Off to ITALY

Well the time has finally come! We leave tomorrow and are off to Italy for two weeks!! I cannot even wait! One of my goals is to eat gelato on the spanish steps, just like my girl Audrey in Roman Holiday. Don't forget me while I'm gone... Ciao! -E

Home Sweet Happiness

"Honey, I'm Hooooome!!" 

Well, I'm back on the East Coast and so happy to be home. It was a rough journey to get here. I took the red eye out of LAX on Wednesday night to Pittsburgh. Because of Papas' job as a pilot and all my experiences flying, I do not have any trouble hopping on a plane. That being said, I knew something was wrong when after an hour into the flight I had the urge to check the seat pocket in front of me for a sick sack. I'll spare you the details but let's just say that for two hours the lavatory was my BFF. 

I arrived in Pittsburgh at 5:40 am and my flight to Charlotte was at 7:23 am. I did not think I was going to get on that flight b/c the flight was oversold and I fly space available. At this point I was so weak and exhausted, all I wanted to do was curl up in the airport or snap my fingers and be home. All this in-between stuff was no bueno. Momma was strongly urging me, via text message, to drink some sprite so that I would not become dehydrated, but let me tell ya the thought of food or drink made my stomach whirl, and it didn't need ANY help with that!! "Newton, please see the agent at the counter." What?! I'm getting on the flight?! Score!! I heaved my bags onto my shoulder and trudged over to the  agent (mind you, I had to pretend everything was hunky dory b/c otherwise they would not have let me on the plane...) and looked at my seat assignment 18F, the window... As I walked down the jetway I started round 86 of my "please Lord" praying, "Lord, please please please please help me get through this flight without getting sick." 

When I got on the plane, the sweetest couple was sitting next to me. I stuffed my two bags under the seat and snuggled up to fall asleep, praying all the while. I was sandwiched into my seat and there was no getting out. "Ladies and gentleman, welcome to Charlotte-Douglas International Airport." What?! I made it!!

I walked into the terminal and broke down in tears for the first time when I saw my Daddy (papas in other references here... a story for another time, lol). I immediately buried my face in his chest and started sobbing. As we walked to baggage claim, we stopped to buy me a Sprite. When we got home, Momma tucked me into bed and I slept for 12 hours.

I finally woke up when Daddy came to check on me and I told him how nice it was to be sick when you're home... you know you have people that will take care of you. Sometimes it's nice to be a kid again and truly need your parents' love and care. 

Friday Update: Well after a few more hours of sleep, I am feeling  much better... almost myself again. Off to a fabulous Friday in Charlotte! It's good to be home!!

-E

I'm on an art kick...

Last night... after FAR too many hours of blog-surfing... I found this site. These posters are AH-mazing, and I really want to order a couple for my abode :)

LA: To represent my current home

NYC: To represent the hopes of my future home

DC: To represent my love for this city and the memories made their.

And the best part?! They are affordable! Other cities include: Boston, Brooklyn, Chicago, the Great Lakes, Phili, San Francisco, Seattle, and a few more... check it out!! -E

What does America look like to you?

When I went to Henry Road yesterday, there were these amazing pieces of art on display. A fancy version of modge podge. I want to make one myself, but for now, my computer will have to do... These images represent America to me... what images represent your vision of America? -E

A New Look

Olive My Life! has a new look. Thanks Marisa for your input!

Love, E

A Relaxing Memorial Day

Well today has been a pretty perfect Memorial Day :) I drove up to Studio City to do some walking around and shopping. I initially went up to visit Henry Road (which I first posted about here), however they didn't open until noon so I did some moseying around. 

