April 17th.

Today is one of those days where it smacks you in the face. It hurts but it's necessary.

I've been sitting in my bed crying my eyes out. My heart is broken and hurting. I'm here all alone trying to figure out what I'm feeling.

Today would be my Grandma Bee's birthday, the anniversary of my Granddad Roger's death, and the passing of sweet Ricardo. That's a lot for one heart to take.

With my brother having his surgery coming up; it brought up a bunch of feelings and lots of tears today.

Regret. Regret is a feeling that I've been scared of having lately. I'm so scared that I'll life a live of not doing what I want. I'm scared that I'll keep staying in one place and not take those risks. I don't want to live with regrets.

Life is too short to spend the whole time working and being an adult.

We are meant for so much more. It infuriates me that we are told/expected/made to work 8 hours a day. We are on this beautiful planet for a short amount of time and we spend most of it working. We should be spending more time with our friends and family doing the things that make us happy. 

We work hard for our families and for the little moments of travel, vacations, or days off. We barely get to enjoy our time together. Work doesn't always stay at work. It finds ways to come home and creep into family lives.

Lately, my eyes have been opened to what society wants us to do. I have been out of college for nearly a year and the "real world" has been revealed to me. Quite frankly, I find it stupid. I don't want to spend 40+ hours a week working and barely having time to do anything else. I don't like that my parents, who teach, spend more time at school than they do at home. I don't like that my parents spend more time with other people's children than they do their own two; even though Andersen and I are adults. I don't like that we spend more time to at work than with each other. 

I find it infuriating that the vacation and personal days are so limited. Yet, I'm the one that doesn't use them. I try to save them all up and use them for ONE week during the year to spend with my family. I should be taking a day here and a day there to go home and see the people that mean the most to me. I'm going to change this. I don't know what that will look like. But this will not be my life for the rest of my time here on this planet.

I know that this is short. But my heart has been broken the past few days for this world and I needed to get this off my chest.

Here I go again on my own.

If you can tell me where my title came from, I'll give you a gold star. 

It's been over a year since my last post. I figured it was time to change it. I'm sitting in the middle seat on a 737 coming back from a weekend in Houston and I have plenty of time to think and write. A lot has changed in this past year. I mean, A LOT HAS CHANGED. 

For starters, I graduated from WTAMU with two degrees. One in Mass Communications and the other in Education with a teacher certification for EC - 6. A whole five years for an expensive piece of paper. But by golly, I am dang proud of that paper! I worked my tail off and successfully had dreams come true. 

I've also moved to Arlington and began working for the National Association of Church Design Builders or NACDB because we have the longest name in history. My official title is Administrator but I'm wearing about 13 different hats and doing so much more. I've also began working for a realtor on the side to do some social media. I also tutor a high school freshmen in all subjects.

Many of you already know all of these things but I thought it was time to update others on my whereabouts and my life. 

These past 6 months...WAIT WHAT? 6 months? I find it incredibly hard to believe that I have been living in the big city for 6 months. Some days it feel like I've been here for all of my life and then other days it feels like I just moved. It's been a crazy 6 months but I have loved every minute of it. 

I'll be honest. There were a few times when I thought I couldn't do it. It was extremely hard to be all alone in a new place. I had g gotten plugged into my church yet and thought my world was ending. I took a big risk when I moved. I left everything and everyone behind to pursue my dream. Part of that dream has come true; the other part of still in progress and will be for a long time. I was asked recently if I regret leaving Canyon...HECK NO. Let me clarify, I absolutely love Canyon and every person there. It was a perfect five years there but now, it's on to bigger things. I've been single for quite sometime (still am single) and thought this opportunity was perfect. I'm not tied down to anyone or have to worry about taking care of another person. I've always been independent and a do it on my own kind of girl, that has really been put to the test down here.

But, when you get to Globe Life Park every single day for work it makes the transition easier. I've found a great church that has a perfect group for kids my age. I still don't like the word adult. I don't feel like one, so I refuse to be called one. 

Each day is a brand new adventure and I don't know what it will hold, but I look forward to what it has to bring. 

I don't really know anymore.

Fair warning...this blog is all over the place and very sportsy. You were warned. 

Well, it's started. The questions of what I'm going to do when I graduate. PEOPLE, I HAVE NO IDEA. I have no idea what I'm going to do tomorrow, what makes you think I know what I'm going to do for the rest of my life.

But, I will tell you this. It will be BIG. I will make a difference in this world and I will make a name for myself. A name that people will know; a name that will make my parents proud; a name that will make anyone who knows me proud.

Enough talking about adulthood. That's a scary topic that I will continue to avoid until April or maybe even May. 

BUBBIE! He's the coolest kid I know and will always talk sports with me! Love you brother! 

In case anyone missed it; I LOVE SPORTS. It's ridiculous how much I love sports. My perfect Saturday is spent on the couch watching football and yelling at the TV. If baseball is on at the same time; it's even better!! I forget how to girl when I'm watching sports. I start hooping and hollering as if they can actually here me. I can be one of the worst people to watch sports with.....

