swan

About to bite the bullet on this for our guestroom with the black and white striped curtains.

You know I love my swan I bought while thrifting...it looks lovely next to the sink holding our dish scrubber.

And just because I have to...a little "Stop looking at me, Swan!" funny clip.

crazy peeps

No, not that kind. The crazy peeps that are camping outside the new Chick-fil-A near my office. I'm talking dozens and dozens of tents. Then! I drove by on my lunch break and there must have been 500 people in a single file line through the drive-thru. Seriously! Sweet Brown said it best:

Of course one of our news reporters found her:

nosey

I sent Lee an email to let him know that "Someone he NOSE loves him" with this picture attached and he loved it. Ha!

Well...our weatherman was incredibly wrong about the blizzard we were supposed to have yesterday afternoon and I feel perfectly OK with that. Snow and ice is for the birds if you ask me. Particularly because I have a 45 minute commute to work and everyone in Oklahoma forgets how to drive when we have any type of precipitation. We're simply not equip for winter-like road conditions like they are in other states.

wknd deets

First up. I'm loving this lamp base I scored from Target. I'm really digging their Threshold brand. I had the shade already. Loving the combo. You can ignore my giant coffee mug in the reflection. It's chilly here and it keeps me warm!

I'm wanting to make slider cupcakes for Lee when he gets back. My first attempt went OK but they're not super pretty yet.

OSCARS

I was a bit bored during the show and I would be lying to you if I told you I didn't fast forward through some parts and watch an episode of Girls at the same time...

Loving my girl Jennifer Lawrence even more after her fall heading up the stair to accept her Best Actress Oscar. I'd totally do the same thing. She laughed off the fall with swag too. AND hubba hubba Hugh Jackman. The sweet man in the front row to jump to Lawrence's assistance when she fell on the stairs. Gotta love a man who steps up to help when everyone else just stares. That is so sexy...for the record I saw that Bradley Cooper jumped too;)

 Lots of hits and misses in the wardrobe department. Bleh. Nothing rocked my world that I think is worth talking about. Lots of pretty faces and hair though. Beauty for the win!

I went thrifting again over the weekend and bought Lee some new shorts.

I kid. I kid. Ha!

I went to brunch with a few of my own leading ladies on Sunday. Taylor, Ryan, Kristie and I had a girl's day that involved eggs and pedicures. Great day!

tgif

Man. What a week?! Everyday has felt like a Monday if you know what I mean.
I missed my 1st scheduled workout Wednesday and then again yesterday and I will most likely skip today too. I'm sick. Boo. I felt myself going downhill on my way home from work Wednesday so I stopped by CVS on my way home and got some new companions. I stayed home from work yesterday and kept these guys close by:

I plan to make the days up by extending the 60 day plan instead of skipping them so I can stick to the schedule as much as possible.

I picked up a new polish on the way to the register while I was at CVS too. A Revlon polish in Forest:

I haven't tried it out yet but I plan to change my nail color this weekend. Hello, 2013 color of the year!

Lee has had the last 4 days "off". If you can even call it that. No official R&R that provides enough time for him to come home and his pass didn't allow him to hop on a plane and visit Dubai or anything but 4 days to sleep and eat as he pleases. He chilled in the comfort of his own room and just enjoyed doing nothing. He's been wanting to get rug while he's there so he has been sending me lots of pictures to make sure he gets one that we both like. He found one! Here's a close up, can't wait to see it in person:

Were it not for its history of conflict, Afghanistan might be best known for its gorgeous rugs, handwoven by nomadic tribes scattered across the country. Time Magazine

 

Here's a few ideas I have for the new rug:

house progress

My aunt sent me a picture this morning of the fireplace that's in the works for her new house. Looking good! Yay for progress!

vacay BOOKED

After going back and forth with a travel agent that couldn't get our itinerary just right, I contacted the leisure associate to the corporate agent I use for work. Yippee Skippee! Trip is officially booked! Hard to believe we've come this far in the dang deployment!
Our room and patio should look something like this:

But we'll prob have our toes in the sand everyday here:

O man I can't wait for that sweet man of mine to get home!

wknd deets and BMW recall

Helloooooo.

First, checkout THIS article for the BMW recall. My model is included and yours might be too. I called my local dealer and they said my file doesn't require any recalls yet...funny because the article says it does. To be cont'd.

Second, it was a great weekend!

I saw the movie Safe Haven with my girl, Kristin. I had NOT read the book so I liked it. But Kristin had read the book and liked it too so take that for what you will.

