Bridesmaid Dresses

 Remember how I mentioned last week that we found Sheila's Bridesmaid dresses? She might be the easiest to please bride on the planet... because in one afternoon she browsed, selected, and had us purchase our dresses! The "petal pink" color was also decided on the spot and will go so beautifully with her low-key, whimsical wedding style. Here is what her gals will be wearing:

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So simple, and flowy! The understated elegance is very "Sheila." I love the chiffon material... I know that this is a dress we can all wear again, and the forgiving style is one that flatters every figure. Even a preggo one! I'm excited to have a fancy bump-friendly dress in my closet for future use... is that weird? I'm weird. {Disclaimer: No, I'm not preg. Or trying to be. Or planning to be any time soon! Please don't read into this haha.}

Speaking of every figure and baby bumps... Sheila's sister, her Matron of Honor, is pregnant! She will hopefully have already delivered Baby #3 by the 3.17.12 wedding date (or she will be ready to pop!!) so she opted for a similar but slightly more maternity-friendly dress style that will set her apart as MOH but will match the rest of the BM's length, material and color. Its so beautiful!

Sheila's BM dress choice was inspired by some beautiful rustic chic weddings on Pinterest, and I know her big day will come together just as gorgeously as she is envisioning! Don't you love the blush tones in these pictures?

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Pretty dresses! Pretty maids! Easy going bride! Right on schedule for placing orders and reserving important stuff! This wedding is off to a fab start ;)

Giveaway WINNER

Congratulations to Laina of Recycled Interiors - she is the winner of the UPrinting giveaway! 

You'll be hearing from me or the lovely ladies at Giveaway Blogs with more details soon! Enjoy those labels and thanks for entering! ;)

**I got a little carried away playing around w/ Random.org... and posted the wrong screen shot at 12:30 last night! Sorry for any confusion - although I don't doubt that my counting skills are as bad as they appeared to be for anyone who did the comment math!**

My Husb the... Blogger?!

Friends... I have big news.

My husb has started a Chiropractic Blog. If I hadn't been asked to help him edit his first post and figure out how to set the dang thing up, I'd be thinking this was the makings of a really funny joke he was about to tease his gullible wife with. Turns out, the kid is serious as a heart attack!

While it might not be up some of your alleys - there will be no craft tutorials, or recipes, or pictures of cute babies (that I know of) - he will be posting extremely useful health and wellness information on a weekly/bi-weekly basis, and I'm so proud of my smarty pants husb for deciding to share his passion with the blog world!

For fact-based health info and links to great resources that will knock your socks off, follow along! You won't be disappointed with what you learn. Promise :)

Chiropractic Wellness
Sharing the TRUTH about Chiropractic.

www.bradychirowellness.blogspot.com

Friday Favorites

This week wasn't a whole lot better than last in terms of feeling like I had my life in order. Maybe 3rd week {of school} will be the charm?? Fingers crossed.

I'm thankful that Pinterest either a) didn't exist and/or b) I hadn't discovered it during the first 2 years of law school. Because I'm pretty confident I would have flunked out by now. As a 3L, however... it is a welcome distraction!

My Friday Favorites posts wouldn't have made it past week 2 without Pinterest! And I may not have made it out of the first 9 days of classes this semester without dying of boredom...

Buffalo Chicken Grilled Cheese... my husb would love me forEVER if I made this! Aka I will... just not sure when. via

Mini Quiche Cups? I made these babies (the Bisquick version) last night for my Bible study girls! Go me :) via

"Slim" 6-Layer Dip - a healthy twist on a favorite in our house! via

I love the curve of this staircase. And the flooorrss omg. via

If I had my way, I'd wear these boots every day from September-January. My bank account has a different plan I think... via

We've been all about the homemade pizza lately! This one looks to-die. via

Random thoughts to wrap up this week's lame-o post...

• Back-to-school time is way less fun now that my mom doesn't take me back-to-school shopping...
• The temp needs to drop about 10 degrees otherwise I don't feel like I'm watching real football games w/ the hubbs.
• Baby Gap has a 60 day return policy... for future reference. This is about to cause me a big old headache, and its my own dumb fault. 
• The new Brita water bottle is rocking my world. And making me pee 70x/day.
• We found and purchased the bridesmaids dresses for Sheila's wedding last weekend!! They're beautiful... I'll post some pics and a color swatch soon!

