Hottie of the Week #5.

So, I have three confessions to make, and believe me, I know.

1. I have never read Twilight, and I don't know if I ever will.

2. I have never seen the Twilight movies (and to be honest I don't even think Rob Pattinson is very hot...or hot at all).

3. I have an obsession with HBO's True Blood.

True Blood...if you haven't watched it, I would highlyyyy recommend it. Sure, it's pretty dirtyyy...lots and lots of sex and nudity and just ridiculousness...but it's still fabulous and quite the guilty pleasure.

Enter Ryan Kwanten, who plays Jason Stackhouse on True Blood. Jason Stackhouse is nottt a nice guy...he's a horny player, who sleeps with just about anyone and anything - attractive, I know = / I know it sounds awful, but he's just so cute - and Kwanten spends about half of the show shirtless. Not too shabby ;)

As for the real Ryan Kwanten - the Australian native acted on some Australian soaps for a while, before moving to the United States and getting a job on the shortlived television show Summerland, starring Lori Loughlin (Aunt Becky from Full House) and Jesse McCartney.

Kwanten also appeared on a Law & Order SVU episode, as a solider accused of raping and murdering a fellow marine, and killing her baby. Lovely, I know, but great news, the hottie didn't do it!

While I don't know his background or if he's an activist, or intelligent, sometimes you have someone who is just so delicious looking that you just don't care so much ;) I don't know if he's the most photogenic - I promise though, he's a hottieee.









Mmm, apparently he does some yoga:









Thoughts?

Also, I just want to thank you all and ask you to continue to bear with me while I get back in the swing of things...the adjustment back to school is great, but I am finding it difficult to find that balance between my school life and social life - especially with my massive amount of credits I'm currently taking. I do love and cherish each and every one of you, and I really do find myself missing your blogs tremendously as I lock myself in the study rooms of the library to begin my already overwhelming amount of reading (Heritage of Islam is absolutely murdering me).

Alsooo, J is totally and completely fine...he had a little whiplash and totaled his car (and is currently hunting for new ones...he's thinking a Pontiac G6?). But thank you for all your kind words and support! =) He's VERY appreciative (even though I won't tell him the name/URL of my blog...a girl needs SOME things private!).

I love you all, and apologize again so much for neglecting you! xoxoxo

Currently listening to: Death Cab for Cutie - I Will Possess Your Heart.

Hottie of the Week #4.

So, I apologize for the absence in blogging (again, I suck).
Between packing, more packing, and then just dealing with the curveballs of life, it has been an intense time since I last posted... On Monday night, the day before we headed back to school, J was in a car accident after he fell asleep behind the wheel driving home from my house. Hellooo, can we say guilt on my part?! He couldn't reach his parents to come get him (the car is totaled) so I went and picked him up/brought him to his house. Let me tell you, scariest experience for me...and here I thought I was always so laid back, so calm... I was shaking like a leaf...like it was absolutely uncontrollable. Anyway, the great news is that while his car is totaled, he is completely and totally fine. He walked out of falling asleep behind the wheel, and hitting a tractor trailer without a single scratch on him. But still, it was really scary and really stressful!
I'm settled in to my new apartment now, so I'm ready to get back in the swing of things - which means getting back to blogging and reading all of your fabulous blogs....and for more hotties of the week!

I doooo listen to your suggestions for them, even when I don't really understand the appeal (which is okay, we all have a type!).

I feel like I'm going to bitchslapped by every female out there for saying this, but I do not find Jake Gyllenhaal attractive. However, I know a lot of you do (including Lindsay over at La Belle Vie who has mentioned her attraction to him a few times =), so here you go! (Just fyi, while I do not find him physically attractive, I find the things I've read about him just fabulous. So who knows, maybe I'll be converted...I am a fan of the dark hair/light eyes!).

Jake Gyllenhaal first entered the Hollywood scene in the movie October Sky, and then went on to star in the cult hit Donnie Darko. And hello, who could forget his amazing performance in Brokeback Mountain!? Just beyond. He received a Best Supporting Actor nod for the Academy Awards for his performance in the movie.

Since you all know, I love hotties who are activists too, I would like to inform you that Gyllenhaal is a supporter of the Rock the Vote movement, as well as a campaigner for environmental issues and the American Civil Liberties Union.

Not only is he an activist, but Gyllenhaal really seems like a really sweet guy, and a fabulous boyfriend to Reese Witherspoon. In every magazine you open up, I feel like you can see a picture of the two of them holding hands walking around, food shopping together dressed super casually, or (I melt) of them with her kids (with ex cheater husband Ryan Phillippe). Gyllenhaal is also the godfather of Matilda Ledger - Heath Ledger and Michelle Williams' adorable daughter. And helllllo, the boy has styleeeee.

