But for real though, when I was 10, I thought I was a soul skater, just like Brink. I remember digging out my blades and strapping them on in the morning to go to school. And when my mom would tell me I couldn't rollerblade to school, I'd respond with "When you woke up this morning, did you say 'today, I'm gonna talk' or 'today, I'm gonna skate'"? And yes, I got grounded for that. But it didn't matter, I was a soul skater.

About a two weeks ago ago, I completely fangirled over Stephanie's post over on her blog, Not Entirely Perfect, because I felt like I was instantly transported right back to 1996-ish. Granted, I was only 8 in 96, but the memories, oh the memories! That post inspired me to do two things: (1) watch Brink! immediately, and (2) look up where Erik Von Detten and all of my childhood friends idols ended up. We all know what happened to well-known kids like Ryan Gosling, Amanda Bynes, MaryKate and Ashley Olsen, Justin Timberlake, Hilarie Duff, Leo DiCaprio, Claire Danes and the like. But what about those kids that were on the covers of Teen Beat but never graduated to Teen Vogue?

Bug Hall -- Who doesn't remember the Alfalfa and Little Rascals? I seriously still quote this movie as an adult that's how much it's ingrained in my brain. Don't give me a dollar if you don't want me to sing. Besides guest starring on shows like Charmed, CSI and Cold Case, he's got quite a few movies coming out in 2014. Oh, and he's grown out of that awkward stage and is pretty cute now. Google him.

Ben Savage -- I wrote a post months ago about how I wanted to be Topanga from Boy Meets World so bad because my 8 year old self was pretty much in love with Cory Matthews (and because she was is stunning!). He was legit my first crush evar. Let's be real, he was a bit of a nerd, but he was also hilarious and pretty much the perfect boyfriend to Topanga. And now? Well, he's the perfect husband to Topanga in the BMW spin-off, Girl Meets World premiering this year.

Anna Chlumsky -- I probably watched My Girl over a dozen times as a kid. I loved it. And when I watch it back as an adult, I realize that Anna Chlumsky had acting chops for real. To be able to do those tough, more adult scenes like Thomas J's funeral and her crush on her teacher at that age, well, damn. With all that talent it's too bad she gave up acting in 1999. She's realized acting is her calling since then (duh, girl!), and has starred in 30 Rock, Law & Order, Covert Affairs and Veep, a role for which she was nominated for an Emmy in 2013.

Shari Lewis (Lamb Chop) -- I had to include Shari Lewis, because although she wasn't a kid star, she was freaking Lamb Chop! As a child, I was obsessed with Lamb Chop's Play-Along. When my dad gets to reminiscing down memory lane, this is usually his first stop. Judging from it's multiple Emmy wins (I'm talking every year it was broadcasted), I wasn't the only kid who loved the show. Sadly, Lewis passed in 1998, but we still have "this is the song that never ends, yes it goes on and on my friend". How fitting :)

Erik Von Detten -- Besides being the inspiration for this post basically, this skater boy stole my heart in Brink! (sorry, Cory) and I continued to buy every magazine he was in and watch anything I could with him in it, like Escape to Witch Mountain and So Weird. It's understandable though. I mean look at that hair and those crystal blue eyes. *Swoon* Detten's most recent credit is the voice of Vic in Toy Story 3.

Raven-Symone -- As the cutest addition to The Cosby Show in 1989, little Olivia stole everyone's hearts. And she was a little comedian even back then! Have you seen those Olivia Boss Chick memes on Instagram? Click here to laugh your ass off. After roles in her own show, That's So Raven, and the Cheetah Girls movie series, Raven-Symone continued to act in episodes of other shows as well as playing the role of Deloris in the Broadway musical Sister Act in 2012.

Lee Thompson Young -- Who could possibly forget the Famous Jett Jackson? He was so cute, and he was famous but still normal, or at least as normal as a famous person could be. Say hello to my third crush :) After the show ended in 2001, Lee Thompson Young continued to get good roles, including numerous Disney channel movies and the movie Friday Night Lights. He had one of the lead roles in Rizzoli & Isles, a TNT series, when he passed away late summer of last year. Some stories have very sad endings :(

Larisa Oleynik -- Alex Mack from The Secret Life of Alex Mack was my twin. Except I had no super powers and falling into a vat of chemicals couldn't explain my weirdness. Although overshadowed by bigger stars like Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger, Larisa Oleynik continued her career with a supporting role in 10 Things I Hate About You in 1999, and she's scored multiple movie and television roles since then, including a few episodes of Mad Men and Pretty Little Liars in the past 2 years.

Shawna Waldron -- You may not remember her by name but most of us 90s kids know exactly who you are talking about as soon as you say "Icebox" from Little Giants. She was the only girl on the football team and she kicked ass on the field. Waldron's credit list is decently long and she's still acting, mostly as a thriller actress, but she'll always be the girl who taught me it was okay to be tougher than the boys.

