraid to tell him and let him see the worst and darkest parts about myself. To let him know things that I swore to myself I would never tell anyone. I began to show him who I really was, bring up those topics about myself and things I was ashamed of, and to show and tell him of all my faults and shortcomings that I was aware of. When you begin to give yourself to someone, you cant just give them the good parts. You have to give them the good and the bad. I love Cody because of all his wonderful strengths AND his weaknesses as a person. Now please don't confuse this with me thinking of him as weak in any nature, areas where I am weak, he is strong, and visa versa.
When we begin to fully live, think, and speak freely with another individual while they do the same - the most wonderful things can happen. And when the combined of those two connect, something beautiful and rare is sparked. I began to feel the like the only thing I wanted to do was to make him happy. I wanted to give him the world and began to literally freak out and worry about him all the time. What was happening to me? Then I knew.. that just the thought of a life without him was unbearable to think of. I was happy before him, but he made my life so much happier. I had loved before him, but he showed me how to love on incredibly more levels than I ever thought possible... and before I knew it, I was in love. Completely, hopelessly, and crazy in love with him.
I knew - and know - that this is the man I want to start a life with. He is the one I want to come home to every day, he is the one I want to be a wife to. I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that he will be the most incredible father. And I can not wait to spend the rest of my life with this man.

So how did I fully fall in love... again?  I began to love myself and make myself happy, I built a solid foundation of friendship that had all the things that were most important to me - Respect, communication, laughter, service, and understanding. I allowed myself time to heal and time to freely let feelings come, and not force anything. I let him into my heart, and see the best and worst parts of me. I let him open up freely - and embraced the best and worst sides of him. I acknowledge that there is truly nothing I would want to change about who he is (Aside from always leaving every drawer open and the toilet seat up) - and with that, love just came. So easily. This how I came to fall in love again. And it is has been the best thing that has ever happened to me.

How I Came to Fall In Love... Again (part1)

I want to share a story with you so you can get to know me a little better and get a recap of what I have been going through the past year...
As many of you know, the past couple of years have been up and down in the love department. I came out of a 14 year on-again, off-again friendship/relationship with someone who was my best friend. I really thought that was going to be it, but something just didn't feel right. No matter how much I loved him as a person and wanted to make it work, it just didnt. And something like that shouldn't be so hard, and in the end - we just couldnt be what the other needed. Leaving that relationship was the hardest thing I had to do, but one of the best decisions I came to terms with. For me and him both.

I truly had anxiety over the countless questions women ask themselves... Will I find someone again that I'm attracted to and makes me happy? Will I have to settle the next go around? Will I have to wait until I am old until the right one comes along?
I would almost have panic attacks wondering what the right thing to do was. But the moment I just let it be, and focused on myself... I was blessed with the best thing to ever happen to me.
While in my "I'm only doing the 'Me' thing" phase... I happened to meet Cody. I honestly thought about standing him up on our first date because I honestly just wasn't looking for anything and really wanted to be alone in my self loathing and self focusing. But the prompting of free pasta won me over.
What I had planned on being a quick 1-hour early-evening date turned into talking and laughing until the restaurant closed. What the heck? This guy was completely ruining my plan of selfishness. But my heart wasnt ready and he respected that. He waited while we got to know each other better and slowly grew feelings for the other. He showed me how to be a better friend, exemplified patience, and taught me and allowed me to be myself again and to just laugh at life. For the first time in a long time, I could bring up subjects without being embarassed. I could act like I was 12 at wal-mart and then a classy woman at dinner. He allowed me my versatility as a woman and as a person. And he embraced it.
He treated me with the highest regard. Respected me, listened to me, and most of all - made me laugh. Alot. This was when I began to feel that there really could be something more here.

This is the first part of my love-life recap! Hope you guys come back for tomorrow's part 2!!

If You Like to Laugh...

I know a lot of times we see little videos on blog posts and skip them... but if you like to laugh, especially on a dreary Tuesday... then take a second. And if you don't find this funny... you have no soul, just kidding - I apologize if you don't.

Stay Classy San Diego

Oh to be young and pretend you have a life outside of all the grown-up things we really have to endure. Lately grown-up lane has SuCked.... Bills, bills,bills are really taking a toll on my my whole "live free and Young" thing I'm trying to have.
But outside the purview of work and bills, I have had some little enjoyable moments. This weekend, for instance, was quite lovely.... Well outside of getting into a carwreck on Friday that is.... Side note... Got rear-ended on the highway on my way to work by Mrs. Pine-sol who instantly began blaming other drivers and cried to the police officer while clutching her neck... awesome.... but everyone's okay, car is driveable, and neck braces are the total hott accessory item right now for fall.

Moving on... I did get to spend the weekend with some of the best of friends and Mr. Manly (the boyfriend... and yes... that is his last name) and his amazingly hilarious sister. We went out for a night on the town in downtown Roswell. For any of you who are in GA, downtown Roswell is becoming an AMAZING place to eat and enjoy the night. The weekend was then followed by fall festivals galore and some much needed relaxing. Enjoy the pictures friends!

Until Tomorrow....

Oh and don't forget.... Stay Class San Diego....

 

Explanations

HELLLLOOOO All my long lost loves... It has been far too long since I have written, updated, and been present on this little blog here... I know, I know... You hear it all the time. But I am making a Fall Resolution to get better at my pet project and hobby and getting updated on all of yall's happenings as well. Where have I been? Well here is a quick picture explanation. And if you want an apology gift, read til the end.

What exactly do I have to update you on?

Well for starters, Love - as it should be, life, family, friends, California, Bithdays, travel, concerts, bacheloretteness, photography, and much much more. I hope that I can get in all of yall's good graces again and pique your interest with a upcoming "sorry" giveaway.

*If you read this far, let me know of some items you all would like to win!

Talk to you all soon!

-Linz

Fifty Shades

"Oh My Fifty".... Just had to share this as it made me die from laughing out loud. Hope you all can appreciate this

This is Why

Hello all you beautiful people! Happy Happy Friday! I can not wait for the weekend, please let me tell you. Mr. Manly (Yes, that is my boyfriend's last name) and I are taking a short trip to go visit (and meet!) one of his best friends from growing up. So many pictures will be provided soon.

But, as of late... this is a little of what I have been up to.

 

-Yup, it's what you think

May people ask me why I didn't stay out west when I finished college. Don't you want to find a husband? Aren't you afraid of not finding a job in Atlanta with all the competition... Well let me please tell you a favorite quote... "No success in life can compensate for failure in the home". Granted these two are my brothers, I would not and could not miss out on the opportunity to be a part of their lives. I did not want to be that oldest sister that they did not know.These two are the reason why I am here today, the reason why I have come to be blessed with such a wonderful job opportunity, the reason why I came to meet a great man, the reason why this feels like and is my home.

And...

Happy Friday Loves! Hope yall do something crazy and fun! Can't wait to read about it on Monday!