Hold on to Your Britches!

Earthquakes, shmearthquakes--Aunt Irene is coming to town and she's the house guest who always leaves the toilet seat up. The last time I braced for gale-force winds and fled the scene of potential destruction, I was a wee baby freshman at Tulane and I had the pleasure(?) of camping out at one of LSU's classiest establishments...the AGR frat house. Yes, it was an interesting time in my young life--a time that included kegs and kegs of beer, homemade beignets, barefoot soccer games, and--let's be honest--a few hurricane make outs. What? I WAS LOOKING DEATH IN THE EYE! It had to be done.

Luckily, Hurricane Ivan took a turn for the better and left New Orleans unscathed, and I was forced to return to my little world of running, rules, and rich kids. Lame to the max.

But this time's different. This time we've got Irene, and although I'm nowhere near the coast, I'm not taking any chances. I'm headed south in a blazing fury to meet up with some of the most chill, fun-loving, let-the-good-times-roll former Blacksburgians on the map.

Reunion 2011 is gonna cause some serious waves on its own, and hopefully the only hurricane we encounter comes in a glass with an umbrella. I'm sure we'll celebrate our glorious union with some variation of this:

And probably four or five orders of these:

Obviously, we'll need to soothe our worries with the beer that "has the touch":

And hopefully the weekend won't result in this:

Yes, this is a PBR coffin. You can cast your own judgement on this one.

And although our plans for floating lazily down the river may be dashed, we can always cross our fingers for rapids, right?? No matter what trouble we find, it's a guaranteed good time. We've got Rockstarr, Dlock1, Aaaamazing, Kirtley, Feets, and tons more.

Sweet baby Jesus better brace himself...B&B is back in town!

xxx, Hannah

And it begins...

...Road Trip 2011! Bright and early at 4am, my fabulous mom and I hit the road for the long drive up to Rhode Island. We've got the whole week to explore, so this first leg was a semi-straight shot to the coast, with a small excursion to the glamorous town... of Scranton, PA. My baby bro is being an awesome fitness instructor/coach at the Wellspring Academy again, and we decided to meet him and a friend for some diet-breaking, greasy spoon brunch. I haven't seen him in a few months and he's looking trim + tan + supa frat-ified.

Looking like a rock star at sunrise with her new readers in action. 

Good day sunshine, plus driving through Pennsylvania is g-o-r-g-e-o-u-s and green.

...speaking of green...it's Norberta! At first, we were totally going the Thelma-and-Louisa, scarf-wearing, sunglasses-sporting, balls-to-the-wall convertible route because we had enough points earned to rent whatever our little hearts desired. But when we arrived at the rental station, our only convertible option was the choice between a shiny black or shiny red...Camaro. Um, no. Plus, it was literally 110degrees today, and we figured we'd be too miserable and sunburned and parched to even consider rollin' with the top down for too long. So, in typical cheapskate fashion, we chose this little beauty. I think it's a much better personality fit, anyway. Granny Smith Green > Candy Apple Red any day.

Scranton is a strange little town, but we definitely approved of Dunmore Diner's $.99 breakfast special! Eggs, hash browns, toast, and coffee for less than $1? You had me at Buck Town.

Our trusty stead.

Mother/Child reunion. 

Camp Coaches on their day off. 

After saying goodbye and fighting with Linda (our GPS), we crossed the border to New York!

Connecticut was lame and didn't have a state sign, so here's a pic of some of our travel necessities. I'm looking at you, CheezIts.

Rhode Island, however, did have a sign! Super excited to explore this tiny state, starting tomorrow with the Cliff Walk/Castles at Newport. 

Finally, after settling in to our gigantic hotel suite at the Providence Biltmore, we got a little fancy and headed across town for Mike and Steph's rehearsal dinner where we gorged on BBQ Salmon, yum, and Creme Brulee. Sooo stuffed. Sooo worth it (even the awkward family toasts).

It was even 1000 degrees in RI. 

Great success so far, and so very pumped for the wedding tomorrow and the rest of the week's festivities!!

It's a Marvelous Night for a Moondance

Can it get any more beautiful outside? Low humidity, sun shining, birds chirping...perfect weather for one of the last days of the month. Took my car to the shop to get inspected [finally!], running after work, then getting my stretch on at yoga. Also, I'm becoming obsessed with Caprese sandwiches/tomato sandwiches in general. Nothing says summertime like two pieces of bread, thick mayo, juicy tomatoes, and salt + pepper. Heaven. In the meantime, while I'm counting down the hours till I'm free (1.5!), check out these gorgeous shots from around the way... 

Cabinet r-e-s-p-e-c-t right here. I love how there's glass all the way around and not just the front. Super pretty, especially with the robin's egg bead board.

The first work I think of when I look at this photo is "plush."

She is divine.

Kicking back to my old faithful stripes, this time in a soft, shabby pink. Not of a fan of the window treatment, but who am I to judge and/or blow against the wind?

This room is fantastic. From the millions of windows and natural light to the cool collection of portraits stacked against the wall, I love the artsy fartsy studio vibe and the electric pillows.  

Where can I get my hands on these!?!?! Skinny dip tea party at my house!

Hopefully everyone is beautiful! Taking my Holga out for a spin this weekend to see what kind of goodies I can get into. Fingers crossed for greatness.

PS. Beyonce's new album dropped yesterday. Get thee to iTunes, stat!

xoxo,
Hannah

I Know This Much Is True

I have never picked more peas in my life.

My pops can grow a mean baby carrot.

There's nothing better than chilled watermelon.

New toys are a v. big deal at my parents' house (and I will never fully escape my redneck roots).

I sometimes prefer the company of dogs.

First-cut hay in the Lou trumps all

Blacksburg will always be there.

My mom will forever see faces in trees. 

And everyone grows up one day...

... some just later than others.