Mackenzie Rosman -- Little Ruthie, the youngest of the Camden family on 7th Heaven, isn't so little anymore. It seems that she took a few years off between the show and her current movie/show credits in 2011, to grow up. And grow up, she did, posing for Maxim magazine in July 2013.

Kirsten Storms -- When I catch Zenon, Girl of the 21st Century on the Disney channel, I freak out a little bit. Zenon made it completely okay to rock bright pink, purple, blue and silver in one outfit with super-high pigtails to top it off, because it was the future. Ready for the crazy part? The movie was set in the year 2049, which seemed so far in the future when I was 11, but most of us will totally be alive then. Creepy. Since playing and reprising the role of Zenon for two more movies, Kirsten went on to voice an animated character in the Kim Possible movie and star in General Hospital.

Emmy Rossum -- In 1999, she made being the smart girl in school totally cool in the Disney channel movie, Genius. And when I recognized her in the film adaptation of my favorite broadway musical, Phantom of the Opera, it was like opening my eyes to a new, adult, gorgeous, opera-singing Emmy Rossum. She's amazing. Now she stars in the show Shameless, which I hear is great.

Christy Carlson Romano -- We all know what happened to her Even Steven's costar, Shia LaBeouf (he became super hot, albeit a little weird. end of story), but what about his older, smarter and slightly annoying sister Ren? Christy voiced the lead animated character of Kim Possible for the Disney channel show of the same name, and she also acted the lead role in ABC Family's Cutting Edge. Oh, and apparently Christy was just as much of a brainiac as Ren was. She met her now-husband while studying at Columbia University.

Tahj Mowry -- Tia and Tamara were cool and all, but I loved Tahj and his show Smart Guy. I tuned in every week to see what new challenges this super smart 12-year-old faced in high school where his sister, brother and family friend also attended. It was dramatic and funny, and I still sing the theme song when I think about it. Tahj turned out to be quite the singer as well. Although he starred in a multitude of Disney channel shows and movies as well as the ABC Family show Baby Daddy, you can check out his covers on YouTube to hear him sing.

Ben Foster -- Alongside Jewel Staite, Ben Foster starred in Flash Forward as Tuck and I ate it all up. A relatively overlooked actor, Ben really is quite phenomenal. He's like a chameleon, taking on character after character and making it believable. I loved him as Trevor Adams in Bang, Bang You're Dead, a movie that tackles the topic of school shootings in masterfully, but he's also had great roles in X-Men:The Last Stand, Alpha Dog, and 3:10 to Yuma.

Sometimes, it's just fun to see how these kid stars grew up right along with us. This is just a list of stars I remembered to look up from the shows I loved in the 90s and early 00s. I'm sure I'm missing tons of people. Shout 'em out in the comments below!

1, 2, 3; 4, 5, 6; 7, 8, 9; 10, 11, 12; 13, 14, 15. 

Beauty Queen

Share a photo of something old. Maybe something that has personal history for you, that was passed down to you, and that has special meaning to you. Tell us about it & why it's special.

A tiara fit for a princess, and a crown made for a queen.

My nanny was born in 1932. She was always very beautiful and very popular, and sometime in 1940, her beauty and her grace won her the title of "Queen" at her prom. I was born in 1988. I was her first grandbaby and the most beautiful baby she'd ever seen, so she said, and at first sight, my cherub cheeks and joyful giggles won her heart. Before we lost her, she gave me her prom queen crown. I was helping her clean through a few of her dresser drawers and she found the crown sitting in one of them. She stared at it for quite sometime, and then turned to me. Securing it in place, she said "for my beauty queen" and kissed my forehead.

This was one of my nanny's most treasured possessions, and she gave it to me. At 18, she was a beauty queen, and at 66, she was my beauty queen as I was hers. In each others eyes, we were perfect, we could do no wrong. On days when I'm feeling particularly down, I like to see myself through my nanny's eyes, with a crown fit for queen atop my head.

In 2006, I attended my senior prom in a gorgeous floor-length dress and my very first pair of Jimmy Choo strappy heels. I didn't win prom queen that night, far from it. But I had brought my most prized possession, my own crown (and with it my nana's presence), that night and felt like a beauty queen anyway. And if I ever get married, this crown will be my something old, because I could never embark on something new without it.
   
Thank you all so much for reading along for this month of Blogtember. It's been wonderful giving you bits and pieces of myself daily and getting to know some of you through your posts. I hope you stick around a bit longer - I've still got plenty more to say :)

Throwing It Back to Oxford, England

*Warning: This is a very picture-heavy post! But it's all so amazing, I promise!

Go to a coffee shop. Order a favorite drink. Write about what makes you happy and what makes you sad. Or write about anything you'd like!

I, of course, got my (almost) daily coffee, but I had to grab it and run, so I didn't actually sit in the coffee shop. But then again, the prompt says to "go" there and "order" and then "write", so technically, I'm abiding by the rules (ha, newly acquired legal skills at work!). 

Caramel Macchiato
I carried mine out in a recyclable cup, but that wouldn't be very pretty now would it?

