Skaters for the New School Year

I can't believe it's here again.  The first day of school.  How did summer pass so quickly??  Well with a new season comes a new fashion craving, this time for skater dresses.  I'm not sure this fits into the over 30 closet (still figuring that one out), but I like to think that some of them might still be acceptable.  Check out five of my favorites.  Now which one will I choose??





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Redefining Myself Through Life's Changes

It’s been a crazy few months.  Lately there have been lots of changes happening that are leaving me feeling a bit unsettled... a bit unlike myself.  It’s as though I’ve forgotten who I really am and what I really wanted out of life in the first place.  


I remember when I started this blog, my primary goal was to have a place to record all the positive things that were happening.  It has helped me to see the good in my day and seek out social interaction, something that is not a natural tendency for me, but the blog has been a great tool to help me do this.  Unfortunately I’ve gotten a bit away from myself, feeling like I have nothing going on and no personal goals.  But that’s not what this blog is about.  I’ve decided to dedicate my evening post to identifying, or remembering, the reasons behind what I do every day.  What is this blog about?  What are my values?  What kind of person am I aspiring to be?

I want to be the healthiest person I can be.  I want to exercise and eat right because it makes me feel good.  Not because I have to be the skinniest or the most muscular, but because I will sleep well at night knowing I am doing my best. 

I want to take care of my appearance.  I want to maintain my desire to dress well and put a little makeup on because I’m putting my best face forward.  I’m still working to figure out what my best 30-something married woman face looks like (as opposed to the college girl in the club face) but I will find that vision eventually.  I’m sure of it.

I want to be my husband’s favorite person.  Yes, I know I already am, but I want to earn it.  Forever.  I want him to feel like I keep a neat house and fix delicious meals and am necessary to making our household work.  

I want to maintain relationships with my friends and family.  I don’t want marriage to prompt me to crawl into my little married cave and block the world out.  I need to stay out there.  I need to be supportive of others.  I need to care about what they are doing and saying and make it a point to make plans every so often.  

I want to live without fear.  I don’t want to second guess myself anymore.  It’s exhausting and pointless.  I need to move into the next phase of my life without worrying about what is going to happen next. Easier said than done, I know, but I feel a little braver just writing down the words.  


It’s hard to believe that even after all these years, I am still trying to figure out who I am, but I guess it’s a lifelong process.  People are changing.  I am changing.  And it’s probably going to happen again and again. 


The Grits Blog







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Our Wedding Rehearsal

As promised, getting back to the blog starts now with happy times and celebrations.  Finally taking a look back at the start of our wedding weekend--our rehearsal dinner and night before our wedding!

Rehearse
We actually had our rehearsal on Thursday even though the wedding wasn't until Saturday so that it didn't interfere with the Orioles game we had planned our events around.  Priorities people.  
With my handsome fiance!


MOH

Relax
We had everyone over to our house after the church rehearsal and my mother-in-law and her friends collaborated to bring us a homemade Italian dinner.  Chicken cutlets, lasagna, spaghetti and meatballs... mouthwatering to say the least.  




Groomsmen gifts: cooler chair, bottle opener, and a 6 pack!



My soon to be in-laws



Party
The following night (wedding eve), we invited all of our friends to our hotel suite which we had booked for the weekend to watch the O's game live from the balcony.  It ended in victory over the Yankees, setting the stage for a perfect weekend.  






Come back next week and the weeks to come for more wedding flashbacks and ideas for planning your own!


NC Belle In Boots



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My Battle with Myself


Holy moly I’m actually posting to the blog.  I’m sorry I’ve been gone for quite a while.  After numerous weeks without a single post, I’ve finally brought myself to write again.  I wish I could tell you it’s because I’ve been so busy with all of the amazing things going on in my life, but that would be a lie.  The truth is I haven’t written because I’ve been completely miserable and I can’t seem to snap out of it.  Like a cloud of darkness just took over my entire heart without my permission, I’ve been living day to day, barely going through the motions and trying to make sense of the sadness that I feel. 

I haven’t exercised in weeks, nor have I fixed a single meal.  My home is a disaster and even though it upsets me, I just sit and stare.  I don’t feel like doing much of anything.  I just want to sleep and then sleep some more.  

It’s not the first time this has happened to me.  I’ve battled this for basically my entire life though I haven’t had a spell like this in quite some time.  It usually passes after a few days and I can’t seem to shake this one.  I just got married and suddenly I’m living in constant fear of the whole thing falling apart.  I feel like my husband deserves someone better than me... someone fresher and younger with actual personal goals... and it is killing me.  I’m hoping these are just growing pains of new marriage and that I will snap out of it.  I’m hoping that writing about it will provide some sort of therapy and force myself to follow through on a plan.  I need to be ok with mediocre and find joy from it.  I need to be the wife he wants and needs.  


Starting this weekend, I’m forcing myself to be better.  If not for me, then for him.  I’m forcing myself back into the gym, a place I once loved.  I’m forcing myself to go to the grocery store and cook something small.  I’m forcing myself to get back to the blog with more upbeat posts about things that I typically smile over.  Maybe then I’ll feel a sense of normal and find purpose again.  Maybe the knots in my stomach will dissipate.  Crossing my fingers...


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Small Gym Wins According to Mary!


I'm Mary, the girl behind, Eat Drink & Be Mary.  I'm a girl in her twenties who recently graduated college, and am now learning to love long distance.  A coffee loving, DIY crafting, recipe trying, legging wearing, Instagram obsessed, aspiring teacher and Christian.  You can often find me raving about a recipe I recently tried, an outfit I got a great deal on, or just a hodge podge of what's on my mind lately.  Don't forget to Eat, Drink & be "Merry" y'all...


I'm so excited to be taking over for Michelle today, especially because she's off honeymooning with her Groom.  Congrats again girl!  One thing I think of when I think of Michelle is how the girl loves to workout.  So today I'm hear to talk about just that.  

Funny Friendship Ecard: So youre telling me creating an exercise board on Pinterest isnt enough? I actually have to do the damn workouts?!  Check out the website
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Often I think that people join gyms because of the name.  Golds Gym?  I know plenty of people that work out there; maybe if I signup I'll instantly look like them.  Probably not.

Living in a small town there are not many choices for "big name" gyms, in fact there are zero Golds Gyms.  So my family and I attend a local gym.  And I just love that little gym.  I have nothing against big name gyms, they serve the same purpose (overall), I just prefer my small gym and have found that there are definitely some perks...



One | Everyone is encouraging.

Two | Big or small it's still a place for me to sweat it all out and get my fitness on.

Three | No one there to see me when I bust a move on the elliptical.  Because sometimes pandora knows exactly what I need to here and I can't resist dancing to my favorite jams.



Four | Hardly ever anyone in the locker rooms to see me change.

Five | No randos checking my spandex-wearing-self out when I'm sweating my booty off on the elliptical. 

Six | I can watch whatever I want on the TV (HGTV) without worrying if anyone else wants to watch it.

Seven | Along with # six, I can change the radio to whatever station I want in the weight room, and don't have to worry if anyone is judging me for jamming out to 90's music while getting my workout on.

Eight | Only once have I not been able to get on the machine that I wanted.

Nine No one there to see me take awkward selfies and snap chats -- you know for proof that I went to the gym.



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Can you relate to my small gym wins, did I miss anything? Do you attend a larger gym, what are some of those perks?  Do you take selfies while at the gym; I can't imagine that I'm the only one who does this!  I hope to see y'all in my part of the interwebs @ Eat Drink & be Mary or (if bloggin' aint your thanng) keep up with me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest.