A Road Trip With Mosby

If you follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, then you know that I spent this past weekend in Tennessee with my very best friends. It could not have been a better weekend ands as much needed after the insanely crazy weeks I had prior to going!

This time around I decided to drive to Tennessee instead of fly. There are many pros and cons to each of those and this time the pro of having my own car won. And the fact that I could make my own travel time won. 

So I drove 700 miles for 11 hours (twice). And well long drives like that can always be a tad bit interesting....especially when I am driving alone. Here is a little snap shot of what could/really does happen when I take a road trip.

1. Gotta have a book on tape. And a good playlist or some old school faves. I cannot sit in silence for 11 hours. Not gonna happen. So I find a good book (this time one being for some indirect hours for school...lame) and alternate between that and playlists from college. It keeps the trip interesting and always  my mind away from sleeping. 

2. Let's really dive into this music thing. You will find me belting out at the top of my lungs my favorite songs. And dancing. Lots of awkward car dancing. Let's be honest...it keeps me awake. And I must stay awake in order to drive since I haven't figured out this sleep driving thing yet. 

3. Lots and lots of caffeine will be had. First we start with a large coffee. From anywhere I can get my hands on coffee. Then we move to diet coke. And more diet coke. Throw some water in there too so that if feel like I am being kinda healthy for the day. 

4. Junk/fast food will also be had. I know I know I know. I shouldn't do thhis. But it's the one and only time (for the most part) that I allow myself to do this. I mean sugary foods help keep me awake. And if you haven't caught on yet....staying awake is vitally important. 

5. Phone calls are life savers. So many times when I feel like I am tired and will fall asleep I call my mom or a friend. Talking wakens me up and gets my mind going again. Plus this is the perfect time to catch up with best friends who live far far away. 

6. Breaks. Breaks. Breaks. I am always in need of a potty break. You see all that caffeine I consume makes me pee. And stopping helps with.....you guessed it staying awake!!! Sometimes I stop 5-6 times in one trip. Other times only 2-3. I have to get gas about 2 times so I know I will stop then. The other times are food or potty breaks. 

7. Road rage. I have some mad road rage. STAY ON YO SIDE!!! Where is that from!? Seriously DO NOT drive in the left hand lane if you are going less than 8 miles above the speed limit. Like move. Now. Not cool friends. Not cool at all. If you want to drive slow and safe then stay on yo side in the right hand lane. I have places to be and your nonsense in my lane is not ok. Sorry. Rant over:)

If you really want to experience a road trip with me just let me know:) I am always up for a good drive and fun times!  But not you know what you would be getting yourself into if you did ever go on a road trip with me. 

Wanna Be Rebels

"We were wanna be rebels who did have a clue" Oh if this does not define my lovely girls and I come graduation time last May then I don't know what does. You see we wanted to rebels. We tried to be rebels. We had a plan and went so far and then back out. So I guess that means we aren't really rebels?!

Let me start from the beginning. If you have been around here long then you know my time spent at Milligan College was done so with some of the best girls there. We bonded within the first few days of starting our freshman year, and remained close till the end.

Within the first few weeks of being at Milligan we started being called "those girls".  No this was not started by us at all.  I guess it was just weird to people to always see a group of 7-8 girls eating just about every meal together.  So everyone was just like "who are those girls?" Gradually we got over that little nickname, even though I still love it and use it whenever I can:)

Anyways back to us wanting to be rebels.  It all started during our Senior (Lunch? sorry I am totally blanking on what it was called) basically a time before graduation for all of us seniors to gather and have lunch and spend time with each other and the faculty and staff.  While there we got to talking about the cords we would wear during graduation.

Different groups at Milligan had different cords they wore.  Like if you graduated with Honors you received a Gold cord, Music was a pink cord, and then there were ones for all of the different Honor Societies.

We all thought it would be hilarious to make up our own cord for only "those girls" to wear.  You know rebelling against the system and everyone would have no idea.  Pretty much all the girls were on board with it, some a little hesitant and thinking we were crazy, so Lauren and I went and bought the materials needed to make the cords.

At the last minute basically everyone backed out on wearing them.  Lauren I were sad because we spent time and money on them, but at the same time I think we were both a little weary of wearing them as well.

I think in the end only two of the cords were made, one for me and one for Lauren.  So of course we took some pictures in them together:)

Looking back I so wish we had gone through with out rebellious plan.  If only for the confusion and questions we would have gotten from everyone.  Also it was Milligan and it was graduation day….what could they have really done to us?!