Okay, I kind of get it with this picture =)













You know what? I may be getting the appeal ;)
Thoughts?

Hope you're all having the best week! I look forward to catching up on everyone's blogs! =) Love ya all, xo.

The Meaningful Things.

My family is big on gift giving. I know a lot of people whose families stop celebrating birthdays after they graduate, or don't give a lot of gifts around Christmas or Hanukkah, no Easter baskets anymore, etc. We still do it all - we make occasions so that we can give gifts (I think I've bought an anniversary gift for my parents every year since I was a teenager...a little ridiculous haha).
Anyway, although we give a lot of gifts, a lot of times they're just things we buy with no real significance.

I mean, it's nice mom and dad, that you went to Urban Outfitters and bought me that _____ (whatever), because you know I love the store, and thank you for the gift receipt, because really you didn't know what exactly I like. Not to sound ungrateful, because I am extremely grateful, but sometimes I wish that we were like my friend A's family. They each make a gift for one member of the family (I think they pick the name out of a hat), anything they want that makes them think of that person. I think that is so sweet, and really, really personal.

I've tried to get more personal with my gifts for my family - I made my mom a scrapbook for Mother's Day, for Father's Day we took my dad out to brunch at the restaurant of his favorite chef...little things like that, when you put some meaning behind it mean so much to me (and I've learned, to my parents too!).

I never seem to get right to the point, do I?

Okay, so when J and I first started dating, we both mentioned that the little things, little cards, little thoughtful gifts, surprises for each other, are things that really make us happy. I love getting flowers, don't get me wrong, but sometimes I think that getting a card or a love letter is a lot more special - at least to me, I don't speak on behalf of all women out there =)

So over the past few months, J and I have just done little things...I started that journal with him (which turned into him buying a journal for me, so now we both have one and trade bi-weekly), he sent me a really sweet card while he was at his job in July, I cooked dinner, whatever. We've just been doing little things to let the other one know that we care and love each other. Oh! And before he left for Canada, me (having no life) wrote him 14 letters, one for each day he'd be away (and I almost didn't finish in time, and seriously made him sit in my driveway/wander around my backyard while I finished up...I'm awful).

When J got back from his road trip to Canada with his brother, he was going to come over my house as soon as I got done with babysitting for the day. When I texted him to inform him that I had gotten done earlier than anticipated, he informed me he was "working on something" and it would take him a little longer to get to my house. Well, he arrived to my house an hour and a half later (payback for making him wait in my yard, I assumed ;] ) with a bottle of strawberry wine for dessert, and a big bag, filled with green tissue paper (which he told me later was because he knows green is one of my favorite colors).

That night, I was cooking dinner (a new recipe - chicken lettuce wraps, which were okay, and Mexican turkey burgers for dinner...sooo delish if anyone wants a recipe) so I wanted to just kind of get it done, and said I'd wait for opening the gift. As we both chopped up vegetables (I was so impressed with myself when I didn't shed a tear while chopping onions!), squished the ground turkey into patties, and mixed the corn and salsa together, he kept looking over at me, smiling so widely and telling me how excited he was to give me my gift.

I love surprises, but the anticipation of the surprise kills me. My mind goes crazy trying to figure out what it could possibly be, and usually I am horribly wrong. But, I did it...I sucked it up and I waited. First, came a card, that was like just perfect. When I opened up the inside, J had written (I'll cut it down a little from the amount he wrote...)

As I stood on the sandy shores of Prince Edward Island, I wished you could be by my side sharing the beauty of this beach. I thought it would be the perfect place to write a message of my love for you. Since you weren't there, I took a picture to freeze the moment, so you can remember that even when you're apart, I'm thinking of you, and my love for you is as vast as the sand on the shore.

I die, I swear I think I almost melted into a puddle right then and there. Like for me, that alone would have been enough, but when I opened up the package, J had bought a shadow box, put shells in the bottom, and matted and framed this picture that he took while at the beach in Canada with his brother:



I know I probably hyped up the surprise too much, and you might be sitting there thinking, "Really? That's what she was so excited about? Big deal!"

I don't know, to me, the little things like that really are the most meaningful. I never get thoughtful gifts like that from anyone, so it's all so new and exciting for me. I have the picture on a bookcase in my room, and every morning when I wake up, it's the first thing I see. (Plus, not onlyyy did I get that, but I also got a journal filledddd with entries =) which makes me just beyond happy). I'm telling you, the little things will do it for me! And, he remembered that shade of yellow is alsooo my other favorite color (and the color of my bedroom walls...almost). I melt. Oh, and he also wrote yet anotherr love note on the back.

