smiling's my favorite

Did you recognize the quote? What movie is it from?
I have a dentist appt today. I wish I could go to the dentist every 6 weeks instead of 6 months. Grant it, I'm sure you could if you had a plethora of money and didn't use insurance when you go get your teeth cleaned. However, I do not have a plethora. I use insurance.
By the way, Elf is the movie quote in the image above! It's one of my favs. Step in the right direction after my last post;)

where my head is

It's a bit of a letdown seeing Lee and then saying bye again so soon. I probably sound horrible but as much as I enjoyed seeing him, it's terribly hard saying bye. I can't help but think it would be easier to just not see him until he comes home. Dumb, huh? I can only push forward and be thankful for the time that I do get to see him. I know this. Just seeing him off at the airport and then walking to my own terminal was so dramatic last weekend. I finally got that "I am strong. Hear me roar. I am woman." feeling to only go back to the "I am needy. Tell me you love me 100x's a day feeling." Give me a few days and I'll roar again.
It's just hard to roar when you're planning on attending your first FRG (Family Readiness Group) meeting and see that the meeting's agenda is bleh. Thinking it will be nice to meet other Army spouses that have hubby's deploying with your hubby sounds smart and a great way to receive a wealth of information. However, my first impression leaves much to be desired. The 1st meeting was scheduled way last minute and I had plans that I didn't want to break.  I heard only 5 people attended and officers were appointed so I didn't miss a thing. No way would I want to volunteer to be an officer. Talk about the blind leading the blind. Ha!
Anyway, this next meeting is icky poo poo too. Bring your favorite dessert and recipe to share, talk about FRG fundraising through Scentsy, and receive a briefing by one of the captains accompanied by the chaplain to discuss Casualty Notification Protocol. Seriously? No, thank you. My rambled thoughts: Lame way to launch a new program for this unit and attract new members.
I'd rather learn about Casualty Notification Protocol after a repoire is established rather than discussing a topic so nauseating and personal with a group of strangers or better yet-let me hear it from my husband.
Fundraising? Hell. Create a fundraising committee or release an email blast with this information, please don't waste someone's time that wants to hear need-to-know information about surviving their first deployment. I'm not driving 2.5 hours to hear that crap and then drive home.
My Type A personality is taking this personal and I'm extremely disappointed. Not sure exactly what I expected, but not this. Not having a military background, I was really looking forward to meeting new friends that can relate to what I'm going through right now and I guess a Deployment 101 class. Let's have girl talk and share recipes in "off season" when we're not approaching a year of anziety and lonliness. Sheesh. Ha. I don't know...I know I know. You're reading this and screaming, "Deep breaths and suck it up, Erin." It's still early and I don't need to be so judgmental right out of the gate, not to mention, I haven't even been to one meeting yet. BUT Casualy Notification Protocol?!
Dear Blogland,
Tell me this, would you really want your first meeting to be that?! Let me read it in private. Tell me when the deployment date draws closer. Let my Soldier tell me. Just please don't make me face that reality right now. Hearing the word, "Casualty" is simply too soon. (as tears swell in my eyeballs)
Rawr.

caroline

Dear Sweet Caroline,

I saw this pic and thought of you:

When Caroline was a wee little girl, she absolutely adored unicorns. She was gifted a unicorn poster to hang in her bedroom and she loved it so much that she wanted to name the unicorn in the photograph. She insisted the unicorn's name be, "Horny". She couldn't wait to tell everyone the perfect name she had selected for her unicorn. However, her mom was quick to suggest a name change.  Caroline said it was years before she realized the reasoning behind her mom not liking the name she had originally picked out. Now, everytime I see a unicorn, I immediately think of Caroline and her horny unicorn.

weekend deets

I'm back from Houston and I have so much to report. For one, it's official. Mal and James are married. The wedding was picturesque; an absolute fairytale. From the yummy rehearsal dinner with the beautiful view to the sweet bridal brunch and then the amazing wedding-everything was incredible. The flowers. O the flowers. They were big, spectacular and everywhere. In lieu of a guest book, they had a wishing tree. Cute, huh?

Yes, Lee's flight arrived on time and we wasted no time. I wholeheartedly love this man for everything he is. So glad God gave him to me. Isn't he dreamy?

10 Really Good Things to Remember from the Weekend:

1. Mal & James picked me up from the airport. We had a great time hanging out-just us. We chowed down on Mexican food and I gave James a hard time about his side of their ENORMOUS closet. Mal color coded his side and I can conclude that he thoroughly enjoys a good polo shirt.
2. Getting to hear Mal & James tell me about their wedding day gifts to one another was extra special. James couldn't wait to show me his gift to Mal as soon as she left the room. They are truly a match made in heaven. They both have the best sense of humor and make you laugh until it hurts. It was really cool to see the softer side of James and see him so smitten for Mal.
3. Hotel ZaZa was a great wedding venue. I was upgraded to a balcony room! We had lunch at the hotel prior to checking into our rooms and enjoyed a mimosa to toast the beginning of an eventful weekend. That yummy lunch was only a prelude to all the other delicious food we were served while there. Yummy!