I went into Pier 1 and saw some ADORABLE pillows. Like SO cute... and 25% off... Gosh, if only I had a house I needed to decorate (strike that, I'm not ready for a mortgage, but still, I like to decorate! LOL)

  

12:00 rolled around and I strolled into Henry Road.... ahhhhhhhhh... it was just as amazing as I hoped it'd be. The owner was there and we chatted for a while about her business and what brought her to LA. We shared the experience of driving cross country. And agreed about what a beast that drive is :( But anyway, back to Henry Road. The fabrics are AH-mazing and the furniture is to die for... crazy expensive, but awesome none the less... Okay, so I bought some of the scraps material and am trying to decide what to do with them. And I also got great inspiration for an art piece that I want to do. Hooray for Henry Road!! 

  

Hope you had a great holiday. Back to work tomorrow! I can't believe it's almost JUNE!!

-E

All I want for a summer gift is this sweet puppy :)

So, I have to credit Christina's post at Down and Out Chic for the inspiration for this post. It's no secret that there are far too many animals that need to be rescued in shelters. I found this sweet little angel today and I feel compelled to rescue her. Momma? Papas? What do you think?! I know your immediate reaction will be to say "Heck to the NO!" but just think... you are SAVING her!! AND she is in the Los Angeles area!!!! 

So.... what do you think?! And for anyone else reading this, check out the sites, they are well worth the time :)

-E

Happy Memorial Day Weekend

Holidays are a time to relax, spend time with family, and my favorite... sleep in. However, sleeping in did not happen for me this morning. I only got six hours of sleep Thursday night and hoped to catch up on that shut-eye last night. However, I woke up at 7:30 am... WIDE AWAKE. Uggggghhhh...

After eating a little bit of breakfast, I went back to bed for about 45 minutes and went to pick up Marc from LAX. Today has been pretty chill. Probably going to take a nap then head to the gym... OH, I also did laundry. That's productive LOL :)

Okay, well that's all. Sorry for the boring post... but I'll leave you with this pic of Audrey. She always makes it a better day!

-E

I'm Giles, from Brazil

Today was a pretty chillaxed day. I got a mani/pedi and went in to work around 3:00 pm. I know, I know... rough life. After we worked for a few hours, we got dressed up and headed over to the Media Networking Event in Hollywood. The view was stunning and the venue was absolutely gorgeous. 

After about an hour or so, a gentleman plopped down on the coach beside me. I considered giving him a pseudo-name, but if he magically finds my blog, he deserves to know this is about him. He started the conversation off in such an awkward way I can't even remember it b/c I was so confused, but anyway... to the juice of the story... His name was Giles (Jill with a pretentious accent at the beginning) and he is from Brazil. He told me that he is a behavioral psychologist getting his Ph.D. at CalTech in Pasadena. We then had about a 10 minute conversation about the most random things, including a story about a guy sitting next to him at a restaurant who pretended that he was proposing to his girlfriend so that the maitre'd would get them into a restaurant w/o a reservation... oh yea, the convo went south fast... But anyway, I was mid-sentence and he says, "I'm sorry, but I have to interupt you. You probably don't realize you do this, but I have noticed a behavioral trait about your eyes." "Oh really? ::she says with skepticism in her voice::" "Yes, when you're thinking your eyes dart up. That shows that you are a creative and artistic person." 

I'm sorry, I must digress here for a moment, bear with me... I am an AVID "Burn Notice" fan and I watched a clip of Jeffrey Donovan on one of the tonight shows. He shared a bit of his spy knowledge with the host. Apparently, when you look up it shows you're lying... hmmmm, who to believe... Giles or Jeffrey... no contest, Jeffrey all the way!!

Okay, back to the story... So, sweet Solange reaches over and says "Elizabeth, hun, I'm going to the bathroom. Do you need to go?" She was trying to rescue me!! I felt like I was holding my own and I was pretty proud so I told her that I was fine. We spoke for a moment or two longer and he excused himself. Solange came back and we had a good laugh about all that I learned about myself in that convo... oh convos with strangers... gotta love it. 

I had a great time tonight, and I'm grateful that tomorrow is Friday! :) Looks like "A Night at the Museum" at the iMax may be on the agenda for this weekend! Woo hoo!! Night! 

