December? Tomorrow?!

Am I the only one freaking out that tomorrow its DECEMBER?!?! It was just Halloween like 5 seconds ago... I can prove it - my pumpkins are still on my balcony and are not even rotten yet! (At least I don't think they are. Haven't checked on them since before Thanksgiving.) 

I just had a panic attack thinking about the short amount of time I have until Christmas... and how much I need to cram into this hectic next 25ish days! Some things can wait until I finish finals. But some can't! Gifts that need to be ordered, things that require time for shipping and processing, etc. For instance, I really need to get our Christmas cards ordered!!! Like, ASAP. Thanks to sites like Shutterfly.com, I plan to cross a cute, unique holiday card off of my to-do list in the next couple of days :)

They have an amazing selection of Christmas photo cards! I played around with a few *potential* favorites of mine earlier this afternoon.

I'm a sucker for all things monogrammed. This year I'm (attempting) to go for a simple, classy card look - but there is truly something on this site for everyone's taste and style! And since I don't have one picture from this past year that just screams "CHRISTMAS CARD PICTURE," I like that Shutterfly offers so many options with 2, 3 and even more photos! They also offer other winter holiday-themed cards, not just Christmas cards. Last year we sent out flat cards, and I think we will this year as well, but there are also some really cute options in folded cards, too! {Perfect for those of you with enough family members and fun updates throughout the year to include a holiday letter with your cards... we're not at that stage of life yet!}

I'm also in the process of putting together a calendar from Shutterfly as a gift for my grandma! She has 30+ children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren to keep track of - that is a lot of birthdays and anniversaries! Shutterfly lets me include important dates throughout the year, cute background themes for each month, and pictures of alllll of my grandparents' kids/grandkids/greatgrandbabies. I'm SO excited to see how it turns out... I'm sure my aunts and cousins will want me to order extra copies for them, too.

**this is not my family... or my creation!**

I can't wait to narrow down my favorite cards (and photos) to just one that suits my little family this holiday season!! I'll post a picture of the card design I decide to order later this week. Don't forget....... December is just a few short hours away - so if you haven't ordered your holiday greeting cards or other seasonal photo gifts yet, head on over to Shutterfly.com and take advantage of the great deals they are offering right now!

***Attention fellow bloggers: Check out Shutterfly's blog promotion!***

Cyber Monday

Ok, I'm admittedly too excited about Cyber Monday to pass up the opportunity to share the highlights of my day-before inbox goodies with you all :) My Thanksgiving post will just have to wait until after finals later this week! I'm excited for two reasons: 1) I finally know what Cyber Monday is this year {don't judge} and 2) I am on final exam lock-down until Dec. 9th so I didn't get to take advantage of the in-store Black Friday sales this year to the full extent {like I did last year... and the year before... and the year before...}. 

I love giving gifts... and I love a good deal even more! And from what I hear, from the most credible sources of course - E! and fellow bloggers, of course - is that this Monday is the day when retailers give their deepest online discounts. I think its so that us tech-savvy (ha, ya right) online shopping lovers don't feel neglected by the Black Friday sales extended to the silly in-store shoppers who fight the crowds, rummage through disastrous piles, and stand in lines that weave in and out of stores at 2 a.m. the day after Thanksgiving. Ya, ya I've been one of those - but this year I wanna be a Cyber Monday-er! And here are a few of the Cyber Monday sneak peeks that got me all excited when I checked my email this morning:

Thanks, Kate!

Thank you, too, Ann!

20% at PB? I'll take it!

Buy one, get one half off - woo hoo!

Free shipping always excites me.

25% off?? That's like... a whole 'nother pant leg at J.Crew ;)

I promised myself that I wouldn't abide by my "one for me, one for you" typical holiday shopping mentality this year. Mainly because I'm trying not to be a greedy, wasteful little B... but realistically its just not in the shopping budget for me and the hubbs this year! Maybe next year I will resume my standard practices :)

Here's to wishing that you all wake up to an inbox full of your favorite shopping deals! Have a Happy Cyber Monday!

