How do you make friends?

Thelma & Louise, friends to the end.

You might have seen this article last week in the New York Times about trying to make friends as a grown up. John and I have had a lot of conversations about this recently - we feel ourselves settling down in Greenville and want to make sure we have good people to see on the weekends. Alex Williams is right, though - it is starting to feel impossible to form new relationships.

Luckily, I have a couple of good college friends nearby and work with some great people, but if that weren't the case, we might be in trouble. Our jaunt around the country certainly didn't help us form lasting relationships, and as we inch towards 30, I feel the ability to cultivate new friendship slipping through my fingers like sand on a beach.

Being married actually makes it harder. Now there are added layers of complexity: do both partners get along, can the wives and husbands switch around in conversation, can the couples afford the same social activities? I'll admit that I'm less inclined to ask a girlfriend to go for a drink after work, because I'm eager to get home and paint or hang out with John (don't throw up). And John isn't exactly beating down the neighbors' doors to watch football when I'll watch it with him at home. 

I've met two people during the downtown lunch hour with whom I wanted to be friends. One was so sweet she offered to let me, a perfect stranger, borrow her necklace for an event. I don't even know the other one's name. There was a third person - in my neighborhood! - who was a friendly dog owner, but I thought it seemed a little matronly (or desperate) to knock on her door the next week with freshly baked cookies.

John and I both have amazing friends from home and college, but without money to constantly travel, it's hard to get our fix. Neighborhoods no longer have cookouts or baseball games, and becoming someone's social media connection only discourages us from asking them real questions. 

So, is our chance to form meaningful relationships over? I'd love to hear what you think. :)

Our Wedding {Reception 1}

Hello friends!

So many of you played a huge role in making this past year special for us, and these photos are a constant reminder of that. It's so nice to share them with you!

"For the first time as husband and wife..."

I love that my dad and I are making exactly the same face.

Our First Dance was "I Want You to Want Me," which was an early inside joke (pre-dating!) that later became our token song. 

Our Wedding {Party}

I knew this before the wedding, but my friends are seriously amazing. My bridesmaids are the most warmhearted, fun group of women. 

Our Wedding {Ceremony 2}

Our longtime friend Sue helped my vision for flowers become a reality. I told her I wanted them to look slightly wild, with lots of peach and yellow and soft orange. Not only did she do a gorgeous job - she was also a joy to have around. It makes a difference to surround yourself with sunny people during a time that everyone seems to think should be stressful. 

John and I are both classical musicians, which is probably why we didn't want that style for our ceremony. We had been thinking fun, laid back, and "bluegrassy" all along, but when I decided to walk down the aisle to a folk song, it sealed the deal. I remember being surprised to hear singing when I walked out expecting instrumental - and laughing in the back of my mind, thinking if this is what will "go wrong" today, it's fine with me.

The Southern Belle

Moving back to the South - and being unexpectedly content with it - has left me reflecting on what it means to be a Southern lady. I loved this beautiful article from Garden and Gun last year about what sets us apart. To be born a Southern woman is to be made aware of your distinctiveness.

As Allison Glock says, Southern women have a lot of pride. Here's why:

1. We are caretakers.
2. We use an abundance of salt when cooking. Just ask John.
3. We are willing to give (time, food, hugs, advice).
4. We are tied to history...when you carry in your bones the incontrovertible knowledge of man's violence and limitations, daring to stay sweet is about the most radical thing you can do.
5. We know how to make other women feel pretty. This is important to us - to let our friends know how wonderful they are. Friendship is one of the only things we have.
6. And of course, Southern women know the value of a stiff drink.

There's something irresistible about a woman who's not afraid of a little butter (I said a little, Paula Deen) and who can make you feel at home even when you're hundreds of miles away. There's something sexy about having enough self-respect to put on a nice dress and curl your hair, knowing it's about presentation rather than vanity. Perhaps we have it best in the 21st century, with the freedom to choose which Southern Lady rules to follow and which ones to break.

Thanks, Garden and Gun, for assigning words to something we live every day. You're much more eloquent than those "Southern girl" AIM profiles that were copied and pasted all the way into 2009. You describe us as good-humored, with a wisdom all our own, and we think you're right. You understand us, and we love you for it.

My grandmother, a beautiful Southern lady if I've ever seen one.

My aunt in Augusta, GA,  wearing a beautiful dress chosen by her mother, above.

Summer Weekends

Summer weekends are the best. A Converse wedding and a trip to Charleston made this past one especially nice. We were able to squeeze in some good food at Hominy Grill and Husk and do a little furniture scouting for our condo.

I'd been dying to try Husk since the buzz surrounding its NY Times write up last year, and it was amazing. Everything is sourced from the South, and it's wildly creative while still tasting like home. We can't wait to go back.

xo.

