Moving On

My birthday went well!!! I did freak out a couple of times before we got to the venue cause we were running late but after we got there... it was smooth sailing from then on! I had a fantastic time!!

So...in other news, I have 3 more days with the Bank..(NYSC) year is pretty much over and I think I need to move on. Its been a great learning opportunity but I'm not sure if thats where I want to stay. I don't have another job lined up, unfortunately but I'm patient and I have faith that God will work it out for me.

It's THAT Time Again!

It's my birthday in a couple of hours and I am majorly excited! I get like this every year even though I never make plans or do anything special.. it always ends up being just a regular day but that doesn't stop me from getting crazy excited! I guess it's just knowing you only really get 1 (one) special day a year... Yea yea everyday is special but its not as special as your BIRTH Day! That's major!!!


I made a Birthday wish list (Like I do for every major holiday, #dontjudge) but the only thing I REALLY want from it is an iPad 2!!! Every time I see one I go gaga! I'm not really techno savvy but I figured it can't be that hard to use...right?


Anyways, I have to head home to look for a birthday outfit., The Mr and my sissies are taking me out for drinks tomorrow, we've invited a couple of friends to join us so hopefully I'll end up having a really good day after all!


Happy Birthday, Bex! Here's to another twentysomething years!!!

#7 - Handle With Care

Handle With Care (Jodi Picoult) is Book #7 on my '100 Books to Read This Year' *see previous post* I absolutely LOVE this book and would encourage anyone to read it.



Synopsis
Charlotte O'Keefe's beautiful, much-longed-for, adored daughter Willow is born with osteogenesis imperfecta - a very severe form of brittle bone disease. if she slips on a crisp packet she could break both her legs, and spend six months in a half body cast. After years of caring for Willow, her family faces financial disaster. Then Charlotte is offered a lifeline. she could sue her obstetrician for wrongful birth - for not having diagnosed Willow's condition early enough in the pregnancy to be able to abort the child. The payout could secure Willow's future. But to get it would mean Charlotte suing her best friend. and standing up in court to declare that if she would have preferred that Willow had never been born.


I'll try not to ruin it for anyone but this book is a must-read. Before this book, I had never heard about Osteogenesis imperfecta (something learned) I cannot imagine what a mother with a child with OI has to deal with. It is tasking and it requires so much attention, it also can take its toll on the other members of the family. You never know the hand you're dealt and this book shows the love and dedication from a mother to her child despite all the challenges that come her way!

100 Books Challenge

So I recently started a "100 Books to Read This Year" Challenge... I love reading and learning stuff from them so I figured, instead of wasting my life away watching 'Kim and Kourtney take New York' even though I LOVE the Kardashians, why not pick up a book to read... that's how it started.


I love that I can learn a lot from books, whether its just a word I'd never seen before or an illness or something about slavery, it makes me more interested and makes me want to get another book to read! Reading and Learning is great.


Thanks to my good friend who owns the company 'The Bargain Wordsmith' I get to borrow tons of books for low prices and I even get bestsellers... This is where half my salary goes! http://thebargainwordsmith.wordpress.com/



I'm currently on book #17. Some of the books I've read are; The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (Steig Larsson), One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez), Room (Emma Donoghue), and one of my personal favorites till date; Handle with Care (Jodi Picoult).


I'll try to blog about some of the really good ones I've read and some of the ones I'm hoping to read!

TGIF

This seemed like the slowest week ever! Thank goodness it's over. It's christmas time which means tons of family and friends are coming home for the holidays. Can't wait to see the BF and the rest of the girlies. I really wanna host a holiday party... any ideas/suggestions for me??

~CharlieCran~

31 Days To Reset My Life

It seems like every couple of months I have a not-so-nervous breakdown where I re-evaluate my life (or at least try to); what I'm doing, what I should be doing, what's in my savings account blah..blah..blah.. and I always end up with the same results: Nothing!!! I feel like someone on a carousel and I desperately wanna get off.

Ms Pearl told me about this '31 Days to Reset Your Life Challenge' and i signed up for it. For the next 30 days, I'll be involved in some exercises to help rediscover my passion and purpose in life (which i desperately need), get clearer goals for the new year, create a map for my ideal life and try new things outside my comfort zone (eer?)

My Mantra for this exercise was initially a line from John Legend's song ''If You're Out There'' which says * The future started yesterday and we're already late* But I've changed it. Now its * Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?*

I can't wait to find out.

~CharlieCran~

Vacation Time!

I love taking time out to spend with myself, this is something I've been doing for a couple of years and i love it. I get to reflect, learn some more about myself and be quiet cause sometimes, you just gotta be quiet.

Anyways, I had the opportunity of spending some alone time for a week....in Dubai!!!! It was awesome and a well needed vacation. I was there for a week but I wish I could have stayed longer. Dubai is such a gorgeous city I can't wait to go with my girls.

I really enjoyed being a tourist and exploring the city completely on my own. Like my friend; Ms. Pearl did during our U.K vacay earlier this year, I took some notes.

1. I noticed not a lot of women worked... (their hubby's must be rich)

2. Shoes? Who wears those? Everyone wore sandals or slippers. Being the shoe addict that I am, best believe I noticed that.

3. They really take the ''for ladies and children only'' seriously. On the buses and trains, there are sections for just ladies and children. I witnessed a man (tourist, of course) standing in 'our' section, some lady called him out so fast I was embarrassed for him. I wonder how the youths socialize. Hmmm

4. Unlike Lagos, Nigeria or Atlanta, Ga..Cobb County to be exact, where were the policemen? Non-existent!!! I saw some security guards but they ain't real police (JK!!!) Then again, Dubai is one of the safest cities in the world so maybe that's why?!

5. If you think the ladies in SATC2 that were wearing the fabulous clothes underneath their hijab were just for the movie, you're so wrong! These Arabs are too fly!!! From their raybans to Louis Vuitton purses to Louboutins, these women definitely had it going on.

Before I knew it my one week was over and I was on the plane home. If you need a place to visit, you definitely want to discover Dubai.


Here are some pictures from my trip.

This is the Burj Khalifa. The tallest building in the world. I got to get up to the 124th floor which is the highest they will let tourists.