(Disclaimer: Mom, if you read this... I pinky promise that I quickly wrote this post while I enjoyed a few minutes of peace with my morning cup of coffee. I also promise to only scour the internet for Cyber Monday deals on my *brief* study breaks. No need to call and scold me! xo)


PS. Like my wittle blog? Wanna make me feel loved? Click here to vote for me! Just a click is all it takes!

Favorite Things

Oprah got to have a "favorite things" show... two actually. {The second part is tomorrow - if you want to spend an hour with your jaw on the floor and thinking jealous thoughts, tune in at 4!} So I can have just one post, right? I have lots of favorite things! And most of them aren't really things anyway - not in the sense that you can go out and buy them. But here is a list of my favorite tangible things at the moment. Like you care, I know. But I'm killing a little time between wash/dry cycles before I can go to bed :) In no particular order, my top 10 (first things that come to mind) at the moment are:

1. My cardy Uggs. It isn't cold enough in Atlanta yet to wear my heavy, fleece-lined Ugg boots yet, but its also not socially acceptable to wear flip flops anymore (although I would if I could). So, I've been throwing these little knitted guys on every time I need to run to the store, or school or wherever!

2. My Kate Spade planner. I have an unhealthy obsession with list-making... particularly the crossing things off of my lists aspect of list-making. Its finals time, and holiday season time, and just the time of year where I generally start losing my marbles - so this has been a life saver. I'm a big fan all year, but from now until 2011 I will be especially dependent on my little friend!

3. The Downy ball. I wish I were joking... but this has literally revolutionized laundry day(s) for me! I never feel like dryer sheets give you the full effect of liquid fabric softener, and I don't have the cool little liquid detergent hole in my washing machine. So the Downy ball has quite seriously changed my life - one amazing smelling load of laundry at a time :) The hubbs is a big fan, too. On the rare occasion that he throws in a load of laundry he fills up the entire ball with softener...

4. This should probably be #1... but I said I was going out of order. My Keurig Single Cup Coffee Maker. This has got to be one of the best inventions of our lifetime. I'm the only regular coffee drinker in our house, so the fact that I can brew one perfect cup in under a minute is easily the highlight of my mornings! I am an even bigger fan now that most grocery stores have started selling K-cups in the coffee aisle so I don't have to make a special trip to Target! Ahh, the little things in life.

5. Woodwick candles. I know I have been cheating on my fave brand lately with the Yankee Beeswax candles, but Woodwick candles are still truly my favorite candles. I love that I can leave them around the house with the lids off and still catch a whiff of their yummy scents without even lighting them. And then when I do light them, they give the effect of a real fire - they crackle and have a wide, flickering flame... they're the next best thing to a real wood-burning fireplace.

6. Crest 3D white toothpaste. Again, wish I were joking. But who has time to whiten their teeth these days?! Not I. Literally, my appearance has been the last thing on my mind for the last 2ish months. And with all the coffee I drink, I have found that this toothpaste actually does a really good job of keeping my pearly whites, white ;)

7. This is another one that should probably be higher up on my list if I were ranking my favorite things in order. Shellac Gel Nail Polish. I have honestly not put normal nail polish on my fingers since I discovered this miracle product! It is like OPI nail polish, only wayyy better... it goes on like a polish, then your manicurist "cures" the polish under a UV light, and then you leave the salon with totally dry, indestructible nails that do not chip for - I swear - 2 to three weeks. Don't believe me? Ask all my friends. They would know, because I have harassed peer-pressured every last one of them into trying it and they all love it! I plan to get a fresh pre-Thanksgiving mani tomorrow in a lovely dark purple shade that will, no doubt, last me until my pre-Christmas mani.

8. While I'm being totally vain and admitting that I insist on having manicures that last me a minimum of 2 weeks, I might as well confess that Versa Spa UV-free tanning is another one of my favorite things to ever be invented. I have sworn off tanning beds now that I am a) terrified of skin cancer and b) even more terrified of wrinkles, so I've been spray tanning every couple of weeks to keep me from feeling like a ghost. Sheila got me hooked on Versa - it doesn't have the icky fake tan smell that most spray tans leave you with, and I haven't had any "omg I'm orange" mishaps with it either. Knock on wood.

