ROOM!

As promised, here a few photos of my room . . .

meet the roommates

Meet the roommates: Jordan {from Tennessee} on the left, Meredith {from Georgia} on the right, and myself in the middle!

We have almost completed our apartment . . . all we have left to get are little knick-knacks and decor. Pictures are coming once we finish! My room is almost complete as well, just have to hang all my canvas' and photos!

moving out / moving in

It was a bittersweet day here in Tuscaloosa. Chels moved out and Jo moved in! So excited! We're in the process of moving out of bedrooms/moving in new furniture and redecorating. Pictures will be posted once we're done!

back from nashville!

I've been in Nashville the past few days visiting some family. I just love it there! My grandfather has a pasture down the road from him, so one day after lunch {and while he was taking his aftenoon nap} I decided to pay a visit to the cows.

Found the little ones!!

And then I went to Franklin to visit more family! We shopped down town, which I always love! There are soooo many cute shops! And then we worked up an appetite and had lunch at a yummy gas station / restaurant. It's called Henpeck Market. If you're ever in Franklin, you need to stop by there and get a sandwich. I got this sandwich that isn't always on the menu. It is sliced turkey, apple butter, sliced apple, and lettuce. It sounds gross, but oh my glory it's soooo good!! Then you can shop in the upstairs loft! It's a really cute shop full of jewelry and home decor!

This is a picture of myself and my cousins Shelby and Lauren. Not such a great picture, but it's the only one!

I miss it already and want to go back tomorrow!! Too bad I have to go back to work.

The 5 Questions : Dreams + Reality

I've been working quite a bit lately and I love it when my co-workers "quiz" me on my life. Basically it's 5 questions they want to know about me.

- - -
1) What do you want to do after you graduate?
2) Where do you want to end up living?
3) What is the ideal age you want to marry?
4) Where do you buy your clothes/what's your inspiration?
5) If you didn't open a boutique one day, what would you want to be doing?

Simple to answer all these right? I can just spit out the answers right away . . .
1) Well it depends on how things go with my internship {cross your fingers its in NYC}! I either want to stay in that city and continue working for that company or move to an urban city {L.A. or Chicago} and free - lance styling.
2) It's in my heart that I stay south in my older days and Franklin, Tennessee has always had my heart.
3) I love this one . . . did I mention most of them are in high school and dream of getting married between the ages of 21-23? Well, right now in life I'm waiting for God to lead me in the direction He has for me. Til then, I'm not sure.

4) Right now, mostly from Charlotte's since I work there, but I put my own twist in my outfit. Other than that, J. Crew, Gap, Francesca's Collection, and recently the thrift store. I've never been to one until last week and although it grossed me out a bit, I found some cute stuff that I ripped and embellished and made my own!

5) Gosh, this has been where my head is spinning! I have so many ideas and things I want to do. Maybe wedding planning?! There is just something I adore about weddings. I can look at wedding photos for hours! It's sad, but true! Yet again, still waiting on Him to lead me in the right direction.

- - -

Still, with all of my dreams, how can I make them a reality? I am determined and passionate about the things in my life. Some people find me as a workaholic or too stubborn to say no. I happen to think these are great qualities. I guess I will have to figure that out on my own and continue to look for guidance from the big guy upstairs. Til then, I'll be keeping my eyes on my dreams and, to my best abilities, making them into reality.

xoxo Julie

wish i were at the lake right about now

xoxo Julie

quick trip

I will go ahead and apologize for no photos. I know. I officially am the worst picture taker in the world! I even had my camera this time . . . .

Anyway, I just got back this morning {8 AM in fact} from visiting my sister in Jacksonville {Alabama, not Florida}. It was a great 2 1/2 days!

+ - +

DAY ONE:

Dinner and the fire pit.

Gosh, I wish I lived in a house already. That fire pit is amazing! We could have a little camp fire every night!

Can I please just say, my sister has become quite a chef . . . I use that term loosely. I remember that not too long ago, she coudn't even bake out of a box without doing something wrong or burning something, but no, not Wednesday night. She went all out and it was delicious!

Menu: Marinated Mojo Chicken {delicious}, green bean casserole {yummy}, and southern cornbread {even made in an iron skillet . . . watch out!}

+ - +

DAY TWO/THREE:

Played with the labs {Oaklee and Ozzy}

Was entertained by a Preschool graduation . . .

my sister works at a preschool and has the 3 year olds. You guys, they are hilarious!!! When it was their turn to perform, o.m.g. so funny! Some of them would sing and do the dance moves, then some would just stand there with a blank face. And then the 5 year olds graduated because they are going to kindergarten in the fall and one little boy just walked off the stage in the middle of it! So funny!!!

Then, we ended the day/started off this morning with the Velcro Pigmies . . . a rock/80s cover band.

Overall, it was an exciting and eventful night! Can't wait to go back!!

