Life.Love&Marriage

Friday Morning Ramblings

2012-02-24T06:45:00.007-08:00

I finished reading Hunger Games on Monday and I am hooked. I am picking up the second one this evening!

I walked into work today and it smelled/smells like rotten egg. They say that the battery in our server room is burning? Is it bad for my health to still sit at my desk while I snack on candy at 9:40 in the morning, instead of getting the heck out of here?!

Today is my last day at work until vacation. I am so pumped.

You would think that I wouldn’t snack on candy when I know that I will be wearing bathing suits and shorts. That never stopped me before. I wish I would learn.

I started packing yesterday. Actually the only thing that made it were shoes. I have to re-pack because I do not need that many shoes. Actually, I didn’t say that, Sean did.

Once again, I did not set up guest posts for while I am away. I guess this lil ole blog will stay quiet until I return. Boo to me. Don’t worry, next Sunday the action will return but I have an iPhone so if not blogging gets unbearable, I’ll log on and stalk your lives.

Have fabulous weekends!

xoxoxo

p.s. And just thought I should leave this post with a picture that describes exactly how I am feeling right now. Awesome, right?

What I'm Loving Wednesday

2012-02-22T10:16:00.000-08:00

I did not think I would jump in on this blog bandwagon but atlas here I am. Linking up with This Kind of Love. Let’s get this little party started.

I’m loving that I’m one day closer to going to Disney World.

Credit: Google Images

I’m loving that I had lunch with hubby at Subway today.

I’m loving Special K’s Chocolatey Chip Cookie Bar. SO delish and only 90 calories! It takes away the guilt but satisfies my sweet tooth.

I’m loving that there is nothing I do not like about this outfit. I want to wear it.

Credit: A fashion love affair

I’m loving my new jean jacket and white jeans. Can’t wait to wear them together.

I’m loving Instagram. Pretty obsessed. I guess, hubby was right along.

And I’m loving Seany-poo. You didn’t think he wouldn’t make this list, now did you?

My Weekend

2012-02-21T16:50:00.001-08:00

Friday Night

I watched Water for Elephants again and snuggled with Izabella. I'm a little addicted to this movie, I tell ya. It has been added to one of my most favorite movies. Oh, and you're probably wondering what Sean did. He slept during it.

And the best surprise ever came in the mail! My shoes that were backordered until June arrived! I seriously jumped up and down when I saw the box!

Isn't she a beaut?

Saturday

We had date day/night. We went shopping at the mall to pick up some new outfits for Florida. I finally found the jean jacket I have been searching for, forever at Express! They were having an amazing deal, plus we had coupons, so we left spending so much less than we thought we would. After shopping, we saw Safe House and we both loved it. It is so, so good.

After, we went to one of our favorite local pubs called Appletinis for some food and drinks. They had an amazing cover band. They were so good.

Awkward but funny moment: After eating, we decided to get up close and personal with the band. They began to sing, Michael Jackson's, "Black Or White." Well, wouldn't you know it that some drunk, fool proceeded to give Sean and I high fives. It was kinda funny but you should have seen Sean's face when he asked me, "Do you think he high-fived us because we're black and white?" I laughed out loud. So funny!

Sean did not want his picture taken so it's just me guys :) I bought those fabulous booties at Target when I went shopping with my sisters and I love them. So comfortable and cute!

Sunday

I made White Chicken Chili from the recipe Ashley @ Life After the Aisle shared, and it was so good. I can't wait to make it again!

Monday

I was off! Yay, President's Day. I did some major cleaning because we leave for vacation this week and the worst thing to do is come back home to a dirty home. That is on my list of the things I despise the most. I made cinnamon buns and watched some 80 movies.

Now I just need today to move to Saturday, asap :)

I also realize that I have not updated on my natural hair yet. Well, January 1st, I got rid of all my relaxed ends. I am all natural. It is so freeing to finally be rid of all the chemically relaxed hair. I will do a whole post on it soon but just wanted to let the few of you who have wondered know that I did it! :)

Instagram Fun

2012-02-17T08:05:00.000-08:00

So I am now on Instagram. So much fun! I am going to be worse than ever now. Just know that you should only follow me if you want to see ridiculous pictures. It will be random. Beyond random. But I hope that it will be enjoyable too. My name is midnyteblue13. Give me all of your Instagram names too that way I can follow as well.