What is the best gift you've ever received? (from anyone, it doesn't have to be from a boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife). And what's the best gift you've ever given?

Currently listening to: Landon Pigg - Coffee Shop (I'm in a romantic mood, what can I say?!)

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend, any fun plans?

P.S. The hottie of the week post may be a little delayed this week...I'll be SUPER busy packing up my life because I move into my apartment on Tuesday! So just bear with me if I'm a little behind on responding to comments and checking out all of your fabulous blogs.
You all make me so happy =)

P.S.S. Sorry if you're all tired of hearing about J! I'll tryyyy to blog about other things, I promise!

(Taking a page out of my girl Aubrey's book and ending on a quote...)

It is a risk to love.
What if it doesn't work out?
Ah, but what if it does.
-Peter McWilliams.

Cardboard Love.

Before J, I never considered myself to be much of a romantic. However, more and more, I'm noticing that I just may be a bit of a romantic. Being with J has made me want to do these little things for him, and we have an ongoing thing where we just write little love notes, or do these sweet little romantic things for each other. It makes me beyond happy, and I love that we have that romance (ugh, sorry to swoon....and to talk about him ALL the time!).

Anyway, I have been scrolling through Cardboard Love nonstop lately. It's not a new thing, just new to me.

Pretty much, this guy writes love notes every day to his girlfriend, on pieces of cardboard, and then posts them to his website. He describes himself as being a negative person, but feels that the person in his life allows him to feel more positive, and to be open to being perceived as lame by others. Some are sexy, some are just swoon worth...Some are more personal, and things that I don't exactly know what they're talking about, and others I think can appeal on a universal level.

These are just a few of the love notes written to this lucky girl.























(Am I really behind on everything? Has anyone else heard of this before?).

I promise next post I'll share J's surprise with you...it's not quite like this, but still so sweet =)

Love all of YOU! <3>Currently listening to: Death Cab for Cutie - Little Bribes.

Hottie of the Week #3.

The new hottie of the week (for week #3), is none other than John Krasinksi, probably best known for playing Jim Halpert on (my favorite TV show) The Office.

Every so often, there are characters on television where I'm like "Okay, hello, I'm in love with you," and it confuses me as to if I really think the actor is actually hot, or if I'm just attracted to the character they play on television or in a film. I think the character of Jim on The Office is just that type of character - he has the perfect combination of looks, wit, nerdiness, intelligence and charm. So really, do I think John Krasinski is hot, or am I just in loveeee with the character he plays?

After searching for pictures to post of John Krasinski, I decided that this is not the case with him, as much as I love Jim Halpert. Krasinski himself is boy next door good looking, which to me at least, is super, super appealing (but then again, I'm not a big fan of boys who are too pretty). I think that part of the charm is the fact that he just seems like a genuinely sweet guy (though he could be a douchebag, you never know!). Plus, he is a fabulous dresser, with this whole laid back casual, but still looking really good type of thing going! (Over dinner at CPK the other night, my high school bff E and I discussed the fact that we find guys who wear blazers with jeans, or cardigans to be just perfection).

As for Krasinski himself, who you may recognize not only from The Office, but the recent indie hit Away We Go (has anyone seen it? I didn't get the chance), not only is he a graduate from Brown University (I told you, I like them educated ;), but he also took time off from his studies to teach English in Costa Rica before heading off to Brown!

He also attended high school with fellow Office costar B.J. Novak (who plays Ryan, and is a co-writer on the show), and the two remain super close. I love stories of childhood friends like that! Novak actually wrote the first play that Krasinski starred in during high school, which triggered his love of acting.

Unfortunately, this hottie is currently dating Emily Blunt (from Sunshine Cleaning and The Devil Wears Prada), but at least it proves he has good taste, because she herself is eligible to be a hottie of the week! =)



The very well dressed couple:














Anyone who hangs out with Ben Gibbard is good in my book =)




Thoughts? Do any of you have a 'type' of people you find attractive? (for example, I prefer nerds/boys with good style/skinny boys/boys who make me laugh [like J! <3]).

Are any of you fans of The Office? Also, I promise I am going to be taking your recommendations for this category seriously! Sorry I've just been kind of doing my own thing with these for the most part - but I'll be taking your suggestions veryyy seriously! =)

I hope your weekends were wonderful and you had a lovely Monday as well! xo

P.S. I can't wait to post later this week and tell you all about the sweetestttt thing that J did for me! (Which is quite possibly the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me!).

