'Cause I'm On Display, On Display, On Display

    It's no secret that I love all the Real Housewives. I love watching other people's lives unfold and a lifestyle that I could only dream of. The one thing that I find hilarious is that there are now 3 housewives who have recorded singles.

    This housewife phenomenon all began when Kim from Atlanta recorded "Don't Be Tardy for the Party" This was one of the dumbest songs I have ever heard. I just loved it when NeNe sang her version of it. The single was a huge hit amongst a certain demographic, but not mine.

    Then the beloved Countess Luann from NYC came out with her first single "Money Can't Buy You Class" Well you're so right. The Countess is loaded and has no class because she is just rude and throws her title around. Let's see if she ever remarries because if she does she has to lose the title. Womp womp. The Countess recently came out with her second hit, "Chic, C'es La Vie" I'm pretty sure the Countess is the one singing but Jill is the star of the video. It's a great laugh.

    With all this said, there is now one housewife who actually has talent and that's Melissa from New Jersey. She's been signing her whole life and one day her Joe told her this should be her career. When I saw that episode I was like o boy here we go again and I was extremely skeptical until her single, "On Display" was released. All the lyrics were taken from poems that Melissa has written so it is heartfelt and has meaning. Now I know this is not going to be the next big hit but it is extremely catchy and I give her props for actually being able to sing and not have it mixed like the others. 

    Confession, bought the single on iTunes today and keep playing it on repeat. #sorryimnotsorry 

    Now I'm just waiting for Teresa to have a single so she can "one up" her sister-in-law. #getoverit

In the meantime go listen!

XO Katie

Keep Calm and Eat a Cupcake

It is no secret...

My name is Katie

and I have an obsession with cupcakes

Living in the Burg there are no real bakeries but when I came to school my world was changed when I was introduced to the world of cupcakes. I blame my obsession on Leemaw. One day, the day the infamous KFC double down was released, Leemaw and I piled into her bug to go to Tyson's Corner. At Tyson's, Leemaw asked me if I've ever had a Cake Love cupcake...that answer was no. So I had my first  ever, what I call boutique cupcake. I had red velvet, a go to flavor. My life was changed. Since that day I have been a self-proclaimed cupcake connoisseur. I have had the whole gambit and even had my Little make me a cupcake paddle! By far, my favorite have been Sprinkles. I highly recommend the Vanilla Milk Chocolate or the Praline one, which I got free one day. What I love even more than cupcakes is free cupcakes! I love that there are daily words that you just have to say and a little piece of heaven is given to you for free. I love a good deal...especially on cupcakes. So this morning when Lynn texted me and told me to check my email I knew it was going to be good...A GROUPON FOR A DOZEN CUPCAKES FOR $20!!! Needless to say I lost it...and bought two. Now will I be able to eat 24 cupcakes...maybe...don't challenge me because you know I'll do it. Being realistic I will share my 24 cupcakes so be nice and you may be in luck! I hope that one day if this whole government business doesn't work out that Lynn and I will open Crescent Crown Cupcakery so I can share my love of cupcakes with everyone! In the mean time, keep calm and eat a cupcake.

XO Katie 

Worrying about money. NS. Having money. TSM

While writing this, I'm going to be careful not to sound too preachy or anything like that, because I'm still figuring this out for myself.

Hello, my name is Lynn and I love to shop.  I am NOT financially responsible.  I often spend money without thinking about it.  Sometimes, I even "pre-spend" money that I'm expecting on my next paycheck. Yes, some of my purchases are necessary, but the majority are not.  As I write this post, I have 4 tabs open of things I'm eyeing to buy online.

They say that admitting you have a problem is the first step towards recovering.  Well, I'm ready to change and I have a plan.

I'm going to stick to the following financial tips:

1. I will write down every purchase I make: My online banking tracks this for me, but writing down a description like "$31.25 for Lilly planner" helps to make my spending more concrete.

2. I will assess the cost-per-use of my purchases: I think this is an important tip.  A $50 J. Crew cardigan may be a larger up-front investment.  However, I will wear the cardigan 30+ times just this season.  That works out to just $1.66 per use.  As the cost gets closer to $0, the purchase is smarter.

3. I will make shopping lists:  This is a no-brainer.  I love Target and it is so easy to walk out with $100 of stuff when all I needed was shampoo.  I hope that making a list will help me be more responsible.

4. I will stop pre-spending my money: I will stop planning for the money I will have and start focusing on the money I have now.

5. I will stick to my financial goals: Every school year, I pledge to keep a certain amount of money in my savings account.  This year, I will write down that goal and stick to it throughout the semester.