I tried my hand at it for the first time last night. We went to a musical. Baby is what it was called. Sean's first one ever. He is so cultured. And it was probably his last one. I liked it but it was a bit long. Like 3 hours long. And it was a ~~school~~ work night so I was wanting to be in bed when it passed two hours. I am so old.

We went to our favorite Mexican restaurant again this week for dinner. Best week ever, haha.

{Although, we got home late, I made sure to read Hunger Games for one hour before bed and ate strawberries, yum. Frozen strawberry margaritas always make me crave strawberry. And as for that book, I can't put it down! It is a crazy, crazy book}

Last Night ♥

2012-02-15T17:23:00.000-08:00

Monday afternoon, during my lunch break, I headed to CVS to buy a few things.

1. Animal Crackers
2. Bottle of Water
3. SKOR chocolate bar
4. Hot Tamales
5. Sugar Babies
6. Assorted Nuts
7. Construction Paper

I had already purchased Sean's favorite drink. A bottle of Johnny Walker.

When I got home in the evening, I proceeded to cut out hearts on red and pink paper. I cut out the hearts the way I learned in elementary school and it felt good to have scissors in my hands for something other than coupon clipping.

I got the idea from Jenni @ The Sweet Pea Life and I ran with it. I loved what she did for her husband so I decided to try it as well but with my own twist.

I also gave him clues as to where to find these things. For example: Clue - I make food cold. Obviously fridge, so the bottle of water was in the fridge.

{That was actually the first thing Sean had to find. He went into the fridge stared right at the water bottle with the red heart on it and said, "I can't find it". I said, "Babe, look better". He finally found it. And in my head, I was thinking, Seriously, when do we have red hearts taped on the items in the fridge. How could you not find it? Haha}

I taped the clues on the front door that way as soon as he got home he would know something was up.

Here's pictures of what I did with the hearts

Can't read what it says:
1. Water Bottle - I love that you can see right through me
2. SKOR - I love that I get to SKOR with you
3. Sugar Babies - I can't wait to make sugar babies with you
4. Hot Tamales - Because you're HOT, HOT, HOTT!
5. Nuts - I'm nuts over you
6. Johnny Walker bottle - You're the only one I feel free to get loose with:

{I wasn't sure if I was going to post this one because I didn't/don't want to offend anyone but Sean laughed so hard that I have to share it. Please don't hate me friends! We kind of have a silly thing we do to each other and well, we are different colors. We know this, we embrace it, so I HAD to do it. Like HAD to :)}

7. Animal Crackers - You're my favorite cracker

It was so cheesy and I felt cheesy doing it but the smile he had on his face was priceless. Oh and I make a pretty big breakfast for us on Tuesday and Thursday and so he walks in with breakfast from McDonalds that way I didn't have to make breakfast. It was so funny when he realized what was going on and he says, Awww, sheesh. Maybe I should have gotten you flowers. Haha.

Last night, I took Sean out to our favorite Mexican restaurant for his birthday. We dined on Tequilla wings {seriously the best wings ever!} baja fish tacos, sweet potato fries w/syrup {sounds gross but so good!} chicken quesadilla and pulled jerk chicken sandwich. A lot of food but we were celebrating. Sean also got a huge margarita with sparklers and I got a frozen strawberry margarita.

{Scenes from Last Night}

{He was singing, It's my birthday. With his arms swinging all over the place}

{When we got home, I got out his ice cream cake with candles}

We ended the night watching Change Up because he refused to watch Love & Other Drugs. And well, it's his birthday so we watched Change Up. And Izabella was all up in our grill. Who does she think she is getting between me and my man? Good thing she is cute. ;)

{I had such a great night. You couldn't wipe the smile from my face}

Hope you all had wonderful Valentine Days with your loves as well :)

Today Is A Special Day ♥

2012-02-14T06:50:00.000-08:00

Today is Sean’s birthday, our 5 year dating anniversary and of course Valentine’s Day. All amazing occasions wrapped in one day.

I just left Sean feeling like the most loved man in the world. It was pretty cheesy but he loved it. He was smiling ear to ear. His gift was no iPhone but I have a feeling that he was blown away by what I did. It didn’t take a lot of time and I didn’t have to be super crafty so that makes me even happier this morning.

I will definitely share what I did soon :)

Happy Birthday babe. Happy Anniversary. Happy Valentine’s Day.

