Hello, hello everyone! I have returned safe and sound to Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio after my weekend getaway to Madison, Wisconsin – and let me just say…it’s SO good to be back! My brother, Peter graduated this weekend from the University of Wisconsin with a PhD in Chemical Engineering (so proud!), so my family packed up the car and made the nine hour trip up to Madison for the ceremony. I’m going to post a few pictures tonight to give you a little sneak peak for the usual Monday Update tomorrow, where I’ll discuss the trip in detail! I mainly just wanted to let all of my lovelies know that I’ve made it home in one piece and that I will talk to all of you very soon!
^^^ Mwahaha, there’s the graduate himself – swagged out to the max! Love you, Peter! 😉 And there’s my sleeping beauty sister, Kristen getting her snooze on! 😉
There’s going to be a bunch of fun stories, pictures, and my graduation fashion choices to discuss tomorrow, so get ready for it and keep it posted with yours truly! How was everyone’s weekend? Did any of you have a weekend getaway trip? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Goodnight! -Sarah
Hiiiii everyone and happy Thursday! I just wanted to let you guys know that I’ll be out of office starting early tomorrow morning until Sunday night. My brother is graduating tomorrow with a PhD in chemical engineering, so we’re packing up the family car and heading to Wisconsin for the ceremony and for some sweet, sweet hanging! Hopefully the motel we’re staying in has WiFi, because I’ll have my iPod on me so I’ll try to check in with some short little posts once we return for bed. If not, you can expect to hear from me either late on Sunday or on Monday for the usual Monday Update segment! I’m seriously so excited to see my brother!!! I’m not too excited about the nine hour drive to Wisconsin, but it will be so worth it! I haven’t seen my big bro since the beginning of January, so it’s sure to be a beautiful reunion. :))))
^^^ This basically sums up how I’m feeling right now!
So yes, I will be on a little vaca from lifewithlilred for the weekend, but make sure you check back in with me upon my return for the latest and greatest! Send me some good vibes so I don’t get super annoyed with my family during the car ride! Are any of you taking a road trip soon? Where are you heading off to? What do you do to entertain yourself during a long car ride? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love, and I’ll talk to you all soon! -Sarah
Happy Happy Mother’s Day to all of the beautiful mothers out there!!! I’m talking all mothers!
Happy Mother’s Day to the women who treat their pets like children.
Happy Mother’s Day to the mamas who put their babies up for adoption in the hopes that the child would have a better life.
Happy Mother’s Day to the sweet moms who had to go through traumatic miscarriages or the death of a child. I hope you receive lots of hugs and love always and especially today.
Happy Mother’s Day to the mommies who are struggling to have a baby on their own. Today is your special day too!
Happy Mother’s Day to the adoptive mothers – the super heroes who are giving a little one a brand new and amazing life.
Happy Mother’s Day to the foster moms, who are constantly trying to better the lives of their foster children.
Happy Mother’s Day to all of the cuddly, scaly, feathery, and furry animal mommies out there! I’m hoping your day is full of frolic and fun!
And most importantly, Happy Mother’s Day to my mom! The best mom on the planet. My partner in crime. My confidant. My shopping buddy. My absolute best friend in the whole wide world! I love you so so so so so so much!! Thank you for being there for me through thick and thin. Thank you for forever making me laugh with your goofball antics. Thank you for editing my college papers. Thank you for allowing me to be your seux chef while we’re cooking dinner. Thank you for reading in my bed at night with me. Thank you for being a gracious loser every time I annihilate the game in Scrabble. Thank you for saving the Jumbles in the newspaper for us to do together. Thank you for discussing your favorite TV show, The Voice with me, even though I really don’t care. 😉 Thank you for always providing for me and my siblings. Thank you for offering a helping hand or encouraging word no matter what the situation is. Thank you for EVERYTHING!!! BFFs!!!!
