We got game.

Or at least someone does. Last night a friend was in town with his college baseball team taking on a local university. Obviously, we locals just had to the game to offer our support... And despite the fact that we froze our butts off, it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. :P


Anna and me bein' groupies.

Aaron is sporting my scarf like a ballaaa.

Anna was clearly STOKED. Ignore that my top lip is MIA.

The lovely Municipal Stadium.

Ladies and gentlemen, you can look for Joe pitchin' in the big leagues one day. ;]

Oh deer.

Spotted these pretties while in the foothills yesterday. :]

Valentine's Day.

It might be a commercial holiday, but I just can't say no to flowers, hearts, chocolates and celebration!


A beautiful bouquet from my funny Valentine.



This Valentine's Day I decided to make a little dinner for my sweetheart and two of our favorite people: my parents. :]




Then there was the question of the menu... But what better to serve on Valentine's Day than food from the country where I left my heart? So Italian it was!


A primo: risotto. Making risotto also means standing over a hot stove for about half an hour making sure it cooks correctly. :P

Finished, con spinaci.

The secundo was [Americanized] pappa al pomodoro, a Tuscan bread soup.

A contadino: piselli con cipolla - peas in the Italian style with onion, garlic and olive oil.

Mandarini for dessert...

And poor-excuse-of-gelato al biscotto. ;] Gosh, I miss Italian gelato!

E and I also observed Valentine's Day this weekend with a breakfast trip to the restaurant where we had our first date almost three years ago! So crazy!


He is so silly. And I adore him. :]

Recap!

Hi everyone! After a short hiatus post-return to the US, I've decided that it's time to reinstate the blog. But I can't do that without a little overview of some of what's been going on the past two months...

A few days after returning from my time abroad, I threw a Christmas party and reunited with all of my friends!

:]

Anna and Matt.

Crossed an item off of my list of life goals and rode on Matt's motorcycle!

The adorable Audrey was in attendance, as were ten or so other of my loves not pictured but equally adored.
I celebrated Christmas with my wonderful family and boyfriend.
A fondue Christmas Ever dinner.
Christmas morning.
Ethan with his lookalike on Christmas night!


My friend Jenny, who attends culinary school, cooked me a delicious gourmet meal!

Delicious duck, green beans and fragola.

Anna, Chris, E and I took TJ Maxx by storm.

Anna is doing her best Bieber impression. She is a straight female, by the way, but she was recently featured on this website. :P


My friends and I rang in the New Year together.

E was in his sexiest form.

Josiah, Brittany and Larry cheesin'.

Jinelle made an appearance before her return to Tejas!

Seven sparkling cider bottles were downed in a matter of an hour or so.
The first few hours of 2011 found us exhausted and very loopy.
I moved into a house closer to my university and transformed my room there from a hideous day-glow-orange mess to something pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself. And I do.


My wall, almost finished. That's my beautiful grandma in the center!

My family put together a crab dinner to commemorate my final day of break.



Brittany, Billy, Ethan and I went glow-in-the-dark mini-golfing!


Behold the teeth!

Ethan and I improvised many a random lunch date.
We tried The Counter's fried dill pickle chips. Verdict: interesting.

I took headshots for an actor named Peter.
See the rest here.

I ran lightboard for an amazing little show called Charisma! at my university.


I shot photos of a dance piece in its rehearsal process for my university's dance production IMAGES.



See the rest here.

Anna, who goes to beauty school, came over to my house to cut Ethan's hair for him.



I took headshots for a dancer named Marisa.


See the rest here.
I was cast in and began working on a one act called Idols as part of the university's Winter One Act Festival, for which I shot some publicity photos.

See the rest here.
My friends Brittany, Aaron and Morgan came to visit me at my university before going back to their respective colleges.



I took headshots for my castmate Camille.

See the rest here.

Matt, Anna, Ethan and I got together to try our hands at making churros.




We introduce to you, my friends, Ethan's "hippo churro." I personally think it looks like a kodiak bear.
My brother and his girlfriend got dolled up for their Winter Formal.



Audrey and I said goodbye before she left to study abroad in Australia for four months!
We tried Five Guys Burgers and Fries for the first time and were not disappointed.

Though we weren't completely sold on the Cajun-style fries.

Ethan met up with us at Orange Tree for delicious frozen yogurt.

We rooted for the Packers as they took on the Steelers in the Super Bowl and WON!

Ethan, a lifetime Green Bay fan, was obviously thrilled, though you couldn't tell from this photo. :P

I took headshots for an actor named Naomi.

See the rest here.
I performed in the aforementioned Winter One Act Festival production "Idols."


The cast with our director.

It is a show about the French Revolution, so pardon the guillotine humor.

With our stage manager. :]

I bamboozled them by being cute while they looked insane. Just one of my many services.
And so there you have it: the past two months. After returning from Italy, I knew I would miss my time abroad, but I was sure within a week or two I'd fall right back into American life. It was harder than I'd thought. I still find myself wishing I was back there with the friends I made, the food I came to love, and the places at which I felt so at home. Life in the States also moves a lot faster than in Europe, so that's taken some adjusting, as well. I went through a down period of uncertainty and sadness right after I started back at my university again - and I'm not one to be upset and unmotivated for too long, which was even more frustrating. I felt at a loss.
But finally, things started to look up. My family and friends came to the rescue to pick up my broken pieces and remind me that I can do this whole "life" thing. Growing up is hard and maybe college makes life more difficult sometimes, but, in the end, I know I'm on the right path. I look forward to sharing here the goings-on of my American life starting now! Let's do this.