HP Summer Re-Read

Home. I'm home. Saturday I left sunny, beautiful, warm Florida and ended up back in good 'ol Indiana at midnight.

I'm actually not quite as sad as I thought I'd be or as sad as I was last year. There are probably a hundred reasons for that, but I think one is that I still have so many exciting things and trips this summer to look forward to. St. Louis for a Cardinals game on July 5th, then Vegas July 10th-14th, then who knows! I might throw another fun getaway in there. Never can tell.

This post isn't going to be a vacation recap or anything of the sort. I don't have the energy to do that and honestly, it would make for a boring post. We didn't do anything particularly spectacular, but we did do a lot of beach time, a lot of soccer watching, and a lot of nothing. My oh my, have I grown to love the concept of "doing nothing".

 Glorious. 

my happy place

Instead, we're gonna chat about something I started while on vacation.
I mentioned, oh back in April-ish? So long ago that I don't remember the post I mentioned it in, BUT I did mentioned in the Spring that I had big, big plans to re-read the Harry Potter series this summer.

It had been almost 10 years since I'd read the first 3 books and probably 6 or 7 years since I'd read the last 4. Too long. I had relied far too heavily on the movies to take me back to Hogwarts through the years. Wonderful movies that I love and cherish and watch so, so, so often, BUT as (hopefully) anyone will tell you - The books are better.

It seemed after I mentioned I was going to re-read the books that many, many of you commented and said you too would love to read them again. I've noticed recently several of you have stuck with that declaration and started reading them along with me. Which made me happier than a house elf receiving a dirty sock!

I just finished The Chamber of Secrets and I've been posting Instagram photos of myself reading the books again. I'm using the hashtag #HPsummerReRead on the Instagrams.

Now, I'd like anyone who is reading them or who has just been convinced to read them again to use that hashtag so I can find you and we can gush over Harry together! Because I for one had almost forgotten how wonderful and fabulous this series actually was. Spoiler Alert: It's wonderful and fabulous. Always.

You Just Found Out..

I'm way more excited and into today's post than I probably should be, but I DON'T CARE. Today's post is so full of fabulousness that I had to call in back up - My CEOs.

The CEOs of The Best Of Intentions this month are -

>>Sarah from Sarah's Spiel. She's the Queen of GIFs and she came up with the idea for and co-hosted the Honey Roast that we did a few months back. She's fabulous, fabulous, fabulous.

>>Erin from Love, Fun and Football. The Queen of Debt Destroying. Yea, that's a thing. She kind of does it all - She loves football, which rocks, she's a runner, which is awesome, she constantly gives tips and tricks for anything, which is my favorite. She's fantassssstic.

Now that introductions are out of the way, let's talk about this post. I had some friends come up with random and a little big ridiculous scenarios that started with "You just found out.." and the three of us (sarah, erin, and myself) are going to answer the scenarios using GIFs. This turned out way better than I expected..

1. You just found out Jillian Michaels is going to be your workout instructor. 
ERIN-

SARAH-

"Before"

"After"

ME-

2. You just found out Twitter is going to be down for 24 hours.
ERIN-

SARAH-

ME-

3. You just found out Pluto is actually a planet again.
ERIN-

SARAH-

ME-

4. You just found out that you have to give a speech at an upcoming high school reunion.
ERIN-

SARAH-

ME-

5. You just found out that someone published your diary.
ERIN-

SARAH-

"i'm a blogger, my diary is out there, people!"

ME-

I could probably do a post like this once a week with these girls and still not be satisfied. Make sure you guys go give Erin and Sarah some love! Follow them on Twitter (Erin and Sarah) and Instagram (Erin and Sarah), etc. etc. You won't be disappointed!! I love them!

And if YOU would like to get in on these fun posts, you can become my CEO too! WINK. WINK. 
Also, the USA is playing TODAY! Get your drink on and play my World Cup drinking game. Your boss will understand, no worries. GO USA!!
Til next time, folks..

World Cup Drinking Game

Occasionally my friends have goods ideas, but only occasionally.

