It shines

It welcomes me as I get home every evening.

Even on bad days, it still shines.

Lensbaby

As I got home from school on Friday, a nice little package was waiting for me... As soon as I saw it, I ripped it open, knowing just what it was- my Lensbaby. I immediately went outside and started snapping hundreds of pictures. It is a very challenging lens, however, so some of these aren't that great; I am still getting used to it. (and sorry if you get a bit of a headache from looking at some of these!)

-suzyQ

Like mother like daughter...

"Good night, Mom," I said. Then I stealthily snuck into the kitchen and cut a generous piece of a brownie cake that we have. I then walked upstairs and attempted to fall asleep... but the craving for one more meager crumb kept me awake. So I crept back downstairs to polish up the last bit of the cake... but, to my dismay, the cake polishing had already occurred. And as I looked into the deep, dark shadows of the pantry, I spotted my mother licking her greedy fingers.

Like mother like daughter.

-suzyQ

sigh...

green grass. pink lemonade. sun tans and tan lines. faded beach towels. sandy flip flops. pimento cheese sandwiches. back-porch dining. strawberry banana smoothies. blue skies. bare feet. skinned knees. grass stains. endless movie marathons. fresh cucumbers drowned in vinegar. lazy mornings. late nights. last-minute planning. camp outs in the playroom. the warm, sweet scent in the air.

oh summer, how I will miss thou.

Happy Fall to all you Blogger residents out there.

-suzyQ

I had so much fun doing this.

Name: known as suzyQ to most

Date: September 20, 2009

Learn Something about Yourself: Quiz

What makes you happy? Waking up to light shining through my window on a sunny day. Stepping outside and feeling a slight nip in the air, right in the beginning of fall . Putting on the first sweater of the year. Family bonding at the dinner table. Writing, writing, and writing . Napping with the rain and an empty mind . My dog, Sam . Weekends full of game nights and lazy mornings. Taking pictures of my beautiful life that I couldn’t even begin to put into words.

What are your dreams? I want to travel around the world . I want to have three children, whom I will love with all my heart and whom of I will take many, many pictures . I want to live in New York City for some amount of time. I want to be famous (ha!). But above all, I want to be blissfully happy no matter what.

What are some improvements you would like to make to yourself? Can I use three pages for this one? Well, there are many improvements that I need to make to myself, but I think there always is for everyone. The most major one, however, would probably be my too-quick-to-judge-ness. As hard as I try to be non-judgmental, I always get initial thoughts buzzing around in my head when I first meet someone, and unfortunately, those thoughts aren’t always good. I am working on it though!

Who are your role models? Why? My grandmother, Mama Sue, will always be one of the major role models in my life. She battled cancer a few years ago, and even though she has gotten rid of the disease, it did leave its mark in her everyday life. She is always trying to help everyone around her, but the after shocks of the past chemotherapies have left her feeling tired very often after little exerts of energy. She is constantly working hard for others no matte r what, and I hope that I will be at least a fraction of the dedicated person that she is.

What do you want to be when you “grow up?” To employ at either a major advertising or marketing firm, or something creative. But most importantly, I must love it.

Describe your current life. Currently trying to fit family time, boyfriend time, friend time, extra-curricular activity time, spiritual time, school time, fun time, and me-time into my already insane schedule. But loving every minute of it.

3 wishes. Go: 1.) I wish for me to stop questioning life, but living it. 2.) I wish for peace in not only my own life, but in life around the world (I know, very beauty pageant of me). 3.) I wish for me to become a better writer to better describe how wonderful life really is.

Sending vibes for a good week your way!

Love,

suzyQ

Friday Night Lights

One of the things I love most about high school: Friday night football games.

Wet, mushy, perfectly groomed sod. Enthusiastic mamas and nervous daddies. Little girls donned in their homemade cheerleading uniforms, cheering along with the "big girls". Our coach's famous speech made at the end of every ballgame in a huddle on the middle of the field, with players and fans surrounding. Roasted peanuts and cokes. Candy-filled children screaming for their role models on the field. Gnats...everywhere. Bright lights. Hair ribbons and pom poms. Rub-on tattoos plastered on pink cheeks. Familiar cheers ringing through the whole complex. Sore throats and hoarse voices. The feeling of having the whole school together rooting for their boys.

This makes me love high school life. This makes me feel at home. This, I will never tire of.

And this, I will most certainly miss in a few years.


-suzyQ

Memory Monday

After long thought and much consideration, I have decided to start a new weekly blog theme called "Memory Monday." Each Monday I will share a memory from my cherished past.

And yes, I do realize today is Tuesday, but I just couldn't wait another week!

So sit back and enjoy...

I have analyzed and over-analyzed my first memory to share with you... And after a lot of mind battling, I came up with the perfect subject: My great-great grandmother.

She was my mother's grandmother. She had snow-white hair and the most beautiful facial features I have ever seen. Her wardrobe consisted of all the most elegant apparel of the time. Her famous quotes are still remembered throughout my family today. Visiting her mediterranean-style home to visit with her and sip apple juice in her charmingly outdated kitchen was always anticipated. Her Southern antebellum accent made anyone she met instantly fall in love with her.

These are some of the few things I tangibly remember about her since I was only in 4th grade when she passed away, but the most prominent memory in my mind is how much my grandfather loved her. She was his mother. What can one do when they lose a parent? I can't even fathom. But I remember sitting in the kitchen at my grandparents' house and my grandfather saying...

"There will never be another woman like her."

Man, I wish I could have known her longer.