-E

A busy, busy day

"So I will dance with Cinderella, while she is here in my arms." My head pops off the pillow as I hear the familiar song that is my alarm on my phone. The bright screen makes my face scrunch and I am tempted to place my head back on my fluffy pillow as I read the time: 5:45 am... But no, it is time to get up. Today I made the trek (it's actually an enjoyable drive) to the HOBY office in Westlake Village. 

I was dressed and out the door by 6:50 am and met very little traffic on the 405 and the 101 (thank you Lord!) I got to the office around 8 am and stayed until 2 pm. I got a lot of work done today: I received updated information and enthusiastic responses from HOBY Alumni (even as "old" as an alum from 1987), and I spent a lot of time gathering contact information for over 100 organizations that have supported HOBY in the past.

Oh and BIG news... I tried sushi for the first time today (it was also my first time trying tuna)!! Solange is such a great boss and she is expanding my horizons :) I tried 2 kinds of spicy tuna and a tuna roll. The roll was def my favorite, and I almost bought a spicy shrimp and avocado roll today at the grocery... but I decided to wait... LOL... baby steps people!

I have to include this pic because it made sitting in horrible traffic worth it yesterday... BURN NOTICE is back June 4th!!! Woo hoo!!! I could look at that face all day long!! :)

As usual, I'm exhausted so I'll be heading to bed soon! Night! 

-E

A quaky kind of day...

Today was such a fun day at work :) I literally spent like 3.5 hours on Facebook looking up HOBY groups and joining them to send out requests for updated contact information. The result? I am now a member of about 35 more groups than I was at the beginning of the day, LOL.

On the drive home I was sitting in traffic... surprise, surprise... and felt the car shift back and forth (imagine sitting dead still and a train goes FLYING past you at a high speed). The DJ comes on the radio and says that there has been another earthquake in LA and more details will follow the next song (which no lie, happened to be "I feel the earth move under my feet!") It was a 4.1 quake and I felt it!!! woo hoo!!! 

I am exhausted after a long (well... short) day of work and long (yes, long) night at the gym! Good night!!

-E

A week of finales...

If you haven't watched the season finale episodes for the following shows (Grey's, Prison Break, 24, Gossip Girl)...

 read no further!!

Grey's Anatomy aired on Thursday night, and it was intense! The fate of two characters remain in limbo... as do the contracts of both actors in real life... only time will tell. I love what Robert Daughtry wrote in his article after about a page and a half of discussing the possibilities of George and Izzie's fate... "In non death-related news on Grey's Anatomy, a Post-it may have served as a Meredith-Derek wedding, Christina and Owen finally got back together, Mark and Lexie seemed set to move in, and Bailey's marriage seemed to be shot." 

So funny!

Next, Prison Break aired its last episode EVER on Friday night. The show ended as anticipated and sadly, Michael died after a long haul of saving everyone else. I've been a loyal viewer ever since the series began. I have to admit, it was better in the beginning. I remember talking with a friend every week in AP Statistics about the drama of Prison Break Season 1. Whew, that was 4 years ago... time flies.

Tonight, both Gossip Girl and 24 aired their season finale episodes. 24 was decent. However, nothing was resolved and no major cliff hanger presented itself. We all know that Jack survives. Hello?! Kiefer signed on for another season. But Gossip Girl... O-M-G... such an amazing episode. And while the first 55 minutes were entertaining, the hold your breath, wish it were you, swooning moment came in the last 5 minutes. Chuck finally said "I love you." And he even said it a few times :) The scene that followed rivals the romanticism of an Audrey Hepburn movie. Blair believed that Chuck was traipsing around Europe, rendezvousing with countless women with complete disregard for her feelings. However, and here is where the swooning began, he traveled to Paris for her favorite macaroons, Germany for her favorite stockings, and he brought her pink peonies... ahhh, can I please live in Gossip Girl Land for that moment alone?! 

 

What will I do with all my free time now that my shows have wrapped for the summer?! 

