Ringing in 2012

So I’m just going to pretend that I started this blog at the beginning of 2012.  We can go with the fact that it was a New Year’s resolution since that seems to be the thing to do these days.  So forgive me if my first few posts are a little old.  However, since Caroline just put up her NYE post this week, I don’t feel too bad.

So New Year’s 2012. Or 2011.  I’m never sure if you call it the previous year or the new year.  Regardless, for NYE 2011/2012 we went to Vegas.  Those of you that know me are probably very surprised by this destination.  New Year’s was the second time in my life I had been to Vegas - the first being when I was 8 years old on a cross country bus tour with my grandparents.  A great story for another day.

Back to NYE.  I had an amazing time spending a few days in Nevada with nine of my best friends and basically having a mini DC reunion.  One of my reasons for this trip was to be able to spend some quality time with my friend Ali and see her wedding planning in full force.  So my first day in Vegas was spent picking out flowers, visiting her wedding site, looking at menus, and registering at Bloomingdales.  It was so much fun and a great time with Ali and the Hamrick family.  I’m beyond excited to be back at Canyon Gate (picture below) in March to celebrate Ali and Steve!

Then on the 29^th, the whole DC crew arrived and more adventures began.  Of course, being the nerds we are, the first thing we did was visit the Hoover Dam.  We all went on the tour and literally got to look out from inside the dam. Because we were the largest group on the tour and there were nine of us, someone (not sure how this came about) noted that we looked like the Von Trap family.  Of course, we thought this was hilarious.

I even faced my bridge phobia and walked across this bridge.  All of you should be very proud.

For NYE, we all packed up and headed to the strip where we had two suites at the MGM.  After a little bit of champagne, we had a DELICIOUS dinner at China Poblano and drinks at the Chandelier bar, both in the Cosmopolitan Hotel.  Around 11:30 we gathered to head down to the street for fireworks and the countdown.  Then we kept going.

After rallying the next morning, we basically had 24 hours of being Vegas tourists.  We explored several casinos on the strip, ate at one of the hotel buffets, went to a Cirque de Soleil show, rode the NY NY roller coaster, saw the Bellagio water show and of course, played a little blackjack. We even took the monorail.  At this point, I decided that Vegas really is Disney World for adults.

All in all, we just had an awesome time with great friends.  From eating In-N-Out for the first time, to the Hoover Dam, to Studio 54, to singing Sound of Music sounds throughout the streets, it was just really great.  Now we can officially check Vegas off our NYE bucket list.  It’s going to be hard to top that.

here we go....

So after weeks of contemplating this, I’m actually getting my act together and starting a blog. After being inspired by three of my best friends (Caroline, Chelsea and Alaina- I’m talking to yall), I decided to join the blogging world. While I’m not promising anything incredibly interesting or insightful, I’m excited to improve my writing, get my thoughts out, and maybe even find out some new things about myself. I’m hoping my posts will somehow document lessons I’ve learned, things I love, and let’s be honest, lessons I’m still learning.

For anyone that doesn’t know my life story already, here it is. My name is Lauren. Very few people actually call me by my first name. I grew up in Wake Forest, North Carolina and lived there until my high school graduation. I then made my way over to Winston-Salem and spent four fantastic years at Wake Forest University. Leaving Wake on May 19, 2008 was a sad day.

About a month later, I moved to DC. I’m still not sure why I picked this city over Charlotte, Atlanta, Charleston and all the other places in the Southeast I was considering after graduation. Believe it or not, I received my job offer to move to DC in the midst of senior year post exams with the entire graduating class of 2008. And then I did it.

Moving to DC and knowing only two people in the entire city was one of the most frightening and most rewarding decisions I have ever made. I lived in the city for three years, making wonderful friends, exploring city life, and learning more about the person I wanted to be. Like many District residents, I started to get the grad school itch and moved back to Raleigh, NC in August 2011 to start the MPA program at NC State University. 

I can’t count the number of books that I have read about small town girls moving to the city. But there seems to be a shortage of stories about what happens with the newly formed city girl moves back…and that’s where my story starts.