Monday, December 9, 2013

Girls Day and Catching Fire

Saturday morning, my mother, sisters, nieces, and sister's mother-in-law grabbed lunch at a 50's diner and then headed to the Arlington Heights Racetrack Craft Show!
 
I purposely didn't bring a lot of cash with me because I wasn't planning on buying much...
Boy, was I wrong!
 
Our first stop, my sister and I fell in love with these signs!
They only had one left, so my sister snatched it.
Good thing, because I didn't have enough cash and their credit card machine was down.
Well...  Then the clerk told me that they can sell me the display one.
My sister stepped up and offered to lend me the money so I can get it, too!
 
(I love her so much!)
 
So, here we are with our poles! ;)

(What would have made this photo more awesome is if I stuck with my original outfit of the day... My sister and I would have matched to a "T"!   I had the same sweater on, in navy, my fleece leggings on and my boots... But I became too warm!  Great minds, nonetheless!  And my niece and I rocked the braided pigtails!  All unplanned!)

During our trips down each aisle, we stumbled across this sweet, old man.  He is the author of this book, The Christmas Santa had No Beard.  He was selling the books and signing them, too.  He went on to sell us his spool, but I already told him I was sold. ;)  He was just too darn cute!

When he found out he was making the book out to my husband and I, he laughed and was so happy to see some "big kids".  I haven't read the book yet, but I cannot wait!

[H M Bricker stated that he was inspired to write this story when his grandson saw a Mall Santa without his beard and screamed, "Santa's a fake!".  Later that day, when they returned home, they turned on the television and there were a bunch of Santas selling things with no beard... H M Bricker, aka Gramps, had no explanation on why...  Well, now he does!]
 
 
I think I told him here that I liked older men, too.. He he!
 
Random items that made me smile:

 

Some other purchases we made that day:

My sister's snitch necklace!
 
My pocket watch necklace:
(Kind of reminds me of Catching Fire)
 
 
Later that evening, as we parted ways, my niece wanted me to come to Kohls with her.  So, I tagged along with my sister and her family to the mall.
At this point, my sister and I were exhausted!  But we kept trucking away!
 
I was glad, though.  I had so much fun with my nephew and niece.
 
This handsome fellow always wanted to hold my hand and stay by my side.  We talked about cutting paper (his newest hobby), and we giggled and joked and blew kisses in the food court as we caught them and slapped them on our cheeks.
 
My niece and I squealed over all the cute things we saw in Claire's, and Brayden was right there with us saying the same thing!  Te-hehehehe.
 
By the time we got back to their place, it was way past MY bedtime.
 
I do have to smile though, at our last stop, Target (of course!), when us girls continued shopping, the boys stayed and waited in the car.  While they waited, this cutie exclaimed to Daddy that when we got home, he was going to cut paper with me!  Shortly after he stated that, he was zonked out. :)
I had the pleasure of tucking him in when we returned home.  He melts my heart!
 
Sunday came along and I actually slept in for once!  And by sleeping in, I mean by getting out of bed at 8:30 a.m.  (I'm an early riser.)
 
I enjoyed my morning, listening to Christmas music, drinking my coffee,
and doing some daily chores.
 
Finally, I became inpatient and woke the husband up.
We had plans to go see Catching Fire, and this would have been the third attempt! 
I didn't want to miss my chance!
 
We scurried out the door and headed to the theaters.  We bought our tickets and then planned to do a little shopping, but we ended up staying in the theaters for the hour before the show started since the roads were slippery yesterday.
 
The movie was absolutely amazing!  And during the previews, I saw Divergent!  I have yet to read that series, but my niece asked me last week if we can have a book club, starting with that book.  So, I'm pretty stoked!  I have till March 2014!  I got this!
 
Anyway, Catching Fire...
Wow...
I wanted to return right back into the theaters and watch it again!
But, this time, I will bring tissues...
I must have held my tears back five times!
Some were unsuccessful and the tears fell.
Sigh...
Well played, Catching Fire, well played!
It was amazing!
 
(No spoilers here!  My niece hasn't even finished the book yet!  Shhh!)
 
After the movie, my husband and I trucked through the beautiful snow and headed to a few shops to complete our Christmas shopping.
 
 
We are so close to finishing, it would be nice just to be done already!
 
 
Rocked my adorable beret my mother-in-law bought me a few years back:
 
 
We had a wonderful day...  I held him close, and though he thought it was out of love, it was so I didn't slip, HA HA!  (I slipped so many times!)
 