+ - +

Hope you all had a delightful Friday!

P.S. I'll be working on those photography skills. Promise!

P.S.S. Just in case you forgot, Sex and the City 2 comes out next Thursday!!!!!!! I am SOOOOO excited!!!!

xoxo Julie

the perfect tuesday . . .

Hi! Hope you all had a lovely Monday!

- - -

AAAAHHH, today has been lovely!

I went this morning to visit my "little sister" {I'm in the Big Brother/Big Sister Program}, the joyful 3rd grader Ms. Rayven. I ate lunch with her class, which have I mentioned how funny they are?!?! They get so excited when I walk through the door {partly because I am just uber cool, kidding, but mainly because I am a good distraction from their school work}.

Anyway, after a successful trip to Target

{by the way, have you guys tried that Stride Shift gum?! I don't know how I feel about it yet. I picked up the Berry Mint. At first I liked it, but the transition from berry to mint kind of made me nausous}

I went to Sokol, a local park in Tuscaloosa, and it was glorious!!

There's a local horse track/barn that's across the street. Most of the riders take their horses along the trails. Just so happens, one was out today . . .

xoxo Julie

late night photoshoot

Well, finals are over. Sophomore year of college is complete! I'm a junior in college?!?! So weird, I feel like it just started a week ago. To celebrate, a bunch of friends went to this good bbq place called Moe's and then after saying our "see ya later's" some of us went for a late night photoshoot . . .

xoxo Julie

a stroll through tuscaloosa

I mentioned earlier that I was yet again procrastinating from doing school work. Instead of writing papers and studying for finals, I decided to take a drive around Tuscaloosa. In my 30 minute drive I only came up with 2 photos. Let's just say driving, taking photos, and talking on the phone is not easy. . . I like to multi-task. Anyway, the first photo is of our stadium . . .

BRYANT - DENNY STADIUM

It's having an addition being built at the moment {last year in the dorms we could hear the workers at 7 am . . . not cool!} It should be done by the fall!! We are all so excited! The stadium won't be complete until the statue of Nick Saban is here.

Next is a photo of downtown Tuscaloosa. It's a charming, quaint street with shops and places to eat. Off the road to the left are old rail road tracks with a walking path.

xoxo Julie

p h o t o b o o t h

What do you do on a Sunday night, no homework, getting ready for another week of classes . . . well we have an epic photobooth shoot which was hysterical. I literally had tears running down my face . . . here are just a few of the shots . . . brace yourselves.

xoxo Julie

weekend happenings

This weekend was pretty chill . . . relaxed, danced, frisbee tournament, and ended with a photoshoot with my photographer friend Sarah { check out her blog here } and my roommate from last year, Mary Katherine.

Here are some of my favorite shots . . .

you can check out the rest of the pictures on facebook . . . just add us as a friend Sarah Ainsworth and Julie Blake

xoxo Julie

A to Z : JULIE

My friends Elizabeth and Rachel have a joint blog {so cool, right?!} and they just did a post called a to z that describes them. I thought it was really neat, so i decided to do one . . .

A {available} : yes, and the mom asks about it every time i chat with her

B {best holiday} : oooo, i love christmas, but july 4th is a close second

C {celebrity crush} : john mayer

D {delicious dessert} : my grandmothers frozen peanut butter pie . . . to die for

E {easiest person to talk to} : my sister jessica and my closest friends
F {favorite food} : oh that's tough, grilled chicken with bbq white sauce . . . yum!!
G {gummy bears or gummy worms} : bears for sure
H {hometown} : home sweet birmingham
I {If you could move, would you} : right now, no. in the future, absolutely!
J {job} : counter supervisor at charlotte russe
K {kids} : not yet, but hopefully one day!
L {longest car ride} : well it was a bus, but from b'ham to ohio for a high school football game
M {milk flavor} : plain and simple . . . or with cereal
N {number of siblings} : one sister and one brother

O {one wish} : my dreams come true

P {phobia} : snakes, eek!!!
Q {favorite quote} : so i have too many to choose from, but since i'm reading a nicholas sparks book, i'll use the one from the lucky one . . . "it's not the ordinary people you surround yourself with; it's the extraordinary moments you make with them"
R {reason to smile} : sunny days, almost summer, and life is just really good right now!
S {song you last heard} : john mayer, slow dancing in a burning room
T {time you woke up} : 7 a.m. i've realized that waking up early gives me time to relax before a busy day
U {unknown fact} : i color coordinate my closet
V {vegetables you love} : i love them all except beans - excluding lima and green beans
W {worst habit} : gossiping and straightening my hair almost every day
X {x-rays you've had} : luckily only at the dentist
Y {your biggest fear} : i agree with elizabeth and rachel . . . giving birth
Z {zodiac sign} : pisces
xoxo Julie