4. It was fantastic to see so many of my college girlfrans together again. We had a blast being silly girls at the great rehearsal dinner too. AND the hors d'oeuvres prior to the dinner at The Petroleum Club were equally great. The crab cakes and egg rolls rank way up there for me. Lobster bisque and prime rib helped fill our very full menu for the evening. Best part: Dessert. (Pecan Ball)
5. Pecan Ball needs it's own bullet point. Rather than having a groom's cake at the wedding, the groom's dessert was served at the rehearsal dinner. It's a ball of vanilla ice cream covered in pecans. A server then asks if you prefer butterscotch or chocolate sauce. What did I say? I said, "Both of course".
6. The speeches to follow the pecan balls were super sweet. Finished by James telling Mallory how beautiful she looked that evening and how excited he was to marry her the next day. Awe!
7. Bridal brunch had more pretty flowers that coordinated perfectly with our invitations. The bridesmaids were gifted the softest monogrammed robes. I heart anything with a monogram so I loved my "E" robe. Mal's mom (LOVE her) said a humble thank you at the end and Mal immediately teared up. Someone asked Mal if she was OK and she replied while openly crying, "I'm just sooo happy!" It was adorable and hilarious.

8. When Lee came though the door of our hotel room for the first time, I was occupying the bathroom...I couldn't get out of there fast enough to get to him. It was soooo good to see him!
9. Mallory. She was a beauty the day of her wedding. Everything was glam. We had hair and makeup appointments in her suite while watching a chick flick, eating chicken nuggets and drinking Champagne.

10. Again, the wedding was that of a fairytale. The attention to detail was carried out by the best wedding planner I have ever witnessed. Mal's dream wedding became her reality. The band was the best ever. Many times, we looked up thinking we were hearing a DJ while the band would be on break when in fact it was the lead singer. Awesome. We danced our hearts out. Ate until we were full and then ate again when late night snacks were served! Even the get away car was something special:

November 2012

Remember when I told you that I made a photo calendar for Lee to take with him to training and then when he gets deployed? I showed you quite a few but didn't show you November:

Thankful for you.

bringing sexy back

Can't decide which I'm more excited about tomorrow. You be the judge:

More than pumped about wearing my Amsale bridesmaid dress tomorrow and seeing my pal Mal walk down the aisle! My dress has been staring at me in my closet for quite some time now. Since I'm a super giant, it was made with extra fabric (6ft extra) for length. Why 6ft, Amsale, why?!?! I then had to have it altered. Since getting it back into my closet, its been staring at me and begging to be worn.

Lee finally arrives for sexy time the wedding. I get to see him for less than 24hrs but we promise to enjoy every minute. Can't wait to see him sporting his new pink pocket square.
Love weddings and making memories. Here's a favorite of us as a wedding guest at my cousin's wedding a couple years ago:

TGIF! Enjoy the ones you love this weekend. Love hard. Always.

smashion fashion

By now, if you are a Hunger Games freak like me, you have most likely heard about the new Capitol Couture website! I will be stalking this site a lot as we get to see more and more of each character in costume. So excited. Here's a pic they posted debuting Effie Trinket:

Go HERE and see their first posted animated GIF!

peace out

And I'm off again! Today I head way South for Mal's wedding! My girlfrans and I are bridesmaids and get to be all silly on the dance floor while our hubbys drink a cold one. Can't wait! I kid Mo and Nate about the last time we were all together for a wedding...9 months later sweet Maggie arrived!

tan ur hide



Man. Does anyone else feel like they have butt toast when they get out of a tanning bed!? I'm desperately trying to get my tan on for upcoming events and I can hardly stand to be in the bed for the full time. I NEVER remember my butt feeling like this. Maybe they're different beds? Nonetheless, I continue to get toasty buns each time. Crikey. Maybe I should get my spray on instead.

hats off to you

In case you were wondering, I STILL want a juju hat.

shopping loot

Best lunch break ever yesterday. I went to our fairly new outlet mall near my office to find some duds for this wknd and I found a few dresses on super sale, 2 of which I will be wearing this wknd. The other, I just couldn't not buy it. Ignore the boots in your dress viewing below, that's just what I stepped on yesterday.
I imagine a quirky belt or bold tights like these:

To go with this Jcrew dress:

Ignore my silly ballet plié too. I did that to show you the flapper girl pleats in this BCBG dress. You like my dance moves, huh? Ha! I didn't cinch the belt and pull the dress out the way I normally would. The belt is a little more loose than it should be. I need to figure that out. The top is a nude/blush colored tulle-like mesh and then you see the black lace overlay on the bodice. Not sure if you can see the detail but in person it's more fab, but you get the picture:

I'm kinda obsessed with green (my favorite color ) but especially kelly green right now. Love this BCBG dress:

P.S. Aren't pockets on dresses the best?

weekend deets

Can you believe I get to see Lee for less than 24 hours this wknd when we fly to meet each other for Mal's wedding!? Goodie goodie gum drops! I start my weekend on Thursday. Woot woot.
I had a terrible time trying to find a bow-tie and shirt combo for Lee to wear with his suit.  I only know what I like and don't like, not what is acceptable. Ha.
He has stuff to wear but I like to get him a new something when I get a new something. Next time, I'm going to go prepared with style inspiration photos.
Minus the glasses. (Lee doesn't wear glasses) I love this look:

I am a sucker for a man in a bow-tie. In fact, it was one of the very few "no buts about it demands" I had for our wedding. Lucky for me, Lee actually doesn't mind wearing bow-ties either. AND he looks pretty dapper if you ask me...but you're not asking me, are you?
I did find him a pocket square and new dress shirt to go with a charcoal colored suit and tie that he already had:

I watched a lot of Big Bang Theory reruns this weekend too. Dr. Sheldon Cooper is my favorite character (aka Jim Parsons) So funny. Every time he laughs, says "Bazinga" or knocks on Penny's door my heart chuckles a little.

Like a lot of reruns. I have them set to record on the DVR and I may or may not have watched 34 episodes. This little dude kept me company:

I got a pedi and a shellac mani in preparation for next weekend's events too:

yessssss

New Hunger Games movie poster has been released!

gingham

I have a thing for it. Obviously. I was looking thru my saved images and I started to see a pattern. No pun intended. AND I might be wearing a red and white gingham shirt to work today;)

book worm

I meant to tell you last week that I finished my Hunger Games books. Best trilogy I've read in a long time. Thank you, Lee for my Christmas! I flew through the books. Reading them at lunch, on my breaks and late into the night was becoming a regular thing...for a few days anyway. I wish they had lasted longer because I enjoyed them so. When I find a good book, my book worm self has trouble putting it down. I am REALLY looking forward to the movie coming out in March. I'll go by myself if I have to! 

I'm trying to start The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo but it has seems to have such a slow start that I keep putting it down to do something else. I'm going to work on it Friday and see if I can get some read this weekend because MANY people have told me the book is good and the movie is great too.

decorating with chanel

If you checked out my home tour updates HERE as mentioned THERE, then you noticed my Chanel poster.

Back-story: I worked for Chanel cosmetics in college at a local department store and when new ads went up, we obviously took the old ones down. I took a few home but over the years I have only managed to keep up with this one. My favorite.

Back-back-story: Scandal struck on 15 September 2005, when London’s Daily Mirror ran the story with the headline “Cocaine Kate” and photographs of Moss at a Babyshambles studio recording, allegedly cutting cocaine. Doherty claimed that it was his former manager, James Mullord, who sold the photographs to the newspaper for over £150 000.


A number of sponsors and international companies were not amused and immediately dropped Moss from their campaigns. One of these was Swedish fashion retailer H&M, which had planned to use Moss for their Autumn clothing range, designed by Moss’ friend Stella McCartney. Chanel stated it would not be renewing Moss’ contract, due to expire in October 2005, but insisted it had nothing to do with the drug scandal. Keira Knightley became the new face of the Coco Mademoiselle fragrance. via

And all I know, immediately following this news, Kate Moss came down and Keira Knightley went up. I took Kate home and hung her in my apt and then over the years she's become lost in the back of a closet whenever I move. That is...until I came across these:

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
My Kate poster reminds me of how much fun I had with Chanel. I met Lee during that time too! And I persevered. Sometimes I worked over 40+ hrs/wk to pay my bills in college but I loved it. Well, most of the time. I know I learned a lot about myself and others in the real world having that job...On another note, my besties at the other counters and I gave each other makeovers and worked on different techniques when business was slow. We'd always start with, "Wanna play makeup?" Best college job eva. Eva. So now I'm trying to find the perfect frame for Kate. Her current disposition:

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

What you don't see is my sheepskin rug . Feels good on my tooties when you're at the sink.

camo hat

I wanna be just like my dad when I grow up.

top 5 GG girls

Before I get into dress judging, I have to recap my award season history. Dating back to who knows when, I have had an obsession with acting, actors and all things red carpet. I ewe and awe over the makeup, accessories and of course the dress. Since moving (insert sad face) miles apart after college, Caroline and I make dates to watch the award shows together and text during the show. Yesterday was no exception. Here's how we prepare for our big date:

Love THIS girl. Now let me explain my "oyster poop earrings".
We were watching a red carpet event in college and I think it was Gweneth Paltrow that had just appeared on our TV screen. She was dripping in yummy pearl accessories and when I noticed her ring...I blurted out something like, "Holy smokes! Looks like an oyster pooped on her finger!"

Now to the nitty gritty. Here's my Top 5 dresses from the 2012 Golden Globes: (because, you most certainly care what I think)

Elle can do no wrong in my eyes. She is GORGEOUS. Did you know she is 47 yrs old?!

Charlize Theron was perfection, but I would love to see her smile more.

Claire bear. Her acceptance speech brought tears to my eys. This girl is so stink'n talented. I adore her. She got skill, ya'l! And this dress?! I want to play dress up in it.

I'm LOVING the red and pink combos I'm seeing in everyday wear. Why not bring it to the red carpet? I liked this dress on Natalie a lot. Her petite figure is perfect for this shape.

This color on Sofia is beautiful. AND I'm a sucker for a mermaid shaped dress too. She def knows how to rock her curves.