The Birds' Nest

Hello Again

2010-05-05T12:25:00.006-04:00

It has been so long since I blogged that I forgot my sign-in information. My Mom says that she still checks my blog everyday, but is disappointed to find that I haven't posted anything. "When are you going to blog again?". That is what I hear from her. I had one friend send me a facebook message that just said July 24, 2009. I didn't know what she was talking about, but had to chuckle when I found out that it was the last time that I had blogged. She checks everyday too. Who knows if I have anyone else who ever checks in on me anymore? I apologize. I have missed blogging, but I have had some issues that have just prevented me from doing so. Here they are:

1) I have been positively OVERWHELMED. It is better now, but I have decided to start a second blog to talk about it. I think I have some important things to say, and I have been feeling this tug to write it all down and get it out there. I am not looking for anyone to feel sorry for me. I just think that writing about everything that I have been through will be therapeutic for me, and maybe I can help someone else out along the way. A second blog you say?? Why would I start a second blog when I haven't blogged on my original blog since last July? Well, I want to keep this separate from my original blog. Some people might not be interested in reading this second blog, so I want to start it so that only the interested can read it and the others can enjoy my original blog.

2) I have struggled with the direction that I wanted this blog to go. My personal favorite blogs are home decor blogs, DIY blogs and creative-type blogs. When I started this blog, we were building our home and I thought it would be a great way to keep our family and friends up to date on the progress of our home being built. After the house was finished, I just kinda blogged about whatever was going on in our lives. No real direction to the blog. That is fine, but I want to get back to the original intention of this blog...our home.

3) I started this blog on September 12, 2007. I can't believe that it will be three years this Fall. Wow!! In these three years, I have met so many new, amazing women through the blogging world. Some I have only "met" online, but some I have actually met in person. I can't believe how connected you can feel to someone by reading a blog. I have watched their blogs grow, change and evolve. I started reading some bloggers when they first started their blogs, and now they are some of the most popular bloggers in the blogosphere. I could have been there with them, but my blog didn't grow, change and evolve because I just haven't had the energy to put into growing, changing and evolving this blog. I want to change that. I have some ideas that I am working on putting into motion...photography classes to showcase better pictures, a blog design makeover and hundreds of ideas stored in my head ready to show you what I have been up to around my home. Think: The Nester, Thrifty Decor Chick, A Soft Place to Land, Southern Hospitality, The Lettered Cottage, etc. I hope to offer something similar to their blogs, on a much smaller scale to start with. I would like to see how I can grow it, though, and hopefully make a little extra money from it.

4) Facebook came into my life. It was so much quicker than writing out a blog post, and playing with the pictures to tell a story. Cropping, proofreading...it takes a long time to blog. Facebook is instant gratification, and it has been fun to reconnect with many people. It is not blogging, though.

So those are the basic four reasons why I stopped blogging these last 9 months. I hope you will re-join me on one or both of my blogs over the next few months as I try to grow my original blog and tell the story that I need to tell on my second blog that I will be starting. You can expect to see lots of changes around here, so I hope you will be back. Hello again, my long lost blog-reading friends!!

Frugal Friday

2009-07-24T20:22:00.005-04:00

So I have found a new little hobby. Quite by accident, really. I have a friend who likes to thrift shop, and I had been telling her for a long time that I was looking for 2 bedside tables that I could paint black for my guest bedroom. I told her to look for me when she was out and about thrifting. I have never been much of a thrift shopper. I started reading lots of decorating blogs with thrifty makeovers, though, and I thought "I could do that". Pair that with the fact that a new thrift store opened down the road from the house and it is a brand new building, it is super clean, not smelly and it is close to a bunch of rich neighborhoods. All of those things make a difference, trust me. I have gone into some other thrift stores...skeeved me out... sensitive nose. I have been periodically going in to check out the furniture and housewares for things that I could makeover. I had been looking for some kind of little table that I could put beside my jacuzzi tub to hold my drink, book and bathing supplies. I found this cute little two tiered table for $7.00...I will be spray painting it white. Notice how I staged it with a candle, bath salts, bottle of wine, wine glass and a beautiful book. I feel sure that I will not be reading "The Pleasure of your Company" hardback coffee table book in the bath, but the colors of the book looked pretty. When not in use next to the tub, I will store this little table in my closet as a shelf for some pocketbooks or some other girly neccessity.

In other thrify news, I found this great little fruit and veggie stand by the side of the road on my way home from work today. I got all of this beautiful, South Carolina grown produce for $15.00. Score!! What a rip-off grocery store produce is!!

Frugal Friday

2009-07-03T07:26:00.003-04:00

I've done so much since my last Frugal Friday post, but telling you about all of that is just gonna have to wait. Here we are at Frugal Friday once again. I made another trip back to "The Target Graveyard", so I thought that you would want to see what I scored on this trip.

1) America license plate picture- I paid $2.50 In the store for $39.99
2) Boppy baby sling carrier- I paid $16.00 In the store for $39.99
3) Large glass canister- I paid $2.50 Had a tag on it for $24.90
4) Seagrass basket- I paid $2.50 Something like it in the store for $24.99
5) Making memories scrapbook paper set of 40 sheets- I paid $4.50 Something like it in the store for $14.99 and $19.99
6) Black birdcage- I paid $8.60 In the store for $24.99 (I think)
7) 5 piece drawer storage kit- I paid $3.50 In the store for $12.99 (I think)
8) Disney Princess and Cars dry erase activity boards- I paid $4.00 each Something like it in the store for $12.99
9) XOXO pewter letters- I paid $6.00
10) Cream bird plate stand- I paid $6.00
11) 5 air freshners- I paid $2.50 for all 5
12) Lint roller refill- I paid $2.00

Hope ya'll have a Happy 4th of July!! Be safe!!

Frugal Friday

2009-06-12T11:45:00.003-04:00

A friend introduced me to this fabulous place that I have affectionately named "The Target Graveyard". If you like organized, non-digging shopping, then this is not the place for you. It's a bit like a thrift store, but the products are new. They buy stuff at pennies on the dollar and sell it in a warehouse setting. Most of what I have bought is Tar-jay stuff. They have it marked with the orange tags. If the item is under $10, then it is 50% off the tag. If the item is over $10, then it is 60% off the tag. Here's what I scored on my first visit:

1) Sandalwood potpourri with wicker balls I paid: $3.50 Currently in the store for $16.99
2) Eiffel Tower sculpture I paid: $2.50 Currently in the store for $39.99
3) Set of 2 Navy sailcloth window panels I paid: $2.50 Currently in the store for $29.99
4) Embroidered white window panel I paid: $2.50 Currently in the store for $19.99
5) Brown wrought iron branch candle holder I paid: $2.50 Currently in the store for $17.19
6) Leaves removable wall art I paid: $2.50 Something like it currently in the store for $24.99
7) Black wrought iron plant stand I paid: $5.00 Currently in the store for $15.99
8) Smooth away I paid: $5.00 (don't waste your money) Currently in the store for $9.99
9) Memory framed shadow box I paid: $2.50
10) Decorative bundle of sticks I paid: $2.50
11) Printer paper I paid: $1.60
12) Doggie tennis ball toy I paid: $2.44
13) Set of 18 bronze glittered bird ornaments (I will be making a bird's nest mini tree for Christmas) I paid: $2.16
14) Bamboo candle holder I paid: $5.00

These kind of bargains get me excited!! I have a use for each thing~ I didn't just buy things because they were inexpensive. I'll do a post later where I show you how I used each item. Have a good weekend!!

Doggie Surgery

2009-06-11T18:38:00.002-04:00

My baby Ali had a cornea problem that was causing her lots of pain. Our vet thought she had been poked in the eye and scratched her cornea. After a month of treating her with drops, ointments and pain meds, our regular vet referred us to an opthamologist in Charlotte. As soon as the eye doc looked in her eye, he told us that she had an indolent ulcer and we had no choice but to operate~ the sooner the better since she could lose her sight. They took her into surgery right then.

Ashleigh didn't take her eyes off of the door where they took her sister.

She eventually laid down, but still had her eyes peeled on that door.

When they brought Ali out after surgery, she was so "drunk" that she sat down on top of my purse.

Check out her little catheter in her leg.

Daddy held Ali while she got bandaged up where the catheter had been. Like Father, like Daughter. He has a bandage too.

She was OUT on the drive home.

She started feeling better in a couple of days, and felt well enough to go on a car ride to Petsmart to get food and treats.

Look at that cute little thing riding in the buggy.

We just got home from her two week follow up appointment. The doctor thought she was doing great, and her vision is going to return to 100%. Hallelujah!!

Today was a better day!!

2009-06-10T00:01:00.007-04:00

Thanks for all of the kind words that you wrote me after yesterday's post. Life goes on, and I appreciate your thoughts and prayers. Today was a better day. I was over at www.chic-critique.com today talking about Tweezerman...you can really tweeze some hair, man!! Go check it out and leave me a comment to let me know you were there!!

I also thought I'd share something that makes me happy~ our plants and flowers.

These pillows for our front porch were pretty plain...you know that plain pillows don't really work for me.

Adding a little ric-rac makes them so much more fun!!

Cool bottlebrush tree...it's not doing so well though.

These are some of the different colors of hostas that we planted under our back porch.

I love a hanging basket.

See what I mean

I bought another firecracker bush~ ours thrived last year and the hummingbirds loved it.

Our dwarf Japanese maple filled out overnight.

The dwarf gardenias have been beautiful.

I can't believe how fast our sweet potato vine is growing.

We will be planting these daylilies in front of the garage.

The wave petunias are growing like crazy.

How can you not love a Kimberly Queen fern?

I decided to get another diplandia because the one we had last year was absolutely beautiful and vined around the porch. Supposed they will last through the winter if you bring them in. I will try to put it in my basement this year {before it gets too cold}, and let you know how it makes it.

Plants + Flowers = Happiness for me

I'm mad today...it doesn't seem fair.

2009-06-08T17:45:00.002-04:00

I told you a couple of weeks ago that I had a lot on my mind, and you told me that it was okay to share it. I might regret pushing publish post after I finish what I have to say, but I can't seem to move along with my day, concentrate on work or post about any of the fun things that we have been doing. So here you go...

My husband and I have been trying to start a family for the last 3 1/2 years. I suffer from Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome {PCOS}, have miscarried, had an ectopic pregnancy {where I lost a tube} and have been seeing a reproductive endocrinologist {fertility specialist}. We have been keeping it quiet because I didn't want to have to explain anything, talk about it, or be disappointed when it didn't work out. What???? Like not talking about it was really going to keep me from being disappointed? I have prayed hard about this, but by talking about this maybe I can get other people to pray for us too? I don't know, maybe writing about it will make me feel better or maybe it will help someone else who is going through this? I might just be a mess because of all of the hormones they have pumped into my body. Another month with the big 'ole negative sign. I detest that negative sign. It is my nemesis.

Here's what I'm mad about. I went to get a PG test at CVS this morning because I thought that the ones that I took Friday night and Saturday morning just had to be wrong. In line in front of me were a young couple buying a box of PG tests who looked to be unmarried and unfit to be parents. Now, I know that I should not judge who should be parents, but they did not look like they had any business with a child. You just know that they went home and THEIR test was positive. I ,unfortunately, went home to a negative test. Bitter. Why does it seem that the people who have no business having children are the ones who can reproduce over and over again without any problems? It doesn't seem fair.

When I was talking to a friend about it this afternoon, she said that it seems like I'm always waiting for the other shoe to drop. And it does. She's right. I have a lot of things that have happened to me through the years. Way too many things for one post, but maybe my therapy is going to be to get it all off my chest. Right now, though, "I'm mad today...it doesn't seem fair" is all I have to say.

Frugal Friday

2009-05-28T22:47:00.003-04:00

I have always been a bargain shopper, but I have to admit that I only found out about the Dollar Tree a couple of years ago. Dollar Tree...where have you been all my life? Oh, I remember...my Mother doesn't do dollar stores. Nothing wrong with that (I love you Mom for teaching me to love the nice things in life). I do love to see what I can get for a great deal, though. I mean, look what you can get for $11.00 plus tax:

Their spray bleach cleaner is great

White-out, popcorn and Reynold's Wrap~ can't go wrong with those

Drop cloth, sandpaper, painter's tape, picture hanging kit~ all useful for all the the home decor projects that I have going on

3 energy drinks for my hubs~ I don't know if he really liked any of them, but Red Bulls are really expensive.

I would also recommend their gift boxes and bags, tissue paper, some of their greeting cards aren't bad, books, office supplies, little toys and books for children, some of their seasonal stuff, and crafting supplies. I would not, however, recommend buying pregnancy tests from there:) I'm just saying...