That's all I got! Don't forget to ENTER MY GIVEAWAY pu-lease! Your chances are embarrassingly ridiculously good :)

*GIVEAWAY*

UPrinting is an online printing company that offers a variety of services - and they are giving one lucky ILYThen reader 250 free 2"x3.5" print labels! These labels would be great for you crafty small business owners or for anyone planning an upcoming shower or party! You can upload your own design, or create a template on their website.

Here are some ideas from UPrinting.com for how these labels could be used (although I know my creative blogger friends have a hundred other ideas!):

via

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To Enter:

*Mandatory Entry*

Follow I Thought I Loved You Then and leave me a comment letting me know that you do!

*Additional Entries*

Like/follow UPrinting.com on Facebook or Twitter (1 entry each)

Leave a separate comment for each entry, please!

GIVEAWAY ENDS 

Monday 8/29/11

Winners will be chosen using Random.org

and will be announced later next week!

Good luck :)

*Sorry, this giveaway is limited to US residents 18 years and older.

*Details: the labels in the giveaway are the 70lb matte labels, front only printing, and 4 business days turnaround.

Disclaimer:  This giveaway is sponsored by UPrinting, no monetary compensation was given for hosting. 

Fall Fashion

One of my favorite bloggers predicts that these will be some of the hot fall fashion trends...

I love fall! And especially fall fashion. I don't tend to follow "trends" as much as I just buy what I like but I'm sort of loving these fall trends... what do you think??

via Anna (via JCrew, Asos, JCrew)

In other news - I have a giveaway to post for you all this week! I'll work on getting the details up this afternoon, so be sure to check back for a chance to win a fun freebie!!

Happy Monday!

Friday Favorites

After spending every waking hour of my week reading/writing for school... I'm not much in the mood for words today. I'll keep this quick! My week included, in no particular order:

• Pouting through my first week of classes... seriously, I frowned through every minute of every class.
• Reading in bed with a little nightlight because I'm still in denial about having real homework. This method makes it seem less real.
• Neglecting cleaning, laundry and cooking - because I'm entitled to do that during the first week back to school, duh.
• Being really really tired and grouchy. (Sorry hubbs!)
• Balancing out my misery with some fun conversation with my Bible study girls and some slobbery baby kisses from the kiddos I watch :)

Now that its Friday, I can breathe a little easier... catch up on sleep... and spend some time with the poor guy who lives in my apartment but whom I haven't shared a meal with in 3 days! Yikes.

Onto some random Friday Favorites that are reflective of my ADD week!

There are few things I love in life more than mugs of coffee and sweaters... I must have this! via

How cute is this as a hostess gift? Wine wrapped in a pretty tea towel. via

I'm loving bright colors and bold patterns these days! And I'm a sucker for GREEN. via

Carrot and Zucchini Bars w/ Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting... sounds borderline healthy! Fruits and veggies, no? via

Creme brulee french toast. Seriously? Heaven. via

I pray I have a girl someday so that I can decorate a glam nursery with a wall monogram!! via

For all you moms out there who scoop ice cream while you serve cake at every.single.bday.party... this is genius. via

Since this week I was reeeally bad about time-management, I'm hoping for a smoother 2nd week of school after a weekend of rest and organizing... and if all goes as planned, next week just might even include some exercise, vegetables w/ dinner, and clean socks for my poor hubby.

Wishful thinking. Have a great weekend!!!

Disheveled

That's how I'm feeling right now. Disheveled. {Had to spell check that one... it looked funny...}

Last week I got my days all confused and didn't do a Friday Favorites post (did anyone miss it?), cleaned my house on Thursday instead of Saturday, spent twice our grocery budget at Target this weekend on God-knows-what and realized around 11 p.m. last night that I hadn't bought a parking pass for the fall semester.

Not the biggest deal(s) in the world... but enough to leave me feeling a little disheveled today. I did, however, luck out with my parking situation this morning and managed to get my butt in the right building and classroom by 9 a.m.to kick off my 3L year. Baby steps. Bear with me as I try to engage my brain and get myself back into "school mode." By the looks of things, the semester might be over by the time I get myself on track. Just in time for Christmas break. Perfect!