Currently listening to: Rogue Wave - Chicago x 12

Bringing Back Togetherness.

It is very rare for me that my family - all four of us (don't tell my mom I didn't count Cooper as a member of the family, she'll kill me) - really get to spend any time together. For one thing, we all have entirely different interests. My dad and Pat share their love of all things sports related, but that really ends there for them too.

My mom loves her gardening, her friends, and lunches at the country club. My dad is a big fan of wine (and while I love wine too, I'm nowhere near the knowledge level he is!), sports, and sleeping in his favorite chair...he also seems to love to do yard work too, and carefully inspects every inch of the lawn, making sure that it is mowed to his satisfaction. My brother...loves parties, hooking up, Wayfarer sunglasses, longboarding, and fishing. And then there is me, the fashion obsessed, art loving, flower child that no one is entirely sure how to relate to.

These differences make it hard for us to spend quality time as a family. Growing up, family dinners were a non negotiable thing - we always ate at the table together for every dinner. While I hated it at the time, especially when I had friends who were allowed to eat in their rooms, I can now appreciate the fact that we got to spend time together, even for just twenty minutes. Some nights would be filled with conversation, other nights would be quiet as we simply ate and then went on our way.

Now, we never eat together. Ever. My dad sits in front of the TV watching Cash Cab, with my mom joining him and eating in silence. I eat in the kitchen alone, and my brother brings his food up to his room (where his plates will sit for weeks, or until my mom puts them in the dishwasher). Lately I've been linking being home with loneliness, because as pathetic as this sounds, I am usually alone when I'm at my house. (I know, I know, poor me - I do realize it could be much worse!).

My parents also never do things together. Growing up, I remember they would constantly go to benefits or fundraisers together, work parties, and they would go on dates every single week. I don't know if as the years have gone by they've fallen out of love with one another, but now, they rarely talk, let alone go on dates. When my dad gets home from work (granted he is very tired from his stressful job), he plops down in front of the TV, and is most likely sound asleep twenty minutes later. My mom occasionally joins him while they watch TV together, but she sits on the couch alone while he sits in his big chair, fairly far away from her. The conversation is strained, and there is no romance left in their relationship.

For Father's Day, my brother and I decided it would be fun to go to the city to one of Bobby Flay's restaurants Mesa Grill. My dad is an enormous fan of Bobby Flay, and Pat and I decided we could both pay for brunch for our family to go in and eat together (because as much as we'd like to go for dinner, we just can't afford it on our own). The brunch menu is super reasonably priced, with all the entrees between $13 and $18 at the most, so it's perfect. My dad was super excited, but plans of finding a weekend fell by the wayside as we all went on with our lives.

Finally, we picked a day (yay!). I was very apprehensive about the whole thing - what would we all talk about? Would my brother even end up going? (Usually he bails last minute out of family obligations/commitments). Would we fight? What would I wear?

We drove into the city on noon on Sunday - giving us a ton of time to make our 1:30 reservation. My brother dressed in business casual, with no complaints - abandoning his summer wardrobe of Ed Hardy or Hollister tshirts (classy), my mom didn't scream as my dad slammed on his breaks at every red light just barely missing the car in front of us, and I didn't text the entire time and we all actually laughed the whole way there. My mom was a little unsure about parking my dad's new car on the street ("Michael, it is going to get smashed into...your GPS will be stolen" [the GPS is a built in...a little difficult to steal]...and luckily there was a Bentley parked on the street...which we all agreed was definitely going to get broken into before our car!), but we let it go and headed to the restaurant, located on Fifth Avenue, by Union Square.

We were seated immediately, and all actually agreed on an appetizer (goat cheese queso fundido dip with blue corn chips...delicioussss), while we sat back laughing, sipping our coffee/tea, and reminiscing about different family memories. My dad has this silly complex about not ordering anything anyone else does, so we each checked out what we were getting to make sure there were absolutely no duplicates (it is the weirdest thing ever, I know!).

I got this unbelievably fabulous blue corn waffle, with blackberries, bourbon syrup and vanilla creme fraiche, Pat ordered the most enormous burger I've ever seen, my dad got some stuffed pepper thing, and my mom got a pork sandwich that was also massive. Let me tell you, we absolutely CLEANED our plates. I scarfed down my waffle in no time at all, feeling satisfied and unbearably full afterwards.