-suzyQ

I hope he knows

I found this on my brother's desk yesterday morning. In all his sweetness, he created a list of his daily routine starting from bedtime.

I see a very successful future for this boy.
His handwriting is just like my dad's... If you can't read some of it, it says:

1. Prayers
2. Sleep

3. Get up take shower at 6:10 (he is the morning person of our family)
4. Get out at 6:20 (Ten minutes? I don't think he has quite reached his goal yet. His showers usually estimate around twenty minutes. Much to his sisters' dismay)

5. Brush teeth

6. Go in mom's room and sleep till 6:40 (mama's boy)

7. (he hasn't added the next step yet)

If only he knew how much I love him.

Colors, really?

First things first: This photo and the one before, and the ones to follow are all results of my summer savoring. I hope you all have gotten some great shots of these last days as well!

Sooo.. I took a personality quiz based on my favorite colors on http://www.colorquiz.com/ today, recommended by my very dear friend, Caroline. Just to humor her wild imagination, I took it. But as I read the results, my mouth dropped wide open. No one has been able to perfectly describe me better than this. I seriously suggest this to you, it was so cool! And it really shed some light on some current situations for me.

"Feeling tension and stress brought on by situations which are out of her control, leaves her feeling helpless, anxious, and in adequate. In order to build her self-esteem back up, she looks to others for recognition, respect, and encouragement. This can be a problem since she tends to blame others for her shortcomings. Searching for solutions that are geared toward her needs and self-consciousness."

"Feeling held back and restricted from moving forward, looking for a solution that will give her more freedom and less obstacles."

"Seeks freedom and the chance to do as she wishes; avoids restrictions or things that try to hold her back. Feels an intense amount of pressure being put on her and would like a chance to escape in order to do the things she wants and needs to do for herself. However, she lacks the determination and motivation to escape and pursue her own personal gains."

And who would've thought?

Wishing a wonderful weekend to all.

-suzyQ

Do it for you

The old me:

Step 1: Sign-in to Blogger.

Step 2: Look for new comments. If there is none, sigh heavily.

Step 3: Go to Statcounter to check how many people have visited my blog. Once again, possibly a heavy sigh.

Step 4: Sulk for a few more minutes afterward.
Step 5: Write a new post that I think will please my audience.

The new me:

Step 1: Sign-in to blogger.

Step 2: Not even think about new comments.

Step 3: Statcounter? What is that?

Step 4: Enjoy the wise words of other blogs.

Step 5: Write a post that I love, and that expresses the way I feel- for me.

Step 6: Maybe check for new comments, you know, just to be nice, that is all.....

Step 7: Sign out of blogger- with a happy and very content smile on my face. Why? Because I did it for me.

Do it for you.

-suzyQ

Beach Love

I have spent this lovely Labor Day Weekend at the beach with a chunk of my family members. Our beach house is very East Coast-esque with charming white trim outlining the pale blue wood. Many memories have been created throughout my lifetime here, and every time I walk through the door and smell the familiar smells, all those memories rush back.

Digging bathtub-sized holes for hours with my older cousins in the gritty sand. Body surfing and boogie-boarding in the high-tide waves. Applying massive amounts of Aloe Vera to my many sunburns. Feeling the breeze brush across my face at the perfect moment. Painting my toe nails so my feet look perfect buried in sand the next day. Grana's world famous cheese grits every morning. Pimento cheese sandwiches as a daily lunchtime meal. Outdoor showers topped with Pert shampoo. Stepping on sand dollars in the ocean and then masterfully picking them up with our toes to add to the collection. Seagulls. Seagulls. Seagulls. Cheez-its and Crystal Light. Wearing baseball caps and t-shirts every day due to our entire family's pale-as-can-be skin and our over-protective mamas. People-watching galore. Complete peace and serenity that I can find nowhere else. Knowing that I am surrounded by the people I love most in this world. And the feeling of dread that overcomes me on the last night.








I will back here in a year...



I can't wait.

Savor.

As we are approaching the final weeks of our current season (for me, it is summer,) I challenge you all to scoop up every last bit of these final moments. Go outside and take a billion pictures of nature this time of year so you can enjoy the beauty all year long. I will be posting my finds on here throughout the next week... This summer has been a beautiful one and I want to get a picture of every last glorious thing! I also want to see what moments you all can capture as well... even if you haven't ever even held a camera before- I promise you, you will love it.

So let's take time to notice all of the simple, ordinary perfection surrounding our every day lives... let's take time to savor.

Now

(Sorry, no picture today- my computer has crashed so I am improvising... Will be posting more soon!)




My biggest problem is...

living in the present. I am either wanting to go back to the past, or I am wanting to fast forward to the future. I am getting close to the age of planning for colleges, etc., and that completely excites me. But on the other hand, I am wanting to be eight again; riding my bike down the sidewalk, giggling at boys, wearing my favorite pair of Ked's sneakers, lacy socks, Full House marathons, an A+ on every quiz, bare feet, loose teeth, not questioning every little thing- accepting it, rub-on tattoos, Santa Claus, stress-free, snuggling with Mama, going to work with Daddy, leggings and clip-on earrings. Why can't I just accept everything that goes on around me? Why can't I stop worrying?

I am going to give myself some advice, and maybe it will help a few of you out there too...

The past is gone. The future- not guaranteed. Now? That's all we've got. Now. Now.
So hug a little longer. Splurge a little more. Press the snooze button on your busy schedule, and do what pleases you. Snug some me-time in there as well.

Let's live... when? now.


-suzyQ