Books & Brunch....

Or Bellinis... Pretty much anything with books :)

So over the course of the last couple of years I was apart of two different book clubs, both of which saw their untimely demise. I've been an avid reader all my life, but never was a part of any reading groups or clubs. My friend and I, both defected from the failed book clubs and have been in the works to start our own club... We met a couple of weeks ago for brunch & discussed The Twelve Tribes of Hattie. After our initial get together we exchanged books with each other and met back up today to discuss. We went to happy hour at Brio Tuscan Grille, hence how the Bellini's came in the picture...well sangria for me, but Books & Bellini's flowed better... Now we are in the process of trying to figure out our next read, and how to incorporate others into the mix so we can actually have a club & pick books to discuss as a group....

My friends & I have been trying to narrow down our lists of our top five and top ten favorite reads... I didn't realize how hard of a task that was until I actually sat down and thought about how many books I have read in my lifetime... Literally has to be in the thousands...no exaggeration...

But I was able to narrow my list down to the following (four of which I have mentioned before):

1)The Shack- William Paul Young
2)The Coldest Winter Ever- Sister Soulja
3)The Lovely Bones- Alice Sebold
4)Gone Girl- Gillian Flynn
5)The Story of Beautiful Girl- Rachel Simon
6)Olive Kitteridge- Elizabeth Strout
7)One Thousand Gifts- Ann Voskamp
8)The Lincoln Lawyer- Michael Connelly
9)Flowers in the Attic- VC Andrews
10)The Confession- John Grisham

When I look at that list I feel like I have left so many authors and books out.... I've read so many books, that I sometimes forget they even existed until I see the cover or start reading the first few pages... Hopefully we can get the book club up and running & I can compile a list of books I have read and those that I want to read in the near future...

One of my goals is to have a library of books in my home with hardbound copies of my favorites and of classic books & fairy tales... I know this is probably the nerdy-est thing I have ever written, but books genuinely make me happy :)

To be continued......

My Weekend in Pictures

Memorial Day Weekend 2013~ Pictures Only......

it's okay- the finale

This is the very last edition of It's Okay Thursday... and it's okay....

-to move on to bigger & better things
-to be empowered
-to not be a people pleaser
-to speak up
-to plan ahead
-to take control of your life
-to not engage in negative conversations
-to have always wanted to add an apostrophe to the It's in "Its OK"
-to see a therapist if you NEED someone to talk to
-to engage in retail therapy
-to love yourself
-to want more
-to be happy.

And then I updated my bucket list.....

So.... In light of my current status in life, it is not too often that I have weekends full of these sorts of shenanigans....

In my defense, I made a conscious effort to completely indulge this weekend so I wouldn't have time to sit up and remind myself that exactly one year ago my ex and I broke this exact past weekend... But I digress....

And contrary to popular belief, just because you are a classy lawyer lady does not mean you can't attend hardcore rap concerts.... and go to drive-thru liquor stores (there was no alcohol consumed in my vehicle) or have bottomless mimosas at brunch and/or indulge in other activities which shall remain nameless..... I will just plea the fifth......forget digressing.....

We saw Jeezy perform Friday night, and the show was AMAZING... The crowd was a tad sketchy, but I still had a blast & I can now update my bucket list & cross out attend concert for a guilty pleasure artist....

I didn't get home Friday night until almost 5 am.... But I woke up like a trooper and went to brunch for a birthday celebration... Prickly Pear Mimosas are now my new favorite! 

I slept the remainder of my Saturday away and woke up bright and early for the 7:15 service at church. After that I went to brunch and three pitchers of mimosas later... The remainder of my Sunday took a turn back into the realm of plead the fifth..... 

Good times. Good times. 

The only thing I didn't like about my weekend is that it is officially feeling like summer down here and I HATE being hot.....

Feel Good Friday.....

We survived another week, and that is something to celebrate! 

This week was busy as usual, but I definitely have no complaints about that at all.....

The weekend should be interesting to say the least...

Here are are few words to start the weekend off right with:

Happiness Is.....

That overwhelming feeling of contentment, laughs that cause tears to flow freely down your face, a glance or even just peaceful silence..............

Ten Things:

1. Warm Saturdays gossiping on the porch with my mom, sister & aunt

2. Reading all night, just because & not because you have to

3. A thank you or a God bless you from a stranger

4. That first bite of my favorite meal

5. Inside jokes with my best friends

6. Happy hour

7. Paying off a bill and seeing a zero balance on the account

8. Visiting the ocean & watching the waves

9. Taking pictures

10. New outfits

Happiness is appreciating all the gifts that God has given you.

Being grateful & never taking anything for granted.