We chowed down on yummy Mexican food and enjoyed the movie as each other's valentine. Yay! Kristin has been so great to include me in any and all things fun while Lee has been away. From grabbing a bite to eat to inviting me over to veg out on her couch sans makeup in my fat pants. I know I've said it before but I really do feel blessed to be surrounded by better than good friends! [(My dad always tells me to have a better than good day;)]

I worked out and drove to my hometown on Saturday to spiff up a presentation for my dad. It cost him a steak dinner. I think my dad makes the best steaks and mom has the perfect sauce to serve with it. All the sauce is: sliced mushrooms, soy sauce and melted butter. Saute it for a bit and serve. Yum.

The next day I stopped by to see the progress of the new house my aunt and uncle are building. Dang it. I should have taken pix! It's looking so great. The cabinets (not stained yet) are in and the tile is in the showers. No grout yet. Exciting! I then stopped by my Grandma & Pop's house to say hey and tell Pop thank you for the chocolates he got me for Valentine's Day. He gets ALL the girls in the family a heart box of chocolates. He has been for years and years. That's a lot of chocolate!

Anyone else nibble a piece of each one before you chunk the whole thing in your mouth to see if it's "good one" or not? To me that's the fun part!

Today is President's Day. To me that means I'm itching to take advantage of the promo codes and order something online...But the things I'm itching to buy don't have a sell code. Pooey.

i married adventure

I shared on my FB page this morning but I haven't with you pretties yet.
This has been the hardest year ever going through this deployment but it's made bearable with mine and Lee's long distance romance. Love tank full!
1940's first edition w/ jacket still intact:

cheesy

In honor of all things cheesy today, I give you my new obsession. It's my favorite mid morning snack at work right now.

Cheese and crackers! LOVE these Laughing Cow pie-shaped cheeses. They make the perfect sized snack with a small handful of these flavored crackers. I've only tried the creamy swiss flavored one and it's yummy. Nomnomnom....

Happy Valentine's Day!

B.B. CREAM

Anyone else loving House Beautiful's March issue?

It seems like I've had my head in a the clouds the last couple of weeks and feel easily overwhelmed. I have so many ideas and it's like the world around me is moving really fast but at the same time counting down the days until Lee comes home is dragging ever so slowly.

I'm still plugging away at the Insanity workout program and I'm really enjoying it. I have a pretty exciting meeting tomorrow about some pretty exciting stuff I'm trying to jump start but my smile turns upside down every time I hear something about fighting season being around the corner in Afghanistan. It's just all so damn scary, ya know? Then when Lee's answers to my emails are short and he says he's was really busy all day...I know exactly what that means. Or at least my imagination tells me it's scary stuff. Blergh.

back to fun stuff

You MUST try a B.B. cream. (beauty balm Cream) I have been hearing all the hype but didn't know exactly what to think about B.B. cream or what it even is. The list of benefits tends to be impressive for most of these creams, with the life-improving effects stopping just short of walking on water. OK, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but for women who apply a moisturizer, a primer, a foundation, a setting powder, and an SPF sunscreen every morning, B.B. creams seem like a small miracle. These are one-step products that can protect, conceal, and correct skin texture and tone. A-maze balls.

I decided to give it a go on a drugstore brand and I'm now smitten.

I got the lightest shade and it blends perfectly. It actually feels like I have nothing on at all. It's so grain-like and white when you 1st squirt it on your finger but it instantly dissolves and blends into your skin. 

I know different brands vary and they don't all feel the same because we don't all have the same skin type. I'm picking up Maybelline's version to try this weekend.

Let me know if you find one you like so I can try it too!

cupcake & thrifting

Brrrrrr it's cold outside. Pouring down rain and it's supposed to start snowing this afternoon. Only in Oklahoma is it t-shirt weather one day and parka the next day. This morning I was determined to find a way to wear my warm fuzzy socks all day. I'm sporting a black sweater dress, thick black tights and my yellow Hunter boots. O yes I did and my toes love me for it.

I LOVE holidays and Valentine's Day is no exception. I always bring a themed holiday treat to work if the big day falls on a work day. I might be taking a snow day soon so I made my cupcakes to share last night while I was Facetime-ing Lee. I'm no Top Chef but I love to bake!

Here's my goodies I got from thrifting last weekend...

I got this old wooden Sunkist crate for $6. I'm going to put a couple flower flower pots in it and maybe some Geraniums on the porch when flowers start to bloom outside!

This brass container with claw feet needs to be polished and I'm not sure what I want to do with it yet..but for $1 I couldn't resist it. LOVE it.

And you know these images?

I scored this great vintage flag for $1.