Lately I've been watching a lot of soccer. The World Cup is going on right now, in case you missed that memo. I happen to like soccer. A few years ago I took a 24 hour road trip to see IU play in and WIN the NCAA Soccer Championship. I won't pretend to be a huge soccer fan, by any means, but I do enjoy it and to me, the World Cup is a little like the Olympics. I get really hooked on the Olympics every year, but do I watch curling and swimming all of the time outside of the Olympics? No, but I get obsessed with them during the Olympics just the same. So, that's my take on this World Cup. I love it because I can cheer on the USA and I don't hate soccer to begin with.

Now that we've gotten that unfortunately necessary paragraph out of the way, let's move on to today's post. Like I said, sometimes my friends have good ideas and over the weekend one of my friends and I were texting and what started as a joke turned into a drinking game for the World Cup. Because what goes better with patriotism than beer and vodka?

I've edited out some of our silly stuff (originally we had a 5 shot minimum for someone streaking) and made it a little more streamline.

I made sure that you can use these for any of the World Cup games, not just a USA game!

A few rules not listed:

• Your team must be declared before game play starts. 
• If 5 game minutes go by without giving you a reason to drink, you drink.
• Your team wins, Shot.

ENJOY! And let me know if you use it!
The USA plays again tomorrow vs. Germany! The USA needs a win or a draw to advance, so get excited everyone! If you want more info on other matches click here.
Ps. GO USA!

Laying Down Facts - Harry Potter Facts

If you've been reading this blog for any amount of time, then you know I'm a fan of Harry Potter and anything that mentions him. Last year when I was in Florida I even went to Universal Studies and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter (ten reasons you need to go here). I love HP, the books and the movies. This summer while I'm on vacation here in Florida, I've started rereading the series.

So today, Amanda from Peaches in Missouri offered to come on the blog and allow me to spend one more day not doing blog things and rereading Harry instead. Three cheers for Amanda! Bonus, she's talking all things Harry Potter! 

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Kay is working on her tan in sunny Florida right now, and I'm stuck here in boring Missouri hoping the rainy weather in the forecast is a lie. But rainy weather is good for relaxing with a good book. I know Kay is planning to read the Harry Potter series again this summer (I am too!), so I thought I would share with you some interesting tidbits and quotes from the books and movies.

Via Pinterest

::: The tale of the Deathly Hallows was based on The Pardoner’s Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer.

::: Hedwig shares her name with two famous saints. One is Saint Hedwig of Andechs, a former duchess noted for her benevolence and compassionate nature. The other is Saint Hedwig, Queen of Poland.

via Pinterest

::: Only Alan Rickman, the actor who played Professor Snape, knew his character’s fate before the release of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” because Rowling told him.

via Pinterest

::: M.O. McGonagall is listed on one of the Quidditch trophies shown Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Perhaps Professor McGonagall may have been a Quidditch player when she was a student? It would certainly explain her enthusiasm for the sport.

via

::: When Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was released in the UK, the publisher asked stores not to sell the book until schools were closed for the day to prevent students from skipping class to purchase it.

via Pinterest

::: The name Voldemort comes from the French phrase "vol de mort" meaning “flight/theft of death.” The french pronunciation makes the "t" silent. So we've been pronouncing his name wrong this entire freaking time!

Via Pinterest

::: Cedric Diggory got his last name from the first name of the professor in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis.

::: Because so many fans visited King’s Cross station to take pictures of platforms 9 and 10, the station management erected a sign that says “Platform 9 ¾” and underneath it half a luggage trolley like it's going through the wall. I've been there!!

::: Voldemort cannot love because he was conceived under the effects of a Love Potion.

Via Pinterest

::Snape is the only Death Eater that was able to produce a Patronus.

If you haven't read the books, I sincerely suggest that you do. It's a captivating story and there are so many great lessons to be learned. Since my books are still packed up in my storage unit in Georgia, I am going to download the digital versions for my Kindle and get started this very afternoon! What are your favorite Harry Potter moments?

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She's pretty great, right? You can follow her using all of the links below! I recommend her x1000!!!

Twitter // Instagram // Bloglovin // Facebook

Celebrating Differences In Blogland

A few weeks ago I put it out there that if anyone wanted to help a sister out and write a quick guest post for me while I was on vacation that I'd be a #happygirl. Laurie was the first to tweet me back, the first to email me, and then the first to send her post. 

