T-Giving, & Christmas Festivites

Happy Wednesday friends --- you've made it half way through the week! I hope everyone had a vwonderful Thanksgiving, & I hope you stuffed your faces... I sure did. :) This is a little late, blah blah. I won't pull the whole, "I've been busy!" on y'all. ;)

I'll explain with pictures....

I mainly loved on my niece... she makes my heart swell!!

And of course I ate...& ate... & ate.... & ate..... {you get the picture}

We cannot wait to go home for Christmas -- the countdown begins!!

So, I have this problem every Holiday season. I lit.er.ally get anxiety about not being able to squeeze in every ounce of Christmas goodness. Like, we haven't done Gingerbread houses yet!! Oh my! Or... I haven't baked enough this season. Or... Are there enough lights on the tree?! Do my dogs know it's Christmas time?! We HAVE to look at Christmas lights! I need to paint my nails all the Holiday colors! Christmas cards! And don't even get me started on all the presents I want to buy...

It's pretty ridiculous. I'm really trying to settle myself... & remember 1. Jesus is the reason for the season & 2. I will make it all happen, because I do every year. :)

A couple things I have been doing...

{drinking plenty of the Starbucks Christmas coffee's}

{sitting my by fire, wearing these Bath & Body Works house shoes, & watching all my favorite Christmas movies!}

::How the Grinch Stole Christmas::

::Serendipity::

::Home Alone 1 & 2::

::Miracle on 34th Street::

::New in Town::

::Four Christmas'::

...just to name a few

And of course, drinking apple cider & "chuddling" with this boy!

And these pups...

Did anyone watch the Victoria Secret Fashion show night?? I did... with a Dr. Pepper in one hand, & ice-cream in the other.

Hehe :)

The Best Birthday + Weekend Fun

A little re-cap of my birthday, because I'll always want to remember it. This post is super long, by the way  - but some fun beauty tips at the end!

I didn't win the lottery, & I didn't go away on a huge vacation.  I didn't get thrown a surprise party (because I have threatened my friends not to, ha!). I stayed right here --- in my little city that is starting to become "home" to me. And? It was perfect. 

It was the best birthday because I have the opportunity to celebrate another year of life, with the best people. Best family. Best friends to act completely crazy with. Best God to worship. Best church. The world's best pup-dogs to love on. Best boy to love me, for me. Best everything.

I am so thankful, & so so blessed. Thankful.


And happy. I am really, very happy.

I started it off by going to see the Breaking Dawn premiere with my fran, Candice --- which was {hellooooooooo} the best way to start any birthday off!! :))) It was AMAZING, best one yet!!!

I woke up to breakfast (and Starbucks!) (and flowers!) in bed by my sweets. He is seriously the best. Why? Let's just say, he isn't the most romantic guy on earth, but when he tries - it is so.dang.cute. And means SO MUCH MORE. My sweet pup girls.

I had to work, but only til 2! I was treated by my sweet friend Chelsea to a mani/pedi! BLISS. And a pretty pretty pink cuppy cake. :)) So generous of her! ::sorry no pic::

After that - shopping for the perfect birthday outfit! I.love.to.shop.

That night, we headed out to the Funky Door - an upscale wine restaurant with yummy fondue & wine of  course! It was a great time. We went last year on my birthday as well, & I wouldn't mind going every year for the next 10 years on my day. :))

Saturday morning, I headed to my massage --- thanks to my sweet love! It was wooooonderful. I was still considering it my birthday {ha!} so after my massage, we grabbed pizza, & went to see Courageous. Oh my goodness y'all --- so good!!! Every man should see it.

Waiting in line... {loving my new TOMS from Candice for my birthday!!}

We took the girls for a walk after, & ran into the prettiest fall leaves!!! My fav time of year!

Then! We cooked my F A V O R I T E meal. Chicken wellington, homemade mac-n-cheese, & Caesar salad. We also watched Lincoln Lawyer -- awesome movie! (If you're still reading this - congrats! :))

Sunday Morning. Ahh my favorite day of the week. Here is an OOD. Just a little something -- I saw this fabulous combination for the perfect nude lip via Pinterest & decided to try it out. I really love my red lips, but I'm diggin' the nude too! It's the perfect combination, if I do say so myself.

{Revlon ColorBurst Lipstick in Soft Nude & Super Lustrous Lip Gloss in Peach Petal}

Coffee before with my bestie, Lauren.

Church was amazing --- as always. We hit up Cracker Barrel with our other friend Krista, where I found this oh-so-cute mug for Christmas! Chicken & dumplings, sweet carrots, & biscuits are the perfect Sunday lunch.

We saw Happy Feet later that day in 3D which was pretty cute, not sure if it was worth $10+ popcorn & coke but oh well! It was a GREAT birthday weekend!!!

Oh! Speaking of lipstick, ever heard of lip stain??? You can find it at Target or anywhere else I'm sure. Well, I LOVE IT. It literally will last H O U R S. I found that & Cinnamon M&M's.

All I pretty much had on in this pic, WAS the lip stain. I bit dramatic, but apply as necessary & wah-lah!

Good day! :)

What I'm Loving Wednesday

Happy Wednesday! Here are a few things I'm loving, thanks to Jaime's link up! :)

I'M LOVING....

 --- Fruit cups! I could seriously eat 4 of them. Yum!

--- This is SO random, but I love being a girl. I love perfume, jewelry, make-up, heels, etc.