Take up knitting? Doubtful. 

Read a good book? Potentially. 

Become addicted to a new set of shows? Hmmm, Most Likely :) 

-E

EARTHQUAKE!!

Well, I'm sure you've heard it on the news but there was a 5.0 earthquake in the greater Los Angeles area tonight. Unfortunately, I was driving in the car and didn't feel a thing... kind of disappointing... But when I got home, the fam updated me on what it felt like. The mirror in Billy and Steph's room shattered and a snowglobe and books fell over in the girls' room. Don't tell my Nanny about the earthquake... she didn't want me going to school in OK because of tornados and Lord knows she will be worried when she hears about an earthquake in LA. But all is well, and we are all safe :) I'm ready for a new week and excited to get back to work!!

-E

Running here, running there, running running everywhere

Well today was a crazy, hectic, fabulous day in Cali. My body is still adjusting to the time change, which works well for me. I woke up at 6:30 am bright eyed and bushy tailed. On a normal Saturday I would have grumbled and made an attempt to fall back asleep. However, it was a crazy busy day in the Newton home. 

I took my car to the Land Rover dealership today... again (some of you know how many times I've taken it in to the shop in the last 3 weeks... grumble, grumble, grumble) If I didn't love "Betty" so much I'd cash her in and buy a Vespa. But I can happily report (knock on wood) that the squeak is gone!!! I so appreciate the guys at the South Bay Land Rover. This squeak has persisted for the past 3 weeks and after a few belt/pulley/tensioner replacements and adjustments, she is quiet as a mouse... now let's keep it that way!!

After I dropped Betty off, we sped off to Caroline's soccer game. It's so fun to watch her play and interact with her friends that I have come to know over the past week. Unfortunately, the pink team did not defeat the red team, but they made a solid effort. We then dashed over to Sallie's game which was followed by a pizza party. William had a baseball game today as well. I don't know how Billy and Steph juggle all of their activities, but I was happy to be shuttled around. 

When we got back from the games, I was exhausted (and sun burned... YES Momma, I put on sunscreen!!!). I took two, that's right TWO naps. The first one was for a quick hour. I went downstairs and the boys were passed out on the couch so I decided to go back to sleep. I slept for another hour or so, then decided it was time to be productive. I jetted off to the gym, which was DEAD. I've found the secret to beating the crowds at the gym... go on a Saturday night... no one is there!! Clearly, I missed out on the LA night life this weekend, but I had a blast with the fam... and there will be plenty of time to take in all the excitement the rest of the summer :) Night!

-E

Day 2 and already a day off?

Yesterday was a day of relaxation :) 

I watched some episodes of season 2 of Gossip Girl and relaxed on the beach with a good book! What a day! Back to the grindstone!! -E

BIG day in LA!!

Well, so far so good... LA is fabulous, and I'm having an absolute BLAST! 

I started my internship yesterday!! I drove to the Westlake Village office (about an hour from the house in Redondo Beach) and met the HOBY gang. Solange (the director of development) and I bonded immediately, and I can just tell we are going to have a blast! We worked on some new marketing materials and they are going to look great! I was also trained on the alumni database program and looked up all my friends from WLC '04 (p.s. guys we need to update your info!! LOL) Part of my job this summer is going to involve updating our grant database with information including: contact information, type of grant, if we were approved or rejected, etc. After we finished our orientation information and a little bit of work, I started the trek back to the house. Umm, love LA traffic... not... actually it wasn't so bad today thanks to Jeffy and Marcus. They kept me thoroughly entertained on the phone (don't worry, hands free!) while I drove for an hour and forty-five minutes...

I am having a blast bonding with my nieces and nephew. We have played hide-and-seek in the house (Sallie is the best hider) and worked on homework assignments. There isn't anything better than driving up to the house and hearing them shriek "Aunt Liz is home!! She's here, she's here!" It puts a smile on my face... 

And there's a new man in my life... William. 

