Sometimes, I get bitter.

Dear readers,

For those of you keeping score (and I know you at home are), I've been to 7 weddings this year. SEVEN. I have one more coming up in October. And I was invited to one that I couldn't attend, bringing this year's grand total to nine invites and eight actual weddings

That, my friends, is a lot of weddings.

(Here's where I become a bit vulnerable and bitter so if you don't want to read about that, feel free to continue to the bottom of this post. I'll leave something warm and fuzzy for you down there.)

It's ROUGH going to that many weddings. Let me rephrase. It's ROUGH going to that many weddings when you're single. Let me rephrase one more time. It's ROUGH going to that many weddings when you're single and it feels like everyone else is not. It's like at weddings, all the married people come out of the woodwork or something. Married people have this sensor where they know someone else is joining their elite, special group and so they show up. To make it very obvious that they are married. And you are not.

(See? Bitter and vulnerable. Two things I don't like being. Whatever. This blog is for growth and stuff.)

But then I have to remember that these two people I love are taking the biggest step of their lives thus far. And they wanted to include me in their day. Whether the guest list had 150 or 450, I made the cut! What an honor to witness two people who love each other very much, making a public declaration of that love in front of others.

I got to see that this weekend with my dear friends Aaron and Andrea. I'm obviously somewhat of a wedding connoisseur and I have to say, this was one of my favorites. The dress, the boutonnieres, the flowers, the location--I could gush on and on. It was absolutely beautiful, outdoors next to a stream just outside of Harrisonburg, Virginia. A-squared (cute name, yes?) made their family an integral part of the service, and that just reflected them so much. And they had a barn dance reception! Not that I'm a well-known barn dancer (in fact, I never got up on the dance floor), but it was quite entertaining.

If you have invited me to your wedding, please know that I loved being there! Sometimes, I get bitter. But most (95%) times, I'm thankful, honored, blessed and a million other positive adjectives to be a part of your wedding day. They've each been beautiful, and I'ved boogie-ing the night away with each of you to celebrate your marriage. I've REALLY loved that part. The Cha Cha slide is my specialty.

That being said, I can't wait until November. Six months wedding free! Of course, I'll be ordering a bridesmaid dress and planning a bridal shower and all of those fun things. What good is wedding season if you can't be in a least one bridal party?

Oh--as promised, your warm and fuzzy:

If only I waited two more days...

I could have claimed a solid 5 months of no blogging. But then I realized that would make me a very, very bad blogger. So here goes a blog, LESS than five months after my last post!

A lot has happened in the past five months. They have flown. My sister & her family surprised my mom for Christmas. I can't for the life of me remember what I did in January, but I'm sure I had fun. February was a visit to my sister & a week of watching my niece. In March I turned 23, and my housemates and coworkers all made me feel very loved. Those three months--they went quickly.

April...April, I remember a lot better. My friends got married! Erika and Eric were married on April 9, and it was beautiful. It was such a wonderful chance to catch up with some of my closest friends. I spent the remainder of that weekend in Waynesburg, enjoying the parks and all of the green space on campus. What a beautiful, relaxing day that was.

That Monday, I was honored to be a panelist at the kickoff event for the Waynesburg University Department of Communication's PR Week. I, along with two other young alumni, gave brief presentations and honest, frank answers about being a young person in the field. It was so great to be able to give back to my alma matter in that way. The students, mostly freshmen, were quite engaged and asked excellent questions. Props to those students, and the WU PRSSA chapter, for being such great hosts.

April 15 was a big day for PULSE! We had our annual event, PULSEations, at Union Project. I was blessed enough to have friends, family AND coworkers attend the celebration, where we revealed some pretty big news...PULSE is adding a second house! We are expanding into neighboring Garfield, which will provide such an opportunity to continue our mission of cultivating young servant leaders to transform Pittsburgh. (PS...want to read about us? Check out former PULSEr/current PULSE board member/super cool person/friend Kate Stoltzfus' blog, Yinzpiration! You can even peek into our house!)

May has been exciting thus far. The Pirates, despite their best efforts, were one game over .500! What a glorious 24 hours that was. We're now one below that miracle number, but I bet we'll get there again. If not this year, maybe next. In the first three weeks.

A lot of people have been asking me about next year, and rightfully so. PULSE "graduation" is coming nearer every day. I have some exciting prospects, which I'm not quite ready to share with the world just yet. Know that I'm excited and confident that God is making some cool things happen for me here in the 'Burgh.

Quick story time: when I graduated from high school, my family came from far & wide to celebrate. After my party, a group of us gathered at my grandmother's house to continue celebrating. My cousin Ruth and her daughter Charlotte, both residents of Manhattan, were there. We showed Charlotte a postcard of New York City and asked her what it was. Her response? "My city!". That's how I feel about Pittsburgh, every time I see it.

What is Pittsburgh? It's my city. I've recently come to realize that my passion is this place and the people who live here. I want everyone to love this place as much as I do, and I want to commit my life to making that happen.

So here we are--one blog post down. Promise I won't make you wait 5 months for another.