Oh, I love that man...
 
As Ellen said to Garth Brooks, he's the one my soul wants to be with and I'm extremely
lucky for that!
 
 

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Not "Thankful" for Being a Procrastinator

 
Welp, here I am...  Delayed as ever.  I didn't jump on the "30 Days of Thanks" on Facebook, but I thought I would share a few things I'm thankful for here.  
Let's not consider that it is now December 3rd. 
 
Random Things I'm Thankful For:
 
#Hashtags - If it wasn't for this nifty symbol making a huge impact in social media, we would have never had the joy of Jimmy Fallon's and Justin Timberlake's #hashtag skit!  #hilarious
 
 
 
Unicorns, Santa Clause, and all things make believe... Because I do believe.
 
This time of the year... the Christmas Spirit - It's so magical and gleeful!  I soak in it... 
 
Black Friday in the old parts of town - Great deals, no crowds, friendly clerks, happy me.
Exhibit A: Kohls on Black Friday:
 
 
 
And I am very pleased with the steals I snatched for the husband's gift.  #soexcited
 
I'm thankful for all my Disney Movie Rewards which rewards me with some pretty sweet things, like a free admission ticket to Frozen.  (#adorable #goseeit) 
Movie ticket prices are overrated these days...
 
Let's not forget Walt Disney, himself, who made it all possible.  The magic he brings to children and adults is truly something indescribable.
 
Starbucks should be on this list somewhere right?  My new drink has gotten me through some tough times!  Nice to just sip and relax.  Want to try it?  Order a White Mocha Expresso with a pump of Cinnamon Dolce.  Mmmm...
 
In all seriousness, I'm thankful for fleece leggings... Seriously, those things are nice and toasty!  (Picked up a pair at Walgreens, no less!  $5!  Cha-ching!)
 
Okay, okay...  Although I'm thankful for some silly things, I'm most thankful for my family, my friends, and most of all my endearing husband.
 
If it weren't for them, I don't know where I'd be right now or who I would be.
 
My husband has made me a better me.  He hasn't changed me, he's just heightened my good qualities and he strives me to overcome my weaknesses.  I am so thankful for all he does for me and all he continues to do for me... especially loving me unconditionally...  I truly found my Prince Charming.. 
 
And since I'm a procrastinator:
 
Happy Thanksgiving, Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and all the holidays inbetween! 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Saturday, November 2, 2013

What Does the Fox Say...?



You know what I'm talking about, right?

The internet sensation that is utterly ridiculous but absolutely amazing, at the same time!?

[in case you don't, or admit it, you want to hear it again]


http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jofNR_WkoCE

Well, I used it to my advantage for my costume this year.

I have to say... It was a lot of fun...
with the people that knew who I was, anyway...

I cannot take credit for this idea:  I first saw it on Ellen, and then my
friend recommended I do it, so, I did!

(Doesn't take much to twist my arm!)



[I realized after the sign was made that it has a spelling error.. Whoops!]

Well, Halloween was enjoyable... I ate a lot of candy, only saw a handful of trick-or-treaters, and convinced myself to watch a scary movie that night, but I chickened out. :)

I did watch Mother's Day and The Woman in Black, by my lonesome, on Saturday afternoon.

Yes, I hid under the blanket and was curled up, while my husband was sound asleep upstairs in bed.

I may have used him as an excuse to turn off the surround sound... Didn't want to wake him! ;)

That Sunday we watched the new Evil Dead.
Meh..
It was gory, alright, but I wasn't scared with it... 
I would choose Evil Dead 2 over the new one, any day!

I can take gore, but I am all about the suspense and the "do they really exist?" movies.

::chills::


Enough of that...

As some of you know, I'm a procrastinator and forgot to post this before Halloween...
How about we say that I'm planning for Halloween 2014 early?


Here's a small piece of my Halloween Playlist. 
You have your classics, your play on words, dance mixes, etc.

Hope you enjoy!




Thursday, October 24, 2013

Past Halloween Costume Ideas

With Halloween just around the corner, why not share some past costume ideas?

Some are store bought, some are handmade, some are just put together in a short time frame.

You'll get to see a lot of couple costumes... and see how cute we are ;)


Our First Year Together - 2007:

Knife Thrower and His Assistant


 
Gosh, I feel so old looking at these!  This is six years ago!!
 
I've worn this costume many times since.
Everyone appreciates this costume, as a couple or as a solo.
 