^^^ Friendship est. June 7th 1994! I love these pictures so much, and my mom looks freaking gorgeous even after birthing me! Now I know where I get my good looks from, HOLLA! 😉
Once again, Happy Mother’s Day to all of the ladies celebrating today! Thank you for everything that you do. Much love. -Sarah
Hellooooo everyone and TGIF! How’s everyone’s day going? So far so good? Fabulous. So ever since I started school at Tri-C in mid October, my dad has done something every school morning that I’m insanely thankful for….Every single morning that I have to drive to Cleveland, my dad makes me my coffee for my to go cup like clockwork. (And of course my to go cup is red!!) I can’t think of one single day that he hasn’t made my caffeine for me and it seriously warms my heart to the extreme. The fact that he takes time out of his equally busy morning to make my go go juice makes me so happy. Every single time that my dad tells me that my coffee is ready I get the biggest, goofiest smile on my face. In fact, I’m wearing one right now just thinking about it. It may seem like a little thing to some, but I think that’s why I appreciate it so much – because it’s such a little thing that makes a huge difference. I’m such a daddy’s girl too, so getting that extra TLC from my favorite guy is always such a great way to start out my day. When I have my morning classes, it’s always a struggle to get myself out the door – rushing to the shower to make sure I get hot water, fighting with my sister over bathroom space while she gets ready for work, scrambling all of my books together, ect, ect, ect…So having one less thing to do before I face morning time traffic during my commute to Cleveland is like taking some excess weight off of my shoulders. By the time I get in the Little Red Love Machine it’s such a treat to be able to throw back my dad’s specially made for me coffee and relax. So this is me sending an extra special shout out to my daddy dearest. I love you so much and I thank you so much for always keeping your daughter caffeinated! Thank you for making my mornings a little bit easier and a lot a bit better! ❤
^^^ MARRY ME JACK WHITE!!! I swear there’s a White Stripes song for every occasion. And the very masculine Kate basically inhaling her coffee in the John & Kate Plus 8 spoof basically sums up my life.
Have a terrific rest of your day and I will talk to you all later!!! How many cups of coffee does it take you to get started in the morning? How do you drink your coffee? I for one only drink my coffee black LIKE A CHAMP!!! I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah
Heyyy everyone and TGIF! AND Happy May!!! I just wanted to let you guys know that I’ll be out of office tomorrow because my sister and I are going to see The Used at the House of Blues in Cleveland!! WE’RE SO EXCITED!!! I got Kristen tickets for the concert for her 23rd birthday in April, and tomorrow is finally the day for our emo night on the town! The concert starts at six, which is kind of a weird time, so we plan on making the hour drive to Cleveland fairly early in the day so we can make the most out of our general admission tickets by getting an awesome standing space. The emoness is going to be SO real tomorrow….I’m talkin black on black on black and a whole lot of crying! It’s going to be AWESOME! I’m really looking forward to celebrating Kristen’s birthday again and having a sister filled day. I haven’t been to a concert since I saw The 1975 in December and I’ve never been to the House of Blues before so needless to say, I’m so hyped up. The best part about Kristen’s birthday concert tickets is that we both have a strong mutual love for The Used so it’s not like I’m taking her to a concert of a band who I hate – even though I wouldn’t care at all! So what I’m saying is, it’s going to be just as fun for me as it will be for her. Kristen has seen The Used once before in concert and I was so jealous so I’m very happy to have the opportunity to finally see them live! I’ll try and take lots of pictures and avoid getting punched by angsty emos as best as I can – but don’t be surprised if I post a picture of myself with a black eye! 😉
^^^ Kristen posted this video on Facebook last night, so it only seems right that I feature it on this post!
I hope all of you guys have a fabulous weekend and I’ll tell you all about the concert on Sunday! What was the best concert you’ve ever been to? What band would you love to see live? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah
Hello there everyone! I hope all of you had a fabulous weekend…I know I did! My weekend was full of friends, family, fun, and food AKA #FFFF – it also included some really great movies and books as well! In this post I’ll be discussing with you some Lil Red Pro Tips on how to make the most out of your weekend!
DO: Watch a funny movie: My family absolutely loves the Horrible Bosses movies, and this Friday we watched Horrible Bosses 2. There’s seriously no better way to start off the weekend then with a silly movie that you don’t have to think about. The HB movies are hands down one of my favorite comedy franchises thanks to their all star cast of Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Jennifer Aniston, and Kevin Spacey. Sure, they’re not the best movies in the world. And yes, they’re vulgar as all get out – but hey, they bring me to a happy place of gut busting laughter which is exactly what you want from a comedy!
DO: Cook something delicious: Lil Red was tearing it up in the kitchen this weekend! I would have taken pictures of the food, but honestly it looked kind of gross…but it tasted really good! Ha! On Friday I made a Mexican casserole that turned out really well. It had sauteed onions and garlic, kidney beans, diced tomatoes, diced chiles, sour cream, and shredded pepper jack cheese in it. It was perfect for dipping with chips or wrapping it up burrito style in a tortilla. I’ll admit that even after this home cooked Mexican dish I still wanted Taco Bell…but you can’t always get what you want. #neversatisfied I also made a lava cake like dessert this afternoon that I’m really looking forward to trying! It’s actually baking in the oven as we speak and it smells delicious, so fingers crossed!