My whole family loves sports. During March Madness, we all have our own brackets (like 3 or 4 each) and we all have our own TVs. We each are watching a different game and yelling across the house at each other especially if our team is winning. If your team didn't win...be prepared to have it rubbed in your face for the next three weeks. My senior year of high school, I chose Duke (like I do every year) to win...AND THEY DID!! My dad and brother didn't talk to me for like 3 weeks. 

So since my parents are kinda crazy awesome, they surprised us with MEN'S FINAL FOUR tickets this year. A once in a lifetime opportunity to see some of the best athletes compete. It seemed like we had talked about doing this for so long, that it didn't seem real. It was the best weekend!! Even if we did miss my cousin's wedding....sorry Cameron and Kaylee. But sports come first...RIGHT AFTER JESUS...Jesus is always first and then sports.

Back to my craziness; Derek Holland made his season debut last night and it was the most amazing thing. I have been waiting all season to say this...THE DUTCHSTACHE RETURNS. He pitched well and looked comfortable, confident, and controlled  on the mound. He look like the 2011 World Series pitcher again. Not only did he pitch well, he also played for a young man named Briggs Berry. Briggs is battling a rare form of cancer and became friends with Derek. Holland played with Briggs name written on his cleats. So me being me, I began to read about Briggs. Let me tell you, homeboy is awesome. This rare disease took his brothers life and now it's trying to take his. I'm pretty sure that Briggs will kick this disease's butt! I'm praying for you, Briggs! Last night was a new start for both Derek and Briggs. 

Like I said, I kinda like sports...just a little bit. 

OH and JJ Watt signed a HUGE extension on Monday. We get MegaWatt for 6 more years, 6 MORE YEARS!!! I was having a pretty terrible day until I read the article about Watt. Then to find out that he showed up at 4 am for workout. Can we just give him MVP now? He has earned his new contract and proves that he deserves every single penny. Watt has a saying that he lives by and I'll be adopting this now. DREAM BIG WORK HARD. He's living proof that hard work will get you places. 

Oh. Let's just add to my awkwardness shall we. Today, I pinky promised a person that I don't even know while he was eating cotton candy. My life hasn't been too awkward lately and it's been so nice!! I can be normal but I highly doubt that it will last long.

Here's some proof that I know how to be a girl...sometimes. Look at that curled hair and make up! ;)

Happy Wednesday y'all! :) Keep being beautiful and God bless!

Whether I'm ready or not...it's here.

A new school year is here and I'm not quite sure if I'm ready or how I feel about it. 

I am starting my 5th year at WTAMU. What!? I'm suppose to be graduated and have a real job, right?! Uh no. When I first realized that it was going to take me an extra year; I become very bitter. Most of my friends had already graduated, moved, or got married. And I was stuck here in Canyon. This made my summer very hard and very frustrating. 

But, I was able to spend my summer watching students that I gave tours to, register for classes and become Buffaloes. It was a very humbling and amazing experience to be a part of.

I realized that I was meant to be here and I needed to be here for these students. I needed to see their faces when they official became Buffs. I now know that I was meant to be here this summer. 

Since I was here all summer for New Student Orientation, I wasn't able to do much this summer. I spent most of my time at home or at work. I can't complain too much because I got to watch a lot of ESPN and baseball. 

Saying I watched a lot of baseball is an understatement. THAT'S ALL I WATCHED. I watched several sports movies as well. I found that I really REALLY like hockey. 

I mean, have you seen those hockey players!? I remembered how to girl then. The Dallas Stars roster is FULL of beautiful people (majority of them took the ice bucket challenge) who I would love to meet. :) The Chicago Blackhawks have a very nice roster as well. 

But I know, without a shadow of doubt, that if I ever met one of them...I would die. I wouldn't know how to act. 

That became very apparent this summer. A very polite gentleman complimented my eyes, and I froze. I had to stand there for a good 15 seconds and scramble for an answer. I finally managed to say thank you. *face to palm*

I forgot how to girl.

This isn't just a phase.

I guess that I should give an introduction. 

My name is Alexandria Gruhlkey and I'm a 22 year old Super Senior (fifth year) at WTAMU. I'm studying Mass Communications and Elementary education. I have absolutely no clue as to what I want to do when I graduate. Here is a list if all the things I want to do: I want to teach, I want to work for WT, I want to work for the Dallas Stars, I want to work for the Texas Rangers, and ESPN Dallas. There's so much that I want to do and I have no clue where to start.

I LOVE sports. Always have and always will. I mean my birth announcement was a basketball. Basketball was my first love and was my escape for everything. Football was a close second but now baseball has completely taken over my heart. Sports are my life and how I connect to people. The Texas Rangers, Dallas Stars, Chicago Blackhawks, and the Houston Texans are my favorite teams. One of the cool things about me being a fan of a team; is that I'm a fan for life....or until the other team gets a cuter defensive line. 