I can't make this stuff up.. She rocks my socks off. Go be her best friend.

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Hello hello Best of Intentions readers! I'm Laurie and I blog over at andiamo (grammatical errors and all  - sorry Kay!). On paper Miss Kay and I might not seem to have too much in common, however I am here to debunk all of that. Based solely on this post here, with Kay explaining why she doesn't fit in with the blog world (to which I say au contraire mon ami).

I begin.

Kay is not married and yet, I am. To this guy. How we met is actually kind of interesting. It involved me informing him to shit or get off the pot. Just to clear up any confusion about my level of classy. I read plenty of single lady blogs. Some of my favorites actually. I dig them.

Kay does not have a kid, and yet here I am guilty as charged. Again. Stick with me this post idea gets better. I have two little humans that I am in charge of and yes, I do write about them most of the time because they are most of my time. I won't bore you with kid details because I feel ya. Not everyone likes kids.

Kay doesn't have a furrbaby. Okay. Now neither do I! While Kay would love a puppy I will venture out on a limb and risk blog suicide to admit that I do not want a furrbaby. Some people don't like kids. I don't like.... you guessed it!

We are both not photographers. For the first four months of my blog's life my iPhone was all I had. I sort of dug my heels in at first and insisted that was perfect and, here's the kicker, that you couldn't even tell it was only iPhone photos. I still think that actually. But for my 30th birthday I was gifted a nice little camera by all my friends and family and now I can simply pretend. And pretend I do.

Kay and I do not like The Bachelor. I'm not even going to apologize for this one. I just don't get it. And I never have.

Kay doesn't like any of the Real Housewives. Well now I do... or I should say I used to. NYC, NJ, OC and Beverly Hills, oh yes how I did enjoy. But now I really don't. I am annoyed more often than entertained and so I think that ship has sailed.

Kay and I curse. I make quite the effort to keep the language under wraps on my blog, and I pretty much succeed... but beware. If you meet me in real life I shall be quite the dirty-mouthed little creature. I have also taken to spelling in front of the kids because I have a parrot for a daughter. So in other words I was a pirate in a prior life.

Kay and I can't put an outfit together. A fashion blogger I shall never ever pretend to be. I wear leggings or yoga pants with a good ole sports bra most of the time and I prefer it that way. I do own a pair of Hunter boots though so I figure that gets me a few points in trying to sit at the cool table in the blog cafeteria.

Kay says she isn't really that funny but I disagree with you miss. I do. Everyone is their own worst critic I suppose. But I find you entertaining. I hope to be entertaining. The jury is still out.

Kay and I are not from the South. Indiana for Kay.. Central Pennsylvania for me. To read about how interesting it is to live in PA check this out. It's all true. My daughter might even join the Amish Order.

Kay and I are not obsessed with Starbucks. I had never had a PSL (that's a Pumpkin Spice Latte for anyone else not in the know, as I was too last fall) until this past year. So I decided I had to hop on the bandwagon and get one. It was okay. I lived. I prefer my coffee in kcup form and my money in my pocket. 

Kay and I refuse to comment on every single post that we read. I can't! I read most posts on my phone and commenting on a phone just really isn't easy. I read far too many blogs to comment on each one each day, even though I would love to do that because who doesn't love a comment right?

Kay and I don't take enough selfies. I did this Blogtember thing last year and one post prompt was to take a selfie. It took me 23 attempts to get one photo I didn't hate. Ain't nobody got time for that.

Other reasons I don't fit in? I own nothing chevron, my nails chip practically the day I paint them, my only make up item I use religiously is Chapstick, I only blow dry my hair a few times a year, and this is how seriously I take my topknots.

So the list goes on and on.... and on. But that's the great thing about blogging right? We each read the blogs we love for the person behind the blog, in celebration of their differences, not because they are all the same. 

Thanks for having me today Kay and Best of Intentions readers!