--- Starbucks is having a little winter deal this Thursday-Saturday. Buy one Holiday drink, get one free! From 2-5. Coffee date anyone?? I'll buy. ;)

--- I have the BEST friends. One of my friends had to work on Friday, but she got it covered just for little ol' me. Birthdays only happen once a year, y'all! :)

--- I'm loving some of my Pinterest finds this week:

I might try making this, this weekend.

Lipstick, the perfect nude - YSL Sweet Honey

I think I NEED this outfit

Lace earrings - love.

feminine beauty

 

--- How fab is this hair-do? THE ballerina bun. I need to start practicing! Go HERE to watch the quick video. Gotta love Lauren Conrad. Her beauty website is pretty legit, you can often times find me there. ;)

Image

--- This bible verse just spoke to me this morning, I'm loving it. Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Corinthians 16:13

10 of 'em

Phew! I feel like I'm at a loss for "blog" words, so bullets; errrr numbers - it will be.

1. Have I ever mentioned how much I LURRRRVE fresh, clean sheets? So much that {almost} every Wednesday, I wash them. Along with all my blankets. There is almost nothing better than curling up in warm, fresh-out-of-the-dryer cleeeeean sheets. Remember that my pup-girls sleep with me. I also love doing laundry. Does that make me weird? I love folding & putting away clean laundry, & knowing that every single piece of clothing is clean & ready to wear.

2. Christmas is right around the corner, y'all! YAY! Have you started your Holiday shopping? Because I sure have! Last year, I had almost all my shopping done by December & it.was.glorious.

3. My lovie has been out of town {insert sad face} so on Sunday Lauren, Krista & I decorated for the most wonderful time of the year! We had Starbucks, watched Home Alone, & chatted it up about our Fredricksburg trip --- which I cannot wait for! I love my friends, they are so precious to me.

4. I know I talk about Starbucks all the dang time, but gosh darn it --- I love it! Especially in the winter. I'm lovin' the Peppermint mocha, but that Chai latte has really been making me smile lately.

5. I love Jesus. I really, really do. Last Friday night, I met up with Lauren to meet up with new friends! We prayed, kind of like a Bible Study? It's SO NICE to have girls that can keep me accountable, & just to talk about how good GOD IS! It's amazing, really. HE'S amazing.

6. I get to see my precious niece {& the rest of the fam-bam) in 8 days!!! I've been so homesick for them lately, & I could definitely use a break from this so called "city life" I live. Ha. Plus --- hellooooo it's THANKSGIVING for crying out loud! Can't wait to bake some new recipes with my momma & Nannie.

7. My sweet babies {pup-girls} are being groomed as we speak. It breaks my heart to leave them with strangers {I know, pathetic} but the poor things needed it!

8. Hopefully sometime this week we {friends, lover --- or both!} will make it to our local Holiday Happening! I love to do anything & everything related to the Holidays & this is perfect!

9. I got hit with the stomach bug ::again:: Sunday night, so needless to say, Monday was spent recuperating on the couch. No fun --- but a good feeling when you start to feel better! It's pretty OBVI my immune system hates me this cold/flu season. Grrrr.

10. My birthday is on Friday, & I can't wait to spend it with my lovelies! I've never been that big on celebrating my bday --- I hate being the center of attention, I really really hate surprises (call me Miss. Scrooge) so a low-key celebration is perfect for me.

Hope you all are having a fab Tuesday! 

Thankful.

With November arriving so quick, I thought it was appropriate to do a "what I'm thankful for" post.

I'm thankful for: My Jesus, who I don't talk about enough. Who makes this wonderful season so much more wonderful, who loves me {and you!) every.single.day despite ALL my faults, who forgives me, & who can make me feel like so, so, so loved. He answers my prayers, but ONLY when He sees fit. He hung the moon in my book... literally. :)

I'm thankful for: my pup-dogs. Those silly girls make my heart so full it's crazy. Some may say, "Oh they are JUST dogs!" But not to me. They are my little furry companions, they lick my salty tears when I cry, & they love me all day, every day.

{I was putting fresh sheets on my bed the other day, & Ellie refused to move. So cute.}

I'm thankful for: Starbucks. Oh c'mon. You KNEW it was coming. There is nothing like a hot latte on a cold day in a RED CUP! The anticipation of all the different flavors during the Holiday season is lovely. I love the atmosphere as well

I'm thankful for: My tiny, precious, blue-eyed beautiful, perfect niece. She has brought so much love to our family. I can't wait to see her again!! Thanksgiving can not come soon enough.

I'm thankful for: Pinterest! ha! Seriously though, it's where I find all my recipes now (we're trying out more this weekend!), get all my awesome craft ideas from, & laugh at all the funny quotes. I love it!

I'm thankful because: my sweet love lets me be me. It is so great. That's all I have to say about that. :)

I'm thankful for: my home here, & in Alpine. I have a roof over my head during these cold, harsh months & THAT is something to be grateful for.

I'm thankful for: day lights saving time, happening this Sunday! I love when it gets dark at 6pm, & it's so much easier to wake up with the sun shining! Yay :)

I'm thankful for: steam baths & Sex & the City episodes that make a sicky feel tons better. :)

And finally... I'm thankful that I have a free weekend to start putting up Christmas decor!!!! Don't judge, I need 2 full months of all this goodness *soaking it in*

Happy Friday beautiful bloggy friends! :)