 

9. Since Andrew doesn't read this, I will admit that our Jack LaLanne juicer has become one of my favorite things. I still have a love-hate relationship with it for the mere fact that it takes up precious counter space, and its 738 pieces always seem to be sitting in our sink for days at a time... but it is a great way to get the nutrients my hubbs and I don't necessarily get by eating fruits and veggies. And it saves me the trouble of having to cook many side dishes. So my reasons are selfish and wimpy - I'm a 23 yr old who still hates her veggies and I am trying to weasel my way out of cooking a well-rounded dinner. Judge away, I have no shame!

10. This is a combo: Netflix + Roku box. They go hand-in-hand, and you can totally have one without the other - but they really are only my favorite thing when they combine forces. We've been using Netflix for the past year or so, and we love it. But now that we have a Roku box (thanks to Andrew's big bro - who, again, will never read this but he deserves this shout-out nonetheless!) we can stream movies and tv shows that normally would only be available instantly online right into our TV! Technology, while normally a giant pain in my booty since I am not tech-savvy, is amazing in this one minuscule instance! We've started watching 30 Rock, and Weeds, and all sorts of other fun stuff thanks to Netflix + Roku - if you have Netflix, but no Roku, you are missing outtt!

Well. That is the first 10 of my {current} favorite things that I could think of at the moment. And while I would so love to give each of my readers one of each of my top 10 faves... I'm not Oprah :) Now that I have successfully killed enough time to let my clothes wash, I can transfer them into the dryer and go enjoy the rest of my Sunday night with a few of my intangible favorite things - my hubby, our sweet kitty girl, and some much needed sleep!

Bella and Hubbs: Old School Edition :)

These days.

This is what my life has looked like for the past week...

Yuck.

Double yuck.

 And it will, no doubt, only get uglier/messier/frazzled-er as the days go on! I'll be spending my weekend studying... then early next week I'll transport myself and my study outlines back to Ohio for Thanksgiving "break." (I think its cruel to even call this a break. Cruel and rude.) I start finals the Monday after Thanksgiving (see? rude, I told ya), and my finals will finally end on December 9th at which time I plan to do nothing but this for the remainder of my real winter break:

How cozy does Miss Bella look?!

 I hope that all of your Thanksgiving holidays look much more like the latter :)

On a slightly brighter note - at 5:15 today I will be 50% done with my law school classes. That is 1/2. Halfway done (aside from passing the final exams of course) with law school! EVER! Woo!!! I'm starting to see the light at the end of this long, dark, agonizing tunnel...

Day dreaming...

There is something about this time of year {finals are quickly approaching time} that kicks my ADD into overdrive! I find myself doing everything but what I am supposed to be doing... my mind begins to wander, and my thoughts turn from bankruptcy law and the federal rules of evidence to something more along the lines of this:

• What fun things should I start planning for our winter break?
• Should I send out Christmas cards this year?
• If I do, what picture would I use? 
• What card pattern... maybe I should check some out online...
• I haven't sent my mom any Christmas ideas.
• What do I want for Christmas this year?
• I need a dress for New Year's Eve...
• What happened to that apple pie recipe I wanted to try next week?
• Oooh! Pioneer Woman has some amazing recipes for Thanksgiving! I'll save them. All. 

And... that was just this morning. But this weekend, my most productive (ha) distraction was searching for my "dream home." I love looking through Realtor.com's listings of houses for sale in our home town, and I just day dream about what our first house will be -- what my kitchen will look like, whether I'll have a white picket fence, will it be historic like I have always envisioned?, will I get my dream of hardwood floors throughout every single room?

The day that we can move back home with our family is still a few years away, but I am hoping and praying that this house - or one equally darling - will be for sale (and within our *imaginary* budget!) when moving time really does come! I have never seen a historic house that screams "ME! ME! ME!" more than this quaint, adorable, historic little home! I would honestly not change a single thing about this house if it were mine... which is something I have never said before! How cute - seriously?!

Precious.

This has "my first house" written all over it!

Perfect. Right down to the chandelier and hydrangeas!

So quaint and cozy!

Even a chandy in the bedroom?! I'm in love.

I'm even obsessed with the laundry room - that says a lot!

For a house built in 1889, this is an amazing master bath!