My Life In Numbers

0 The number of times I make my bed in a week
3 The number of loads of laundry I really need to be doing 
6 The number of people in my family

7 The number of girls who stood beside me for four of the best years of my life (and still do!)

9 The number of days till I will be in Tennessee and reunited with some of those girls
19 The number of days the Overcome The Lie Challenge has spoken right to my heart
23 The number of years I will be turning this year (and for me it sounds so old!)

65 The number of days till that said birthday and till I hopefully get to see my best friend!

420 The minimum number of minutes I spend doing homework in one week
445 The approximate number of days till I graduate from Grad school

600 The number of minutes I spend in class a week
2,354 The number of times I ask my professor to clarify something on his syllabus a week
35,478 The number of times I tell Brutus to stop doing something in one week
525,600 The number of minutes in a year
Everyone has numbers that mean something to them.  These are just a few for me.

I meant Business

Yesterday I talked all about how I was going to get my butt into gear and lose some of this weight I have put on, and hopefully more!  Well I meant business when I said that!  I got my butt into gear yesterday, and I must say I am mighty proud of myself.
I headed out to the gym and did and hour of cardio.  I can't remember the last time I did that.  I needed it and it felt great to be in there again actually working out, not just working.  And then I headed to the grocery store to stock up on all things healthy.
I mentioned that I tend to go towards the easy meals, which are not always the healthier meals.  So I solved that problem for myself.  If you follow me on Instagram you saw my post about all of the meals I prepped last night.  I grilled lots and lots of chicken and steamed lots and lots of veggies.  I put them in individual meal size containers so that all I have to do it grab and go!  Easy and simple! Just the way I like it.

About a year ago I did the Dandelion Detox Water.  And loved it.  I had really good results from it. So I have decided to do that agin for the next week.  Read my previous post to learn all about it.  Seriously worth it friends!

And then just so that you REALLY know that I meant business yesterday, I woke up at 5 AM to work out for two hours with my Mom this morning.  Yes I did just say 5 AM! I am not a morning person.  Not even a little bit.  And I do not run on little sleep very well.  But it is really the only time I have to work out.  So lets hope it becomes routine and I stick to it! (And yes there will now be coffee added to the diet to keep me awake!)
I also wanted to thank all of you for the kind sweet words!  I was just amazed from all of the encouragement and love I received from everyone.  Seriously if I didn't have you guys, I probs would lose my motivation and stay fat forever.  But I WILL NOT let that happen! SO thanks for the love and support!

I Let Myself Go

So I am a stress eater.  Like big time stress eater.  And when I have a lot going on I could care less about what I am eating, all I care about is how easily I can get it made and in my belly.  Truth.  Sometimes cooking healthy is just hard and I don't want to do it.
I know all the right things I should be eating and I know all the right things I should be doing to lose weight.  But I haven't done any of them in a long time.  I rarely workout.  Maybe once or twice a week.  Because most of the time I feel like I could be doing something more important that working out.  And really the only solid time I have to workout regularly everyday is 5 am.  And I am not a morning person.
All of this to say I am REALLY REALLy up in my weight, it's almost bathing suit season, and I feel gross.  Real gross.  School has been a lot of stress and had me constantly busy.  Oh and then there is work.  So basically I have some pretty big excuses, even though I should have no excuses.
The picture below is from a couple months ago.  I am bigger now.  Oh great!

So here and now on February 17, I am going to finally get my butt back in the gym.  I am throwing out all the shit in my pantry and fridge I shouldn't eat.  And I am going to go get me some healthy food.  I need to do this.  I feel and look better when I do.
I am also thinking about signing up for a couple 5k's so that it will force me to train.  I mean I can make time to run a couple days a week.  
I think the one thing I wish I had was a regular workout buddy.  That was what kept me working out before.  First I was always with Sherry and then I had Lauren.  When I know someone else is there relying on me I will show up and I will preform to the best of my ability!  Now I need to learn to motivate myself!
Ok weight loss rant is over.  I am getting my butt out of this chair and heading to the gym for lots of cardio and some weights! I can and I will do this!  

Call Me Master Chef…NOT!

This weekend I was going through my Pinterest food board looking for something to eat for dinner when I came across Lauren's Zucchini Muffins recipe.  She made these for me back when I visited her in Tennessee and I begged her to put the recipe on her blog.  When I saw them this weekend I craved them and knew I needed to make them.
So I looked through my kitchen and all I needed was the zucchini, which I picked up at the grocery store on Saturday.  Please make note I was proud because I thought I had bought some pretty big ones at a good price.  Fast forward to last night.
I was making the muffins and had done everything but grate the zucchini.  I find out I don't have a grater like I thought, but instead pulled out my food processor (Thanks Kel!) which worked perfectly! First problem solved.  As I continued chopping up the zucchini I started smelling it and noticing that its insides were a little different than I remember zucchini being.  Thats when I realize….. I BOUGHT CUCUMBERS!!!!
I knew that smell was familiar! I was seriously mad that I had done this! I really was craving the muffin goodness.  So I texted Lauren telling her what I did.  I didn't know if I should just wing it and have cucumber muffins or cook the rest of the batter without the "zucchini".  With Lauren's help I decided to do half and half.