Through all of these, I hope I can see some signs of improvement.  After all, I am becoming a "real" adult #terrifying #wheredidmychildhoodgo

XO Lynn

This is Spinal Tap

What started as a routine eye exam to change the prescription in my glasses has now turned into a MRI and spinal tap. As many of you don’t know, I’ve recently been diagnosed with what they call papilledema, which is “optic disc swelling that is caused by increased intracranial pressure” (according to Wikipedia). I was completely freaked out when my optometrist threw out the words MRI and spinal tap. I’ve been freaked out for the past week because I didn’t know what the MRI was going to show. I was worried that maybe there was something more wrong with me like a tumor. So today was d-day and I experienced my first MRI. For an hour and a half I listened to extremely loud and obnoxious “techno” music. The MRI machine makes extremely loud noises and the noises and combinations resemble those of techno music. Let me tell you, it got old real quick. To pass the time, I played the game with myself of trying to figure out the patterns or what would come next. Having to lie still for an hour and a half is daunting. I could not wait until I was done just to be able to sit up! Luckily, my MRI was normal (no tumors yay!) and it showed that my optic nerve was swollen so then the next step is a spinal tap. I wasn’t planning on having my first epidural at 20 but I guess you roll with the punches.

I just want to say thank you to everyone for being so supportive! I believe Leemaw and Loco worried enough for me so they helped me stay calm! I absolutely love you all and thanks for being such a rock! I’m not real sure how they treat an increase in spinal fluid pressure but I guess we’ll wait and see! I just can’t wait to be able to read for hours and not have my eyes go blurry. What I’ve learned from all of this is you should never disregard changes in anything because they could be signs. If I didn’t ask Halfsie why my eyes would go blurry for periods of time or told my doctor about my focusing problem I never would have been diagnosed so the moral of the story is to always speak up and get things checked out even if they don’t seem like a big deal!

Stay healthy!

XO Katie

RHONYC Season Finale

No surprise here, but Katie and I are obsessed with reality TV.  Every week, both of us watch a selection of shows and text back and forth the entire time.  This week, we were eagerly anticipating the Season Finale of the Real Housewives of New York City.  Here are our reactions:


Katie:

Chic c’est la vie! C’est bon! C’est bon!

I really don’t know where to start. I am actually extremely disappointed in the season finale of Real Housewives of NYC. First off, I adore Natalie Cole and having her sing with Luann was just not up to muster. I feel like I would sing “Love” way better than Luann ever could. Also, who throws a one-year anniversary party with your boyfriend?  I actually agree with Jill and they shouldn’t have had a party unless they were engaged. Throughout the season I did notice that Ramona has been trying to steal everyone’s thunder so I wasn’t surprised when she decided to have her pregnancy hoopla happen during Luann’s party. This whole episode was just lack luster for me. I was expecting so much more out of the NYC housewives. The thing that angered me the most was the end of the episode when they list what everyone is up to. They tried to be too clever and frankly it was stupid. #notafan

All in all, I’m sad that the season has ended but I’m so glad that I still have my Jersey girls to watch and counting down the days until I can play Andy’s Watch What Happens Live drinking game.

Lynn:

Hummers, limos, and yachts. Oh my!

Unfortunately, the vehicles were the most impressive portion of the season finale of the Real Housewives of New York City.  Overall, this episode was truly disappointing.  In a season featuring camel rides, two huge Sweet 16 parties, and more drama than I can keep track of, I expected more.  The episode begins with the Countess taping her music video.  Can we talk about a free publicity stunt?  She "wanted to share the time with the other Housewives." #BS  It doesn't take a genius to figure out that she wanted the other ladies in the video for free in order to help promote it.  However, her plan failed and Ramona "Turtle Time" Singer, Alex "I Think I'm a Model, but Really I Just Pose Nude" McCord, and Sonja "Wow, I'm Broke...and Naked" Morgan all declined to appear.  Hmmm...surprise surprise - too smart for you Countess.  The most shocking moments in the episode occurred during the Countess's yacht ride.  First off, who hosts a one-year anniversary party? #ijustneedsomeattention  Second, why would the Countess think it's appropriate to sail by the Statue of Liberty?  Did she forget that her husband's family brought it to the US?  Even Ramona picked up on that one because....she wasn't drinking any Pinot! Because, even better, she thought she was pregnant.  Ramona, you're not pregnant, you're just getting old.  Don't even get me started on the end of the episode commentary on each woman.  This is usually a highlight of the season finale, but again, really disappointed this time.  Bravo, your "witty" quips and attempts at banter were flops - let Andy Cohen stay as the funny one.