Instead of organizing my planner and skimming over the syllabus from this morning's class, I think I'll try to order this mug.........

via

Just kidding. Sort of. This Monday wasn't that bad. After all, it is my LAST 1st DAY OF SCHOOL EVERRR!

Amen.

I'll be back blogging as usual just as soon as I figure out which professors seem least annoyed with my keyboard clicking away during the no-need-to-be-taking-notes parts of class :)

Chiro for Kiddos

Monday, we meet again...

We didn't have an overly eventful weekend, so I don't have many pictures to share. But we did have a great time at Sheila's engagement party (click for some pics of the adorable decorations and details!) and got a lot done around our house so that it is clean, organized, and stocked with food and other necessities before I head back to work/school! Here are a few pictures I snagged from Sheila of Friday night!

Me w/ the blushing bride-to-be! (if only I were looking...)

Sheila w/ some of her guests :)

With Sher, the hostess of the evening!

Back to what I set out to post about - chiropractic care for kids!

Since most of my readers are momma's or momma's-to-be, I thought I'd share this video that a preggo friend of mine posted this morning:

Interesting stuff! I don't usually get on my future Chiropractor wife soapbox on my blog, but I think its important to spread the info I've acquired over the course of my husband's schooling. There are so many misconceptions about chiropractic medicine out there, so if you ever have questions feel free to email me or leave a comment and I'll do my best to get you an answer or pass along some resources! 

If you are interested, here are some great resources for you natural moms (and anyone else interested in learning more about holistic healthcare) to check out:

Dr. Bizjak's practice (our Chiro from Ohio) has a really informative website that answers most of the FAQ's I can think of!

www.chiroforfamilies.com

Natural News (for current articles and reports published in the natural health world)

http://www.naturalnews.com/

WHEN - Wealth & Health Empowerment Network (info on the natural state of the body, and some great resources for mom's who are researching when/whether to vaccinate their children)

http://www.whenisnow.net/

And for a few interesting articles and videos I've come across about chiropractic/natural health lately, you may want to check out:

http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2011/05/20/home-births-at-highest-level-since-1990/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRbNclnBdMg&feature=share

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8h0SkPcs2U

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=149153403581&comments

From time to time, I may post articles I come across that I find interesting and newsworthy. As with all info on this blog, the opinions I share are my own - do with them what you will! My goal is not to tell anyone how to care for themselves or their families, but I do encourage you to read and research different options.

I hope you guys find to be interesting and informative :)

Friday Favorites

It has been h.o.t. in Atlanta this week! Too hot to be outside unless you are in the pool. And even then, our pool feels like bath water so its not even refreshing. Rough. Life.

Instead of risking the kids' lives that I babysit {heat stroke. sun burn. dehydration. these are all valid concerns, right?} I kept them in the comfort of the air conditioning where they could play all day... and where I had wireless internet and my lap top ;)

You guys are lucky I'm such a cautious babysitter. Otherwise, I might not have come across these beauties! Enjoy...

I love the painted ceiling on this screened-in porch. via

This DIY fire pit only cost $30!! Amazing. via

A staircase that goes over the hallway? I'm obsessed. Seriously so cool. via

This hat is the cutest thing ever for the newborn of a football-loving dad! via

Lemon and lime ice cubes. Pretty and refreshing for these hot ATL days! via

Essie "Haute as Hello"... perfect summer shade. Currently is on my toes :) via

Ores Cheesecake Bites. Perfect for my husb who only requests Oreo flavored desserts, and who also only eats one bite! via

As always, click thru the "via" for the original tutorial, recipe, or source for each Friday Favorite pic!

I have one short week left of summer, so I plan to soak up all the sleep, sun, and fun I can this weekend... it might be my last truly relaxing one for a while!

2 Years!

Andrew and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary on August 1st! It does not seem possible that it was two whole years ago that we said "I do." Time really does fly when you're having fun! And when you're moving to a new city - where you don't know a soul. And working your way through grad school (x2). And making new friends. And adding pets to your little family. And figuring out how to pay bills and buy cars and cook meals. I love reflecting back on how much has happened since this day 2 years ago...

We've made it a tradition to celebrate our anniversaries in Hilton Head while we are living to close. We love it there! Between work and Andrew's class schedule, we were only able get away for a few days but it was a great long weekend and we had so. much. fun!