So after 25 minutes I pulled them out and did a taste test……
Regular Batter: Super yummy and cinnamon but a little dense
Cucumber Muffins: Definitely have a slight test of cucumber and I would prefer the zucchini, but really not awful!
If you ever learn anything from me, let it be this: Read the directions and read the labels!!

13 Types of Friends

I was reading Holly's blog the other day and loved her post about the differnet BFF's she has had through the years.   It all stemmed from this Buzzfeed post.  I took a look at the post and thought to  myself "Self, you should totes write about this".   So I am, I just may not do all the types of friends because some overlap!

1. Childhood Best Friend

I met my childhood best friend at the bus stop when we were in Kindergarten.  Ashley's dad and my mom met and introduced us.  We lived across the neighborhoood from each other and rode the bus everyday.  We would meet up on the weekends and play and play.  Our favorite game was House and man did we have lots of babies.  She also had a trampoline that I would have killed to have.  We were friends till the dreaded days of middlee school when drama tore us apart. I think she is married now and maybe has a kid? Not sure but I totes should go Facebook stalk her...

2.  High School Best Friend

Oh Annie! We met our sophomore year of high school and were inseparable ever since.  We met as Key Club officers and had so much fun together.  Our personalitiies perfectly balance each other.   She can be quiet and I can be loud.  She keeps me sane and is the reason I got through High School.  She knows my family and has even traveled many times with us. We went to two different colleges but have still stayed in contact.  We should see each other more now that we are in the same state.  This is definitely something I want to work on.

3. Neighborhood best friend

See Childhood Best Friend

4. College Best Friend

This one has to be the hardest one to choose. I was so blessed to have many best friends in college.  Yes many.  So I am going to give you two (mostly because a third falls into another friend category).

The first is Lauren.  This girl and I could not be more opposite if we tried.   Honestly if it wasn't for alll the stuff we have been through who knows if we would still be friends.  But those times bonded us and I could not imagine life without her.  I am the emotions and she is the brain.  She tells it to me straight even if it hurts and is not what I want to hear.  I am thankful to be able to call her my friend.

The second is Ashlee.  She was one of my first college friends.  She has been there through it all and knows everything.  She gets me so well and always knows the right thing to say.  We have had our ups and downs, but have each other's backs through it all! She is coming to visit in two weeks and I cannot wait to have her here!

5. Work Best Friend

Brittany and I started at Golds within two weeks of each other.  I hated her at first and hoped she wouldn't last. I  mean come on she was a skinny bitch who worked at Wing House.  And then we became best friends.  Because well, all bitches have a way of bonding!  I love her now and I am so thankful to have her in my life.  She definitely made my transition back to Florida easier and I do not know what I would do without her!

6. Parents

I love that this list included my parents.  They are the people who have been there through everything.   They have watched and helped me grow into the person I am today.  I am so thankful and so blessed to have had such amazing parents.  They have been the best role models and supporters I could ever ask for.  I honestly do not know what I would do without them!

7. Siblings

Oh the Hardin 4.  What would I do without those three awesome siblings of mine?  Mattie, Benjamin, andd  Bryce are the three best kids out there.   We were the type of siblings that could say all the meanest things to each other, but no one else was allowed or they would have the Hardin's coming after them!  I know I will always have those 3 behind me suppporting and loving me through everything and I will be doing the same for them!

8. Twentysomething Best Friend

I'm only 22 so I'm skippping this one!

9. Powerhouse Best Friend

Uh don't think I have one of these!

10. Long Distance Best Friend

This is where another college friend comes into play.  Lauren lives the furthest away from me and it makes me sad:(  She is the person I turn to for everything. She is the friend that we can sit and talk about anything and everything for hours.  Or we can just sit on couch reading books and be happy.  Lauren is the one that we don't have to talk all the time to know the other will allways be there.  But I know she is the one 20 years down the road I will still be calling for everything!

11. Furry Besst Friend

Brutus. Beez. BB. Big B. Hims is my best friend.  I love this kid more than anything and don't know what I would do without him.  He is the best cuddle bunny and always has me laughing!

12. Your Significant Other

Yup don't have one of those.

13. Best friend forever and ever

Please see #'s 2,4,5,&10

I love me some best friends.  They are my rocks and I my life depends on having them there.  I have been blessed with the best of the best of best friends!