DO: Read a good book: I finally finished the best seller The Girl On The Train this weekend and absolutely loved it! I’ve heard a lot of hype about this book and I’ve been reading it throughout the week, so I was so excited to finally finish it yesterday! The Girl On The Train intertwines the stories of the alcoholic and unstable Rachel, the mistress Anna, and Megan – the girl with a dark past. Rachel rides the train into London every morning like clockwork, gazing out the window and throwing back gin and tonics like it’s her job. Almost every morning as the train rolls by a suburban neighborhood, she watches a young couple whom she names “Jess and Jason” sitting on their patio and enjoying their morning. They seem to be the perfect couple, until one morning Rachel sees something that changes this perspective entirely. The Girl On The Train is a bone chilling thriller that will leave you guessing until the very end. This book was so so good and I can’t recommend it enough!
DO: Watch a serious movie: So tonight my family and I are going to watch The Theory of Everything and I could not be more excited. I’ve been looking forward to seeing this movie since I saw previews for it in the theater ages ago. The previews alone brought tears to my eyes, and the Oscar buzz that it received only verified the confidence that I have that this movie will be amazing. You might be asking “why recommend it if you haven’t seen it?” But like I said, I am SO confident that I’ll enjoy it that I’m just laying all my cards on the table now. If anything, let this suggestion be me telling you that my favorite way to end the weekend is by watching an excellent film on Sunday night. Fridays are my comedy night, Saturdays are my going out night, and Sundays are my serious film nights. A perfect lineup, if I do say so myself. 😉
DO: Go bowling. (DON’T: Go bowling with fake nails on): Last night I had a lovely evening going bowling with my sweet neighbor, Vaughn. We went to the lunar bowling night at a close by bowling alley and had a blast. The only thing that would have made my night better is if I didn’t have my damn talon acrylic nails on! I had to use the ol’ “underhand roll” technique, because there’s no way in hell I would put my fingers with my sharp claw nails in the bowling ball holes. Honestly, even if I could bowl properly I don’t think that I would have done any better! We played four games and I got one measly strike the entire time – but I’m very proud of that strike, thank you very much! Despite this minor problem, it was still so much fun! 🙂
This weekend was one of the best ones I’ve had in ages thanks to some beautiful family time, wonderful friend time, and super good food time! I hope all of you had just as great of a weekend as I did! What was your favorite Oscar nominated film? How did you feel about The Girl On The Train? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah
Hey gang and TGIF! Today is a fabulous day not only because it’s Friday but because I’m FINALLY feeling better from my god awful flu! Hurray! So April is a fun month because my dad and my sister’s birthdays are super close together. My dad’s birthday falls on the sixth while Kristen’s comes two days after on the eighth. Yesterday I went birthday shopping for my dad at Lowe’s and because of a few recent unlucky incidents that my poor papa had to go through, I knew exactly what to get him!
Two years. Three instances of getting rear ended while driving. Those sentences basically sum up my dad’s unlucky spell when it comes to cruising around good ol’ Akron, Ohio. Unfortunately his third accident happened a week or so ago by some moron running into him on a highway exit ramp. The thing about the entire situation is, that if it wasn’t so goddamn sad and annoying, it would almost be laughable. Like really? Three rear ends in two years? (Every party involved was unharmed every time though, which is all that really matters) That’s bad luck if I’ve ever heard it! So once my dad came home with his busted up car and bad news, I had a stroke of genius as to what to get him for his birthday. My dad loves tending to his many plants indoors and his beautiful outdoor garden in our spacious backyard. Flowers, potted plants, vegetables, herbs, shade gardens – my dad does it all. With that in mind, I looked up different plants that symbolize good luck and learned that bamboo is one of them. I was really happy to find that out because my dad doesn’t have any bamboo plants in his vast collection. After I got the plant part taken care of, I looked into animals that symbolize good luck so I could find a nice ceramic one to put in the garden outside or indoors with the potted plants. I had my heart set on finding a ceramic turtle or frog which I learned was lucky, but there were none at Lowe’s that really screamed out “DAD” at me. While strolling through the gardening aisles I stopped at the wind chime section and found a really beautiful brass one sporting a sunflower and a blue bird. In my good luck research I learned that birds were considered lucky, so I hit the jackpot! My dad loves wind chimes so this will be a great addition to hang on our porch! Here’s a few pics of my birthday purchases for my pops!