I'm back..maybe

2009-05-27T14:44:00.003-04:00

Hello to any friends who might still be reading. Yes, I know I haven't posted since Easter. I am in a blog funk. I don't know the direction that I want my blog to go. I have so many ideas, but just not enough time to implement any of them. I have so many ideas swirling in my head. Do I want to be real and write about what is on my mind (there could be some REALLY long posts)? Do I want to write about my life's journey...I promise I could make you laugh and cry with everything that has happened to me along the way? Do I want to concentrate on my home and the decorating fun and challenges that I have faced trying to get our new home put together? Do I want to write about my love of cooking and share recipes? I read other blogs, and I feel so inadequate. I want my blog to be my place of joy, but right now it is not. It is just mocking me saying "You don't have enough time or energy to focus on me". There are so many things that I don't know how to do with my blog that I want to learn, but I just don't have the time to devote to learning. I feel sad when I realize that no one reads my blog anymore and no one comments if I do happen to post. The fact that you have readers and that they leave comments is what keeps you going. Blogging is kinda like a part time job, though, and I have just not had the time or energy to put into it. I am tired of my blog design...I want a more clean, streamlined look. I want a better camera that takes fabulous pictures that I can blow up big and they look like a professional photographer has taken them. I want to learn how to sew and post pictures of the fun things that I make. I want to rehab thrifty finds and post lots of before and after pictures. I want to sponsor some fabulous giveaways. I want to create a blog that has people looking forward to checking in every day to see what I have posted. I want to inspire people. If there is anyone reading, what would you like to read from me? I am going to try to implement some of these changes that I have been wanting to make to my blog. Stay tuned and hopefully I will get out of this funk and back into the groove.

Happy Easter from our home to yours...

2009-04-10T12:27:00.003-04:00

Just a few things...

2009-04-08T23:33:00.002-04:00

I LOVE these dogs!! They are so darn cute. They are very close, and like to be near each other. They're not supposed to be on top of the back sofa cushions like Ashleigh is...Ali is looking at her like "You better get down. You're gonna get in trouble." She didn't get in trouble. I had just watched Marley & Me and all I wanted to do was hug and kiss both of them. They are great dogs and I don't know what I will do without them!!

I LOVE this man!! He works so hard for us, and even though he doesn't love yardwork he still worked on the yard after working a 13 hour day. I can't do it...my allergies are REALLY bad!! The sod that we put down last year hasn't grown in, but the grass seed that we put down before the sod is growing like crazy. Looks pretty silly...maybe later this summer we will finally have a grassy backyard. Not too sure...our backyard has a long ways to go. I'll post some progress pics throughout the summer.
My girlfriend Margaret signed me up to teach Sunday school to grades 1-5. Without telling me ahead of time. Love ya girl. Mean it:) I was once again reminded that I was never meant to be a teacher.
Hopefully we will reach them in some small way, but I'm not sure. Like I said, I'm not meant to be a teacher. They mostly like the play time towards the end of class. We had 17 kids this past Sunday...2 teachers...candy and small little toy rewards work wonders. Bribery. It's a good thing.

I Heart Being a Greasy Bear!!

2009-03-31T14:22:00.002-04:00

I am back at it again today. Nothing embarassing this time. Just chatting about *hearting* being a greasy bear!! Come check it out at www.chic-critique.com.

Why I haven't been blogging...

2009-03-21T12:48:00.015-04:00

Everyone out there who used to read my blog has probably stopped reading long ago, so here is my explanation about where I've been for my last couple of readers. I started my new job at the beginning of the year, and it has been completely consuming all of my time. Most days I feel as if I-am-banging-my-head-against-a-brick-wall!! I make tons of phone calls, send out masses of emails, study reports, look over account lists, try to find new customers, walk into store after store to see who could buy what from me, work in the evenings, work on the weekends....blah, blah, blah. The ecomomy has not been kind to my business, especially since South Carolina has the second highest unemployment rate in the country. I have been working in this business for several years, and this is the job that I have always wanted. I am selling some of the cutest products that I have ever sold, but stores are not buying. If they are buying, then they are buying only small quantities. I have had more cancellations, stores not writing a single dollar after I have driven to meet with them, not wanting to make appointments with me, etc. than I have ever experienced. I don't mean to be Debbie Downer, but I need your prayers. Check out this cute stuff!!! I'd want to buy from me if I had a store.

Cute handbags

Fun home decor

More trendy handbags

Wool handbags Tote bags and cosmetic bags Aprons

Tennis racket covers

Wool stockings

Funky pajamas

Mom organizers

Gourmet cookies and lollipops Beautiful books

Coffee mugs, coozies, lunch bags, coasters and water bottles with initials on them

The softest stuffed animals that you've ever laid your hands on

Learning toys for babies and toddlers"Green" grocery bags that are now being used as fun tote bags

Invitations, notecards and precious wrapping paper and gift bags

Humorous cocktail napkins

Stationery, notecards, office productsPrecious soaps with toys in the center of them

Monogrammed baby itemsMonogrammed totes, towels, laundry bags, cosmetic bags

Monogrammed coozies and coffee mugs More stuff that can be personalized...garment bags, cosmetic bags, pop up totes, lunch bags, tote bags, beach bags, under the bed storage bags

Invitations, office products, stationery and matching laptop bags

You gotta zoom in on this one...pee-pee teepees as seen on one of my favorite tv shows Brothers and Sisters

Adorable baby clothes and shoes...clothes and blankets made from bamboo...softest stuff that I've ever felt

Candles, diffusers, room spray, fancy potpourri

Mommy and me headbands designed not to slip or hurt your headGourmet chocolate covered sunflowers, fruit and nuts...yummy

Isn't it all so cute?? Please pray for the economy to turn around and for me to sell lots of merchandise so I can keep my job.

Hairy Beast Talkin'

2009-03-17T15:50:00.003-04:00

I'm back at it. I'm embarassing myself once again at www.chic-critique.com.

I am talking about a subject that involes these two products that you see below. Please go read all about it and leave me a comment to let me know that I am not alone. If I am going to embarass myself for anyone in the internet world to read, I need your support!!

I'm being offensive over at Chic Critique again!!

2009-03-03T14:55:00.003-05:00

It seems that this busy season in my life is not permitting me to do much blogging. I know that all that you have been getting to read lately is my Chic Critique blogs. Sorry. I will give you something else this week. Promise. In the meantime, my post today at www.chic-critique.com is pretty funny, if I do say so myself.

It has to do with this...
...check it out, and as always I would love it if you would leave me a comment!!

Scrappin'

2009-02-26T00:27:00.005-05:00

Once a month I have a creative release. I need a creative release about once a day, but once a month is better than nothing. I really enjoy my monthly scrappin' class with my friend Margaret.

Our February class was all about love and hearts. I adore the combo of brown, tan, red, pink and peachy pink. Margaret got a new cricut so I imagine our classes will be filled with all the fun intricute designs that cricut will allow you to do. Our bonus project was a paper covered jar filled with chocolate crispy hearts. Paper and chocolate...you can't go wrong!!!

In November we did a Halloween/Fall layout. Our bonus project was a travel coffee mug. It had a insert for paper so you could change it with your mood. We put our embossed monogram on a cute black and white flowered paper, but my pic just didn't come out correctly.

In December we did a layout called the 12 gifts of Christmas. So cute!!
Our bonus project in December was a cookie sheet Advent calendar for the kitchen. I LOVE this!! All of those little tiny embellished pieces were very time consuming to say the least.
In January it was supposed to be "Caught in the Act". I changed it up a bit and did our initials and the year we got married. I thought the layout would be cute with pics from our shower. Our bonus project was a "Remember" magnet for to do lists with a ragamuffin ribbon hanger. Do you think this remember magnet will actually help me remember everything that I need to do. Ha!! Yeah, right.

Stain Stain Don't Go Away, You Can Come Back Any Old Day!!

2009-02-19T18:54:00.003-05:00

I am so behind. I'll never catch up, but I need to at least tell you about my Chic Critique post that I posted on Tuesday. Yeah, I know it is Thursday. I told you that I was behind.

Anyway, go check out Tuesday's (2-17-09) Chic Critique post about the new Cover Girl Lipstain at www.chic-critique.com. As always, please leave a comment to let me know you're reading.

Merry Christmas...just a little late

2009-02-03T00:41:00.005-05:00

I finally had a chance to get together with my friend Margaret and her daughter Marissa to exchange Christmas presents. January was more than a tad bit busy for me, so I was happy to have a chance to spend some time with them. Margaret is so crafty, and teaches scrapbooking and paper crafting classes. She made me a gift that I will absolutely cherish. No one can ever go wrong with something about my girl dogs, and it matches my house.

Marissa was so cute with her childhood excitement that just can't be matched.
She got an American Girl doll for Christmas, so I thought she would love some American Girl strawberries and cream body products for herself. She loved them, especially because there was glitter in the lotion and body spray.
She is totally into TinkerBell right now, and I found lots of fun TinkerBell craft supplies {she loves crafts like her Mom} and a ribbon baton. The ribbon baton was the hit of the day.
She told me that she had to go change into something more appropriate to play with her ribbon baton. She went upstairs and below is the outfit that she changed into so she could put on a dance show for me. Her dog, Snowball, thought she should be included in the fun.
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I am at www.chic-critique.com today talking about a crusty heel cure. My Mom will really be proud of me for airing out our crusty family laundry. Go check it out, and as always please leave me a comment. Our comment numbers are down, and we need to feel the love!!

Snow Day!!!

2009-01-20T12:48:00.007-05:00

What a fun day!!! This doesn't happen very often in South Carolina. We are having a Snow Day!!! I was laughing last night when they canceled school for today. I was thinking that the person in charge of canceling school just wanted to stay home today to watch the Inauguration. While that might be true, we have gotten some snow. Now, it is not like the snow that I grew up with. We won't be making any snowmen, but it IS accumulating on my porch. I wish my camera could capture the snow swirling in the air, but it just doesn't. Just imagine some large white raindrops that disappear when they get close to the ground. By the way, I think Walmart and the grocery stores are out of bread, milk and tunafish.

Here's Ali prancing through the snow on the back porch. She says "Hey. I remember this stuff. It's been a few years, but I like playing in it."

"What??" The girls say as they look down at the yard. "No snow on the ground to play with???"
Here's our Winter Wonderland.
In other news, check me out at http://www.chic-critique.com/. Today I am reviewing some awesome OBAGI products, and would love it if you would leave me a comment over there.

Hotlanter!!

2009-01-17T16:13:00.004-05:00

I am still trying to recover from my trip to Atlanta (Known in the South as Hotlanta or a Northeasterner that is transplanted in the South might say Hotlanter) for my new job. It was good, but I was exhausted when I got home. I've been trying to keep myself from getting a full-on cold. I really like my new job!! Before I left for Atlanta, my hubs had been gone on a 3 day golf trip. He brought me home a surcie, that sweet man. Oh how I love him!!

He knows how I love my Reefs. These are the perfect addition to my flip-flop collection. Cool new t-shirt too!!

When I arrived in Atlanta, my new boss had a little "Market survival" kit for me. Water, tic tacs, bath salts, Carmex, candle, hand lotion, band aids, foot cream and Advil...just little things but all things that are needed for a rough week working at market.
On my way to my car one evening, I ran across this little treat on the sidewalk. Yes, it is a used pregnancy test. What??? Really???

Almost as gross was the gnarly toothbrush that was next to the used pregnancy test. Check out those mangled bristles.

The same night that I ran across my little sidewalk goodies, I had to make a trip to Wal-mart. My flat iron had died that morning, and no one wants to see my hair without a flat iron. Wal-mart was the only thing that I could find open that late at night. I walked past the garden center to find this...I think this is where all Wal-mart Christmas wrapping paper must go to die. I've never seen anything like it. There is no way that this pic captures how much wrapping paper was in that building!! There were rows after rows that looked like that.

My new boss had a little party for us on our last night. She catered in dinner and gave out cash awards. I won 60 bucks. Not bad for my first few days on the job.

The whole group

I brought some samples home with me, and I'm getting boxes of new stuff every day. The girls loved going through the boxes of samples. They particularly liked the company that sells the stroller blankets and aprons.

Ali didn't want to take the blanket off.

An hour later she was still sleeping on the floor with the blanket around her.

I'm happy with the way 2009 is going so far. I hope that this new job will continue to go well!! It would be nice to have everything go smooth for a little while!! Who am I kidding??? This is my life after all!!!

Happy New Year!!!

