New Year: 2014

Hello Everyone,

So I realize this post is about a month late, but I honestly forgot that I didn't post my new year goals or review 2013 at all! With the craziness of the engagement I lost track of time! So here we go :)

My old goals last year were: 

1. Go to the gym once a week

2. Get a 4.0

3. Take a trip to NC with Madi

4. Finish and publish book #2

5. Do more volunteer activities with nursing or USF in general

Well I can cross a few of those! I did go to the gym/worked out at least once a week for the entire year! So props to me! Can't say the same for this year, but I've managed to keep off what I took off last year so far (that's another post for another day ;) ). I did get a 4.0 one semester last year, so hey that is close enough when it comes to nursing school and their screwed up grading scale! Madi and I did go on a trip to NC and it was one of my favorite memories! I also became more involved with nursing and became a volunteer for a local free clinic which I went to once a month starting in August until the end of the year and also volunteered for more college of nursing events! 

Unfortunately the only one I didn't get to knock off my list was publishing book #2, however I did finish writing the sequel to my original book The Portrait Pathway as well as finished a children's picture book which I will have the illustrations for very soon! So that is exciting! But let's review my highlights in 2013:

1. I got engaged to the love of my life on December 30, 2013:)

 2. I got to swim with the manatees!

 3. We made the best decision ever and brought Nike into our lives!

 4. I got hired as at Moffitt as an observer, then promoted to an oncology tech!

 5. We did take our vacation to North Carolina and saw Wilmington, Durham, and Asheville!

Some goals for 2014 are: 

1. Graduate from nursing school and pass the NCLEX!

2. Get hired as a full time RN

3. Travel somewhere new and/or take a road trip

4. Get one of the two books published!

5. Do at least one 5K

Pretty simple and nothing crazy, but there they are! What are your goals for this year? 

Thanks for keeping up :),

Olivia

My Random Addictions: Books That Go to the Movies

Hello everyone,

For anyone who knows me, the topic of this post is obvious. I am obsessed with books. Recently I read a blog about 16 Books to Read Before They Hit Theatres This Year and it made me feel two things: excited and sad. Excited, because some of my favorite books are coming to the movies this year and sad because I don't have much time to read a lot of them! I have always been "that girl" who has to read the book before I see the movie and that is because to be honest ninety percent of the time, the books say it better. A lot of people who don't take part in this practice have told me they feel reading the book beforehand gives away too much, and then you know what happens in the movie. I can see where they get that from, but from my personal experiences it makes the movie so much more exciting! However I do love taking Madi to movies where I know what is going to happen and watching his facial reactions and surprise (i.e. The Hunger Games series). On the opposite end, some people love books and don't see the movie because it does ruins their vision of it so there are multiple views.

Since I am in school, it is REALLY hard to find time to read, but I have tried to have some "me" time (which is next to impossible while working two jobs, planning a wedding, volunteering, and being a full time nursing student but I try). Right now, I am in the middle of the Divergent series and yes I totally jumped on the bandwagon with this one. I was unsure about reading it when it first became popular in the reading world about a year and a half ago because I was so obsessed with The Hunger Games before the bandwagoning (is that a word?) happened and I didn't think I could love another similar series. After hearing how awesome it was from so many people, I joined in and read the first book in two days over Christmas break. I'm almost done with Insurgent and LOVE the series, like as much as The Hunger Games. Although I am disappointed with them casting Shailene Woodley for Tris, I hope it will make me like her more and not ruin the movie for me. Which brings me to my next point.

Do you ever envision a movie a certain way and then go to see it and it is totally different than you pictured? Or the people they cast don't fit your idea of the character? That is one of my least favorite parts about books being made into movies. It is honestly an internal battle. I love the book so much that I want to see it in the movies, but I don't want to be disappointed if it doesn't fit my view. Most of the time I am pleasantly surprised. For example Harry Potter always made me in awe of what people who work in the movies can do to bring a story to life, but other books I have been disappointed. There are also some of my favorite books like Nineteen Minutes (my all-time fav), The Pact, The Truth About Forever that haven't been made into movies and I'm over here like hello! what the heck world?! If every Nicholas Sparks book can be made into a movie, so should these. Don't get me wrong I LOVE Nicholas Sparks books, but does anyone else feel this way? Crazy.