I love the idea of blasting our patriotism in our home but I worry about disrespecting THIS code when I'm trying to do just the opposite so I'm going to really deliberate on my options. Some people drape, slipcover a sofa and allow their flag to touch the ground. It's like begging for a citation while spitting in our America's face. Big no-no that I'm def not doing:

weekend deets

Morning Loves! I had a great weekend and I hope you did too!

On Friday I painted the creamy white bed black like I said I would.

I don't have a bedroom pic for you yet. I did move the bed into the bedroom but after I struggled to put the mattresses back on the bed by myself, I needed to do a couple little paint touch ups. I still need to make the bed and then I'll take a finished pic for you. Nonetheless, the bed looks a lot better against the white wall.

On Saturday morning I woke up and found a surprise on my porch from Lee. My Valentine made me a book online! He's so dreamy...my McDreamy. Lee filled it with funny images of us together going all the way back to our college days and his comments beside each of them were just as entertaining. #blessed

Who says you can't have romance long distance?!

I then went to my local Salvation Army. I got some goodies that I'll share with you tomorrow. I went to pick up a couple of my favorite candles and gobble a cupcake at my friend's bakery next. OMG her treats are yummy. I'm ordering Lee's welcome home party desserts from her! I'm doing bite size pies with homemade ice cream. You can't get anymore American than that! Here's an example of her her mini cherry pies:

just because

I'm sharing a baby gorilla's reaction to a cold stethoscope.

 Hope it made you smile like it did me.

much to tell

Hello! I'm sorry I missed you yesterday! I have been a very busy girl and almost missed you again today.
Work has me running circles around my desk and when I'm not doing that I'm sweating with Sean T doing Insanity or ediitng pictures and scheming design ideas with my web consultant.
More on that later. Hee! Hee! Hee!

Get excited. Lee was given a cell phone yesterday so he can now call me for short little chats when he gets a chance instead of waiting for our once a week Skype dates. Woot Woot! This exciting news had me throwing glittery thoughts in my head and cheesing from ear to ear. It's the little things, Y'all!

Right now we're going back and forth with a travel agent. We've narrowed vacation destinations down to two places. Can you believe it's almost THAT time?!
I swear. Lee has been THE most indecisive person when it comes to making vacation decisions. He absolutely did not want to go to the beach because, "We always go to the beach and I have had sand in between my tows for months."
He then got me excited about the idea of going to Europe and to make a long story a lot shorter...we're going to the beach after all. His new stance, "I just don't want to visit Mexico or Jamaica."
I can't give him too much of a hard time because it has been awhile since he's had a vacation...
The 2 images below are from the destinations that are still in the running. Thanks to Trip Advisor I think we'll be happy with either one of them! I don't think you can go wrong if this is your view when you wake up every morning:

In other news, I'm preparing our house to sell. Big changes and plans are ahead for this clan. I got a wild hair and rearranged the guest room furniture again. I'm painting the cream bed in one of the rooms black this weekend so it will look something like this, only ours isn't so ornate:

And then we'll prob sell it in a "we're moving" garage sale because it's time. I just know it will look tons better for show if it is black and I'm not attached to the color. It's really seen its better day.

Toodles for now!

flower delivery

Lee had flowers delivered again today. Love him...

weekend deets

This past weekend Cooper and I spent the weekend at my parent's home! On Saturday morning my mom took and our sweet friend Marie took off for Texas to shop all day...and that we did. We left at 9am and it was midnight when we got back to my parent's house. I found some goodies at Homegoods. Here's a couple of things that I thought about getting but ultimately passed up.

I did get a few things for my laundry room.

I got this hot air balloon sign too. I like the look of hanging a wired sign from the corner of it. This bright yellow prop won't stay here but you get the idea. I also want taller candle vases with some kind of intricate detail but you get the idea. I want some yummy smell good candles with color that I will actually light but again-you get the idea. Just props!

On Sunday we watched an old movie that told the love story of Carol Lombard and Clark Gable. Great funny story with a sad ever after. She must have been a funny one. Beautiful and funny. Lombard was a comedic actress and the highest paid actress in the late 1930s, earning around $500K annually. That's a lot and even more so back then! She was 33 years of age when she was killed in a plane crash.

Clark Gable was in the Army with my grandpa. Kinda neat. It's fun listening to dad tell Grandpa's stories.

When I got back home, I didn't watch the Super Bowl. Although, I did DVR the game and fast forward to the halftime show and then later watched the top talked about commercials on YouTube. That's all I cared to watch. Beyonce killed it...and the lights I heard. She's amazing. So pretty. So talented. That voice! Love her. Best halftime show I have seen in a very long time. Maybe ever!

How sweet is the hug shared between her and Jay-Z after her performance?!