Tuesday, February 21, 2012

February Photo Challenge: My Favorite Picture

This is my favorite photo of me...which happens to be a picture taken at my wedding (of course, when else is a girl going to be "dolled" up and looking fantastic). Yes, the hubby is in the photo too. I just love my smile, you can really tell it's the happiest day of my life! :)

Yup, September 22, 2007! It'll be 5 years this September. :)


Actually, now that I think about it some of my favorite photos are from wedding I've been in!

Our friends Missy & Brandon's wedding
My brother's wedding (I did my own hair!) :)

Sunday, February 12, 2012

#FEBPHOTOADAY Day Twelve

INSIDE MY CLOSET.....EEK!

Alright, so weird b/c I saved it as a vertical photo

This one too & apparently it's rejecting my decision. :(



After taking these photos I have decided to organize this space ASAP! So I've started browsing some blogs from my friend Shelly at The House of Smiths. Stay tuned for that much needed post given her tips. LOL :D

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Here's Day SEVEN of #FebPhotoADay Challenge

Buttons, buttons, buttons, buttons! (Meant to be said like Dori in 'Finding Nemo' when she says 'bubbles, bubbles, bubbles) :D

Anywho, today's February photo challenge is about buttons. And you're in for a treat because I have a great photo for this challenge. It's of a frame I made with my grandmother!





My grandmother is an artist, like no lie a professional one. She's also a professional writer of over 20 books; her name is Patricia Bucheister. Yeah, she's pretty amazing. Anyways, back to my story, she is an artist and growing up I use to always go into her art room (which was like a far away land). It was SO COOL. There were so many craft things to do. Paint, pottery, draw and more! So one day while playing in her art room I glued a bunch of buttons to a frame as a craft. I have kept that frame ever since. As you can see here, it now holds my prom photo. Kinda crazy that prom was 10 years ago...wow, where does the time go!

Monday, February 6, 2012

What's for Dinner?? #FebPhotoADay

The photo for the February photo challenge on day six is DINNER! Here's what I made for dinner tonight:



It's a simple but classic pot roast. Which is perfect since the last few days have been chillier. And I LOVE making things in the slow cooker because it is so simple and easy! Just throw the ingredients in the crock pot and away you go. Boom, when you get home from work you are ready to eat. :) YUM!

Laundry Nook Revamp COMPLETE!

OMG, I am so excited to share these photos.

So a couple days ago I posted that I am on organization overdrive, well I am pleased to state that my main organization project is complete and boy does it look amazing! Here are some before photos....

Love this curtain

View of nook from Kitchen

Now you see, it's become a dumping ground for everything! EEK!
Well, keep that last picture in your mind because now that space is one I am SUPER proud of!! Ready? Here is what the space looks like now....

First step, wall decal from House of Smiths

Adding a decal on one of the baskets

Basket complete....lovely ain't it! ;)

Another view, I'm super proud. lol

Wall decal on the wall. I painted a gray stripe w/bubbles for extra cuteness!


DRUM ROLL PLEASE ...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
 TA DA!!!!

Final results! Can you believe the difference??

A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

Love looking at it now. Looks so weird w/out the curtain.

Pretty, pretty wall decal!

Decided to use black duck tape to make it stand out less.
As you can see, we added a third shelf which is used for the small appliances. Not sure if I've mentioned this before, but we don't actually have a pantry in the kitchen. We had to build a makeshift one our of kitchen cabinets, but any small appliances or extra grocery items (from big box stores) had no home; therefore, went into the laundry space since it's right off the kitchen. And as you can see from the before photo, a lot of things had the same problem. But now, I have a couple baskets empty just waiting to be filled!

So with a little work and some extra $$ I wanted to transform it into a space I loved. After all, I have to walk by it multiple times every single day!

Total budget:
-Paint FREE (left over from another project)
-Shelf & brackets: Lowe's $15
-Baskets: Walmart $70 (6 baskets for $35-extras placed elsewhere in the house)
-Wall Decals: House of Smiths $20 (shipping)
TOTAL: $105

Not too bad for a completely renovated space! :) So whatta think??

Sunday, February 5, 2012

#FebPhotoADay Time Again

It's day five in the February photo challenge and guess what's on the agenda? 10am. What does 10am look like to you? For me, it looks like breakfast time!! :)

Breakfast means Chobani yogurt!