I tend to overlook the obvious in my never-ending quest for more...but when you break it down simplistically, happiness is all around me....

Frequent Flyer Miles.....

One of my favorite things to do is travel & vacationing has been the hot topic of conversation among my friends and I.

I usually try to take at least one nice trip a year, and various mini-vacations in between time to keep myself from going insane... but I have been slacking on my planning lately. So far in 2013, I have been to Alabama, Dallas & New Orleans....and I will visit Atlanta, Miami & West Palm Beach, Florida at the beginning of next month...but all of these (except West Palm Beach) are places I have been before.

I want to go somewhere new(or somewhere that I have not been in a long time), I just don't know where.....

Miami is one of the first trips I took all on my own with my girlfriends for Memorial Day weekend way back in 2006...Aside from travelling to Louisiana with my family, I had never been anywhere, not even on an airplane until that trip... Once I figured out that riding airplanes was a simple task,it was full speed ahead for me.

Since then I have been to Los Angeles(where I should visit more often since half my family lives there & in the surrounding area) San Antonio & Austin (my state is so big that all the various cities are like actually leaving the state) Oklahoma, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Atlanta, (my home away from home) Las Vegas, North Carolina...Cozumel & Progresso, Mexico (cruise destinations) Montego Bay, Jamaica & Nassau, Bahamas... I don't really count Louisiana as a true vacation spot since I used to live there & that is where the other half of my family resides...
*In retrospect, I really haven't been that many places, but for someone who literally did not ride an airplane until I was almost 25 years old, I think I am doing alright travel wise...*

The thing is, I have no clue where I want to go next...

One of my girlfriends is currently in Brazil right now with a few other friends... my other friend is going to Dubai & Israel next month, and two others are going to Toronto in July and my nephew will be spending the summer in Hawaii interning all summer....

Let's just say...I'm a travel weirdo... The same way some friends you call for happy hour, some you call when you want to hit the club and have a good time (not that I club often these days) and others you have quiet time with conversations & cocktails...I have friends that I leave city limits with. I love all my friends dearly, but I also know them well enough to know which ones I would actually be able to experience a fulfilling trip with... and that plays a factor in determining my next destination...

If I take another trip with my girlfriends, I would love to go to an island destination.... Puerto Rico, Trinidad, Dominican Republic or possibly another Caribbean island... it would definitely have to be somewhere singles friendly & all-inclusive...

If I go on a trip with my sister, I would love to explore Chicago, San Francisco, or NYC.... We had a blast shopping and exploring Philadelphia & another city trip would be awesome...

If I go somewhere by myself, I would love to go to a spa in New Mexico or a resort in Maine where I could leisurely explore, shop & read.....

Or, I could just continue to save money & wait until next year to go somewhere more extravagant....Spain, Portugal & Italy are my dream destinations...hopefully one day I will get to see them in person....

Time is definitely not of the essence & I am probably only up thinking about trips because it is almost summer and the world is going on vacation...

But I do like to plan & have events to look forward to so it does not hurt to start planning early........

The first step is just figuring out where I would like to go...

Happy Mother's Day

I have really been digging through my photo albums from my law school graduation weekend lately. I found this picture of my mother, grandmother & I.

I love those ladies! We are like night and day & all the same at once. I am very grateful for my mother. She is the ultimate support system, friend, mentor and just an overall great person.

I wish my mother, aunts, grandmother, & friends a Happy Mother's Day!!!!



