Knoxville, Wedding, and Mark Wahlberg

Hello all.

Sorry it’s been so long since I’ve written… I got some complaints when I was back in Knoxville this past weekend, so here I am.

Honestly, I don’t even know where to start. So much has happened since February 4^th (the last time I wrote), but I’ll try to cover it.

          I finished my first year of grad school. I’m crazy excited about being halfway through. This past semester involved a lot of questioning and prayer about what I’m doing and what my plans are, but I’m still so thankful to be here and to have the rare opportunity to study something I love with an ocean view.  

       Tommy and I saw Mark Wahlberg driving a minivan. I’m not even sure what to say other than the fact that we couldn’t stop talking about it for the entire day. To give you an idea of how excited we were, we actually saw him while we were driving to spend a day at Universal Studios. The only thing we couldn’t get over being excited about the entire day was seeing Marky Mark in a minivan. And there was a Jurassic Park AND a Jaws ride.

      Last weekend I went home to see one of my best friends, Alesa, get married and it was fabulous. Nothing like going home after a long time of not seeing the people you grew up with. Alesa was beautiful, and I was clueless about wedding etiquette, as per usual. Case in point: I spent the night at Alesa’s house the night before the wedding, and they had cupcakes with fake plastic engagement rings on them. I swiped some icing off of one of them before the ceremony (#wedding etiquette. I’m basically Judith Martin) and put the ring on as a joke. Well, joke’s on me because I completely forgot to take it off.  So for all of you who were confused by the fake-looking engagement ring on my finger, there’s the explanation. Tommy thought it was hilarious. I did not.

Tommy, me, Molly, Josh

Wedding Party 

      Tommy and I had the worst experience flying to and from Knoxville. This involved a surprise night spent in Atlanta during which we stayed in the sketchiest hotel I’ve ever seen. Tommy's room apparently had air conditioning, which was something they seemed to forget to install in my room.  (And this isn’t coming from someone who grew up staying at Fairmonts. If you’ve met my dad, you know how cheap he is. If Embassy Suits didn’t have those free cookies when you walk in, who knows what kind of hotels my dad would have taken us to growing up. Richard: the only thing he loves more than saving money is good food).

     Addison has just gotten cuter. I’m realizing quickly that I’m probably not going to be a good influence because whenever one of her (extremely rare – she’s crazy well-behaved) tantrums happens, I think it’s hilarious and just watch it happen. She’s also hit the stage where she says no to everything except food and fun, which is a stage I’m currently still in, so it’s nice to have some common ground.

Calhouns. Good news: she's too chunky to slip through the railing

#poolday

     Sarah Wright and Katy Flinn came to visit me in March and it was THE BEST. Tommy taught Katy how to surf and she picked it up like a pro. I sat out in the water and for a while, then lost motivation. Sarah Wright didn’t even make it out past knee deep water because every 2-foot-high wave flattened her. Truly one of the most hilarious experiences of my adult life. But it was amazing to have people from Samford back in my life again. Currently working on convincing both of them (and every other friend of mine) to move out here permanently. #futile

Sunset in Santa Monica

     Tommy and I went dunebuggying during my spring break and I discovered his daredevil tendencies are much stronger than my own. The positive (or negative – not sure which one) is that we got to ride in the dune buggy Khloe Kardashian (Kourtney? I get them confused) did the week before.

     My uncle Greg took us out tubing on the lake during which my two cousins, Hannah and Sarah, tried to throw Tommy off of the tube. Considering they combined weigh less than him, this didn’t work. I’m pretty sure he ended up throwing (yes literally throwing) Hannah off of the tube at one point.

We're pros

      Baby boy Harb is doing well, as is Amanda. I can’t wait to meet him and buy him clothes. (This implies that I haven’t bought him clothes already, which I have).



Differences between Malibu and the South

1. Yesterday was the first time anyone has recognized Chi Omega on my sorority t-shirts that I still wear because I’ve totally moved on… Truly after 9 months of living here, you would think that I would run in to someone that has Greek Life knowledge, but alas the South wins this one.
2. Girls don’t wear big t-shirts with athletic shorts here. Like, at all. Leggings and tight tops are more of the casual wear, so I’m working on bringing the trend to the West Coast, much to the disdain of those who interact with me. 
3. Teslas are the Camry of Malibu. They’re everywhere.
4. Women wear denim underwear. I’m being sarcastic…. But their shorts are basically thongs.
5. Tommy and I spent the day at the beach yesterday and it turns out that in California, women’s hats are considered to be men’s hats as well. True story.

#androgynous

     So much love to all of you! Hopefully this summer will bring some good stories. And hopefully those stories involve me getting a job.

        Malibu Harbie