Lauren from Texas

I suppose most of you know that I have an iPhone. I suppose many of you have iPhones too. Whether you have an iPhone or know someone who has an iPhone, you have either experienced firsthand or through observation the sheer ADDICTION that comes with the ownership of one of these things. Michael & I were recently going over our New Budget, which will take place once he starts grad school. Our New Budget looks nothing like our Old Budget, & is scary for many reasons, but we are confident that we can get through the next 2 years for the greater good of our family & future. That’s what I keep telling myself anyway. Talk to me when it’s [...]

Monday really snuck up on me. This weekend was spent tackling my to-do list (I crossed off all but 1 item! Next up: CONQUERING THE WORLD), & before I knew it I was all, “Hello Monday. So nice to see you again. NOT.” Because Monday morning Lauren is totally a Jr. Higher who needs an attitude adjustment. Exciting things are happening over here, & I’m happy to share a few of them with you. Last week (aside from the blogiversary/giveaway goodness) was pretty stressful & I had a bit of a meltdown on Saturday, but I’m better now & have much higher hopes for the week/month ahead. Don’t cross me, May. Anyway, here are the high points (in bullet point [...]

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. Thanks to everyone for entering. Winner TBA soon! I never really jumped on the whole “squee” bandwagon. Something about it is faintly reminiscent of the Woo Girls from How I Met Your Mother, and that just doesn’t sit well with me at all. However, if I were a Squee Girl, this would totally push my Squee Button: Go ahead. Try. TRY TO TELL ME YOU DIDN’T SQUEE. When Rebecca from Hugs & Kisses Designs contacted me about sponsoring a giveaway by donating a custom silhouette, I was thinking Cute, but I don’t have any kids! Would it be creepy to do one of my husband? And just as I was trying to picture where to [...]

Here’s a vlog I made tonight for your viewing pleasure. Try not to judge me too much; it’s been a long week. PS: Remind me to COMB MY HAIR next time I place a video ON THE INTERNET FOR ALL THE WORLD TO SEE. In other news, my first giveaway of the week has ended. I plugged the number of comments into the True Random Number Generator (I had to eliminate any comments received after midnight Wednesday, sorry y’all)… and the winner is… #10 = Katherine (but not my sister)! Katherine, I’ll be emailing you shortly to get you in touch with Taryn so you can claim your prize. Congratulations! And for the rest of you: thanks so much for [...]

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. Thanks to everyone for entering. Winner TBA soon! Today’s a big day. One year ago exactly, I started this blog. I wrote about a late period, goals for my 24th year, and Journey. Like, the band. Perhaps not my most shining moment, but it was a piece of the puzzle that brought me here. God blessed the broken road, y’all. This last year, I’ve made HUGE progress. Through therapy, support from a few close loved ones, grace, & a ton of work on my part, I’ve moved forward leaps & bounds. The other day, when I posted about running (or maybe not), I was surprised at how joyful I felt. Not just at peace. Not [...]

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. Thanks to everyone for entering. Winner TBA soon! This weekend was a whirlwind. Friday I got a call from the realtor saying that our house was going to be shown… in 25 minutes. Oh, & I was in the midst of a cleaning frenzy & up to my elbows in Clorox wipes and dust bunnies. Oh, & I couldn’t get ahold of my husband. Oh, & I was unshowered & unpacked & we were leaving at 6 for the weekend & I had to find a place to take my dogs. Talk about a panic attack. Somehow I managed to talk the realtor into giving me an hour, my husband rushed to my rescue & [...]

I’d like to start this post off by saying that my husband is a hottie. He’s in great shape, looks good with or without a beard, and has nearly impeccable taste in clothes & shoes. He alternates between wearing his hair short & long, & currently he’s decided to wear it short for summer. Now, when it’s long, I don’t touch it. It’s wavy & has a couple of cowlicks &… just, no. I leave that up to the professionals. And by professionals I mean the girls at Supercuts. When it’s short, I can cut it. I didn’t think I could, but he bought one of those clipper sets or whatever they’re called and WHAT DO YOU KNOW, I’m freaking [...]

Note: I originally wrote this a couple of months ago, & recently felt it necessary to share. This story isn’t about running. Or maybe it is. The Runner is hopeful. While this is her first real Run, she has walked. She has read books about running. She has stretched and even jogged once or twice. She feels ready to begin. A few minutes into the Run, she realizes that running isn’t like walking. It’s not like jogging, either. Yet she keeps going. She is committed to the Run. A good ways in, she starts aching. Hurting. First, she ignores the pain. This pain can’t be happening, she thinks. If I ignore it, it will go away. But it doesn’t go [...]

It’s been a little lonely & gloomy over here at Lauren From Texas for the last week, & it matches how I feel today. I got back from my work conference on Thursday night, and Friday I got some sad news. My friend Corlene, who moved to Texas from Alberta this January, had gone home for a visit last week. On her way back, she had some trouble with customs, and basically they told her she needed to go back to Canada. There’s a longer story attached but I don’t feel like going into it, so we’ll leave it at: she’s gone & I’m sad. The end. We spent this weekend together, doing all the things that embody a good [...]

Posting will be light this week, as I have a work conference that will take up the better part of the week. I just wanted to pound out a quick update, to let y’all know whats going on in my part of the world. Friday I met up with a photographer friend & my little sister Hannah & had a Trash the Dress photoshoot, another one of my 95 in 1095. I’m so excited to see the pictures! We drove out to Lake Livingston, which was kind of a hike, but I think the end result will be worth it. I’ll be blogging pictures as soon as I get my hands on them! The rest of the weekend was perfection. [...]