A New Year!

"Year's end is neither an end nor a beginning
but a going on, with all the wisdom that
experience can instill in us." ~Hal Borland

So after spending the last year reading and falling in love with the girly/preppy/fabulous blog world, I've decided to give it a whirl and start one of my own! I have no idea what I'm doing or what on earth I'm going to blog about, but it seems like fun and at the start of a new year, why not? It'll be a work in progress over the next few weeks, but hope y'all enjoy!

I'll start with a little getting-to-know you 50 things to know about me:

1. I have blonde hair and blue eyes.
2. I am 5 feet, 2 inches tall (my daddy says I'm vertically challenged).
3. I consider this an excellent excuse to live in high heels. My tallest pair clocks in at 4.75 inches. Slightly ridiculous, but completely fabulous.
4. I'm a Virginia girl, born and bred. Grew up here, went to college here, and am loving my first "big girl job" here.
5. But I also love, love, love to travel and consider England home away from home.
6. I was born on August 7 and am a Leo.
7. I fit the Leo profile to an absolute T. It's kind of scary.
8. I have a younger sister (can't say little sister anymore...she's 6 inches taller!) who is 4 years younger, my complete opposite, and one of my favorite people in the world.
9. My mom and dad are both accountants, ironic since I have the math skills of a three-year old.
10. When I was little, my life's goal was to either be a professional ballerina or Eloise.
11. I'm still trying to figure out a way to be Eloise. Love, love, love her!
12. I was a history major in college and have an unhealthy obsession with historical houses and museums.
13. I have a one-year old Redbone Coonhound puppy named Jake and he is the most adorable, lovable little guy. He's also a pain in the behind and annoys me to no end, but he's just got those big brown eyes, wrinkly face, and floppy ears that I cannot say no to.
14. In college, I worked at J.Crew
15. I made some of my best friends there and miss the discount like whoa!
16. Manhattans, straight up, two cherries in the winter.
17. Mojitos in the summer.
18. I live for college football season.
19. I read an article somewhere that said girls shouldn't be "know-it-alls" about sports because it intimidates guys. The author of that article was obviously not from the South.
20. Yellow anything is my favorite. It's just so happy!
21. I would upholster every surface possible in toile if I could. I LOVE toile.
22. My love of toile became a running joke in college when I visited a historical home with some friends and my toile pants matched the toile curtains in said house.
23. My guilty pleasure is hot dogs. I know they are disgusting and unhealthy and full of unnatural things, but seriously....they are the most delicious food on the planet.
24. French fries and ice cream are tied for a close second.
25. I love gift-giving and pride myself on picking the perfect gift with the perfect gift wrap (NEVER gift bags!)
26. I love stationary and greeting cards.
27. I'm OBSESSED with monograms....but honestly, who isn't?
28. I live for Monday nights (Gossip Girl!) and Blair Waldorf is my style icon.
29. I like to think of my style as classic preppy with a whimsical twist of Southern trendy...not really sure what that means, but it sounds about right.
30. Think a J.Crew dress and Tory flats with Ray-Ban wayfarers.
31. I love to cook and am a major foodie.
32. This is made difficult by the fact that the oven in my otherwise wonderful townhouse is TEENY. You cannot even fit a standard cookie sheet in it. My mama calls it the Barbie oven.
33. My favorite cities are Boston, Venice, and Charleston.
34. I plan on moving to Charleston as soon as I can.
35. But I hate the thought of leaving Virginia! It really is the most wonderful state in the Union.
36. I pretty much live in dresses. Until last week, I only owned one pair of jeans and I have had them since the 8th grade!
37. I am super close to my family...
38. and a big time daddy's girl!
39. I have SO many favorite movies but a sampling includes: A River Runs Through It, Emma, Elf, Love Actually, ANYTHING Nancy Meyers (The Holiday, Something's Gotta Give, Father of the Bride...), Pulp Fiction (random, I know), Little Women...I could go on and on. I love movies!
40. My life would fall apart without my planner and my Blackberry.
41. I work in Young Alumni and Student Development (read: fundraising) at a small, private, liberal arts college in western Virginia.
42. My job is AMAZING and I'm very lucky that at such a young age I have such great insight into what I want to do for the rest of my life.
43. Diet Coke. Seriously....don't talk to me about Pepsi products. They pale in comparison.
44. I LOVE aquariums. I have no idea where this love came from since I was terrible at science and have never lived closer than 6 hours away from a beach.
45. The ones in New Orleans and Boston are tied for first in my book.
46. I love any and all holidays, especially Christmas and Halloween.
47. Fall is my favorite season....fall fashion, college football, apple picking, and pumpkin squares....what's not to love?!?
48. I'm very sarcastic.
49. I'm VERY chatty and outgoing around my friends, but super shy around strangers.
50. My life right now is crazy and confusing, but surrounded by wonderful people, so all in all, it's a pretty wonderful view from where I stand.