2009-01-07T01:30:00.005-05:00

I hope everyone had a safe, happy and fun New Year's Eve!! I can't believe it is 2009. My New Year's resolution is to blog more often. I only posted 4 times in December. That is totally unacceptable. You know it's bad when your Mom tells you that you need to post something new.

I pray that this year will bring lots of good things to all of my friends and family. I pray that we will see positive changes in our country and our world this year. I pray to have a heart of generosity. I pray for inner peace and contentment. I pray for growth in my already happy marriage. I pray for a child. What do you pray for?

We spent our New Year's Eve at the club where my husband works. It is so fun to dress up in our finest and enjoy our time with each other, celebrating the beginning of a new year together.

The club looked beautiful with the white and silver decor.Good band, excellent food, champagne toast, balloon drop...all make for a good night.
We walked around to each table to say hello and take pictures.

This is our builder and his wife.

He hooked us up with the brick for our home.
Our dentist and his date

Our bank manager and her husband

Our wine connoisseur and his wife

There is a family that has three generations of members. Granddad, Son and Grandson...they are a great family!!

Granddad and his girlfriend

Son and his wife

The grandson was not there, but here's a pic of him and his wife at a beach wedding that we attended with them a couple of years ago.

Mike took the arrangements off the table for me while I took pics. He looked so Vegas showgirl with all the feathers surrounding him.

The excitement of the evening was when the horns on our table caught on fire. The streamers on the horns got a little too close to the candles. Can you see the charred ends of the horns? Mike decided that he should make sure that the horns still worked, but I'm not sure why he had to shut his eyes and squint to see if they worked or not.

I think this cardboard cutout has seen better days. It fell over on us when we got behind it to take a pic.

I wish all of you a happy, prosperous and successful 2009!!

We wish you a Merry Christmas!!

2008-12-24T12:53:00.002-05:00

Our girls talked to Santa, and he told them that he is very busy today. We hope he comes to visit you tonight while you have visions of sugar plums in your head!! Merry Christmas from our family to yours!!

Happy Anniversary!!

2008-12-10T11:29:00.010-05:00

Today is a special day for me and my best friend. We are celebrating our 3rd anniversary. I am so blessed to have such a fabulous man that wanted to be my husband. He is supportive, kind, patient, full of morals and ethics, funny, trustworthy, generous, hard working, loving...on top of that he puts his faith in God. We are absolutely two peas in a pod. He "gets" me as we usually are on the same wavelength with most anything. He makes me laugh every day. There is no one on this earth that I would rather spend my time with. Although we have had our fair share of disappointments in these first few years of marriage, we have worked through them together, and we are a much stronger couple because of the things that we have been through together. I hope that I have a chance to spend many more years with this man as I cherish every moment that I have with him. I love you, Mike. Happy Anniversary!!

This was the best day of my life!!

I tried to "be in the moment" as I said my vows. Those vows were spoken from the bottom of my heart.
The church was so beautiful with over 200 poinsettias, the lighted trees and the string quartet. Oh, I can't forget the good looking bridal party!!
Why were we laughing as we signed our marriage license? Maybe we were just smiling big because we were so happy.
A close up of the newly married couple
Look at those poinsettias. It is such a fabulous time of year to get married!! We didn't have to buy any flowers for the church other than the bridal party flowers. One of Mike's members allowed us to use their RV as our transportation to the reception. This is one special RV, and we were so thankful that we had a chance to borrow it for a little while
Our first dance was "Eternal Flame" by the Bangles. Strange choice some might say, but it has been "our song" since we first started dating. Yeah, we started dating that long ago. We might only be celebrating our 3rd wedding anniversary, but we dated (with timeouts) for 17 years before we married.That cake. Holy cow. White chocolate amaretto cream center, buttercream frosting topped with white chocolate fondant. It was not only beautiful, but it was delicious!!
This was in front of the club as we were getting ready to leave. It was such a fabulous night. It went by so fast, and I would give anything to do it all over again. Maybe we can someday?? Want to renew our vows in Hawaii (our honeymoon location) in a few years?? Or we could go to Bora Bora and stay in an overwater bungalow with glass bottom floors?? A girl can dream...
...I know I dreamed about this day all of my life. It was everything I dreamed about and more!! Thank you for marrying me, prince charming!!

Get your Glow On!!

2008-12-09T13:29:00.003-05:00

I am talking about getting my glow on over at www.chic-critique.com today. I have found a product that will help my pasty skin look a little shimmery in my holiday dresses. Please go check it out and leave me a comment so I know you visited. I actually posted on November 11th and November 25th too, but forgot to blog about it. If you have the time, read those posts too and leave a comment. My comments have been down, and I'm not feelin' the love. Like the economy, I need a little boost. I would link to the actual posts, but I don't know how!!! Can anyone help me with that?? How can I actually be a part of a blog like www.chic-critique.com and not know how to do that??

Thanksgiving and a week of decorating

2008-12-08T14:57:00.005-05:00

Although our group was a little smaller this year, we enjoyed having Thanksgiving at our home once again. We don't play around. We feast. We had so much good food...appetizers, smoked turkey, thick ribeyes, tons of sides, and pumpkin cheesecake with pecan praline topping and homemade whipped cream. Wow!! It makes me want to go back in time and eat it all over again.

We like to gather in the kitchen to eat appetizers while the other food is in the oven. We had both of Mike's pros Chad and Luke plus their wives Sara and Clark, our next door neighbors Debbie and Jeff and our other neighbor Tiffanie whose husband is in Iraq (thank you Gabe for working to keep us safe). We missed Daniel and SuSu since they were on their honeymoon. We also missed Michelle and Melanie as they went other places this year.

Chad and Jeff got the turkey carving honor. Messy. As long as I don't have to do it, I'm happy!!
Mike loves sharing our feast with the "house of dogs". Everyone is allowed to bring their dogs, so we had 5 pooches who were looking for any kind of scraps that they could get. Sara and Chad also brought them a container of "pupcorn" which they snacked on as an appetizer before they got the steak and turkey scraps. Spoiled much??

After our tradition of going around the table to tell what we are thankful for and saying the blessing, we enjoyed our amazing feast!! Thank you God for this good food and time with friends!!

We started decorating the weekend after Thanksgiving. I'm still decorating. I know...give me a break. I haven't decorated since 2004, so I am a little excited to decorate again. We have a 9 foot tall fake tree in our family room and a 7 and a half foot tree in the guest bedroom that is on the front of the house. Many of you don't believe in fake trees, but I have bad allergies, we have saved a lot over the years since a 9 foot tree every year would really add up and I have the best smelling Balsam Cedar diffuser ever made hidden behind my tree. Since the tree had not been out of the box since 2004, we had some issues. After a trip to Home Depot, then WallyWorld, then Lowes, then Lowes a day later, we finally have two completely lit trees, 2 large wreaths (one on the front of the house and the other on the back covered porch), 2 topiaries for the front porch and garland for the top of the dining room hutch. Like I said, I have been a bit excited.

Ali decided that she would help us with the tree. I think all her work wore her plum out.

Mike was so excited to help me fluff the 5 strands of garland that would go into making the big garland on top of the hutch. He was so excited that I think he fell asleep while he was fluffing.

Mike stood on a step stool or maybe it was some piece of furniture and the topper was put in place...

...stay tuned for pics of all the decorations in their proper places.

Congratulations SuSu and Daniel!!

2008-11-23T14:36:00.004-05:00

We want to send big love and best wishes to our friends SuSu and Daniel. They were married last night behind her parent's home with the sunset and the water in the background. They are so perfect together, and they are just about the cutest couple that I've ever seen. I am so happy that they found each other. It was a beautiful wedding~the flowers were gorgeous, the ginormous tent with little white lights and seating areas with sofas was spectacular, the food was divine {shrimp and grits, crabcakes, grilled quail bites, beef tenderloin, ham and biscuits, potato bar, pheasant, duck and venison sausage, fruit with chocolate dipping sauce}, a super fun band and a glowing bride and happy-as-a-clam groom. The only thing that would have made it better is if I had gotten some better pictures. It seemed like every time that I went to take a shot that I missed the shot. Do you ever have one of those bad picture taking days? Anyway, congrats to the newly married couple!!

What a beautiful bride!!

They were dancing the whole night. I'm so glad that they enjoyed themselves.

They did the traditional change of clothes to leave for their honeymoon. The whole thing was just like "The Father of the Bride" movie. Notice that I once again missed the shot...I hope to eventually get a faster camera because this happens to me frequently. Bummer!
I did not capture the essence of the beautiful outdoor ceremony area. Take my word for it. It was stunning!!

Those flowers behind us were fabulous!!

Our friends Chad and Sara had his parents and sister in town from Illinois, so they were able to join in on the fun...and fun it was!!

Mike got to hang out with lots of his buddies that he doesn't get to see that often. What a downer that we all lead such busy lives that it keeps us from spending time with friends!!

Look at the beautiful tent!! It was beyond stunning!!

Goddaughter Love!!

2008-11-12T15:58:00.009-05:00

I haven't been much for blogging lately. I lost my job. Yeah, that one that I just started 2 months ago. Yeah, the one that I have been traveling, training, working my tail off and putting my heart and soul into. Yeah, that one. There were 65 reps let go. Changes in the company. Bad economy. Yada. Yada. Yada. My sales manager told me not to take it personally. Yeah, right. I'm trying to pull myself up by my boot straps, but my arms are feeling like rubber and I can't even find those boot straps because my eyes are swollen from crying. My Goddaughter did her part to try to make me feel better, though. Little Chloe sent the above pic to my phone (check out her little I Love You top) with the message "I love you, Aunt Leigh Ann XOXO, Chloe". That was a bright spot to my day!!!

The worst part is that I had to miss my Goddaughter's baptism because I couldn't take the time off work since I was so new. If only I had known that I would lose my job a week later, I would have been there. With bells on. I'll never get that time with her back. {I'm sorry baby girl. I should have been there. I love you, and will be the best Godmother that a girl could ever have.} Isn't she beautiful? I knew that Nancy and Brad would make a beautiful baby. She doesn't disappoint.

Wednesday night Update:

I missed church this past Sunday. Mentally exhausted is the best excuse I have. My friend Margaret told me that I needed to watch the message online. I finally watched it tonight. It was the first part in a series called "How to Be Rich- Finding God in a Difficult Economy". It was really good. It got me to thinking and putting things into perspective. If you want to watch it, check out www.seacoast.org. Click music and messages under Seacoast resources, then click messages, then click 2008, then How to Be Rich- Finding God in a Difficult Economy. It blessed me. I hope it blesses you. As I looked around on my church's website, I came across the scripture below. It jumped out at me. I thought I would share it in case it might help someone else. I probably should make several copies of this to keep around my house and in my car.

James 1:2-4 (New International Version)

2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Rockin' the Vote in Columbia!!

2008-11-03T23:25:00.004-05:00

I don't talk politics, and I for one am going to be glad when tomorrow is OVER!! This election feels like it has lasted 20 years. Smear campaigns, stupid e-mails going around on the internet...yuck!! I had to post about what I thought was absolute craziness, though. Unfortunately, I had to go to the county building last week to take care of some property tax paperwork. I think I would have rather stuck a stick in my eye. That place is madness on a normal day, but when people come to the building to place an absentee vote?? No thank you. Parking is normally horrendous around that building, but add several hundred people trying to vote. Insane, I'm telling you. The line was around the building as people were waiting 4 hours to place an absentee vote. It took 7 hours to place an absentee vote on Saturday. Are you kidding me?? Not even election day?? These pics do very little to show the sheer pandimonium, and I feel sure that it only got worse as the week went on. The news said that you had to have 1 of 17 reasons to be able to vote absentee. I wonder what people came up with?? I'd love to be a little bird in the building...tomorrow should be interesting!!

Happy Halloween!!

2008-10-31T14:22:00.006-04:00

I hope everyone has a great time tonight, whatever your plans may be. The best part of Halloween for me is seeing all the cute costumes on my friend's children. I just wish that I lived close to my Illinois friends and family so that I could see all of their cute children!! We started our celebrating by going to the Halloween party on Thursday night at the country club where my husband works. Tonight we are planning to go on a hayride with friends and their children to trick or treat in the neighborhood where hubs works. Be safe and Happy Halloween!!

She was trying so hard to get that cute family pic...her daughter just didn't want to cooperate. You have to chuckle when that happens.

Very cute family pic. I just wish that "Woody" would have been looking at the camera.
This cute frog was hopping around and saying ribbit, ribbit.

"Woody" and the "Bee". When I said hi to "Woody", he said, "No!! My name is Eli."

Don't those three brothers look so cute?? Their Mom tells me to not let them fool me!!

