The "American GIrl" Dream

i stumbled upon this post by the fulltimegirl.com and i absolutely adore it

http://www.thefulltimegirl.com/2013/11/18/the-american-girl-dream/

i promise i'm not going to quote the entire thing (even though i could) but i will just say this article pretty accurately sums up my motto on dating...and maybe as i've gotten a little older, i've realized a little more about my worth...and maybe that's why being single doesn't send me into a full blown panic attack complete with sobbing and everything like it did 2 years ago...and i still want to get married (that hasn't changed) but i'm not going to settle...and i don't want someone to just settle for me (i'm crazy and obsessive and honestly a little judgmental and very sarcastic...so yeah i've got a lot going on...but he will love that about me...or at least tolerate it and think i'm funny)

My Year

I distinctly remember my mom telling me on new years eve 2011 that 2012 was going to be my year...and i also distinctly remember thinking all throughout december 2012 that 2012 had so NOT been my year...but 2013 was definitely my year
i can honestly say that this year that i turned 25 was nothing like i thought it would be 3 years ago...or 5 years ago or 10 years ago..but somehow i'm so much more content than i ever would have expected myself to be...and i still haven't had the major freakout over turing 25...and i've been waiting for it for 3 months now!

i've written a little bit about it here before but no one loves a good plan more than i do...and in 2013 things came together in a spectacularly unplanned way...but i really couldn't have planned it any better

i won't lie...the beginning of the year was a little rough...my younger brother got married and i may not have handled that situation as gracefully as i could have...but i'm working on it

then someone who was my only other single close friend in greenville moved back home...and i was again back to being lonely...

and then the twins were going to start school in may meaning they didn't really need a nanny anymore...

so maybe around march of 2013 i was panicking that this wasn't going to be my year either...maybe it was going to be even worse...

but then things just came together..and i'm still in awe of how they did

i was approached about the possibility of taking over as the children's minister at the church i attend...just for a year or so while they searched for a long-term fit and i looked for an accounting job...and then i got a phone call from a staffing agency about an opening with a company in Greenville that was interested in me

i took a working interview for a week there...the exact week that the twins started school...which i think made the transition a lot easier for me...it's kind of like we all grew up together on that same day...

i got an apartment in late may...i was brought on full-time in august...and i'm part-time in the children's ministry with one of my really good friends...and then in late october, i transitioned to a new role at the same company and i absolutely love it...it's a lot more responsibility and stress...but i kind of thrive on that so it all works out 

so 2012 was not my finest year but 2013 was my year...and turing 25 was a walk in the park compared to 23...and while maybe my little story of God working things out sounds so simple (and it is) but it's my story and i kind of love it...

and i can't wait to see what 2014 will add to it!

twenty-five

This past Wednesday (yup on the 11th) I turned 25. And it was nothing like I ever thought my 25th birthday would be. And yet it was a pretty perfect day.
I will be the first to admit that I thought turning 25 was going to be rough...really, really rough. But it wasn't...and for that I'm grateful.
I went to work like normal...wore one of my favorite tops and woke up early to enjoy coffee on my couch. Got a phone call from my favorite twins and Riggs sang me the ABCs. At work, I was surprised with pumpkin coffee from Dunkin Donuts as well as a new clemson tervis, earrings & twizzler bites. Had a great lunch downtown at the Green Room and the owner of the company I work for sang me happy birthday...and then joked that I had to only be 19...close enough I guess :)
Church was really good that evening...my craft went over really well with the older kids and I got a few things done while other stations were happening.

But really had you asked ten years ago, five years ago or even last year...this is no where near what I would have told I wanted my 25th birthday to be like...but it was such a good day.

I will admit I so do not think that being 25 has sunk in yet (i'm sure a rambling post is coming soon about everything I'm no closer to having then i was a year ago...or 5 years ago but for now we just enjoy the positive and content feeling that I have) I still feel so much like a child most days and I can't believe that I'm already 25...and that I haven't accomplished more than I already have.

But then I think that I've probably done more than I realize...and that this past year has been full of unexpected changes...and while I'm definitely not where I ever thought I would be at 25....I'd really like to think that 15 year old me would be really happy with where she'll be at 25, even if it's not what she saw coming at all.