I have always (not exaggerating) dreamed of a room w/ red walls :)

Perfectly updated, but still tons of character!

I'm obsessed with the era of this home, and love that the owners did such an amazing job of updating it without losing the historic character! Yes, yes I'm aware that historic homes require a lot of upkeep and maintenance that new homes do not {my parents' home is also very old} but it is a trade off I would be more than willing to make in order for my first home to be thissss perfect! 

There are plenty of other historic homes that go up for sale now and then in our little home town, but there is only one other that I know of that has captured my heart the way this one has! I have saved screen shots of every. single. room. in this house and filed them away in my "Someday" folder on my computer desktop. So, now you know where my easily distracted brain will be drifting between now and December 9th :) 

Now that I've dreamed up my first home and found its exact location, lot size, and approximated property taxes... I guess I can get back to studying criminal law and domestic relations so that I {hopefully} have a paycheck that will support all of my dreams and wishes!

World's most EXPENSIVE "free" kitten

Our little princess was *free* when we got her. But the chick has cost us an arm and a leg ever since! Never mind the ridiculous toys, collars, kitty fingernail covers, pink carriers and grooming we waste $ on. I'm talking like legitimate costs. Bella - we love you, but you have got to be, hands down, the world's most expensive free kitten!

I convinced Andrew that the first couple months of pet-ownership would be the only expensive vet bills (check-ups, shots, deworming, etc.)... but omg was I wrong! Here are a few of the ailments poor Bella has been treated for this past year:

Giardia.

Ear mites???

Conjunctivitis.

A cold?!

Loose stools.......

Fleas.

1 year later... another round of boosters and shots.

The little nugget had to get 2 shots today - in her booty - plus had her temp taken from her little rear end. I dreaded this day all week... it has got to be more painful for me than for her. I truly do not know how I will handle doing this with real human babies someday! Our pathetic little kitty kitty is totally wiped from her shots... and totally doesn't trust her mama after this afternoon's trauma. But she is on the mend :) $159 later...

She plays in my grocery bags...

Naps in my actual bags...

Eats and plays with my home decor...

But she is SO fun to dress up :) Here is our Halloween Flower!

And we just love her to pieces!!!

 Bella girl, you are worth every penny! Without you, our home would feel empty and our lives would be incomplete :) xoxo

Friendly Friday

My little ol' blog is being featured on "Friendly Friday" ...today!! How cool is that?! I'm flattered and excited :)

Don't know what it is? Check it out:

Thanks so much to the lovely ladies hosting for including me in their fun weekly blog hop! And thanks to everyone who has stopped by or followed me through their Friendly Friday link-up! I hope you will add your blog too, and follow someone new today!

(I hope that link works........ I'm new to this! So forgive me if this post is edited 2094823 times!)

Weekend Recap

Our weekends have gotten progressively less eventful as the semester/quarter goes on... Unfortunately, its that time of year where I have to get serious about school after 12, give or take, weeks of just sliding by. I had big plans for this weekend - plans to get started on class outlines and read ahead for the week, in hopes of starting my finals studying early enough to really enjoy my Thanksgiving "break." But! True to my procrastinating ways, I didn't do any of those things. So here I am on Monday, scrambling to catch up instead of get ahead... and what am I doing? Looking at pictures from weeks past and wishing that every weekend could be so fun :)

Whiskey Blue a couple weekends ago

The boys who are lucky to have us... just ask them ;)

This weekend wasn't a total loss, though. We babysat my favorite little cuties on Friday night (they LOVE "Mr. Andrew" so he was a trooper and tagged along for a night of ninjas, chocolate milk and dirty diapers!), went to dinner with friends on Saturday, and watched the Browns beat the Patriots on Sunday - which, truth be told, would have been the highlight of even the rowdiest, fun-packed weekend in Andrew's book! - and lounged around at home watching our fave Sunday night TV shows. So while our weekend looked a little more like this than most others...

Cutest Batman I've ever seen!

We had some low-key fun, and thanks to "fall back" I feel well-rested and ready to tackle the rest of my crazy busy week! Sometimes I just need to remind myself to stop thinking forward to when our hard work will pay off - and enjoy the here and now! No matter now mundane it sometimes feels. Because really, its not so bad ;) Now, back to work!!!