Such cute girlfriends!! Do you think they called each other and said "Hey let's meet at the club for a girl's night out?"

How fun that the princess in the middle would have a grandmother who would dress up as Snow White with her and ride on the hay ride??

A most precious SuperGirl!!

This little bug was the most precious little thing. You should have seen her puffy bum. So cute!! She happens to be the one that I mentioned earlier who didn't want to get a family pic taken.

Without a doubt this is the cutest duck ever!!! He was so darn cute trying to waddle around with his puffy little bum too.

She had already taken off her fairy costume because she told her Mom that it was too itchy, but I was finally able to convince her to give me fake smile.

What a great pirate!! Was he giving me that grrrrr pose?? I doubt it since he is the sweetest pirate that I know!!

I'm talkin' about something like totally tubealicious!!

2008-10-28T11:33:00.002-04:00

I just noticed when I went to do this post that I haven't posted since my last Chic-Critique post. I think that is called being entirely too busy and absolutely worn plum out!!! It's not that I don't have some cool stuff to post about...my sister Cathy's visit, a girls weekend/reunion with college friends, High Point International Furniture Market, new house decor, some fabulous finds for my home that will be just divine once I give them a little tender loving care...the list goes on since I still have some things from last December that I haven't posted about. Ha! Will I ever get caught up?? Maybe I'll take a vacation to get caught up with my life....what a lovely dream!! Anyway, today I am posting about my favorite mascara called Kiss Me. You would think that with a name like that it would be a product for your lips. No. It's for your lashes. It doesn't "paint" your lashes like normal mascara. It forms tiny water-resistant "tubes" around your lashes that once applied, binds to your lashes to prevent running, smudging, clumping or flaking. I will never go back to regular mascara because this product is totally tubealicious!!! To learn more, check me out at www.chic-critique.com. Write me a little note to let me know that you stopped by to visit. I think I'll go back to dreaming about taking a vacation!!!

Please Santa...I've been a very good girl!!

2008-10-22T01:25:00.003-04:00

I am over at http://www.chic-critique.com/ today talking about one thing that is on my Christmas list this year. For those of you who use straightening irons, you have to go read all about this product. Even if you don't straighten your hair, please go check out my post. You know that I always love to have readers and especially love to have comments {Hint. Hint}. Have you started making your Christmas lists yet??

She's Crafty. She gets around...

2008-10-13T16:29:00.005-04:00

I can't help it. I love the Beastie Boys. I was trying to think of a title for this post, and this song kept going through my head. Anyway, I thought I better catch you up on some of my craftiness. I have been crafting up a storm, but not posting about it. I continue to take a monthly scrapbook class with my talented friend Margaret.

This was our August "Beach" class. Perfect for some of our Pawleys Island vacation pics.

In September, we had a "Bohemian" class.
We also made a little matchbook album.
Here's what it looks like when it is opened.
I loved our "Circle of Friends" October class. This was really fun because we learned how to do circular word projects on the computer.
Our bonus project was a ribbon spool album. All of those circles fold up and fit inside the larger round circle which is a ribbon spool taken apart, covered in paper and put back together. Of course I had to monogram it.Speaking of crafty, check out what our neighbor made for us. We are big-time-snuggle-under-a- blanket kind of people. Plus, we are huge Gamecock fans. She knew we would use this all of the time. I can't wait for the next away game so I can snuggle under my Gamecock blanket and watch the game. Thanks Debbie!!!

I got the call today that I didn't want to hear...

2008-10-04T07:51:00.004-04:00

It is with a heavy heart that I must tell you that my dear friend, Steve Caswell, has lost his battle to cancer this morning. Even though I know that he is in no more pain and that he has gone to be with the Lord, selfishly my heart is breaking. I hurt for his wonderful wife and his five beautiful girls. I can't begin to imagine what they are going through. He was one of the greatest men that I have ever known, and I will miss his friendship. He was the most positive, kindest, generous, Godly man. I felt at peace around him. Melanie and Steve were one of the first people that we told when we lost our first pregnancy, and they comforted us and gave us confidence that everything was going to be okay. They understood what we were going through since they had lost 4 pregnancies, but they still ended up having 5 gorgeous girls. He called his wife Melanie his "bride". I always loved that. He had so much respect for her, and treated her like a princess. One of the many things about him that made me look up to him. We told him on several occasions that we aspired to be like them when we grew up, even though they are not much older than us. They just had that "it" factor. You wanted to be around them, you wanted to be like them. I can't even begin to tell you the generous things that he has done for us. He was like that with everyone, though. He would have taken the shirt off of his back to give to you if you needed it. When my neighbor's house burnt down, I sent out an e-mail to see if anyone had anything that I could take to the family in need. He was the first to respond, and within 2 hours he had brought me a pile of clothes for the dad. He took numerous trips to Louisiana after Katrina hit to deliver supplies and clothes. There are so many stories like that about him. He was also a youth leader, and has touched thousands of lives through the years. Must be why he has had 145,025 visits to his caring bridge site since December. I can't wait to see you again in heaven, my dear friend!!

Speedy Gonzalez {where have you been my whole life} hairdryer!!

2008-10-02T10:07:00.005-04:00

I'm over at http://www.chic-critique.com/ today talkin' about a time savin' device that has become my best friend over the last few years. When I was in NYC a few years ago, I picked up my T3 at the Sephora in Times Square. This patented tourmaline gemstone infused dryer is a Godsend. They are expensive, but for super thick hair like mine it is worth it. As always, please leave me a comment over there to let me know that you read me and love me. Well, maybe not love me but at least read me!!

Get your driving shoes on!!!

2008-09-25T19:36:00.004-04:00

Mike ordered custom Nike shoes, and they arrived today. We had so much fun creating these Nike ID's. They are the newest thing out there. Oh. The perks of having a Nike wholesale account and a rep that is good to Mike. He is in love with "his girls" so much that he decided they needed to be a part of his new shoes. Cheesy? Maybe, but oh so precious that he loves our pooches like he does.

He can now take them with him wherever he goes.
When he wants to get the girls all riled up to go on a car ride, he always asks them if they have their driving shoes on. They know what that means, and they go berserk. They live for car rides. So...
Ali with her personalized driving shoe on.
Ashleigh with her personalized driving shoe on.

If that didn't make you smile, there is something wrong with you!!

Fairy Godmother!!

2008-09-24T12:13:00.002-04:00

I'm just pleased as punch!!! I am going to be beautiful baby Chloe's Godmother!!! I promise to love you and spoil you and be there for you and lead you down the right path (I won't tell you stories of the trouble that your Mommy and I got into until you're older). I love you, baby girl!!!

Dinner for Friends

2008-09-21T21:44:00.008-04:00

Tonight we took dinner to some dear friends of ours. You might remember that I blogged about them on December 30th, 2007. They are an incredible family that needs all the prayers that they can get. This father of 5 girls, and husband to an amazing woman was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer on our 2nd anniversary (December 10th, 2007). He went through a period where he was doing much better, but he is going through another tough time right now. Please keep them in your prayers and check out their blog to read their complete story at www.caringbridge.org/visit/stevecaswell. It doesn't matter what he is going through- he is still an unbelieveable inspiration!!

My name is Leigh Ann and I am a Hotel Snob!!!

2008-09-17T10:13:00.002-04:00

Over the years I have become a hotel snob. After working for Delta and having my very nice rooms in excellent locations paid for, it is so hard to go back. It is the same with the free flight benefits that I had for 11 years. It KILLS me to have to pay for tickets now. Anyway, my new job has recently paid for me to stay at the Westin in downtown Atlanta and the Marriott in Dallas. Both very nice hotels with wonderful amenities and comfy cozy beds with tons of pillows and down comforters. There's a reason that they call the Westin beds "Heavenly Beds". Although, I must say that the bed at the Marriott was even better!!!

As you can see, nice Westin bed.

Fabulous view of the city from the 45th floor.
What I could afford in Atlanta this weekend when I had to pay for my own room...
...check out that disgusting comforter. Yuck!!!! What is up with those pillows??? They look like they should be on a toddler bed. I wore flip-flops every step that I took in that room. The 80's artwork was even ugly back then. I guess you get what you pay for, but I must say that it is just so hard to go back to skanky, cheap hotels after you have been spoiled with top notch hotels. What's a girl gonna do, though, when she's on a hotel budget that comes out of her own pocket? Farewell heavenly beds, down comforters, an abundance of big fluffy pillows, nice amenities, fabulous views and great locations. I will miss you!!!!!

OneCoast University

2008-09-12T16:22:00.002-04:00

I have spent the past few days attending OneCoast University in Dallas. This is a training program for my job. I learned SO much, but it was intense!!! Twelve hours a day in class and then we had a 2 1/2 hour long essay test on the last day.

Here are some of my instructors.

This was my roomie Debbie. Wow!!!! I look tired!!!! Oh yeah, I was!!!!
Here's some of my classmates. There were 35 of us- 33 women and 2 men.
Here I am with the CEO Ted Teele (that man is a marketing genius) and my mentor Nora Campbell. They both taught some of the classes.
Here's some of the stuff that we received. The big binder was our OneCoast textbook for the week. They gave us surcies like notecards, notepads, a big bag of snacks when we checked in and the bear was waiting in our room for us one night after dinner. Marketing your retail store is only one of the books that we will be receiving. Every year our company sends a book to our top 1,000 customers and all of the 400 employees. That was last year's book, and we will get this year's book in the mail. I thought that was kinda cool that they want to educate the customers as well as us. We had a little graduation ceremony where we received our certificate and a framed pic with the CEO and our mentor.
I just know that everything I learned at OneCoast University is going to be a great foundation for my new job, and I am so fortunate to have been hired for this position. There were some really bright people in my class, and OneCoast is a fabulous company. Thank you God for answering my prayers!!

Vacation

2008-09-06T14:54:00.007-04:00

As promised, here's a peek into our vacation. Hubs and I haven't taken a vaca by ourselves since our honeymoon almost 3 years ago. This was a much needed break since we are both getting ready to be super busy with work. We started the trip with golf for Mike, and a 7 1/2 hour conference call for me. Yes. You read that right. Long day, but that night we were able to go to Shannon and Brandon's house (friends who live right by where we stayed) to watch the Gamecocks play their season opener and have dinner. The next day was "our alone day".

We ate lunch at the beach club.

We were viewing the beach from lunch and wasn't sure if the weather was going to hold out, but...
...it turned out great and we did some reading on the beach.
We had an incredibly romantic dinner that night. If you go to Pawleys Island, you must try a Pawleys institution called Frank's. Unbeliveable!!!
After our alone day, we pretty much spent the rest of the weekend with Shannon, Brandon and their little boy Hunter.
We invited all of them to the beach where we were staying. Hunter loves the beach!!
Next year we will have a new addition to play with. Elizabeth will arrive within the next month. I loved this pic of Shannon and Hunter. Shannon stripped him down to take off his swim diaper before we left the beach. He loved being naked and ran around the beach showing off. I doubt if he'll be very happy about this pic in a few years.
Of course I had to bring some surcies for baby Elizabeth.
Hunter loves to dance, and has amazing rhythm. We ate outside at a restaurant on the water that had a band. He was entertaining the whole crowd. He was "raising the roof" and doing other fun dance moves. He even had several women dance with him, myself included. It was too cute!!
He has a new love- ice cream!! I don't blame him!!
The next day we went out on their boat. The girls love a boat ride!! To the left is a tiny island that only has goats on it.
We docked the boat on a beach, had a picnic lunch and spent the rest of the day like this.
Hunter liked sitting in my float.
This was the first time that they brought the gate for him. I think they wished that they had done this all summer. Otherwise that boy is on the move!!
He finally crashed out for a nap on top of his Mommy.
After swimming, the girls got back on the boat and crashed out too.

They are happiest when the boat is moving.
Along the way we spotted a couple of houses that I wouldn't mind living in.

I would take this boat too!!

The only thing that we forgot to do was take our annual pic with Shannon and Brandon. I guess we'll have to look back on Summer 2006...
...and summer 2007.
Unfortunately, the vaca had to end. On our way home we stopped at Burger King. It was too dark to get a good pic, but this was so blog-worthy. There were at least 20 cats camped out in the parking lot at BK. I guess they were waiting on dumpster time??
The girls were so wiped out after their time at the beach. They passed out as soon as they got in the car and didn't bother to lift their heads all the way home. The end. Unfortunately. When I go to the beach I never want it to end!!

When you are on the go...