My sweet nephew loves Photo Booth on my Mac (it must be a Newton thing, we love taking pics of ourselves). We have taken quite a few :)

The girls have had fun w/ PhotoBooth as well. Crazy kiddos and Caroline's friend Hannah. I need to upload a real pic of them so y'all can see just how cute they really are. :)

More updates to come, I promise :) I don't have to work today so I'm thinking I will head to the beach with a book in hand! Happy Thursday!

-E

Style Star

So, I have no shame in admitting that I missed the boat on the fabulosity that is GOSSIP GIRL. However, I am getting caught up! Season 1 was on sale at  Target for $19 and I suppressed my better judgement and purchased season 2 on iTunes. I have to admit that at times I become a wee bit jealous of the stories/lifestyles of the charaters... and then I snap back to reality and think "NO WAY would I want this life!!" But, allow me to indulge for a moment and share with you my favorite character... Miss Blair Waldorf. Not only is she a firecracker, but I feel that our fashion style is the most aligned (except she wears stuff I only dream of wearing)

I bought a dress very similar to this one while in Charleston over Spring Break. Ladies, don't roll your eyes or write me off because of this comment, but I love the idea of putting on a dress and heels and cooking dinner. It's soooo June Clever, but sometimes I wish this was the norm.

Blair's style is so elegant, yet young and feminine. She always wears a headband (so does yours truly). Funnily enough, we have the same headband from Olive and Bette's in NYC. Such a fun surprise while watching an episode in season 1. 

Like OMG, can we please talk about this top?! So sassy chic!! Blair Waldorf, I love you! (or your fashion at least)

XoXo, E

What a first day...

Yesterday was a great first day in L.A. 

First thing first, I moved into my summer abode :) 

After, Momma and I ran tons of errands to get a few last minute things. And if you know my Momma at all, you know how strongly she feels about having a clean car. So one of the first things we did after arriving in LA... a visit to the Red Carpet Car Wash. 

Betty looks so beautiful now!!!

Next, we jetted off to Beverly Hills to meet up with Marc for some yummy cupcakes at Crumbs. It was so great to see him! 

We then strolled down Rodeo and enjoyed the beautiful California weather. Oh man, I could get used to this.

As the night came to an end, we did more errands and then I had to drop Momma off at LAX for the red eye back to the east coast. Sad day :(

Today is my last official day of vacation (wait, didn't it just start?! LOL)

Happy Tuesday!!!

-E

From a Carolina girl to a California girl

Well, we made it!! Yesterday was a CRAZY long day,

 but it was all worth it. We are in California!! 

After about 30 minutes Sunday morning, 

we crossed the state line into Arizona. 

The mountains were immediately different than that of New Mexico. It's so amazing to see the vast beauty of our country.

One of my favorite moments while driving long-distance is when you see the first sign with your destination city on it!! 

After many, many more hours, we arrived in California. 

P.s. the most boring "Welcome to..." sign ever. 

You can't really see it in this pic, but you're not missing much.

We got to our hotel around 6:00 pm and after a yummy Outback dinner, we watched the finale of Celebrity Apprentice. Today is the big move-in day. Hopefully, a drive up to Beverly Hills will be on the agenda so that we can indulge in some CRUMBS :)

More updates to come, I promise!

-E

Happy Mother's Day!!

Happy Mother's Day Momma!!! 

I don't know many that would be willing to drive cross country... 

I have the best Momma ever!!!! 

Olive you!!! 

-e

Driving 19 hours the OTHER way...

Well, we started our 19 hour drive to Los Angeles today and so far so good :) We spent 2 or so hours in Oklahoma...

Then another 3 in Texas 

Then we crossed into New Mexico. 

 

And OMG... can we say gorgeous?!?!

And thank goodness!! After 5 hours the drive can get boring, but the landscape was breathtaking. Sometimes the mountains were covered in green trees and reminded us of the N.C. mountains... and then we would get to mountains covered in rock, def not N.C. mountains, but beautiful.