After I paid the bill (which gave the waiter quiteee the shock) we headed over to Union Square, where local artists and college students had set up stands selling their photography, t-shirts, and various knick knacks. I absolutely LOVE taking in everything - all the different people, cultures, smells, sounds, colors, everything, and think that I could honestly spend hours just sitting and people watching.

We walked around for about a half hour, before, let's face it, this girl right here got a craving for a little something called a cupcake from Magnolia Bakery. If none of you have ever heard of/been to Magnolia Bakery, you must instantly book yourself a plane/train/or drive to NYC and hop on over to Magnolia Bakery for a vanilla cupcake with vanilla frosting. I swear, every time I eat one, I die a little bit inside and feel a little bit of heaven (my girl Elizabeth will agree with me!). The frosting is like this perfectly sweet buttercream, and they come in these gorgeous pastel colors like green, yellow, pink and purple! Seriously, come to NYC and I will personally take you to/let you buy me a cupcake (just kidding, it's on me!). For $2.50, you can have your own piece of heaven.

There are currently three Magnolia Bakery's in the city, each at a different location, but the one I prefer is the original bakery located in the Village, on Bleeker Street. It's in this super, super cozy neighborhood, with little parks and all of these fabulous little brownstones and brick apartments. It is seriously the kind of place I could see myself living...still a part of the city, but isolated in a sense that the streets aren't quite as loud. Seriously, I could see myself walking my little English bulldog down the sidewalks (though if I lived that close to Magnolia Bakery it is a pretty decent possibility I would require being fork lifted out of my apartment due to my massive weight gain ;). Being in that neighborhood makes me so, so happy.

As we walked back to our car, my parents held hands - a first in like, years. We all laughed the entire way home (especially when the guy in his car next to us was blasting his horrible music in a car where the rims were more expensive than the actual car...and my dad plugged in my brother's iPod, rolled down the windows, and blasted LMFAO's "I'm in Miami, Bitch"...awful and embarrassing because my dad is too white for that).

When we returned home, we all went our separate ways, but that time spent together was one of the best memories I've had of all of us together in a longggg time. Days like this give me hope that our family will be okay, and that we still can have these fabulous family days that I will remember forever.

Happy Father's Day! (in August).






Pat's MASSIVE burger:


I promise my dad does not usually look like a creeper. I have no idea why his eyes look like this:


And my mom doesn't really always look stoned:




My future neighborhood :)


And seriously, the best cupcakes you will everrr eat:


What is one of your favorite memories with your family?

Currently listening to: Kasabian - Empire (because my poor boys in Kasabian have the swine flu!).

Hottie of the Week #2.

It is no shock to any of you that I love The OC. I've been pretty sick this past weekend, and nothing cheers me up more than a weekend I have to spend in bed than watching The OC (though the fourth season doesn't do it for me quiteee as much as the others).

Myself and the fabulous Kicking Couture constantly have conversations about the male hotties of The OC. She recommend that at some point, the hottie of the week be none other than Ben McKenzie, who plays Ryan on The OC, and is also on the TV program Southland (which I'm not sure if it's coming back, but I actually enjoyed it quite a bit from the few episodes I saw).

As bad boy Ryan, I swear, I lusted every week after this hottie, in his signature wifebeaters and gray hooded sweatshirt. While he definitely had his bad boy side (referenced by his constant punching of people), he also had a sensitive side, and was super vulnerable at times. Both myself and my best friend R are completely on Team Ryan (though Team Seth is a close second).

Anyway, McKenzie has received rave reviews for his other works - including Junebug (starring Amy Adams), which won him a Sarasota Film Festival nomination, as well as crazy good reviews at Sundance.
Before deciding to act, Ben attended the University of Virginia, earning a degree in foreign affairs and economics [I love me an educated man :) ].

More recently, he has supported animal adoption by adopting an abandoned pitbull, and has participated in encouraging young voters to get out and vote with Rock the Vote and travelled around to various college campuses encouraging students to partake in both the 2004 and 2008 elections. He also supports a charity very, very close to my heart - Invisible Children, which raises awareness about child soldiers in Uganda, Africa and tries to rescue them. And, if that isn't enough, he has spent years volunteering with the charity, a charity that encourages reading in elementary school aged children - which, as a future teacher, I think is an incredibly important outreach.

I'm telling you, add in a little charity along with good looks and intelligence - you got it covered :)











Loveee this picture:










And yet, still hot:


Thoughts?

And please, keep your nominations (male or female!) coming. I'm glad that you all seemed to enjoy this type of post - I think it's super fun! :) Hope youre enjoying your final day of the weekend - and that you did some fun stuff this past weekend! xo

Currently listening to: James Taylor - Fire and Rain