XO Katie & Lynn

#ZTANLC

ZetaLand: (n) a mystical land where one can be united with hundreds of one's sisters in order to gain friendship, learn leadership skills, and win fabulous awards for one's chapter. I just returned home from ZetaLand where I was privileged to meet over 500 of my sisters.


Yes, you read that right.  571 sorority women united in one location at one time.  Here is an extremely brief recap of an incredible 4 days with my fantastic sisters.

Day One: Wake up crazy early to go to the airport.  Sit awkwardly in the gate area eyeing every college age female and debating if they are one of your sisters.  Manage to unite with several sisters and begin your journey to Indianapolis together.  I began in Philadelphia, flew to Detroit with 9 amazing women, had a one hour connection in Detroit, and then flew to Indianapolis.  About half of the flight to Indianapolis was composed of Zetas.  Arrive in Indianapolis and head to #ZTANLC.  Bob and weave through all 571 women in order to find the others from your chapter.  Link up with them and head to lunch and opening session.  Attend several sessions and workshops for the rest of the day.  NLC (National Leadership Conference) was themed "Create the Change."  We were all grouped into C.I.A. groups (Change in Action) for the majority of our workshops.  These women are absolutely incredible!

Day Two: Crawl out of bed in time for a Yoplait themed breakfast.  Yoplait and Zeta Tau Alpha are partners in the fight against breast cancer.  On Day Two, we learned that Zeta Tau Alpha would be receiving a $15,000 donation to the Zeta Tau Alpha Foundation from Yoplait in recognition of the pink lids we helped collect.  Day Two was spent in and out of multiple workshops and speeches addressing the theme of change.  The speakers included several Past National Presidents for Zeta.  We are privileged to have numerous living Past Presidents and all were in attendance at NLC.

Day Three: We were invited to attend a special breakfast to learn about the Traveling Leadership Consultant (TLC) position.  TLCs spend the year after graduating traveling the country in order to provide leadership, guidance, and assistance for Zeta chapters.  A record setting 100 women were in attendance to learn more.  After lunch, we were all shuttled off to 3450 Founders Road.  For those of you who do not know, that is the address of Zeta Tau Alpha's International Office (we are international rather than national due to our chapters in Canada).  Indianapolis is home to many offices for fraternities and sororities.  Around the corner from our office, you can find office space for Alpha Xi Delta, Theta Chi (they own the old office from ZTA), and many others.  However, I think ours is definitely the most impressive.  Tell me what you think:

It is a huge 20,000 square foot mansion.  It comes out of nowhere, and it is truly an inspiring sight.  This building is truly Zeta paradise, housing our Zeta Tau Alpha Fraternity, Zeta Tau Alpha Foundation, and Zeta Tau Alpha Housing Corporation offices.  Any piece of Zeta memorabilia you could want can be located within this building.  After visiting the office, we all began to prepare for the Crown Chapter Award Ceremony.  Crown Chapter honors chapters that reach a standard for recruitment, leadership, programming, finance, and several other criteria.  My own chapter had not won this award since 2000.  Well, guess what....

WE WON!  This was probably the proudest moment of my Zeta career.  It was great to see many years of hard work finally pay off.

Day Four:  Before leaving Indianapolis, we gathered as a group for a special Zeta ritual.  Obviously, I cannot post the details of it, but it was a fantastic experience that I will treasure for many years.  It was very special to unite with all of my sisters around a ritual that bonds us together.  After the ritual, we all departed from the hotel and headed to the airport.  I linked back up with the 9 women I traveled to Indianapolis with and we reversed our trip, flying to Detroit and then Philadelphia.

NLC: 3 chapter awards.  Countless memories and friendships.  An unforgettable experience.

Zeta Love,
Lynn

Harry Potter mania: the end of an era

When I left work tonight I did a quick check of Twitter and Facebook and all there were were posts about Harry Potter. I get it. It’s an end of an era but the era ended a long time ago after the seventh book was released.  It’s just sad to think that something that has been around since I was in the 3^rd grade is ending. I remember being in school and first hearing about Harry Potter because they were worth so many points in accelerated reader. It also made us all feel so grown up because they were such big books for such tiny kids. I’m not a die hard HP fan but I did enjoy it and I enjoyed all the movies, but I realized when I watched part 1 I didn’t remember half the characters or plot because I read the book so long ago. I will say that I am jealous that a group of my friends up at school who are all together watching it while I’m sitting here at home after a day at work. I would love to go just to see all the hoopla and see everyone’s costumes. Life goes on. As I said to Franny earlier, I’m only sad I’m not at the midnight showing because it’s the last one but seeing Twilight at midnight is more worth it to me and I won’t miss that for anything, even dollar beers.

XO Katie

PS- woke up to a text from AJV that just said "sorry". Wow.