I have had the laziest weekend ever and I loved every minute of it. I have slept, rest, relaxed and all of the above since I got home from work Friday. I am not looking forward to the weekend ending, but alas there is still money to be made and life to be lived :)

~~~~~Sunday Social ~~~~~

It's Sunday Social time & I really liked this set of questions...

Although I have been trying my best to look beyond the past, it is always good to see where you once were and to be proud of all the progress you have made.

This Weeks Questions:

1. 1 year ago I was doing …I was days away from my relationship ending. I was beyond stressed out and about to embark on one of the most depressing summers in my adult life since the summer after I graduated law school & had to study for the bar. Although I was in a good place career wise, my personal life was not where it should have been and I was struggling to hold on to someone who I should have let go of.

2. 5 years ago I was doing … I had just graduated from law school! I spent the summer studying for the bar, mourning for a friend who mysteriously passed away while we were studying for the bar and dealing with a bad relationship that refused to be over.... Again career wise, I was in a good place, but relationship wise..eh, not so much.....

3. 10 years ago I was doing… I was about to be a senior in college, and had just been accepted into the Louisiana Women in Government Internship Program, where I would spend the next semester working full time with the Louisiana House of Representatives. It was there that I decided to become an attorney and started to study for the LSAT.

4. 1 year from now I'll be doing… Hopefully my practice will have expanded and I will finally have a successful relationship....

5. 5 years from now I'll be doing… Working as a successful attorney & hopefully by then author.. I also hope I will be married and having or already have had my first child...

6. 10 years from now I'll be doing….. Still practicing law, or running my own non-profit organization. Traveling with my family & prospering and being happy.... and enjoying my 40's to the fullest...

This was not a question the Social, but I wanted to add it anyway...

Right now I am--- working and looking for ways to further my career... I've healed from the break up. Not dating anyone, but finally feeling like I am worthy of deserving a good man and healthy stable relationship. I have gotten over the craziness from last summer and looking forward to this one being ten times better than last year and even better than I could even imagine.....

It's Okay... To throwback

I'm sad to see one of my favorite link-ups coming to an end, but on to bigger and better things for the link-ups creator so I can't be too sad to see it go....... Linking up with Neely and Amber on this Thursday for It's Ok....

I have been sick all week. I went to the doctor on Tuesday. I ended up having an upper respiratory & sinus infection, got a shot like a five year old (although it did make me feel better almost minutes after I had left my doctors office) & antibiotics and a steroid pill..and a nasal spray. It's hard to be busy and sick. I still had court this week, and coughed the entire time. So embarrassing.

But I guess, unfortunately when you have to work, you can't really take too much time off to get better. Especially when there is nobody else able, or willing to cover hearings for you & the emails don't stop and the voice mail don't stop & the deadlines keep coming up.... but I digress. Less than a month til vacation.



It's Okay to participate in throw-back Thursday...especially when you are celebrating the five year anniversary of your law school graduation.

It's Okay to not be friends with everyone you met in law school. Everyone was either for a season or a reason.

It's Okay to have made some of your best friends ever during those grueling three years.

It's Okay:
to still want more,
to want to go further,
achieve more & be much more accomplished.

It's Okay:
to wonder what if?
How would my life be had I not went to law school?
Would I be more or less fulfilled?
What would I be doing?
Would I be married living out my white picket fence dreams or still trying to find my way in this world?

It's Okay:
to be proud of yourself.
To still miss the weekly happy hours, late night study sessions & high school-esque law school drama....

It's okay to realize that regardless of it all...you are right where you are supposed to be in this moment. despite how it feels or what it seems. It's all okay......

Oh, and it is still okay that I have yet to watch an episode of Scandal...but all of the female lawyers in my life are forcing me to watch, or at least read the commentary. We shall see...

The Social

I'm linking up with the Sunday Social today.......

This Weeks Questions:

1. 4 favorite things to do on a weekend: REST~ BRUNCH ~ CHURCH~ TRAVEL

I find that lately I haven't really been enjoying my weekends unless I have been out of town. I love to travel, and being here every weekend is slightly boring these days....

I slept a lot this weekend. I have not been feeling well, & the weekends are the perfect time to get things back on track...

& brunch is always my favorite meal of the day, I love trying new places and going to eat after church service....

2. 4 favorite things about your best friend: I have more than one best friend, so I shall share 4 about each

Jess: she's sincere, she keeps it real, she's giving (although sometimes too much)& I love her spirit

Jameika: she keeps me rolling, she is always down for whatever, she's fashionable, and she never judges

Danielle: she is like my big little sister, she gives great advice, she a straight-up wordsmith & comedian, she's my soul sister


3. 4 things you would do with $100,000: If I pay off my law school loans, I would only be left with a fraction of the money... so with the remainder I would probably pay off my car, buy something nice I have been coveting and save the rest......


4. 4 favorite books you’ve ever read: The Shack, The Coldest Winter Ever, The Lovely Bones & Gone Girl

5. 4 favorite snack foods: chips (hot fries, Cheetos puffs- all bad) pepper jack cheese sticks, sliced apples & cereal

6. 4 things that you must do daily: Check my email, check Facebook, wrap my hair before I go to bed & take a Zyrtec so I can not be a mouth breather...

Unfortunately my Zyrtec a day plan didn't work this weekend and I have been battling allergies all day. On Friday night, I started to feel bad after I left my CLE so I stayed in bed all day--well into Saturday. I had to get up eventually for a birthday party Saturday night at a karaoke bar, so I tried to cure myself with hot tea from Starbucks and then frozen yogurt (for soothing purposes) but nothing worked. I stayed at the party for a couple of hours & had to leave without singing anything... My Sunday has been spent coughing, sneezing and medicating. No bueno & no Cinco de Mayo celebrating for me.... I am hoping I start to feel better by morning.

Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!!!!