We watched the sunset from a dolphin watch cruise...

Enjoyed the beautiful scenery from the boat...

Saw these cute mama and baby dolphins...

Lounged on the beach all day...

Enjoyed cocktail hour on the roof top deck at the Harbour Town Yacht Club...

Got some nice old people to take a couple of pics of us before dinner...

Daydreamed about someday owning a yacht (ya right)...

And ate way. way. way. too much!

We loved having a weekend away to spend just enjoying the uninterrupted company of each other and to take in some beautiful scenery. I so cherish these husb/wife getaways!

The "planner" in me couldn't resist talking about what's in store for our 3rd year of marriage (and beyond) so we did lotsss of that over the course of the weekend. We have BIG plans for this year! Family vacations, trip with friends, weddings to attend and be in, I'll be graduating (yayyy!), I take the bar, I'll *hopefully* be finding a job, Andrew takes his boards, he'll get his very own patients... etc... so much to look forward to!

As fast as these past couple of years have flown by, we are making a point to savor every moment we have in this phase of life. Before we know it, we'll be moving, and starting jobs, and buying a home, and having babies and looking back on the memories of "when we lived in Atlanta" and "when we were in school" -- its easy to get overwhelmed by the future and all of the big decisions and plans to be made. So we just try to live in the present instead!

For now, we're enjoying what we're doing right where we're at and being thankful for every blessing in our life! I have loved every second of our first 2 years of marriage. We've laughed, cried, grown, learned and changed together. I love my hubbs and the life we have built!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, ANDREW! 

Thank you for being patient, hilarious, caring, encouraging, protective, thoughtful, helpful, supportive and always entertaining.

Today, yesterday, and forever... I choose you! :)

Cupcake Queen

Just call me the Cupcake Queen. Or Martha. I'll answer to both.

Thanks to a tutorial I found on Pinterest, I now know how to bake those beautiful cupcakes you see all over the internet and in baking books/magazines - the ones that raise up out of the liners with their pretty little dome shape and look amazing when you ice them. You know what I'm talking about? This might not be newsworthy for some of you baking pros out there, but this "pin" rocked. my. world.

I was skeptical at first. But then I tried it and was literally squealing with excitement in the kitchen when I pulled my cupcakes from the oven! Poor husb ran in like something was wrong (or on fire... wouldn't be the first time) only to find me looking like a mad woman in my mismatched oven mitts screeching "OMG I'm going to be the BEST room mom! I'm going to bake cupcakes for ALL of our kids parties!" Psycho. I know. Seriously though, how pretty are these cuppycakes I made?!

Pretty!!! I was so proud of myself. I was baking these for a friend's birthday dinner that same evening, and even though I used a boxed mix for the chocolate cupcakes I wanted to fancy up the icing and decorations bit. After some extensive Googing, I decided on a caramel buttercream frosting with crushed up Heath bar on top! Chocolate Caramel Cupcakes... yum!

For the icing, I loosely followed a normal butter cream recipe and added about 1/2 a bottle of Smucker's Caramel Sunday Syrup. Since the caramel syrup thinned it out, I had to add a little extra powdered sugar and even a little flour to that the icing didn't run off of the cupcakes. I piped the icing on with my Martha Stewart reusable pastry bag and sprinkled crushed up Heath on top before the icing set.

They were delish. In hindsight, I would probably melt caramels for the icing myself rather than using they syrup next time, just to get a thicker, firmer texture for the icing so that it could stand up more rather than lay flat. These cupcakes tasted homemade and fancy even though they were not 100% homemade and so easy to throw together last minute. Thankfully, the birthday boy got to enjoy one before the hot Georgia sun melted them to goop in the back seat of our car while we were in a movie after dinner... *tear* let's not talk about it!

Everyone was impressed with my baking skills. And the cherry on top? I didn't even know until we showed up to dinner, but apparently Heath bars are the bday boys favorite candy. What are the odds??

Try these out the next time you are pressed for time and looking to add a gourmet, personal touch to even the simplest dessert! And don't forget the little trick to get them to bake perfectly, you won't regret it! ;)

P.S. Need/want a Pinterest invitation? Let me know, I'll send ya one!