One Big Circle

With Mom and Dad at the Peace Center for the 2003 Senior Showcase. 

Moving back to the South wasn't something I planned to do. When arrows started pointing in this direction, I was dubious at best. I thought I had too much to do and too much to see to come back so soon.

Luckily, I followed the signs and ended up with a job at a life-changing school that I love. SCGSAH is the place that really started shaping the person I would become, and there's something comforting about the cyclical nature of my return to Greenville. Now I have the opportunity to give others what I was given, and it's really an honor.

And no one believes me when I tell them about the good old days:

there were guys who spent the entire summer of 2002 rafting the Reedy in duct-taped blow-up chairs,

the Raid really happened,

and a trip to Cherrydale on an old yellow school bus was something to be excited about.

xo.

P.S. We were all thrilled to see Newsweek's list of the top high schools in the U.S. - SCGSAH was number 42!

Our Wedding {Rehearsal Dinner}

On Friday night, everyone headed to our Rehearsal Dinner at Rose Hill Estate. People tend to have tunnel vision looking towards a wedding reception as the big event, and it's true that the wedding requires tons more work. It was so special, though, to have everyone at the more intimate Rehearsal Dinner. To have best friends and family all together over cocktails and a nice meal is unforgettable.

{Leading up to} Our Wedding

After our friends arrived in Aiken, we wasted no time. We made pedicures our priority before having dinner Thursday at Tako Sushi. Next, we had a party at the bridesmaids' house - a huge cottage we rented at Rose Hill Estate. It was so much fun to stay together and share a house! Highly recommended. We used the cottage for a shower, sun bathing, and even the Farewell Brunch on Sunday morning after the wedding.

{The week of} Our Wedding

I'd like to do a little series about our wedding. It's a way to record a big moment in our life, and most importantly, a place where our future children can read about the way I felt to marry their father. :)

Our wedding week was a thrilling blur of errands and checklists. It was so fun to be at home for longer than the usual 2-3 days with my parents and brother. I had to make endless to-do lists, because I was constantly too excited to remember what I needed to do next.

American Grocery

Last week, John took me to the restaurant I'd been dying to try since moving to Greenville. I was fighting off bronchitis, sure, but I refused to miss the celebration of our Second Anniversary at American Grocery.

Although I expected great food, I didn't realize we'd be blown away. We went through all of the best meals we've had - Woodberry Kitchen, FIG, L'Albatros, and Hungry Mother, to name a few- and were surprised to realize that AGR actually beat them all - right here in our new little city!

While they couldn't top FIG's amazing bartenders and Manhattan/Negroni Menus, John did have a martini that was made of Vodka hickory smoked to order. Yeah, it was amazing.



Maybe we just happened to choose the perfect combination on the perfect night. Maybe we'll have to go back for round two to see. And then three.

After seeing John hand me a tiny box over the table, our server came out with a little bag of handmade candies saying "I think I heard it was your birthday." She might have had the wrong occasion, but the gesture sure won my heart. Adorable.

xoxo,
    Lauren

2011's Food Trends

According to The Huffington Post, these are the top 11 food trends of 2011. From macarons to bitters to a general homage to the South, I feel like they took this list right off the tip of my tongue. 

And just to be clear, I would totally go to a fancy donut shop for dinner. You should come along. 

xo,

         Lauren 

A Very Sunny Thanksgiving

I know I grew up in South Carolina, but no one ever told me how gorgeous it was! Leaving for a few years made me so grateful for this bright blue sky and gratuitous sunshine. Or maybe it was Cleveland's Lake Effect Clouds. Either way, I was in awe of today's beautiful weather - spent celebrating life with my wonderful parents, brothers, fiance, aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandfather.

I was always the tall big sister, but look at how tiny I look next to my baby brothers!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. If you're reading this, chances are I'm pretty grateful for you, too.

xo

I've been quiet.

Only because I've been having a great time:

I've been hanging with my puppy.

I've been finding pretty landscapes.

I've been baking cookies. I recently made it my personal goal to make the best Chocolate Chip Cookies...ever.

(John made me promise not to give anyone the recipe. Not kidding. He also requested that our wedding cake be CCC.)

I made delicious Halloween treats.

We also dressed as a neon-and-denim-on-denim-with-sneakers couple for Halloween. We had a party entitled "No Child Left Behind" and were instructed to dress as our favorite childhood memory. We were the '80s. I had scrunchies galore, and John looked like the Asian Zack Morris. The best thing about is that we had friends nearby! and a party! with great people! YAY. It's so great being here.

One Thing I Know

SC is seriously gorgeous.