Reminiscing about the "good ol' days" makes me happy. At least it makes me happy today. And considering that today is #ThrowbackThursday, I thought it fitting to talk about something that made me happy in the past. A little over a year ago, I visited Oxford with my law school for 10 days, which is entirely too short a visit. It was the first time out of the country in over 4 years, my first time flying totally by myself, and my first stamp in my new adult passport (at 15, I had a "minor" one) so I was excited that my first stamp would read: London Heathrow - even though I spent very little time in London.

From the airport, we took the Airline Bus to Oxford University, where we checked into our dorm rooms. I absolutely adored my bedroom window and the view from it. I wish I could have taken it home with me! My window faced High Street, which is a quaint street cluttered with cutesy little storefronts like a luxury chocolate shop.

Cue the angel singing! ♫♪

High Street



The view of High Street during the day and then at night.

I spent the first day puttering around Oxford because I felt like staying in the dorm would be wasting the valuable day away. The City of Oxford is quite beautiful and boasts of historical structures, many of them clad in precious metals like gold and bronze.

Standing in front of the Radcliffe Camera

A fair amount of time was spent eating and drinking. I spent many class sessions nibbling on little pastries and sipping tiny, yet very strong, cups of coffee. Evenings were filled with plenty of wine and both familiar and unfamiliar dishes (wish I could find the pictures of fish & chips!).

   

I went to dinner by myself that night, chatted up the bartender & made a few new friends. It's legitimately one of my proudest moments :) 

 


A trip to the Oxford Botanic Gardens was a lot more enjoyable than expected. Although I can't say that I enjoyed the sand and tiny peebles in my shoes. Yet, with exotic plants and lovely flowers surrounding you, how can one possibly be miserable about a bit of sand? And there was a castle!

Did you know that lily pads turn up like that?
I didn't!

Banana tree.

Castle!

And we beat up the beat in the club near the Crown with some of the locals and a super hot bartender named Vasska whom I unfortunately do not have a photo of :) We were so spent Jersey Shorin' and what not that we needed dessert afterwards.

                     

                     Oh, this little baby? Just a delicious brownie topped with liquor-infused icecream.
No Big deal!

I only got to spend one full day in London (and ½ of that was for visiting law firms). Many of the other students we able to extend there trips past the end of the program, relocating to London hotels for a few days and some eventually traveling to other countries like Paris and Amsterdam. I had to get back to New York quickly as I had to conduct an event for my law journal. I can't tell you how jealous I was that they got to fully experience London (and some of them even arrived early to attend the London Olympics!). I saw a few main attractions, but I truly need to return in experience London on it's own.

Close-up of Buckingham Palace.

Big Ben at a distance.

Iconic London telephone booths!

Missing Muddy Mifflin

 A memory you would love to relive.

Strangely enough, when it came time to write this post, I couldn't think of anything, despite my constant thoughts and desires to have particular moments to do over again. I interpreted this prompt as asking us to relive it as it happened, not rewrite it, and, it was hard to recall a memory I was fond enough of to repeat (I know this is due to my "I could've done more; I'm never satisfied nature").

I finally settled upon my very first semester at Penn State University. The other 3 ½  years of college were memorable as well (I did meet my long-term boyfriend there after all!), but I'd chose to relive Fall 2006 because it lived up to everything I expected it to be and so much more.

I lived in housing called Supplemental with 7 other girls. That's right - 8 girls picked to live in a house... :) And although I had never had a roommate before, I absolutely loved having 7 of them. The huge room we lived in had 2 levels so we technically had access to the 3rd and 4th floors. The doors on the upper level led out to the guys' floor so when they weren't locked, we had tons of visitors, sometimes unwanted, ha! That sounded creepy but I can promise you that it wasn't.

Have you ever heard "here's to the nights we won't remember and the friends we'll never forget"? That quote sums up that semester really well. There were definitely some nights I don't remember how I got home, although it was always safely I might add (for people who began strangers, we really took care of each other). And there were amazing memories I will never let go off.

• Muddy Mifflin, our crazy flag football match in the pouring rain. The dorm showers ran brown for like a week after that.

Every time I miss college, I go back to this photo.
Check out my creepy grimace in the middle.

• Being chased by a dear friend trying to Nair my head. 
• Drunkenly asking my crush, who looked just like Cory Matthews I swear, if he was gay because he would hold me close and look into my eyes but never kiss me (in my defense, sometimes the moment was like silver screen perfect). Although he immediately stopped cuddling me on that swing on the porch of a frat house, he was a gentleman and walked me home. However, I heard from him very little after that :(
• Dressing up like a Martini for Halloween. 
• My roommates lovely sign posted on the door for me one night when I got home late that read "Welcome Home Slutface". It was an inside joke because it was so untrue, but it was hilarious and I still have it. 
• The boys' prank of taping plastic cultlery to our dorm doors.
• Our (much better) prank of toilet papering their door. 

 

• Being really sad about Winterbreak because it meant leaving Happy Valley for a whole month.