Breaks, Boots, & Birthdays

Someone please help a girl out and tell me how it is already NOVEMBER!

I would also like someone to tell me why every week of my miserable years in middle school/high school felt like a century, and every week of my awesome years in college feels like one day.

I have been dying to blog, but I just haven't had any time! So let me catch you up on my silly, beautiful life.

1) My first time going home this semester was the beginning of October during my fall break. I drove home on an early Thursday morning and secretly stopped at the airport to pick up JT. My parents had NO idea, and we had been keeping it a secret for a week or two. They were already excited about me finally being able to come home, so I knew they would be ecstatic when they realized they were going to have all three of their babies under the same roof for the long weekend. For Dad, he hid under pillows and blankets. For Mom, JT was waiting around the corner and I told Mom I had brought home a friend who needed a place to stay. Technically, I wasn't lying. She thought I secretly had a boyfriend. Go figure. JT can't usually come home any time other than Christmas and summer, so they were beyond excited and so surprised. It was a weekend filled with Cacibauda chaos: football game, band contest, celebrating Dad's birthday, and visiting family. We laughed and ate so much, the two things we do best. There is nothing I love more than having all five of us together. I am so blessed to have a close-knit family that truly loves being together. It was a perfect and much needed weekend!

2) Do you ever have those moments where you talk yourself into something? You know, eating that extra cupcake even though you shouldn't. Or watching another episode of How I Met Your Mother when you know you should be writing your paper. Or talking yourself into wearing heels for 14 hours.

I'm young! I already wore these high-heeled, leather boots for 6 hours during tailgating/the football game, but I can wear them out to Sig Ep tonight! It will be fine. They don't hurt that bad and I may not even stay out that late. These are my glory days! I'm young! I'm free! I can do anything!

Yeah.. um.. no. Thanks to my "glory days" pep talk, I'm wearing this until at least Christmas.

CHRISTMAS. I thought this was going to be a two week kind of thing. They originally had me on crutches, but I went back after 24 hours and demanded a boot.

I had my first follow-up appointment and he said it already takes a long time for an Achilles tendon to heal, but it's going to take even longer since I'm such an active person. So.. there's that. I had a mini panic attack over the fact that I can't exercise. This is a very serious problem since cooking/baking/eating is a top priority in Casa de Cacibauda. ESPECIALLY around the holidays. If you think I'm exaggerating, let me just tell you that instead of putting "live, laugh, love" on cute family things, my mom puts "eat, laugh, love." Dead serious. So, lots of fun times with the boot. Never a dull moment around here!

3) My little sister is 17. And a senior in high school. Did you hear me? MY LITTLE SISTER IS 17 YEARS OLD AND IS GRADUATING IN MAY. (She's graduating a year early. Just in case you are confused.) I know she's only two and a half years younger than me, but I think I just pretend she is way younger. I forget that she's all grown up. She watches rated R movies, goes out with her friends, DRIVES HER OWN CAR. She's 17. She gets in a car with a BOY and goes to prom and occasionally thinks our parents are trying to ruin her life. She's old. It's weird.

November 1995

Having a sister is one of those things that no one else really understands unless they have a sister too. I didn't really know you could love and care about someone so much and want to wring their neck at the same time.

November 1995

Zoe and I used to fight ALL. THE. TIME. She's being mean to me! She called me a mean name. She gave me that and then TOOK IT BACK! SHE'S AN INDIAN GIVER! Moooommmm, she just called me an Indian giver! 

Summer 2000?

We fought over everything, but always made up when we realized we were the only two people in our room and we both needed someone to play with. I'm pretty sure I'm so good at sharing because I was forced to share a room with Zoe for 10 years, which meant I also had to share my toys/clothes/shoes/hair things/everything. Having a sister means all of your stuff is pretty much fair game.

October (I don't know the year)

Having a sister that looks A LOT like you also means people will always think you are twins. Even Zoe thought we were twins when we were little. She was confused and heart broken when I went off to Kindergarten and she didn't get to go too. We used to roll our eyes every time someone would say, "Oh! Are you girls twins?!" But I don't really mind hearing it anymore. Zoe is flawless. If people think I look like her, it's a compliment.

April 2009

I just don't see the resemblance.. :)

Having a sister that looks like you also comes in handy on "Twin Day" during spirit week in high school. If nothing else, it was worth keeping her around for that, right?

September 2010

More than all of that though, having a sister means having the bestest friend in the entire world for life. Everything my parents ever said about my siblings being my best friends is true. It's like having built-in best friends. All of my childhood memories include her by my side. Literally. We were basically attached at the hip. We did the same things and wore the same outfits in different colors.

We were a team. We are a team. I could kill her sometimes, but I'd kill for her in a heartbeat. It's usually the younger sister that's supposed to envy the older sister, but I have always envied her. She has beautiful, perfect curls and a radiant smile that lights up an entire room. She can pull off any kind of outfit, and I always tell people I have ELBOMS (Everything Looks Better On My Sister) Syndrome. Everything is just so much better when she's around.

September 2012

I couldn't imagine having to go through life without a sister. Without MY sister. I love having full conversations with pictures/emojis. I love walking out of my room in the mornings when I'm home and hearing her sarcastically say, "You look cute," and knowing it's said with love. Mostly. I love that she always lets me sleep with her when we hear a noise upstairs or watch something scary. And I really love having her closet to raid when I don't have anything to wear.

But mostly I just love her.

Happy Birthday, my sweet ZoZo! I couldn't ask for a better sister and best friend. I absolutely cannot wait for you to live in Starkville next fall! We are going to do SO MANY FUN ACTIVITIES.

I love you. Oh, and please don't kill me for the old pictures. They are cute!

:)