2008: 
 
(Here's where we got a little creative)
 
Officer Sweetheart & Captain Sour Tart
 


 
 
This shirt was gifted to me by Matt's aunt and uncle - On the name tag, it actually says "Officer Sweetheart", so we went with it!  It's actually become one of my favorite costumes.
 
Do you see my duty belt?
My Night Stick: Unicorn Lollipop, Bullets: Gumballs, Tickets: Candy Buttons, Handcuffs: Heart Shaped Cookie Cutters, Keys: Measuring Spoons
 
2009:
 
We didn't have plans this year...  We were in the middle of wedding planning at this time.
 
So I threw this together to wear to work:

2010:
 
We're married!
 

What I wore to work:
 
 
Since no one else was dressing up this year, I still wanted to participate without going crazy...
Can you guess what I am?
 
A Skeleton Key!
 
Far stretch...?
 
That weekend, we had a party to attend.
 
Matt and I went as zombies, but I have no photos of us together!
Zombies is the ultimate, last minute costume.
Quick trip to the thrift store, fake blood, and some make up.

I went for a 50's vibe, wearing a polka dot dress, cardi, and pumps; 
although you can't really see that here:
  
 
Now we'll skip to 2012:
 
(We did absolutely nothing in 2011)
 
This is a couples costume that we used to make a special announcement:
 

 
Matt got his dream job back as an officer!  And the town he is working for has "Fox" in it ;)
 
And I had a special boy's birthday party to attend that year that Matt couldn't make it to:
 
                           
 
 
So here was my better half that night:
 
Dorothy and The Tin (wo)Man



I'm still hoping to dress up as something this year... Although it may be a repeat... I only have plans to dress up for work... Boring, I know...
 
Anyone want to come over and watch scary movies with me??







 
 

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Archives Ready for Fall

I was going through some of my archives and realized I never posted this outfit.  Well, the photos definitely are one reason why I postponed them...  It was humid that morning! 
Although chilly; very humid.

What better week to post this than this week?  We're sitting in the 40's as a high all week long.  I even busted out my wool coat yesterday.  Luckily, this is not Winter approaching us quickly.  We'll be back in the 50's next week.  Phew...  Just in time for Halloween!

        
 
 
 
{Outfit Details}
Sweater: Croft&Barrow (Kohls), Dress: Merona (Target), Leggings: VS,
Peter Pan Collar: Thrifted, Boots: Madden Girl







Monday, October 14, 2013

Recap

Well, it's been a few weeks now and I realized I haven't made time for my blog world.

Honestly, it's been a pretty hectic few weeks.  So, let's recap, shall we? 

I will squeeze everything into one post to keep you all as updated as I can.

So, I left off with my birthday being only a few days away.

What did I do to celebrate?
Matthew and I went to see The Wizard of Oz 3D in IMAX.  I didn't wear my ruby slippers, like I intended to, but I still showed my support:

 {Outfit Details}
Sweater: Croft and Barrow (Kohls), Necklace: Goodwill, Shirt: Out of Print, Jeans: Levis (Kohls),
Dorothy Flower: LLT, 3D Glasses: AMC Theaters
 
Of course it was a fantastic time!!  I was like a kid on Christmas morning!  I danced, lite up, acted surprised... If people didn't know me, they may have thought it was my first time! ;)

Fast Forward to the first weekend of October:
Matt and I ran away to an enchanted forest filled with s'mores, loved ones, fall colors, beer, dancing, game of pool, potato guns, wildlife, and more!  Exciting, right?  It was!  Every time we get a chance to escape, we always enjoy ourselves to the fullest.


Matt finally got to use his Christmas present!

 
In between it all, we engaged in fall festivities:
Apple Picking & Pumpkin Farm
 
 



 
                   
            
 
{Outfit Details}
Top: LC Lauren Conrad (Kohls), Cardi: Ralph Lauren (Goodwill), Purse: Target, Sunglasses: Target,
 Boots: Madden Girl (gifted), Jeans: Thrifted (Goodwill)

Now onto the Pumpkin Farm!
 
  
 

      





 
 
{Outfit Details}
Sweatshirt: Neena Creates, Watch: Kohls, Bracelet: Craft Fair, Minnie Bow: LLT, Tank: VS Pink, Jeans: Old Navy "Sweetheart"
 
 
 
More to come later this week!  Hopefully this held some of you over for the time being.
 
One last note:
 
Many times this past weekend, I couldn't help but take a moment and reflect on what an amazing family I have and the family I married into. 
I am forever grateful for all the love and support I have from them. 
 
They are my whole life!