So pretty!! Hopefully I can keep the bamboo alive for another three days until I can leave them in my dad’s very capable hands! 😉 This is super pathetic, but I think I already put too much water into their little containers. FML. Anywho, I’m really excited to give my dad these gifts because I know for a fact he’s going to love them! And he’ll get a reminder of how much I love him every time he cares for his new lucky bamboo. A nice bonus from these “good luck” gifts is if they actually brought some good luck to my old man…god knows he needs it!!!
I hope all of you guys have a fantastic Friday and an even better weekend! Until then, I NEED YOUR HELP! I accidentally got an eyeliner stain on a white 100% polyester shirt and I was wondering if any of you had any tips on how to get it out…THIS IS URGENT!!! If you have any methods that you swear by, PLEASE leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah
Last night was my mom’s annual Mexican dinner birthday bash and it was absolutely wonderful! Every year for my mom’s birthday we hit up a local Mexican restaurant, El Campesino for good food, frivolity, and hella margaritas! Here’s a few pics from the white girl wasted festivities:
^^^ She’s so cute!!! (And I feel like we look super alike in these pictures, so now you know where I got my striking good looks from! ;)) El Campesino is one of our all time favorites, and we had a complete blast. The restaurant was hoppin on a Friday night, but we got seated right away which was awesome. My mom’s birthday is on Sunday, but all of the members of the family crew could go out on Friday night so we celebrated early. We ordered our food and a pitcher of margs quickly because we were so hungry, and our food arrived in less than FIVE MINUTES!! Talk about service! The most adorable thing about my mom is that she’s a total lightweight, so within one glass of margarita, she was white girl wasted. The only words that I can use to sum up my mom when she’s wasteypants are as follows: funny, sloppy, and unpredictable. We annihilated our food and threw back our margs and had a gay old time. My favorite part of the night was when my mom decided it would be funny to knock her head on my shoulder while saying “timber” in the tune of Kesha and Pitbull’s hit. My mom loves Pitbull, so this one is for her:
The celebration was so fun and will carry on to tomorrow for her actual birthday, so don’t expect to hear from me tomorrow! I love you so much mama and I hope you have a fantastic birthday! Thank you for being my best friend and the most amazing mom a gal could ask for! You’re the most beautiful lady in the whole wide world and I’m SO lucky to have you as my mommy! ❤
I’m currently at Starbucks, where I’ve been working on math homework for the past two hours. -__- I desperately needed a break, so I figured now would be the perfect time to tell you guys all about my lovely family evening. But alas, I must get back to work, so I have to cut this post short. I hope all of you have a fabulous weekend, and I’ll check back in with you guys on Monday for the weekly update!
What are you guys up to this weekend? Any fun plans? What’s your family’s favorite way to celebrate a birthday? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! And make sure you leave my mama some birthday love in the comments! Much love. -Sarah
HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! I LOVE YOU, I LOVE YOU, I LOVE YOU!!!! #BFF!!!!!!
Hello one and all!!!!! Happy happy holidays and Merry Christmas Eve to those who celebrate. I had a really beautiful visit today with one of my dear friends that I’d like to share with you. My spirits have been pretty low lately, but this afternoon definitely put me back into the holiday swing of things. Hopefully this story will do the same to you!