2008-09-05T08:54:00.002-04:00

Good morning!! I am getting ready to go see a customer and in a hurry, so this will be a quick post. I am over at Chic Critique (www.chic-critique.com) today talking about a new product that I found for the mineral make-up lover for those days when you are on the go. It is a fabulous compact with your all-in-one concealer, foundation, finishing powder, sponge and mirror. Check out Pur Minerals if you want a good coverage, light, on-the-go mineral make-up. I found mine at Ulta on a BOGO special. I think the first one was $24.99, second one free. Can't beat it!! I'm in a hurry today, so I guess I'll go put some on now. As always, feel free to leave me a comment over there. You know, I want to be popular and all:)

Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous

2008-09-04T00:04:00.006-04:00

My hubs and I finally had a chance to take a much needed vacation. We are so blessed to have some generous friends who let us stay in their beach house for a few days. We appreciate it soooo much since we were on a limited vacation budget. They told us that they would be happy to let us stay in their duplex. I must say that this wasn't like your average duplex...

The back of the duplex
The side of the duplex that we stayed in
The screened in porch (Ali wanted to be in the picture)
The view from the back deck and screened in porch
The entryway (beautiful paintings from the Cayman Islands)
Cool fish hook for their hats and our puppies' polka dot leashes
The view from the dining room into the hallway and foyer
The view from the foyer into the hallway and beyond that the family room

(Sorry for the bad lighting)
The hallway
View from dining room into family room
Dining room
Wet bar
View of kitchen from dining room
View of kitchen from the entrance to the laundry room
The family room
Guest bedroom
Another guest bedroom
Cool tortoise wall hanging
We loved this painting. This is Mike's dream view from his dream dock connected to his dream home on the marsh/water.
Master bedroom where we stayed
The TV that we enjoyed from our comfy-cozy king sized bed. French doors on right led to the screened in porch.
Door leads to the master bath
Stay tuned to see what we did on this fabulous beach vacation.

Are You Ready for Some Football?

2008-08-28T21:08:00.003-04:00

Go Gamecocks!!!!!!!!

Welcome to the world Baby Chloe!!!

2008-08-27T14:35:00.004-04:00

My BFF Nancy and her hubby Brad welcomed Chloe Elizabeth into the world on 8-24 at 10:18 p.m. She is so beautiful, and I just can't wait to snuggle and kiss on her!!! Daddy thinks that she is going to be a tomboy- his hunting and fishing buddy. Watch out Daddy because Aunt Lele is going to princessify your baby girl!!!!

Look what I'm going to be doing!!!

2008-08-25T12:57:00.011-04:00

I have just accepted a new position as a territory manager for a home decor and accessories group of manufacturers. Below you will see some of the products that I will be selling to furniture stores, interior designers and gift and home accessories stores. I am based out of the Atlanta Gift Mart. For those who don't know what this is, it is the largest mart in the country where businesses go to buy for their stores. There are three buildings with at least 13 floors on each building filled with gifts, clothes, shoes and handbags, baby and childrens clothes, toys and gifts, jewelry, home decor, tabletop, bedding, gourmet food and holiday decorations. It is an amazing operation in the heart of downtown Atlanta. It is going to be so fun, and you can just imagine the things that I will be able to find to decorate my new house with. I promise to show you pics of my fun finds. One of the perks of this job is the samples and the generous discounts off of wholesale products. Wish me luck in my new position!!

I need more hours in the day!!!

2008-08-20T01:04:00.004-04:00

I know. I know. I haven't posted for 12 days. Ridiculous. I'm really not sure if I will ever get caught up on blogging or anything else for that matter. I have so much to blog about, but not enough hours in the day to get around to blogging. I have at least found time for my every other Tuesday Chic-Critique post. Today (well actually now it is yesterday) I posted about Bye Bye Blemish. To read the full review, check it out at http://www.chic-critique.com/ You can find Bye Blemish at http://www.drugstore.com/. I did find it at CVS for a little while, but I bought the last two bottles they had on a 50% clearance sale. If you suffer from problem skin like me, I think you would like how this product works even if you don't like how it smells. Sulfur. Yuck!! Couldn't they make a drying lotion that smelled like...oh I don't know...buttercream frosting?? A newborn baby?? Puppies breath?? Oh, I guess some people don't like puppies breath. Maybe they think sulfur smell is better?? NOT!!! Anyway, give it a try and let me know how it works for you. As always, check me out at http://www.chic-critique/ and come out of lurking to leave me a comment!!! Have a great day!!

Baby Time!!

2008-08-08T11:47:00.004-04:00

I'm heading home this weekend to meet her...

... give sip 'n see shower for him
...go to a baby shower for her
...and meet their brand new baby.
Should be lots of kissin' and cuddlin' and you know I will have a ton of pics!!!

It is that time again...

2008-08-05T09:11:00.004-04:00

Time to check me out at http://www.chic-critique.com/. I am posting about Sheer Cover today. If you read my recommendation and decide that you want try it, you can find Sheer Cover at Bed, Bath and Beyond. As a bonus, you can use a BB&B 20% coupon. You don't get as many products as you would if you ordered the kit online, but I have found that the things that I like the best are included in the BB&B kit like the duo concealer, the mineral powder foundation with SPF 15 and the finishing powder. It is a much cheaper way to buy it, especially if you just want to give it a try. I would definitely find a concealer brush to use with the duo concealer. To apply the mineral powder foundation, I'm a big fan of the Kabuki brush and you will want a less compact powder brush for the finishing powder. If you suffer like me from hormonally-crazed skin, give it a shot. I have been very pleased with the coverage for blemishes, blotchiness, red marks and dark circles under my eyes. If you have any questions, feel free to ask and don't forget to comment on my post at http://www.chic-critique.com/.

Everybody's Workin' for the Weekend!!

2008-08-02T12:27:00.003-04:00

Did you think I was gone?? MIA?? Never going to post again?? Sorry. I have been B.U.S.Y!! I was also probably concentrating more on my newest addiction...Facebook!! So fun!! Anyway, I had the best weekend...Last weekend!!! Behind in posting again!! I hope this weekend is half as fun as last weekend!!

Last Saturday afternoon I went to my friend Margaret's monthly scrapbook class. It was raining outside, so it was the perfect rainy, summer afternoon activity. Her daughter Marissa helped pass out our supplies for the class, showed off her Disney scrapbook that she made from their summer vacation and modeled her new 'do {she donated her hair to locks of love}.

Look at the cute layout that we made. As a bonus project, we made a magnet with a clip and our initial on it.
On Saturday night, our neighbors invited us to dinner and a play/musical to celebrate her birthday.
The show was great!! If you live around here and have never been to Trustus Theatre, you must check it out. Small and quaint with movie theatre rocking seats, Cromer's popcorn and a beverage of your choice. Fun!! We had not been there in a long time, and we were surprised to see that they didn't have recliners to sit in like they had years ago.
On Sunday, I went to the lake with Margaret, Lou, Marissa, KT and Levi. I *Heart* Lake Murray!! Over 800 miles of shoreline, beautiful homes, restaurants on the water, a private lake club where Lou is a member and a ginormous dam. These are called the towers {the dam is behind them}. They go like 150 feet deep and generate electricity. I don't know the whole story on them, but Lou took a tour of them and he said it was pretty amazing how it all worked.
The day would have been perfect if I had not jumped into the water and cut my foot on the boat's propeller. O.U.C.H!!! That left a mark!!
I don't know how KT got stuck in the cuddie cabin with my float??
Marissa is a lake lover!!
Levi wasn't sure about the rockin' dock at first and didn't know if he wanted to get on the boat because he was scared that he would drown, but he loved it!!!
He had so much fun swimming that he had to lay down with his Daddy in the cabin for a cat nap. They were so cute nappin' together that we just couldn't help ourselves from takin' a pic. Sorry KT.
What a perfect summer weekend. The End.

My surprise!!!

2008-07-22T09:48:00.004-04:00

This surprise might not be that exciting for some, but it is super exciting for me!!! I am going to be a regular contributor {every other Tuesday} for Chic-Critique. I have my first post today. Please go check it out at http://www.chic-critique.com/. Under the post where it lists my name and date, you will see the word Comment. PLEASE click on Comment and leave me a Comment so I know you've checked it out, that you *heart* me and that you think I'm a rockstar:)!! This is going to be super fun for me. I already have a product in the mail from a PR company who wants me to try and critique their product. Free beauty stuff. What????? This might not be the surprise that some were hoping for, but I still think it's pretty cool!!

What a great weekend!!

2008-07-21T12:29:00.005-04:00

Well, my hubs came in third in the City Tournament. He wasn't happy, but I am still proud of him. The same three pros always seem to be in the top 3. He just doesn't want to be 3. He could have won if not for some water penalty shots. Such is golf...Honey, you are still a rockstar!!

Each day of this weekend was filled with fun. On Friday night, my friend Margaret called to see if I wanted to go to TJ Maxx and dinner. Well....YEAH!!! It was a good girl night. I needed one of those!!

On Saturday night, we were invited to a wine tasting. Our friends, Kyle and Amanda, are getting married in November and wanted their friends to choose the wine that will be served at their wedding. We did a blind taste testing where the wine bottles were covered in paper bags and numbered. We tried the wine, wrote notes about it and voted on our favorites. It was so fun!! It can be so deceiving when you are not influenced by the name, the label, the bottle or the price.

They served some yummy food!!

We talked and laughed.
This cake. Ohmygravy!! If you live in Columbia and need a chocolate high, check out Chocolate Nirvana. You can get this by the slice.......slice of heaven is what it should be called.
Kyle's dog, Duke, has to be one of my favorite dogs of all time other than my two princesses.
He loves a buffet!!! Kyle collects art. Check out this unbelievable painting of Duke running. I LOVE it!!! I want one of each of my girls. I have always loved this too.
He had a big night and had to crash in the corner. Doesn't this kind of look like Ali??

My friend Lu invited me to her house on Sunday afternoon for a relaxing afternoon at the pool. Sun and lots of girl talk. A perfect summer day. What could be better??

Thanks friends for a fabulous summer weekend!!! I have a big surprise that I will reveal in tomorrow's blog post. Stay tuned and come back tomorrow!!!

So Proud!!!

2008-07-18T12:01:00.002-04:00

My hubs is in The State newspaper today. He is playing in the City Tournament, and they have his picture in the paper. I tried to upload it, but the format was not compatible with blogger. You can check him out at http://www.thestate.com/sports/story/464298.html. Most of the article is about the amateur division, but they did put his picture in the article. In the pro division, he is 3 shots off the leader. He was not happy. He had a BAD day!!! Let's hope that he brings his A game today because he shot 66 on Wednesday when he was practicing for the tournament. Tournament golf is tough!! The leader right now is his old boss, Clem King, who is always a fierce competitor. Go honey, I know you can do it!!!

My cute great-nieces

2008-07-16T19:04:00.009-04:00

My niece has been sending me some cute pics of my great-nieces. Their Daddy is in Afghanistan so she has been taking lots of pics to send to him. They are just so darn cute!!!

Look at that smile on Emmarie!!!!

I can't wait to kiss this adorable baby!!! Hopefully I'll be seeing Andrea for the first time in just a few weeks!!!

Emmarie loving on her baby sister Andrea

Look at those cheeks!! Precious!!
Emmarie reminds me so much of her Daddy when he was little.
Andrea looks like him too!! I also see their Mommy, Emelita, in them. Although, Emelita is scared that people think she is just their nanny.
Emmarie is good on the bike. She just turned three!! I got her that cute t-shirt. Too bad I'm not still a flight attendant:(
Emmarie loves her Grandpa {my Dad and her Great-Grandpa}
I think that girl loves ice cream as much as he does.
It just makes my heart melt to see my Dad with the girls. It makes me want a baby so bad I can't stand it!! He likes to spoil his grandkids!!! {I guess he was pretty good at spoiling his own kids too}

Look what hubs brought home!!

2008-07-13T21:46:00.005-04:00

I just happened to see the artist of this painting last weekend at the 4th of July celebration. Although I've only met her once when I went to her house with a mutual friend, I liked her from the moment I met her. She likes to paint and decorate her house, and I just know we would be friends if we were around each other more. You know how you sometimes just click with someone right off the bat?? Well, I saw a painting like this one in her house {but different colors} and told her that I liked it. She said that she had painted it, and would paint one for me when we moved into our new house. I thought she was just saying that to be nice, but when I saw her last weekend and we talked about it and she asked my house colors, I decided that she might really mean it. A week later hubs brought this home to me. Score!!! She did such a great job without even seeing my home. Now I just have to figure out if I want it on a red wall or a tan wall. What do you think??

Our 4th of July Company

2008-07-10T01:04:00.011-04:00

How much fun did we have with our 4th of July company?? Come along on the journey and see what we did....