GO STARS!

But, sports can be my downfall. I get so attached to teams that when they lose, I cry. This love of sports has also caused me to become "one of the guys." 

Sometimes I forget how to girl. 

I watch ESPN constantly and know way too many useless facts about random things. I could totally win a game show with the amount of random knowledge that I have. One day it will be very helpful to me of I'm ever held hostage and they force me to answer trivia. 

Now to the good stuff...a past adventure that completely shaped my future. 

So, this whole forgetting how to girl thing isn't an awkward phase that I'm going through. I've been living it to the fullest my entire life. When I was little, there were these 4 brothers (the Shelburne boys) and I was in love with every single one them. If you asked me who my boyfriend, it was always going to be one of the brothers. You just never knew which one. The oldest three boys had my dad as a teacher and the youngest would ride bikes with me. I'm pretty sure he taught me how me how to ride a bike. 

The boys would come over to get help with homework or just talk to my parents because they were the cool young hip people in town. (My parents are friends with all of my friends, I have to SHARE my friends with my parents. I think there's something wrong with that.) Anyway, the boys would come over and I would hid behind our rocking chair and peek around the corner at them but I would never talk to them. I would just stare. WHAT NORMAL GIRL DOES THAT!?!

I had the most beautiful and kind boys in all of Muleshoe at my house and I hid. I HID I TELL YOU. I forgot how to girl. I'm starting to think that I never actually knew how to girl. Sometimes they would even tuck me in bed at night. For the longest time I legitimately thought I was going to marry one of them. I would have bet on it. It didn't matter to me that the oldest (sorry guys, Chris was my favorite) of them was 12 years older than me. I was determined to marry one of them! I shed a small tear when they all got married....

Oh, let's not forget the one time Chris came to school to eat with me when I was in the 1st grade. I was so shy and scared that I couldn't even look at him during lunch, I turned my back toward him and just nodded when he spoke to me. I will never forget that day. BEST DAY EVER. 

You know how there are those kinds of moments in your life and you are really really really embarrassed by...but you can't seem to forget them. I've been thinking about that lunch for over 12 years! Reliving that embarrassment over and over again. Something's are just mean to stay with us forever. 

Dear Shelburne boys, I hope that you read this and laugh as much as I did. Thank you all for being so sweet and kind to me all those years ago. You set an example and standard for all boys to live by. I compare those boys to you all. You all followed Christ and let Him shine through you. Thanks for being my "boyfriends" when I was 6 years old. I'll always have a soft spot for y'all. Congrats on beautiful and Christ-like families. I can only pray that my family is like y'all's one day. 

So thank you Chrostopher, Jeffery, Stephen, and Joshua. You boys were the bomb.com.  

With that being said, all you single fellows out there...I'm single, ready to mingle, and looking to share a Pringle. 

Just kidding....I don't share food. 

Share your stories with me. I'd love to hear about your adventures! And who knows, you just might make the blog! 

I should make a movie.

I've always said that I should write a book or make a movie of my life. Now, I'm going to do the next best thing...blog about it.

I started a blog three like summers ago and talked about snow cone flavors. It was a terrible attempt and I am forever reminded of my failure everytime I eat a snowcone. 

Then, I blogged about my internship for my summer class. It made me think that this is a good way for me to share on my adventures. 

Also, my best friends (Keagan and Levi) decided to move to Perryton for some career in teaching. I don't know...sounds like a grown up job to me. So I thought this would be a fun and different way to tell them about my adventures. Of course I will call, text, and visit them but this just seems like fun. 

Alright, so for those of you who know me; you know that I'm constantly followed by awkward and unfortunate situations. My life is just a big series of random (never going to happen to anyone else but me) events. 

To start things off I LOVE SPORTS. Especially baseball. The sports will be a recurring theme that most of you will probably get sick of. 

For example, yesterday (August 9th) my brother and I went to my first Frisco RoughRiders baseball game. Just guess who is pitching!? It's the @Dutch_Oven45, Derek Holland!! So naturally I do what any crazy girl would do....freak out! Just kidding, well only a little. I did not scream, I politely waved back as HE WAVED AT ME. But right before he waved, he walked past our seats and I almost missed it. MY LIFE IN ONE PHASE. I almost missed it. Thankfully I had my camera ready and...you know where this is going...someone, who shall remain nameless (Kyle Moore), text me! I almost missed it. I did miss the picture of him right In front of me. But a shot from behind will do just fine! 

     

Derek Holland is my favorite pitcher!! His Harry Caray impression is the most amazing thing I have ever seen. The fastest way to make me laugh is to show me that video. 

I have a tendency to be oblivious and because if that I miss a lot of things. 

     

     Tip from me: Boys, if you ever decide to flirt with me. Please wear a sign around your neck that completely details what you are doing. Otherwise I have no idea. Sometimes I forget how to girl. 

This is just the first post of many. I hope that many of you will laugh at my adventures. If you have any stories you would like to share where sometimes you forgot how to girl, please send them to me!