Enjoying it...delicious!
Most mornings I am at work at 10am (DUH) but more than that I am at work eating my breakfast. I have never been a person to eat breakfast before I go to work. It seems too early for me, especially since my mornings are spent running around. So with that, I wait till I go to work. And I can’t just plop myself down and eat as soon as I get to work-nope! I check my email, get situated and usually there is always something that needs to get done asap! So that takes precedence over me eating my yummy and healthy breakfast. So by the time 10am rolls around, I am starved! So I eat my yogurt.

If you’re not familiar with Chobani yogurt you are in for a delight! I’ve always been a fan of yogurt but never tried Greek yogurt. Everything I heard made it seem less than appealing so I just avoided it. My best friend, and health guru, told me over and over again how delicious Chobani was but still I avoided it. It wasn't until my husband, not a health guru at all-in fact he only eats what’s delicious to him, started buying it that I finally got the clue. And boy oh boy I’m glad I did! For little calories, this breakfast item keeps me full for a long time.

And I love all the delicious flavors offered (when you can find them). Here’s my fav in order:

1.    Black Cherry
2.    Raspberry
3.    Strawberry
4.    Blueberry
5.    Pomegranate
6.    Peach/Mango
7.    Strawberry Banana
8.    Pineapple (not last b/c of taste but b/c it’s more calories than the aforementioned items)

As you can see a great variety for any yogurt lover! So there you have it, my 10am looks like breakfast; speaking of which, I’m hungry and will be going to eat now. :)

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Day Four of #FebPhotoADay Challenge

Today's challenge? Take a photo of a stranger. You might think that would be easy, but I felt very weird bringing my camera up to my face and scanning others for a photo opt. Anywho, I found the perfect person in MacArthur Mall in Norfolk, VA. Ready??



Now I LOVE the show The Big Bang Theory and this stranger was perfect for me to take a photo of. Why? Caz she is rockin' a Sheldon shirt...which has his catch phrase BAZINGA! If you haven't watched the show, it's a must.

Friday, February 3, 2012

#FebPhotoaDay Day Three

Day 3 topic: HANDS



This is a picture of only one hand, but when I look down at my hands I tend look down at my engagement ring and wedding band. It may seem silly to have so much joy in an inanimate object but I really do love those two rings. When my husband and I got engaged, we were just fresh out of college which means that the engagement ring was what he could afford while in college (not a whole lot). Please don’t mistake that to mean that I wasn’t appreciative of what he gave me or in any way was disappointed. That’s not it at all, we just came to realize later on down the road that it was a little bit small.
       
Anywho, fast forward a couple years and after a nice tax refund I asked the hubs if I could upgrade. There was a lot of debate, not from him-he was completely okay with it, but in my head. Here were my dilemmas: 

1) I didn’t NEED to upgrade. It was a selfish desire.
  
2) It would be a LOT of money to upgrade the size I wanted. Don’t get me wrong, not like 10k or anything but still…a couple grand is a LOT of money to me! 
 
3) That money could be used for X,Y,Z which is always how I push off spending money because of the expense it could help pay down.
 
With those three issues in my head, I still went for it. And I am ever so happy I did! There are times I wonder about the extra expense and think if it was worth it, but when I look down at my hands I smile. And that makes the answer clear!!

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Day Two #FEBPHOTOADAY Challenge

Day 2: Words

Photo Via: Pinterest


Okay, so I didn’t take this picture but in terms of today’s category WORDS I thought these words were amazing. You probably already know I’m obsessed with my dog, so it comes as no surprise that something with a dog on it would catch my attention. But the words written on this photo, which I have seen before, are truly inspiring. To me it’s meant to show you that how you see yourself may not be how others see you. I am my toughest critic and I know others do not see the same things when they look at me versus when I look at myself. I often wonder when I am staring at my Bailey, yes I do stare at him frequently-told you obsessive-what he’s thinking?

I would hope that he’s thinking I’m a great mom. I would hope that he loves me as much as I love him. It would be great to have the skill that Edward has and read his mind. Maybe then I’d understand how he sees me….guarantee it won’t be about those 5 extra pounds I complain about… ;)

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Time for #FEBPHOTOADAY Challenge

Remember my post about the February Photo Challenge I was going to partake in? Well, today marks the first day!

Day 1: Your View Today



I have to admit that I did not take this photo. My lovely and very talented friend, Jennifer Adams from Jennifer Leigh Photography did. It's a magnificent photo and it speaks to what my view is today....

When I look at this picture, I feel inspired. Like the whole world is open to me. I think about my life and the place I'm in. I think about what kind of person I will continue to be. Will my marriage still be strong in 10 years? Will I ever become a mother? The photo speaks volumes about what the possibilities are inside my life. 

I turn 28 this year and I'm inspired to make it the best year yet! I have so much to look forward too. :)