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Speechless. 
First of how beautiful is this girl? Like.. what?! And then she had to go and make me laugh? I'm just saying that I think we need to be best friends. That's all. Also, her children.. CUTENESS OVERLOAD.
HUGE thank you to her for giving me a day off of blogging while I'm loving my life in my happy place! NSB, Florida.. Forever and forever!

Life's Greatest Mysteries

I'm on a plane (I'm on a plane)
I'm on a plane (I'm on a plane)
Everybody look at me cause I'm flying on a plane!

I miss when this song was played every weekend at every party and on every boat on the lake. Sigh.. I've just decided I'm going to give it a comeback.

So today's post, right. Let's get back on track. Basically sometimes my brain takes me to places that are confusing to normal people, it's a gift and a curse, really. I started thinking of one thing and then this little list just snowballed and my thumbs were moving a mile a minute because I was trying to get all of this down in my Notes app on my phone before I forgot any of it.
Life's mysteries.. 

1. Where do we get the names for things? For instance, why is a book called a "book". Who decided to put those vowels and consonants together and form the word book? And why do we call a book a book? Why don't we call it a "fan"? Who decided what gets called what? And what, so everyone is just supposed to follow that one person who decides that a book is a book?

2. While we're on the subject, who named Earth? Right? Who decided that? A committee or just one person? Was it like a dictatorship thing?

3. Who decided that the alphabet was the alphabet? Who put the letters in that order and decided that's how it was going to be for forever? I'm not talking just in English either. In all languages there is an alphabet and the letters go in a specific order. Who decided that? That's a big responsibility, right?

4. Who decided "fuck" was a bad word? Why is it a really big deal when someone says that? What makes that word worse than "table"? Is it what is behind the word? Like "fuck" means "sex" so it's bad? But we can say "sex".. just not "fuck"? I'm not saying Voldemort or anything here, just fuck, but I'm getting crucified.

5. Why are mid-season finales a thing?

6. What went through Michael Jordan's head when he said "YES" to making Space Jam? Don't get me wrong, I watched Space Jam last night for the 1st time in years and loved every gosh darn second of it. I'm just saying, why in the hell did Michael Jordan agree to make this movie? I just.. don't understand. I love it, but I don't understand. Side Note: I still get pumped the heck up when they start playing "I believe I can flyyyyyy"

7. Why are there people who round down when figuring out the cost of something? The sticker price says $3.99, so my head automatically rounds up to $4, because.. obviously, right? But there are people in my life who say "Hey, this book is $3.99.. Can you believe they're selling this for $3?!".. Well, no I can't believe it.. because they aren't. Didn't you learn rounding in like 2nd grade? Come on now, man! Round up, ROUND. UP.

actual photo i took to send to someone as a reference for a homemade beer bong. i'm a little ashamed, but also not.

8. When your tv remote isn't working correctly, usually because the battery is about to die, why do we press really hard on the buttons like that is going to fix the problem? Everyone does it and it makes no sense. There is no direct correlation between pressing so hard our finger turns white and the remote/battery working more effectively. The battery is dead, but instead of changing it I'm just going to sit here and bang the remote on my hand a few times and then press hard enough to pop my knuckle pressing the volume up button.

9. Why do children between the ages of 9-13 have Twitters and Instagrams? Do you know what I see them tweet? Things like "omg fist me" to their favorite male celebrity. Excuse you? Do you even understand what you just said? Also, why are you saying that to him? You look creepy. When I was 9 I loved N*Sync, but I never asked JT to fist me. I'm 1,000% sure I didn't even know what fisting was.

10. Where are their parents? ^

11. Why do people not use their turn signals when they are about to turn? Hmmm? Why? WHY?! I think bad thoughts about those people. Angry, emo thoughts.

12. Why do I open my mouth as wide as possible when I'm applying mascara? Seriously, I've tried not to do it, but I can't. I open my mouth so wide I look like I'm giving..


Okay, that's enough for today. If you have any mysterious life questions that you don't have an answer for, leave them in the comments below and mayyyybe I'll add them to a Part 2 of this post. Because I have SO MANY QUESTIONS.

Also, to follow along on my vacation follow me on Instagram - @MissKayStoll. Just do it, don't make me beg..

Take a picture, triiiick. I'm on a plane, biiiitch.