Life

so i haven't updated in years it seems but a lot LOT of things have changed...things i'm super excited about!

to start, i'm no longer a nanny...instead i'm a staff accountant at an energy company...same thing right?

at the start of May, the twins started school and i started my first big girl job..although i have to admit being a nanny is kind of big girl job...just one where i could wear my pajamas everyday. the company i work for is right downtown and i really like the people i work with. it's busy but i like that part too. when people ask me how i like my job, i always respond with something about how it's accounting but honestly i really like it. so yeah that's probably why i went to grad school for accounting. (that and my cute advisor told me too...)

i also recently moved into an apartment...and I'm really loving being so close to my job and Greenville in general. i do really miss the twins but i love seeing them so excited to see me. last sunday when they saw me and i got running hugs...yeah it was pretty much the greatest moment ever...same thing when we FaceTimed and Jackson couldn't stop saying my name. yeah i kind of love those kids...and i'm so glad they still love me :)

i'm also involved heavily in the children's ministry at my church...and by heavily i mean i'm running it with my good friend. so yeah life is busy but i'm loving it. 

i think it's so strange how things can change so suddenly. i was really worried that i would get a job not in Greenville and i would never get to see the twins again and they would forget me. or that i would end up moving back home...but i'm kind of where i thought i would be when i graduated...just two years later. but i wouldn't change those days i spent with the twins for anything. and now i love things like walking downtown on my lunch break. but i will always love Jackson & Riggs...so good luck to any babies my friends have in the future...you have some tough competition :)

(i mean seriously does it get any cuter?)

(pushing brother)

(she insisted on the hat and the glasses...i love her)

(jackson napped on the couch with me)

(i found this book one evening and asked Hayley if i should go ahead and get it just so i have it one day to give to Riggs...she informed me that i would have plenty of time to get it...seeing as how i'm not even dating anyone)

(nap time their last day as one year olds!)

(loves her books)

(snack time...and fyi he doesn't share)

(again she insisted on the hat and jacket)

(Riggs wanted to smile and take pictures...she then called us pretty...oh i seriously love this girl)

(he's about 2 years too old for this)

(i'm not sure where she learned this attitude from...definitely not me...except i'm pretty sure she did)

Upstate Children's Museum

One Friday in November (the Friday before Thanksgiving to be exact) we decided to have lunch with some friends and then visit the Upstate Children's Museum. I have ventured out with the twins on my own plenty of times but I decided that I would enlist some help for this trip. Best decision ever! Anna came along and I'm so thankful...plus I think we might have enjoyed it more than Jackson & Riggs. Basically because this museum is awesome. I already want to take the twins back all the time. There are  a few zones that are specifically for toddlers so those are the areas that we mainly visited. Since I was going to have an extra set of hands, I decided to take my big camera with me. So get ready for picture overload!

 {Riggs would have happily played in the grocery section all day if we let her}

 

 

 {look it's a cow Staci...moo moo...such smart babies!}

 

 {she ADORED the slide}

 

 {he did not want to wear that}

{see i was there too! and i didn't get the message to smile} 

 

Happy Friday: Singles Day Version!

Kelly, from Kelly's Korner, is having a Singles Link-Up today and I decided to join in. I participated the last time she did this and figured why not try it again. 

so, a little about me. My name is Staci and I'm 24 and currently living in the beautiful upstate of South Carolina. I went to Clemson where I got a bachelors in finance and a masters in accounting. I ended up in grad school simply because I couldn't imagine leaving Clemson after only 4 years and my advisor suggested the graduate program. I enjoyed my 5 years more than I ever thought I would and sometimes I just really want to go back. Thank goodness for football games!

{fall 2011}

{homecoming 2011}

I just passed all 4 sections of the CPA exam and I'm pretty excited/proud of that! Currently I am a nanny for the cutest 17 month old twins ever. I love being with Jackson & Riggs but I'm excited about finding an accounting job. I think the thing I'm most looking forward to is getting dressed up for work...and I'm sure that will wear off after about a week. 

{jonathan's graduation, May 2012 with our parents}

I have one younger brother, Jonathan, who graduated from Clemson in May. He is engaged and getting married in January of next year. My dad retired at the beginning of this year so he and my mom have been traveling a lot and enjoying the retired life. 

{master's graduation, August 2011}

Earlier this year, I joined the special events committee at the church I attend. We plan all the events for the children's ministry. VBS was our big production of the year and I think that had to be one of the most stressful things I have ever done. We are moving on to simpler things now, like trunk or treat for halloween. I also recently committed to start going once or twice a month to a children's home that our church works. A group goes occasionally to hang out with the teenaged girls there. I really want to start being more involved with this age of girls so I'm excited to see how God works in this situation...even if it is slightly out of my comfort zone. 

{Easter 2012}

I like to think I'm a pretty crafty/creative person. I enjoy sewing, even if it's been a while since I've had my machine out. I think pinterest is an amazing site and, as i told my brother, I was on pinterest before it was cool to be there. I'm really excited about fall weather because it means layers, tights and boots. I also love fall for the football games and tailgates. Glitter terrifies me but I just got a pair of glitter flats. I panic when I see black and brown together but for some reason I'm excited to wear my brown boots with my black leggings. So maybe all that means I'm expanding my comfort zone even more. I love happy hour at sonic, my teal bubble necklace and I have a slight (or major) addiction to buy clothes for Jackson & Riggs.

{spring 2010}

{may 2010 graduation}

{christmas eve 2011 at my grandparent's house: jonathan, me and my parents}

if you have any questions, let me know! I can't wait to see what happens with all of us linking up this time!