When we stopped in New Mexico for gas and snacks, we decided to go to DQ. Can you believe that Okla. doesn't have the amazingness that is Dairy Queen? After seeing like five DQ locations we simply had to stop :) YUM-O!

We finished off a great day with a beautiful sunset in NM. Quick sleep tonight then back to it tomorrow!! More New Mexico, then Arizona, then finally CALI!!!

Happy Weekend!

-E

How will I miss thee? Let me count the ways...

Summer is here and as everyone packs and departs, there are a few (well more than a few) things that I will miss while away...

1. Watching Real Housewives of NYC with the roomie... and reenacting the drama for a week until the next episode airs :) "Bethenny... Staaaaaaaaaaap"

2. Notes on the white board on the front door from the roomie... How am I supposed to know how many days are left in the week without our countdown?!

3. Photo Booth photo shoots with the bestie

4. Watching 24 with the bestie... and scheming a way for us to be on the show one day

5. Late night chat sessions with M (a newly developed trend)

6. Hanging out with Jeffy (... and all of the laughter that comes with)

7. Dates with my ADP girls

8. Jenna Scheffel!!!!!!!!! I cannot  believe that you won't be back in the fall. I simply cannot handle it and refuse to believe it. Ok? I guess I'll just have to drive to Iowa for the state fair, or harvest, or just for a weekend... Deal?!

9. My Penn Square J.Crew buddies: Nicolas (well you know how much I enjoy hanging out with you... save me a seat ok?) Sarah and Amy, y'all know how much I love you girls (and Amy, I'm ready for my song whenever you are!)

10. Floods after only an hour of rain (ok, so I won't really miss that one)

11. Saturn Grill, City Bites, Cuppies and Joe

12. My bed

13. My classes, surprisingly enough

14. My friends

15. The seniors!!!!! (I'm not ready to be one, can't you guys just stay a little longer?! JK, I wouldn't do that to you)

16. Calling the bestie to see if I can "just run down and borrow a movie"

17. Laundry in a facility used by 300+ residents (Ok, that's a MAJOR lie)

Well, I think that's a pretty comprehensive list. I hope I haven't forgotten anything or anyone... Love you all! In true yearbook style, HAGS (have a great summer) 

California... HERE I COME!!!

-E

Last few hours as a junior...

In less than 12 hours I will be done with all of my junior classes/finals, and I will be a senior... eek!!! I am NOT ready for this, well I am, but I'm not, lol... 

Momma will be here to help me finish packing up the apartment and then we start to drive out to LA. I am so unbelievably excited and a little bit nervous, but excited nervous. I'm just excited to see the sun and feel warmth on my skin. Noah has been sailing around in the ark lately in OKC... SO much RAIN!!!

Happy summer to you all!! I'm ready to break out my shorts, tanks, and flip-flops... woot woot!!! I'm way into ruffles and dresses right now and I'm loving these from NY&Co. and J.Crew

Love, E

Finals week!!!

Things are crazy this week with finals, work, and packing... it's almost summer and that means one thing... I'm heading to California!!!! yay!!!

Have a SWEET Tuesday!

SUCCESS!!

Well my first event was a success!! The banquet went so well last night and I could not be more proud! The food was amazing, our catering staff was so helpful, and our amazing students were honored! Please enjoy the pics of the night as it unfolded!

The room at the start of the evening... whew, what a difference linens ALONE make :)

We're getting there... Fabulous folks helping us out!

I'm so proud of my amazing decorations and programs crew. 

Absolutely stunning!

So beautiful, I walked in and saw the starbursts and literally screamed. SO thrilled!

Our MANY awards to celebrate our fabulous students!

The pic is a little bit blurry but it's one of the few I actually took with an actual person on my camera. I'm counting on facebook to get the others, lol. Love ya G!

So sweet... At the end of a stressful process, thoughtfulness of any kind does wonders... It was the perfect end to a fabulous night... I love flowers and tulips are one of my favorites... thanks Jeffy :)