More FALL Love

Because my friends and family in Ohio got their first snowfall of the season last night - ha. ha. ...

And because I am still enjoying the cold thanks to having butt warmers in my little car (thanks, Dad)...

Also just because I am so excited to still have so much sunshine and blue skies this time of year...

Here are a few pics of our beautiful city in the fall :)

Green space between aquarium and World of Coca-Cola

Outside of the aquarium

Same spot, different view

Georgia Aquarium

World of Coca-Cola

Beautiful foliage

I love fall, and I love Atlanta... but I'd be lying if I said I didn't envy the Midwesterners who woke up to a dusting of crisp, white snow this morning! I'm sure I will eat those words after our tip up to OH over the holidays when I get my snow fix for the winter :)

Hair Envy

Every time my hair gets long, I want to cut it short. As soon as I chop it off, I miss my long hair.

Whenever I get highlights, I love them until I see roots - then I freak out and want my hair back dark. When my hair is natural, it feels bland.

HAIR ENVY is the worst... I always want what I don't have!

In July, I chopped my locks 8 inches and lightened it up with some golden highlights. Three short months later, I am cringing at the sight of roots and am missing my long, long hair! So... I think its time for (another) change. I'm debating on the color... and haven't reached any sort of decision, but looking through old pictures and polling my most trusted bffs (SK, Sheila, sisters) is certainly helping! Here are some colors and styles that I am pouring over at the moment as I try to make up my mind!

After much thought........... I think I need to darken my hair and let it grow long again! By the time it gets to the perfect shade and length, I'm sure I'll be ready for another change, but oh well :)

Closet Flip

One of the not-so-fun realities of changing seasons, is the closet flip. In our house, we have two sizable walk-in closets, but one happens to be in the guest bedroom... so rather than do the logical thing (logical = Andrew takes the guest closet, and gives me free reign of the master closet!) we are cramming both of our wardrobes into ONE of the walk-ins and using the second closet for formal wear, the vacuum cleaner, ironing board, and other random wedding gifts that have yet to find a rightful place in our itty bitty home! Oh yea, and it is also stacked floor to ceiling with plastic bins of off-season clothing! 

So last weekend, we spent the better part of our Saturday pulling out box upon box of fall/winter clothes and replacing our summer/spring wardrobe with sweaters, boots, scarves and turtlenecks. I expected the closet flipping process to be not-so-fun, but what I didn't anticipate was the not-so-fun glances, groans and hoarding lectures I would get from my hubby! Andrew was appalled at the sheer volume of clothing and shoes I possessed - I forgot that the first time I unloaded my wardrobe in our newlywed closet he was still up in Ohio :) This was his first true glimpse of my clothes, shoes and accessories. His "side" of the closet took about 30 min to switch over... but you better believe that he sat on the bed and watched me shove, cram, and wad up in balls my "side" (side and 3/4 to be exact) for 3 consecutive hours if for no other reason than to be able to tell me at the end of the grueling process that he doesn't want to hear me tell him I need to go shopping EVER again!!!

I won't post any "before" pictures... because frankly they are just too embarrassing to share! Here is the finished product:

Andrew's "side" - my pants share the bottom bar with his haha - and he insisted that his sweaters be folded but refused to share the hanging bar above!!

The best I could do w/ my scarves since Andrew wouldn't share his hanging bar...

These shoe racks may (seriously) never be removed from this closet after the smashing and shoving it took to get them in!

My side, my scarves, my bins, and my shelf! Whew! Thank God for our dresser...

I will say, despite his disgust with the amount of clothing I own (and can't bear to part with) my hubbs has kept the closet much tidier now that he has invested some of his own blood, sweat and tears into the organization of it! Makes me wish I had made this a joint-effort sooner! That is, until he decides on our next shopping trip that I really don't neeeed a separate pair of brown boots to fit each of these requirements: one pair with a pointed toe and spiky heel, one with a rounded toe and chunky heel, and another pair that is flat and slouchy.
Until then, I'm just enjoying the change of color and scenery in our closet and its new (and likely, short-lived) organization :)