"Now you wouldn't believe me if I told you, but I could run like the wind blows. From that day on, if I was going somewhere, I was running!" -Forrest Gump

  Exactly two months from today I will run the Music City Half Marathon. And let me tell you this day's been a long time coming. I made a promise to myself the weekend after my birthday, which also turned out to be the end of my relationship, that I would run 13.1 miles and in the process get over him and let go of it all. I come from a family of runners and have run on and off my entire life, mostly as means of staying skinny, but Junior year of high school I used it to get over a boy and here I was doing it again four years later.

  I am blessed with an incredible family who loves me like no other and has supported me through it all. However, I also come from a family who will tease your pants right off you. I am not the most graceful person in the world nor am I the most elegant in every day life; so when I announced at family dinner downtown one July night my marathon plans my dad about choked on his burger. Nonetheless, when we got home that night Joe helped me pick out a new pair of running shoes for training and the half-marathon. Mom put the date in her planner and Dad wished me good luck. And here we are. I would bet I will be more emotional after I cross that finish line and find my family, especially my momma, than I will be on graduation day. There is something so emotional and personal about running, it takes everything you have to give and then some. The most raw moment you can have is finishing a run in tears, legs shaking, knowing you did it. 

  After training for a good solid seven months now I can say in confidence I couldn't have done it without my little brother or Map My Run. Map my Run is an amazing website that I seriously would not have been able to train without. It's like Facebook for runners but so much better. You can find friends, or in my case little brothers, to share runs, workouts, and diet plans with. I've mapped every run on the site to get my exact mileage for the day and Joe has sent me runs he's mapped out for me through the site as well. It's simple and fast and has a huge array of resources for runners along with an iPhone app that has definitely come in handy. So once again social media has found another way into my life along with Pandora for a nice soundtrack during workouts, Pinterest for inspirational running quotes along with finding the coolest running gear, and of course Facebook to share all those sweaty "I DID IT" pictures. 

  I started this goal as a means of getting over someone and finding a way to heal. But it's grown into something so much more. I'm doing it for me. And let me just say I am pretty dang proud of myself. So here we go, sprint those last 100 yards no matter what. I'll see you at the finish line.

"Do you still have the uniform?"

  In honor of it being the first Sunday of Lent I figured I'd return to my Catholic school girl roots and introduce the blogosphere to the wonderful world of #catholicgirlproblems. We're almost a week into Lent and already the bright green sticky notes reading "FRIDAYS: NO MEAT" are gracing my wall, mirror, and door. So one can only imagine how excited I was when a girlfriend's RT of @Catholicgrlprob showed up on my timeline. AH and there's a blog too Catholic Girl Problems. This is almost as good as the last 10 minutes before midnight on Fat Tuesday.

my ashes looked like Harry Potter's scar #catholicgirlproblems

  Anyone who's Catholic or has ever dated a Catholic girl knows the unique set of problems we face daily and no one explains them better than Catholic Girl Problems. Her blog is so hilariously true I sent it to my mom and I'm pretty sure I shared the "Rosaries Before Brosaries" post on ALL my girlfriends' FB walls. There is nothing better than relating to a tweet about crazy mass antics or craving beef jerky on Fridays during Lent. And after this past week, my entire History class knows how hilarious the Ash Wednesday tweets were after my giant laugh in the middle of lecture. Britney Spears might have made us Catholic school girls popular but Catholic Girl Problems is making us proud to hashtag #catholicgirlproblems.

Your favorite magazine except sexier...

"It's the name of my vlog because I say it a lot."

  The other day in class the topic of vlogs was brought up and the comment was made "no one even does that anymore." Um, FALSE. From the boys who brought you Sh*t Sorority Girls Say is "Wait...What?" the newest vlog based off their runaway sensation YouTube video. Laura Penny is here to tell you all about how to get unfat, her hatred of Jeremy Lin, and of course Derek. As of today there are three vlogs all talking about completely off the wall topics but all absolutely hilarious. And I will admit I've watched the Jeremy Lin blog about four or five times and sounded like a complete idiot laughing at my computer screen. Oh and comments are welcomed on every blog post along with suggestions for future vlog topics. I can only imagine what crazy topics are in the works on "Wait...What?" but I do know I'll be laughing through whatever Laura Penny goes on a rant about next. I'm definitely on the Laura Penny bandwagon.

Wait....What?

  What do you get when you mix a few SAEs (or so I've been told) from Vanderbilt, a horrible blonde wig, and a video camera? A YouTube sensation that has spawned a Twitter account, an "Outtakes" video, and a Vlog. For the past couple years I had only used YouTube as means of watching music videos or clips from tv shows. And then the Sh*t Sorority Girls Say YouTube video was posted on my Facebook wall. I won't reveal how many times I've actually watched the video for my own dignity, but I will admit I quote it daily. And if I ever venture to Vanderbilt's frat row my number one priority will be to find these boys and shake their hand, then take them for FroYo. So grab yourself a skinny vanilla no foam extra hot make it a double pumpkin spice latte and proceed to watch over and over again. 


Oh and for when you can quote the entire first video verbatim, Sh*t Sorority Girls Say OUTTAKES 

A lover of all things Lilly

  I'm Caroline and I'm a Lilly Pultizer addict. Just last night I had a dream they released the 2012-2013 planners early and awoke in a panic. Even sitting here now my planner and phone cover are both Lilly. And yes I might even have the Lilly page pulled up in a different tab, maybe. I absolutely love everything about the Lilly brand, from her blog to her prints to the font used on her website. But fantasizing about Lilly school supplies usually gets interrupted by school itself. So how do I know that the limited edition Lilly Pulitzer Barnum's Animal crackers are coming out in March? It's easy, Facebook. 

   What is the number one site college co-eds pull up immediately after opening a new Firefox window? FACEBOOK. I might frequent Lilly Pulitzer's "A Colorful Blog" at 3am when I can't sleep or when I've hit the wall with a paper, but it is so much easier to have the latest Lilly news pop up on my newsfeed. After all there's a 98% chance I'm already looking at it right? And it was my newsfeed that informed me Lilly Pulitzer and Lifeguard press had released the Lilly Spring 2012 Collection Look Book already. And it was the "share" button that let me set it as my status to alert all other Lilly addicts of this exciting news. 

   The obsession doesn't stop there (sorry dad). From the Lilly Facebook page I found the Re-Lilly page. And was able to Facebook message my best friends (even one in London and one at Western Kentucky) my top 5 Lilly graduation dresses. Oh yes, Facebook has opened up endless possibilities for the Pulitzer obsessed like me. So go on and check out the Lilly Blog, A Colorful Blog , you won't be disappointed! And treat yourself to an belated Valentine's Day present from the Spring 2012 look book and "like" the Lilly page while you're at it Lilly on Facebook 

                                 "The Lilly girl is always full of surprises. 

                                  She lives everyday like it's a celebration, 

                                            never has a dull moment, 

                                    and makes every hour a happy hour." 

                                                  Live a Lilly Life.