This will be the second Christmas that my beloved grandma (rest her soul) will not be with us. But it still feels like just yesterday when she passed. She used to live in an assisted living center ran by devout nuns. During the years that she was there I became quite familiar with the Sisters, the residents, and one lady in particular: Neva. If you recall, I’ve wrote about her and our visits before. To give you guys a little refresher, Neva is a Southern Belle with the most fantastic Kentucky accent I’ve ever heard. She’s known me for over ten years now, and we truly have a mother/daughter relationship. Although my grandma is no longer with us, I still very much like to go and visit Neva and everyone else in the home. So today, I filled a bag full of Miss Neva’s favorite candy (Hershey’s chocolate kisses!) and drove off for a Christmas visit. It always makes me so happy when Neva answers the door to the room and sees that it was me who was knocking. Her eyes light up and she always greets me with a warm “Hi, Honey!” After our hugs hello I presented her with her bag of goodies, and she handed me a bracelet that matches the one she has in green, as seen below:
I was so touched by this gesture and was smiling from ear to ear. It was just so thoughtful and now I feel close to her even when we’re apart. After we exchanged our gifts I asked her to show me around the residence hall, because it’s always decorated so beautifully for the holidays. We gazed upon tree after tree and admired all of the ornaments and lights displayed on them. We then walked into the Chapel where all of the Poinsettias that still needed to be put out around the building were kept. In the Chapel we ran into one of the Sisters who was a main care taker for my grandma when her health started declining. “You’re all grown up!” She said as she greeted me with a warm embrace. At this point I was getting incredibly emotional, and she held me tighter as tears fell from my eyes. “You miss grandma, don’t you?” She asked, and all I could do was nod into her shoulder. After we let go she told me that last weeks Masses were held in memory of my sweet grandma, which made me cry even harder…but they were happy tears, because I know that her memory is eternal in the halls of her home and the hearts of everyone. Sister and Neva both told me how proud they were that I’m now in school and it made me feel so good. After a long hug good bye from Sister she told me that myself and my family is welcome in the halls of the residence anytime. I will definitely be taking her up on that. After our visit with Sister, Neva and I headed back into her room for some girl talk. We gossiped about boys and her family and danced around her room to Christmas carols. While sitting on her bed with my head on my shoulder, she stroked my hair and told me that I’m just like a daughter to her. How can you not feel amazing after hearing that? It was an absolutely glorious afternoon that I needed more than I realized. Here’s a picture of me and my dear friend, Neva:
I am wishing everyone the happiest of holidays. Whatever you celebrate, spend it with loved ones (pets included!) and good cheer. Special thoughts are sent to anyone who will be celebrating the holiday season without a loved one – my heart goes out to you more than you know. Love and good tidings to all of you! -Sarah
PS: Happy holidays from my doggies Gem and Winston!!!!
Happy happy Thanksgiving!!!! My sister, mother, and I have taken a break from our preparations of our Thanksgiving dinner, so I figured now would be a good time to send some holiday wishes to all of you! There are so many things that I’m thankful for that I’d like to share with you. In my list and explanations I didn’t include my family and friends, because those are the obvious ones! My close circle of immediate family and a whopping two friends (sad but true) will always be my number one, so no explanation is needed:) #enoughsaid
Here’s some of the things that I’m thankful for this holiday season and every day!
My education: I’ve been feeling an overwhelming sensation of pride in myself lately for finally getting myself back to school. I always thought that college wasn’t going to be for me, but now that I finished my first semester I wish that I would have started school sooner! I’m so thankful that my parents have been helping me occasionally with my tuition and text books. But shockingly, I’m also thankful for being able to pay most of my college expenses on my own. Which leads me to my second thing on my list….
My job: As soon as I ended my four year stint at PacSun, I honestly had no idea what I was going to do. I was so nervous for my future. I was so scared that I wouldn’t find another job right away. Getting that call with a job offer from Next was the biggest relief I’ve experienced in a long time. If it wasn’t for that call, there’s no way that I could afford paying for my education almost completely on my own, as well as keeping up with my car payment for the Little Red Love Machine. I’m so appreciative to have a job period, let alone a job that I really enjoy. My coworkers and clientele are just fantastic, so it makes going into work a joy.
My blog: This might sound dumb to some people, but I really am thankful for starting http://www.lifewithlilred.com!! I’ve been told that I should make a blog countless times before, so a little over two months ago I figured “why not?”. And I am so glad that I did! I forgot how much I enjoyed writing and expressing my feelings until I started trying to make a blog post or two daily. I’m so thankful for all of my readers and followers who have shown me so much love and support! Lifewithlilred is always going to be a thing, and I’m really hoping that as the hype continues to build that I’ll be able to make some kind of moolah for my work. But that’s thinking way far in advance! It’s good to dream though:)
Myself: Sarah: I am so thankful for the person who you’ve become. It feels so good to finally say that I love who I am after years of depression, self harm, and eating disorders. I love the way I look, which I never thought I would say. I love that I’m open and accepting to everyone. I love that I have a bright and bubbly personality. I love that I think for myself, which is so very important. Most of all, I’m thankful that I’m finally able to recognize all of these amazing qualities about myself. I’m thankful that I’m no longer in a zombie like state of depression. I’m finally thankful to be alive.
So there you have it – the other things that I’m thankful for besides my family and friends! I hope all of you have an amazing Thanksgiving today. I hope all of you share it with people who you love. Where ever you are in the world – I am so thankful for you! Thank you so much for reading. If you have any questions or concerns: leave me a comment and let’s chat! ALSO: If you partake in Black Friday shopping tonight or tomorrow PLEASE remember to be kind to the retail workers!!! I promise you that they would give anything to not be working amongst all of the craziness that is sure to happen! Send me some good luck vibes as well so I can get through my Black Friday shift! It would be much appreciated 😉 Happy holidays! -Sarah
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