First things first- sushi (Have you figured out that we love sushi? What's even better is that our nieces love sushi!!) and Marble Slab Creamery ice cream.

I own a dress up mermaid book. How many times do you think I read that to Reagan?? Don't you love the mermaid crown, seaweed hair extensions and shell necklace??

I got help watering all of my plants and flowers.
The youngest of the crew came too.
This coffee cup gives you an idea of the size of Mia.
We spent the day at the club on Saturday. We hung at the pool, the boys and the two older girls played golf, there were games, a cookout and the day ended with a fireworks show. Reagan met some new friends.
Konner won the penny dive for her age group.
Hunter was very close to winning her age group. There was some tough older boy competition!!
It was such a beautiful night to sit outside to watch fireworks.
We discovered that Konner is "the dog whisperer".
Mike took the day off on Sunday for a trip to Charleston. We started by eating lunch on the water at Shem Creek.
We sat in booths that were actually tiki hut gliders.

Mike's sister Kristen and her husband Jerry.
We then went downtown for a carriage tour of historic Charleston.
As we were waiting in the big red barn to board our carriage, Reagan found some goats. Her arms are crossed because I kept telling her, "Don't touch the goats. Don't touch the goats. Don't touch the goats." I had to tell her a few twenty times to make sure that she didn't touch them:-)
Even though Mike and I have been to Charleston many times, we've never taken a carriage tour. We saw many beautiful homes along the way.
I found a Bed and Breakfast that I would like to stay at sometime. At several hundred a night, I doubt that it will be anytime soon.

I wouldn't be upset if Mike decided that he wanted to buy me this pink house that is for sale!!
It was so hot that we had to break from the sightseeing to have a frozen concoction at Wet Willies.
We then headed to Folly Beach.
Mike, the little kid that he is, went out in the water with his clothes on knowing that he didn't have a change of clothes.
Kristen told Reagan not to get wet. She said, "Mommy, I promise I won't get wet". Yeah, right. To see her precious face smiling with happiness and to hear her squeal with delight from playing in the waves was one of the best things I've watched in a long time. She lives in Wisconsin, so the beach was something that thrilled her to pieces!!

We topped off the day with fresh seafood at an outdoor restaurant in Folly Beach. Yummy!!
She looks like I felt after our fun day...wiped out!!
We finished their visit with Christmas in July!! Since we didn't get to see them when we were home for Christmas, I still had Christmas gifts to give them. I could have mailed them, but it is so much more fun to give them in person.
I hope Reagan enjoys her little chef outfit!! You can bake some cookies for your Aunt Lele and Uncle Mike if you want (our feelings won't be hurt). Hehe!! What a fun visit!!! We hope that you can come back again soon!!!

Surprise!!! Look What I've Done!!!

2008-07-08T12:16:00.004-04:00

I have so much fun stuff to post about our 4th of July weekend, but first I have to show you what I've done. Otherwise, you might be surprised when you see the pics from this weekend. I wish I had taken a before shot, but since I didn't you'll just have to remember the blonde....because I'm now a brunette!!!

I have been thinking about doing this for a few months, and I finally took the all day long plunge. I wanted to go closer back to my natural color with some blonde highlights instead of an all over blonde highlight. I first had to add filler to my hair so it would hold the new darker color- this step made it a golden, red, brown color.

Wow!!! Here's the darker color....definitely darker than my natural color!! Since my hair had so much blonde in it, it really grabbed onto the dark color.
We then added a few highlights. Not exactly what I was looking for so...
...I went back two weeks later for some more highlights. It is still not exactly the way I want it, but it is closer to what I want and the hair needs a little rest for right now. I'll give you the next update in a few more weeks. Until then, try to get used to the idea of the brunette pics that I will be posting. What do you think??

Happy 4th of July!!!

2008-07-04T09:18:00.005-04:00

Hopefully everyone does something fun and spends the day with some family or friends. We are so lucky to have some family coming all the way from Wisconsin to visit for a few days. We don't get to see Mike's sisters and their families very often, and we love spending time with them. This pic is of the whole crew at our nephew/Godson's baptism last summer. I realized after looking through a bunch of pics that I didn't have a pic of just Kristen and her family . We'll have to take care of that this weekend!! I'm sure I'll have lots to blog about come next Tuesday. Until then........Happy 4th!!!

My Little Artist

2008-07-01T16:28:00.005-04:00

Annie got a new art easel today, so she decided to draw Aunt Lele a picture and have her Mommy take pics from her new Blackberry to send to me. Annie got her Mom's old hiptop phone, so now she has her very own cell phone to play games on:)

I'm so lucky to have you in my life, Annie!!
Oh, it is looking so pretty.
I wish I could frame it. Too bad it is a dry-erase picture.
Her Mommy drew one for me too!!!
Rock on Artist Annie!!

My New Venture

2008-06-25T20:48:00.004-04:00

I am sooo excited about my new venture!!! I have become a sales consultant for a brand new company based out of Columbia, SC. It is called Home & Garden Direct, and we offer home decor and furniture (furniture coming soon). This is not a direct sales/home party type of company. There are NO HOME PARTIES or RECRUITING involved. Just check out the products at http://www.homeandgardendirect.net/. The products are good quality, and the prices are great. There is free local delivery and a nominal delivery charge (DHL) to non-local areas. Just shop the website and then e-mail me at ladoolen@msn.com with what you would like to order. Both credit cards and checks are accepted. Please pass this info along to anyone who you think might be interested- bloggie buddies, friends, family, etc. I look forward to being your link to some fun home decor and furniture!!

Our Hilton Head Island Vacation

2008-06-24T14:28:00.010-04:00

In April, we took our annual trip to Hilton Head Island. This is one of those catch-up posts that I have had on my list to complete.

We stayed down the road from The Salty Dog Cafe, which is always one of the highlights of our trip. A one man band + frozen drinks + a waterfront view = A good time.

We are so fortunate to have some fabulous friends (Paul and Billie-see below) who have invited us to come stay at their vacation rental every year for the past several years. It is so wonderful to be blessed with generous friends!!!

Here is the 5 bedroom 5 1/2 bath beach house where we stayed.
Our room was just steps from the pool and hot tub.
The upstairs living room opened to the dining room. I have wanted to paint the back of my built-in bookshelves since we have moved to our new house, and this confirmed that I like a darker color painted in the back of the bookshelves.
One of the many projects that are on my list for the new house. I wish my kitchen was this size!!! I love a kitchen island, and I love having my husband cook me breakfast even more:)
Mike at the back of the house.
How could you not love this pool and hot tub?
One night we made dinner at the house and just relaxed and enjoyed each other's company.
We shopped. Imagine that. Notice I found a store named The Birds Nest. Of course, I had to take a pic of that for the blog:)
We shopped and ate around the lighthouse.

This is what we actually came to Hilton Head to do...go to the MCI Heritage golf tournament. Here's part of our crew in front of the clubhouse.
Our friend Paul (the one that we stay with) has been playing in the Pro-Am for several years. This tournament is played the day before the MCI Heritage begins. A three man amateur team is paired with one of the PGA professionals who will be playing in the MCI Heritage. Paul was paired with Ken Duke this year.
Ken was such a great guy. Look at how cute he is- beautiful blue eyes!! I mean, you know I have a thing for golf pros:)
Paul with Ken Duke's caddie on the 18th tee. Check out the parasailer in the background.
The whole group on the 17th green.
This is one of the houses on the 17th green. There are some gorgeous houses on the course!!
Here we are on the 18th tee. You can see the lighthouse and the parasailer in the the background.
Of course, as we were on our way home we stopped to tour the HGTV Dream Home (which I posted about on June 8th). Then it ended. So. Fast. Vacation always does.

Happy Father's Day!!!

2008-06-19T23:24:00.009-04:00

My Daddy- My First Love!!

This moment scared him...
...the one below was even worse!! He was terrified to dance with me at our wedding. He had never danced until that weekend. I told the band to make it short and slow. He even danced with my Mom that night. I don't know what he was scared of because he did a great job. I doubt if he'll do it again, though:)
I was so happy that I was able to spend Father's Day with him this year. From these next few pics, though, it looks like all he did was work!! He had only been at my house for an hour and was already pulling weeds. I had to take a picture of him out of my dining room window, thinking that he was going to be bent over and doing a lot of pulling to try to make those weeds-on-steriods-beds look anywhere even close to looking decent. I'm sure he had a hard time sleeping at night worrying about how bad my yard looked (he likes a very pristine yard). The landscapers were here today, Dad, so it actually looks much better.
He is the BEST picture hanger that I know!!! I had been waiting to hang everything until he came to visit because he can hang anything you want hung like nobody's business!!! (Plus, my husband puts lots of holes in our walls trying to hang something:) (Bless your heart, hubs. You have definitely improved through the years.) I have moved a lot and my Dad has had to hang stuff in lots of my houses so I'm sure that he hopes that I stay put for awhile!!
He's also very good at putting things together. In fact, he's just darn right handy!!! Boy, I wish he lived closer!!! He would have my house whipped into shape in no time. He's in his 70s and I can't even begin to keep up with him!! (Disclaimer: The high-water window treatments in the background of the below pic are from our old house and are a temporary fix until we get blinds and/or shutters and new window treatments.)
My father-in-law wasn't scared to dance at our wedding. He cut a rug all night long!! Thank you for raising that wonderful man that I am so lucky to have for a husband!!
My hubs sure loves "our girls". He lets them sleep on him...
...and even holds them like they're babies. I am so lucky to have found someone to love my girls as much as I do!!! It is evident by how you treat our puppies that you are going to be an incredible father one of these days!!
I know this post is a few days belated, but I have been trying to get this post done since Father's Day. I was busy with my parents on Sunday and Monday. Couldn't get it finished. Since then I have been trying to upload these photos. I can't begin to tell you how many times I have tried to get this to work in the last 3 days. Anyone else been having problems with blogger?? Anyway, I hope you had a Happy Father's Day, Dad. I really enjoyed having you here!!! I also hope my father-in-law, brother, brother-in-laws, cousins, friends and of course my hubby ("our girls" told me to include you) all enjoyed their day too!!! I love all of you!! Boy, I have been blessed with some great men in my life!!!

Friendship Friday

2008-06-13T10:21:00.002-04:00

My friend Nancy just got married last September, and will be a mother before her first anniversary. Yay!!! She has wanted to be a mother for so long, and I couldn't be happier for her. I can't wait to be "Aunt Lele" again!! Her daddy wants to take her hunting and fishing and make her a tomboy. Which is fine, but I said "You just wait. Aunt Lele will be buying everything princess and dress up and pink and crowns and wands....for that sweet little girl." I think she can be both:) Nancy's mom just sent me some pics of Nancy because since I live so far from her, I haven't seen her pregnant. If she had not sent some belly shots too, I wouldn't have known she was even pregnant. How cute does she look? I thought she might be a little upset if I showed her prego belly to the blogosphere:)

See how cute. You can't even tell. She looks great being pregnant.
Nancy and Brad heading into the doctor's office.
Brad's face when it was confirmed that it was definitely a little girl. He has wanted a boy for so long, but you just wait. That little girl will have him wrapped around her little finger the moment he lays eyes on her. (Just giving Brad a hard time. All he really wants is a healthy baby.)

Crafty Craftiness

2008-06-12T10:42:00.002-04:00

Remember this stuff??? Well, I finally turned it into something...

...to match these (they still need a big fat monogram on them).
The finished product is my front door wreath.
The red ticking stripe ribbon matches my pillows. I saw this wreath in a really fun home decor store, but it was around $100.00. What??? Pooey. I could make that myself. I asked if I could buy all the pieces separately and not only did I save a ton of money but I think I did almost as good a job as they did:)
My old home had a navy door and navy shutters, so I had painted my wrought iron doormat navy.
That wouldn't work in my new home, so I took the paint that was used on our shutters and repainted it. I love it with my stained front door and now it matches our shutters!!

Surcie

2008-06-11T13:32:00.004-04:00

Who doesn't love to get a surcie (little surprise gift) in the mail? My friend Brandy saw this book and thought of me. She thought there were some cute ideas for my new home. How thoughtful!! Thanks Brandy!! I will blog my craftiness when I make something from the book.

On a funny note, the cable company sent someone to install a new outlet in my office because the old one wasn't working correctly. He accidentally drilled some holes....
...on each side of the wall. I wish you could have seen the 18 inch drill bit hanging out on the other side of the wall in the staircase. I tried to get a pic before he took it out because it made for a much funnier post. The holes give you a good idea of his little oops, though:) By the way, he made a total of 4 holes in my walls, and no he did not fix them. Supposedly, they will be sending someone else out to fix them. Ha! We'll see if that happens.