Anyways, if you haven't read the link above about the movies that are coming out this year that are also books, you should! There are a lot that I am interested in reading and want to do so before the movie comes out. (The Giver, just sayin' ;) ) Also if you love watching books that become movies and are looking for a good series, definitely read the Divergent series.

Thanks for keeping up with me,
-Olivia

You Lookin' Kinda Cute, In That Polka Dot Bikini Girlllll - Miami '14

Hey everyone!

So this weekend I spent my time in Fort Lauderdale and Miami Beach, Florida! I went with my mom, Madi's mom, my little sister-in-law Sondra, my best friend Kari, and my cousin Latoya. We left Bradenton around 4:30pm and stopped for dinner before Alligator Alley at this cute Italian restaurant, but unfortunately they were packed and had limited seating to begin with, so we ended up finding another more modern Italian restaurant that was delicious! When we arrived in Fort Lauderdale we stayed at a Marriot Vacation Club and it was awesome! We got a suite which could sleep up to eight and was the perfect size with a kitchen and bathroom and included a beautiful view of the marina where you could see all of the sailboats. The next morning we woke up and went to my bridal appointment at the White Dress Bridal, but the night before we had squeezed into the parking garage with a roof rack car carrier and couldn't get out! Thank goodness we left earlier than we needed to, because I had to block traffic so Madi's mom could turn the car around and go out the entrance of the parking garage! Needless to say it was an eventful morning. After trying on five dresses, I ended up going with the first one I tried on! So crazy how that can happen! I can't wait for everyone to see it for my big day, and I decided not to take any pictures while I was there to keep it an element of surprise.

After a relieving morning, we headed to a bridesmaid dress shop in Miami called Sasha's Bridal Boutique and ended up finding the bridesmaid dresses as well! Such a successful day and I got to check off so much from my to-do list! We spent the rest of the day in Miami Beach and went to the Kardashian's store DASH on Collins Ave. and the Lincoln Rd Mall. We decided to eat at a restaurant comparable to the Cheesecake Factory called the Nexxt Cafe, which was good but not quite as good as Cheescake Factory in my opinion ;). The whole weekend was so much fun and I am glad that I got to spend some extra time with just the girls because this semester of school is going to be crazy! I will be updating more with any exciting news or trips, although I don't foresee too much craziness happening because I am so busy with work, school, Nike, and volunteering that I don't have too much free time! I am however working on my wedding website and should be posting that link to Facebook as soon as we are finished!

Have a great long weekend,
-Olivia :)

Deep Creek Lake, MD 2013

Well huge news, Madi and I are engaged! I could not be happier! I wanted to do a post about our trip, and within a couple weeks I plan on starting a wedding website so you can all read the proposal story there when that's up and running :)

Our trip to Deep Creek, Maryland was amazing. We came to Deep Creek for New Years the first year we were dating, and we had such good memories of playing in the snow, snow tubing, riding the mountain coaster, and snowmobiling.  

This trip was a lot different than the last! For starters, Madi's best friend Jeremy and cousin Mitch came along with us, and their good family friends/relatives came to meet us as well! The cottage we rented the first time was at the bottom of the mountain on the lake, but this time we were almost at the very top of the mountain overlooking all of the scenery. 

(I wish I had more pictures from our first trip but sadly I only have one :( ). The crew got to Deep Creek a few days before I did (my family came from Ohio so I wanted to spend some time with them) and I flew in to Pittsburgh (another favorite place of ours). 

When I arrived there wasn't a lot of snow and the temperature was in the forties, but the next day, December 30th,  it snowed! I'll leave the details of that magical day for the wedding website, but that is when we got engaged :) 

That afternoon we went on the mountain coaster and went bowling. Then his family surprised us with a congratulations cake (my favorite thing of course ;) ). 

The rest of the trip was spent playing in the snow a little, going on the mountain coaster, playing air hockey, pool, and going to Swallow Falls Park, where I almost broke my butt twice from slipping on ice and lacking good hiking boots.  
If you have never been to Deep Creek: go. It is one of the most beautiful places in the winter and has such amazing views. I will always remember and cherish this trip and I can't wait to start wedding planning :)

Thanks for reading,

Olivia