Moving Day...

2008-06-10T12:40:00.005-04:00

...Posted a few months later. I have been trying to play catch up on all of the things that I have not had time to post in the last few months. This moving day was such a big day for us after everything that we have been through the last few years (I'll save that for another post).

If you have a move coming up, I highly recommend getting a POD. We were able to load our garage and other boxes before the movers ever showed up. They moved the POD to our new house and dropped it off by the garage for us to unload at our leisure. Of course, they put it in the most difficult location that prevented the movers from being able to put the moving truck in the driveway and they had to park on the road and carry all the way through the yard. It worked, but was just more difficult. Kinda like my life I guess...it eventually comes together but in the most difficult of ways:)

Two trucks + two and a half trips= we have too much stuff!!
As I had posted before in "The thirteen things that didn't go exactly as planned with our move" post, we ordered 4 men and 2 trucks but got 3 1/2 men and 1 1/2 trucks. That is the 1/2 man that is smiling for the camera (he was injured- why would you come to work as a mover when you have an injury- makes you useless- these are the things that I don't understand).

It's amazing to see these people pack a truck to the top!!
Little Ashleigh was terrified that she was going to get left. She was pitiful looking through the door from the back yard. I don't think a rescued dog that has been dropped off to fend for themselves ever really gets over that. In fact, she ran away the last time that we moved so we had to be careful that she stayed in the fenced in back yard.
The best part of the day was getting to sleep in our new home!!
Boxes, boxes, everywhere!!
Stacks of boxes everywhere!!
What a mess the movers made in this room. They even stacked boxes on top of a glass topped piece of furniture. Guess what??? The glass was broken when we moved the boxes. Wow- who would have ever thought that that would happen??? As I said before, rocket scientists these movers were not.
What is the world are we supposed to do with all of this stuff??? I feel sure that is what hubs was thinking when he was trying to move these boxes around.
Ashleigh was so discombobulated that she snuggled up on these covers that had come off of our bed for days. I didn't have the heart to move them until she felt adjusted and comfortable in her new home. I guess this was her security.
Our first housewarming gift. Thank you Chad and Sara!!!

Date Night

2008-06-09T10:41:00.002-04:00

Well, obviously I didn't win the HGTV Dream Home. Crap. I had already started packing boxes again:) To cheer me up, my fabulous (in touch with his girly side) husband took me to see Sex and The City. I started watching the very first season, and since I'm an insomniac I'm usually up at 2:00 am to catch the reruns. I never get tired of watching them, no matter how many times they play the same one over and over and over again!! Did Fox and TBS just buy the rights to only a few episodes??? I cried a lot. I don't know if it was because I was so excited to see them all again or if I was mourning not winning the Dream Home. Well, I guess there's next year for the Dream Home Giveaway. I'll bet my husband doesn't let me go take a $40 tour of it, though:)

HGTV Green Home

2008-06-08T15:46:00.012-04:00

The giveaway is tonight!!! In April when we went to Hilton Head Island for vacation, I told my husband that I wanted to tour the HGTV Green home when we left the island. We pulled off highway 278, drove up to the information center and went in to get signed up for the tour. When they told us that the tickets were $20/person, I thought we would both fall out!!! At that point, what were going to do?? That price was ridiculous, but at least part of the proceeds went to United Way and they did give us a cheap little green bag with a card of flower seeds that we could plant. So worth the $20:) Ha!! If we are lucky enough (please pray for us) to be chosen when they do the drawing on HGTV tonight, the $40 we spent to go on our little tour will all be worth it. At least that is what I told my husband so that he didn't have a heart attack:)

How cool would it be if we got our picture taken on the porch of our new home???
Linen sofa
Living Room
Cool vase made from pine cones
Dining area- lovie the houndstooth pillows
The buffet was an old storage case from a bakery.
Pretty kitchen and beautiful hardwoods

Just like our kitchen sink and kitchen cabinets
Cool walk-through pantry

Kid's room
Entertainment alcove

Guest bedroom

Guest bath- cool tile
Upstairs lounging area

Master Bedroom

Master Bath- LOVE that tub

Those green quartz counters looked incredible!!
Screened porch

Love the garden arbor!!
Tons of fun outdoor seating

I WANT one of these firepits (even though it was especially made for the neighborhood- The Traditions).
The house even comes with the golf cart and clubs (like we really need more bags or clubs in our house).
I would take that Yukon Hybrid that is included in the prize package (I'd have to take those letters off the side that say Hybrid, though).
This house is located in a master one-of-a-kind green community located on 450 acres of lakes, parks, gardens, miles of biking and walking trails and complete with its own town of shopping, dining, golf club and luxurious fitness center & spa. Each home will come with its own Club Car golf cart to provide clean, quiet transportation for all of those around town errands and visits. If you want to learn more, go to http://www.traditionhh.com/ and watch HGTV tonight at 8:00pm EST to see us win our new dream home!!!

What do you do when it is 100 degrees out??

2008-06-07T17:51:00.003-04:00

Well, I took a scrapbook class. My friend Margaret has been teaching classes for years, but just started teaching out of her house. She is extremely talented, and I wanted to support her new venture. Besides, it was a dog class. How could I resist that??

Here's our 2 page layout
We also made these adorable treat jars.
Her dog snowball thought she was a big help. How pretty is she??She did leave us with a parting gift, though- lots of white hair on our clothes:)

Friendship Friday

2008-06-06T11:29:00.003-04:00

Our friends Kyle and Amanda will be getting married in a couple of weeks. Last Saturday, we went to an engagement party hosted by some other friends of ours. FUN PARTY!!! We are excited for the wedding. Best wishes to you!!!

The special couple

Lu did a great job making her patio a festive place for a party. Lu- your yard and house look amazing!!!
I LOVE my fun friends Ferris, Sissy and Chevis!!! How cool are all of their names???
Lu and Kyle- friends since college
Clark, Lu, Luke and Frank- apparently there was more than one shot being taken since Lu and Luke are looking at me and Clark and Frank are looking at another camera. It's still a cute pic, though.

I Heart Casting Crowns!!

2008-06-04T11:41:00.003-04:00

I have always loved Casting Crowns, but to see them in person...WOW is all I can say. They were fantastic!!!!

A man drew this in paint with his bare hands (no paint brushes) on a blank canvas while they sang "The voice of truth". It was incredible. God has truly given him a gift!!
Here's the finished product. Amazing!!
Now, I haven't bought a concert t-shirt since I was in high school, but how cute is this?
Anyone who knows me knows that I'm not a t-shirt and jeans kind of gal, but who can resist a cute pink tee for bumming around the house?

Training and visiting

2008-06-03T12:42:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago I went to Wisconsin for training for my new job and stayed with my sister-in-law, brother-in-law and nieces. For those of you who have not been to the Detroit airport recently, check it out. It is like Disney World. There's a tunnel with a light show set to music, a monorail and lots of Japanese people:)

I did some shopping with the nieces
The two older ones are really growing up. Wow!! They are going to dances with boys and have chores around the house. I can't believe it!!
The youngest one let me have her room for the week. Thank you so much, you sweet girl. Check out how precious it is!!! All of the girls' rooms are adorable. I'll have to take pics of the two older girls' rooms on my next trip. I think I'll have to fly this woman who painted their rooms down to SC when I have a little one. She does amazing work!!

She even painted their dog Lady hangin' out in the grass by the picket fence. Sooo cute!!

Friendship Friday

2008-05-30T11:18:00.002-04:00

Happy 1st anniversary to Luke and Clark (Mike's assistant Luke from my hometown in IL in the middle of the pic with his wife Clark). Clark's parents invited us to go for sushi as a thank you for something we did for Clark (we were so happy to do it). It was also a great way to celebrate their anniversary. Thanks Mary Winter and Tim!!!

Mary Winter is one fun chic!! Notice double fisting two different types of sake:)
Whatever Mike put on his head... let's just not talk about what it looked like. I love my silly hubby!!!

Who has been doing some planting??

2008-05-28T20:19:00.004-04:00

I've been BUSY beautifying the house!! I do love some flowers!!

Hope you enjoy the tour of my porches.

I already have some fruits of my labor!!

Friendship Friday

2008-05-23T19:21:00.004-04:00

Dena's pink and greenalicious present from me. It was a very Pink Crocodile birthday for her!!!

All aboard...
You can tell how much fun the boys were having chaperoning us...they're both on their cells!!

We ate at California Dreaming right on the water.
The view from the outdoor table where we ate.
"Don't let the sun go down on me"... excuse me- us!!! (I mean we did listen to Dena's new George Micheal Greatest Hits on the boat)
One of the best parts of the trip to the 'Ville was getting to pick out Annie's outfit for school this morning. How cute is she???
I hope you had a great birthday, Dena. The cruise on the boat (thanks Kane), dinner at California Dreaming, the carrot cake cookies with the cream cheese middles, watchin' Grey's finale, takin' Annie to school, hangin' at the Pink Croc and lunch at Eclectic Chef.... I know your birthday was fun for me!!!

HAPPY 35th!!!

2008-05-22T13:00:00.002-04:00

You say it's your birthday...

I hope you have a great day, Dena. I look forward to gettin' on the boat tonight to celebrate your big day. Once again, I'm sure it will be another great time to add to our list of all of the fun things that we've done together. I'm so blessed to have you as a friend!!!

Salon de Birdsell

2008-05-18T19:18:00.006-04:00

"The girls" had an appointment at Salon de Birdsell. We like to keep them shaved for their comfort and (selfishly) to keep them from shedding!!!

Ashleigh in the waiting room or as she calls it- purgatory:)

Ali figured that she might as well relax while she waited.
Here we go...
I look like I have a lion mane!!
Don't forget my hairy chin!!
See why we've been hot and shedding all over the new nest?
Oh! I love a bath!!
Daddy thinks it's funny to make the hair on my head stand up!!

I am so OVER this!! I know I'm a lab, but I HATE water!!
At least Mommy and Daddy got us new summer preppy collars for all this trouble that they are putting us through.
We were so good that we even got an ice cream cone!!
Yummy in our little doggie tummies!!

Friendship Friday

2008-05-16T10:49:00.003-04:00

Our friends Tommy and Brandy came down from Illinois to go to the Masters. They were able to stay a week, and it's always so much fun to see them. They love it here in the Spring, so maybe next time we can talk them into staying for several weeks!!

They better come down for football in the fall too!!
The whole golfin' gang enjoying some sushi. What is crazy is that Mike and I are responsible for moving 3 of the 4 people on the left hand side of the table down from Illinois. Tommy and Brandy better beware- we might try to move them down here too!!
What's sushi without a little "Sake time"!! When Mike told me that he ordered a keg of sake, I thought he was kidding. He obviously wasn't, though:)

Happy Mother's Day!!

2008-05-11T17:53:00.004-04:00

Happy Mother's Day to all of you moms out there, whether you've been a mom for a long time, are a new mom, a mom-to-be or wish you were a mom... the most special job that you will ever do in your life is that of motherhood.

I was blessed with the most wonderful mother that a girl could ever ask for. She is an absolutely beautiful woman inside and out with the kindest heart and most giving spirit. She instilled in me all of the important things that make me who I am today. She taught me to be kind, generous, thoughtful, loving, compassionate, optimistic, ethical and trustworthy. She learned those traits from HER mother, who I also hope to be like when I grow up. My grandmother was one amazing woman!! My mother taught me to be a girly girl from the age of birth (I had a baby bangle and ring on from the time I was born until...Oh! I still like bangles and rings:). She always spent her time with me whether it was playing school, dolls, Barbies or games, teaching me to cook and make cry puss (that was what I called pie crust), shopping, lunching, movies... You name it, we did it together. I then grew older and cried my way through those horrible years of grades 4-8. She was always there for me to dry my tears, and try to make it all better. She loved me and supported me unconditionally through my growing years when I know I wasn't the easiest person to love. She let me move 12 hours away from home to go to college, even though I'm sure that she would have never chosen that for me. She let me be me. She let me grow and spread my wings. I know that it broke her heart to see me drive away every time I would come home for a break. I know this because she still gets weepy when we have to leave each other. The difference is now I cry too. I would give anything to live close to my mother. She is one of my best friends and I wish I could be with her more. I miss going out to lunch with her, going shopping, cooking, watching TLC or just staying up late and talking. Many things in my life just don't seem complete without having her close to share it with her. If your mom lives close to you, don't take it for granted. Give her a big hug and tell her how much you appreciate her. I just hope that I can someday not only be a mother, but be a mother like her and make her proud!!

She looked beautiful on my wedding day.

I also have such a fantastic mother-in-law. Thank you for raising the wonderful man that I am blessed to have as a husband.
The only grandmother we have that is still living is Mike's maternal grandmother. Even though we don't see her often, she is often in our thoughts. Look how cute she is holding Mike's hand in the wedding picture.

Happy Mother's Day to you, sis. Love you. And to my sister-in-laws, my aunts, my cousins, my nieces with children, my friends in real life and of course my bloggie friends. Have a beautiful day!!

Who knew???

2008-05-10T15:32:00.003-04:00

Who knew that this existed right down the road from our house? I had driven by it so many times, but never thought that it looked like much from the road. Boy, was I wrong!!! Check it out!!! It is this hidden paradise of glorious plants and flowers!! I have purchased several beautiful, unique things already, and I'm sure that was only round one. I think some of those pineapples are going to have to go home with me too!!

Friendship Friday

2008-05-09T12:58:00.002-04:00

I couldn't possibly be more proud of my friend Ann Marie. She won Teacher of the Year for South Carolina. She is the first special education teacher from South Carolina to win the prestigious award. She won a fab cash prize, the use of a BMW Roadster for a year and has been traveling the state for speaking engagements. She also just got a grant to start a one-of-a-kind special education mentoring program for our state. Very cool!!! She had the honor to take a trip to DC to be recognized and meet the President. She had her pic taken with him in the oval office and kissed him on his cheek. It would not exactly be my choice of President to kiss on the cheek, but it is still puts her in Rock Star Status!!!

Update: For those of you who don't read my comments here is what Ann Marie said when she commented on this post "I also told him that he looked much cuter in real life...silly, I know but I normally I say what I think and this was no exception. he he he" She is too cute!!!

Date Night with "The girls"

2008-05-07T23:19:00.004-04:00

To say that I have been overwhelmed these last few weeks would be an understatement. For those of you who have actually stuck with me after checking my site for a new post day after day after day... I thank you for having patience with me. These past few weeks have been extremely busy, to say the least. Mike and I haven't been very good about keeping up with date night, so this past weekend we felt that it was time for a date. We thought "the girls" might need a date too:) We took them to get pedicures, pick up some take out (Science Diet light adult bites) and pick out some snacks (chicken flavored dental bones). We selected a movie (Juno), and went home to relax.

Priss-pot loves a pedi!!!
Ashleigh was a little disappointed that they didn't have time to do a french manicure.
Ali needed to prop her head up on a pillow so she could get a good look at the feature film.
Ashleigh looks like I have felt... Exhausted!!! Life is good, though, with a bone and a flick!!

I'm still alive!! Just in case you were wondering...

2008-04-22T10:49:00.004-04:00

It has been WAY too many days since I have posted or commented. I'm still here, but have had a few busy weeks. I have sooo much to catch you up on!! Here are some future posts:

1) My girly weekend with Dena and Annie including Disney Princesses on Ice.

2) Our Hilton Head Island vacation including the Verizon Heritage golf tournament and the HGTV Green Home.

3) Casting Crowns

4) Masters Week visitors

5) My trip to train for my new job (I am actually in Wisconsin right now), which will include pics of staying with Mike's sister and her family.

6) My trip to visit my parents in Texas. I can't believe it's been almost 8 weeks since I was there and I still haven't had a chance to blog it.

7) Speaking of not having a chance... I still haven't posted our move.

8) Or Mike's parent's visit in February

9) Or Christmas

10) Or my parent's visit in December

11) Or The Flowertown Festival with Dena and Annie.

12) Or Annie's 4th birthday party.

Well, it seems that I have tons of blogging material. Now I just need more time!!!

I REALLY messed up!!!

2008-04-07T00:57:00.006-04:00

This is not a new picture since it is from our wedding rehearsal 2 years ago, but I love this pic of all our cute nieces!!

This is our adorable nephew and Godson enjoying some floor playtime at Christmas.

I'm an idiot!! On Wednesday, April 2nd I did a "30 things about me" post. Number 11 on my list mentioned my nieces and nephews. What I failed to mention was the 5 nieces and nephews on Mike's side. My sister-in-law (Mike's youngest sister) pointed out that I didn't include her two children or his other sister's three children in my list of nieces and nephews. What's wrong with me?? I think my mind has turned to pure mush. I definitely didn't mean to do that because they are the most adorable children that you've ever seen. Actually, the youngest one is even my Godson. He is almost a year old. I think I spent so much time being single that I sometimes forget that I am actually married now and that Mike's family is now my family too. He does the same thing too. He never calls the nieces and nephews on my side of the family "our" nieces and nephews. Doesn't make it right. I stand corrected. I have 12 nieces and nephews, one step-niece, 2 great nieces, 1 great nephew on his way and 1 great nephew/niece on his/her way. I apologize you precious children. I love you so much, and I will NEVER leave you out of a list EVER again!!

It's all in the details...

2008-04-05T01:16:00.006-04:00

Apparently, we are supposed to have our house numbers on our "neighborhood all matches and you have to purchase them from the developer" mailboxes. The mailbox sits on a really nice black iron decorative post. It should be since it cost $400.00. Anyway, I was having a hard time finding numbers because most of them are black (which obviously wouldn't show up on a black mailbox) or they are the reflective gold ones. Well, those gold ones were just not going to work out for me. So... I grabbed my SW Sycamore Tan leftover house paint and used a paper towel to paint over the black ones. Much better. Then I used the same paint to paint over our navy "South Carolina palm tree" mailbox flag from our old house. You see, we used to have a navy door and navy shutters on our old house so, of course, our mailbox flag was navy. Our friend started this mailbox flag company while his pregnant wife of only about one year was dying of cancer. They came up with the idea while he was staying with her in the hospital. She passed away along with his unborn child. He continued on to get a patent for their idea, and donates part of the money he makes to cancer research. So incredibly inspiring!

Kinda large, but I like them.
I couldn't find any outdoor pillows that I loved, so I just made some. I found these red ticking stripe napkins on clearance at Pottery Barn, and they just happened to match the red ticking stripe ribbon that I am going to put on the wreath that I am making for my front door. Since I don't know how to sew (MUST take lessons), I just safety pinned them together. I figured it was a good idea since I would need to take them off to wash them:)
They were just too darn plain, so I decided to hot glue this trim on them.
Much better, but I think I am going to have to add a big fat monogram to them.
Here's the goodies for the wreath. Notice the ribbon? I'll have to post the finished wreath later. I don't think I'm ever going to run out of projects that I want to do for my house!! I'm lovin' being crafty again!!

30 things about me!!

2008-04-02T14:06:00.007-04:00

Jennisa at http://www.jennisajoydesign.blogspot.com/ posed a challenge to do 100 things about yourself, with your hubs filling in the last 20. I was planning to do a 100 things for my 100th post, so I thought I would just do a miniature version of her idea. When I get to my 100th post, you will get to read 100 things about me. I'm sure you're waiting with baited breath:) Here's my 30 with Mike listing the last 10 things about me:

1) My favorite sandwich when I was little was peanut butter (Jif extra crunchy) and marshmellow cream.

2) I was a cheerleader for 7 years- 6 in elementary, junior and high school and 1 year of college (with a cheerleading scholarship until I transferred schools).

3) I also played volleyball for 4 years and basketball for 1.

4) I attended 3 colleges, and graduated from 2 of them. The theme of not knowing what I wanted to do with my life is not a new thing:)

5) I also have a certificate in interior decorating, finished real estate school and took cooking classes at Fleur-de-Lys Culinary Institute.

6) I have a brother, a sister and another brother who passed away 1 year and 4 months ago. I miss him terribly. They were 14, 16 and 17 when I was born (same parents). It was like I grew up with 2 moms and 3 dads.

7) The good thing about that was they played school with me all of the time and when I went to kindergarten at 4 years old, I could already write in cursive and read anything that you put in front of me.

8) I didn't want children until I was in my 30's, and now I REALLY want them and I'm having a hard time getting and staying pregnant.

9) I LOVE Barbies. Always have. I played with them until I was 13, and still have a collection of those beautiful girls.

10) I have a new pink laptop and a new pink phone.

11) I have 7 nieces and nephews (the youngest one is in high school), 2 of them beat me to getting married, 3 of them beat me to having children. I have a step-niece who is getting married this month, 2 great nieces, 1 great nephew on his way and another great niece or nephew on his/her way.

12) One of those great nieces was just born last night. Congratulations Andy and Emmelita!! Apparently, Andrea looks just like her big sister Emmarie. Her daddy is serving in Afghanistan and was not able to see her being born.

13) I have had 13 addresses- One until I was 18 and the rest as an adult.

14) I LOVE my king-sized bed. I HIGHLY recommend Simmons Beautyrest. All of our mattresses in our house are Simmons Beautyrest, and we always get compliments on how comfy they are.

15) I used to sell Pampered Chef, and at one time I owned everything that was in their catalog. Most of it I won or payed very little for it. I love me some kitchen gadgets.

16) I also love dishes, china, glasses, serving pieces, etc.

17) I was a Retail Management major in college, but have never managed any kind of retail. It was basically a marketing degree without finance classes. Retail just happened to be a specialized major at our college in the school of Applied Professional Sciences.

18) I met my amazing husband at church camp when we were in the 6th grade.

19) We didn't date until we were in college.

20) We kept in touch through the years with letters, went on a couple of "little dates" and he was the first boy that I kissed.

21) Here I (Mike) go! She is a true friend, strong believier in being positive, never gives up until it is her way and she speaks from the heart.

22) Loves her dogs more than life!

23) She can find a deal on anything and will not quit until she finds a deal.

24) She hates the morning, but loves the night.

25) She can seriously cook up a storm. Her passion for life starts in the kitchen. For those of you who have had her cooking, you can back this up.

26) She has felt upside down before, but her heart, belief in the Lord, friendships, and desire to be successful has always put her back on top.

27) She keeps in touch with everyone. If you know Leigh Ann she will not forget you. She loves everyone she meets and treats everyone equally. What a great quality!

28) If your "boat is empty" Leigh Ann will do everything she can to build your esteem to help you keep your belief that your "boat will soon be full".

29) She is always up for everything, especially if it means traveling to experience something new.

30) Her spirit, hope and beliefs make my life FULL. I could not have succeeded without her friendship, love and guidance. Everyone needs to know, love and believe in Leigh Ann.

The Birds' Nest

Hello Again

Frugal Friday

Frugal Friday

Frugal Friday

Doggie Surgery

Today was a better day!!

I'm mad today...it doesn't seem fair.

Frugal Friday

I'm back..maybe

Happy Easter from our home to yours...

Just a few things...

I *Heart* Being a Greasy Bear!!

Why I haven't been blogging...

Hairy Beast Talkin'

I'm being offensive over at Chic Critique again!!

Scrappin'

Stain Stain Don't Go Away, You Can Come Back Any Old Day!!

Merry Christmas...just a little late

Snow Day!!!

Hotlanter!!

Happy New Year!!!

We wish you a Merry Christmas!!

Happy Anniversary!!

Get your Glow On!!

Thanksgiving and a week of decorating

Congratulations SuSu and Daniel!!

Goddaughter Love!!

Rockin' the Vote in Columbia!!

Happy Halloween!!

I'm talkin' about something like totally tubealicious!!

Please Santa...I've been a very good girl!!

She's Crafty. She gets around...

I got the call today that I didn't want to hear...

Speedy Gonzalez {where have you been my whole life} hairdryer!!

Get your driving shoes on!!!

Fairy Godmother!!

Dinner for Friends

My name is Leigh Ann and I am a Hotel Snob!!!

OneCoast University

Vacation

When you are on the go...

Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous

Are You Ready for Some Football?

Welcome to the world Baby Chloe!!!

Look what I'm going to be doing!!!

I need more hours in the day!!!

Baby Time!!

It is that time again...

Everybody's Workin' for the Weekend!!

My surprise!!!

What a great weekend!!

So Proud!!!

My cute great-nieces

Look what hubs brought home!!

Our 4th of July Company

Surprise!!! Look What I've Done!!!

Happy 4th of July!!!

My Little Artist

My New Venture

Our Hilton Head Island Vacation

Happy Father's Day!!!

Friendship Friday

Crafty Craftiness

Surcie

Moving Day...

Date Night

HGTV Green Home

What do you do when it is 100 degrees out??

Friendship Friday

I Heart Casting Crowns!!

Training and visiting

Friendship Friday

Who has been doing some planting??

Friendship Friday

HAPPY 35th!!!

Salon de Birdsell

Friendship Friday

Happy Mother's Day!!

Who knew???

I Heart Being a Greasy Bear!!