I absolutely love and cherish you. I am so glad that I get to live in this world with you by my side. You are more than I could ever ask for and you truly complete me.

Happy Valentine’s Day lovelies! Enjoy this day. Even if you are single, enjoy this day. Any day conjured up to celebrate love is an amazing day.

{Dinner} Penne Vodka Sauce

2012-02-13T16:02:00.001-08:00

I just finished cooking dinner and Sean's gifts. I got the idea from one of my blogger friends and I can't wait for Sean to get it. It is mushy and funny at the same time. At least, our kind of funny. I love it!

Any who, tonight I made Penne Vodka Sauce with Baked Chicken. Yum! Yum! Yum!

Again, no idea who I stole this from. But if it's yours please let me know and I'll credit you!

You'll need:

1 lb of Penne Pasta
1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes
1/2 cup of heavy cream {first time using heavy cream!}

Garlic
Onion
Fresh Basil {I only had dry basil}
Olive Oil
Grated Parmesan Cheese
Red pepper flakes
1/4 cup of Vodka
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder

1. Start your water boiling for your pasta.
2. Chop the onion and cook in 3 tbsp of olive oil for 5 minutes or until it softens.

3. Add 3 large cloves of garlic and saute for 2 more minutes.
4. While your onion and garlic are cooking, drain your can of diced tomatoes and then add them to the pan.
5. Add 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes and 1/4 cup of vodka and stir.

{I only needed one of the vodka shots}

6. Let simmer for 10 minutes.
7. By now your water should have come to a boil, so make sure you've added your dry penne pasta.
8. After the tomatoes have simmered, add the cream and stir to heat it completely. Your sauce will now be more of an orange color.
9. Add basil leaves {or dry basil} to your sauce as well. Salt, garlic powder and pepper to taste.

10. Drain your pasta and then put it back into your pasta pot.
11. Add the sauce and stir well
12. Add in a 1/2 cup of grated parmesan and stir until melted
13. Enjoy!

{I am never buying Vodka Sauce from a jar again!}

{Weekend Recap}

2012-02-12T16:06:00.001-08:00

{Friday Night}

We went to Applebees with two of our friends for dinner and drinks.

{Taking pictures before heading out, of course}

{Self car picture on our way to dinner}

{I had the most delicious White Peach Sangria}

After dinner we drove to Turning Stone to win big. We had a blast and Sean left $300 richer. Birthday luck. After he won he would not stop moving his hands. Not sure why.

{See what I told you about the hands}

{I didn't win but I had a blast}

{Saturday}

Went shopping with my sisters. Had dinner at our favorite Indian restaurant and then saw The Vow. I have to admit that I left watching the movie a bit disappointed. I was expecting a lot more. I left wanting more. Sucks because we were looking forward to watching it for a while.

Finally wore my Hunters for the first time. I decided that rain or no rain I was going to wear it. Love them. And I wore the cowl that my dear blog friend Michelle knitted for me as a Christmas gift. I said that I would post a picture when I wore it so Michelle here it is! I love it!

{My sister and I}

{Loving my Hunters and my iPhone, although I still have not signed up for an iTunes account to get apps. Yea, I'm insane. Actually just lazy}

We took pictures in the car on our way to the restaurant :)

{And then some at the restaurant. This restaurant isn't the prettiest {and if it wasn't for a friend's recommendation, I never would have eaten there} but the food is amazing, like, lick your plate amazing}

{Food}

With all the running around we made it to the movie theatre with 3 minutes to spare before the movie began. And we left disappointed. So I made up for it by selecting Water for Elephants for us to watch before bed. They loved it :)

This afternoon, before my sisters left we went to Target. Target was having an amazing sale so we each picked up a few things and I bought this book.

I am so excited to start reading it!

p.s. My sisters and I found out about Whitney's death before heading to the movie last night and to say that it put a damper on things is a bit of an understatement. We loved Whitney growing up and would have singing contests at home to see who could sing her songs better. I was hoping for her comeback because a person with a powerful voice as she had, deserved a comeback. It is sad that a talent such as hers no longer exists.

Want To Giggle Outloud?

2012-02-09T10:32:00.000-08:00

{I did!}

{Hope you're having fabulous Thursdays!}

Random Wednesday Ramblings

2012-02-08T12:02:00.000-08:00

• The weekend cannot come fast enough. We have plans with some friends to have a little pre-birthday fun for Sean on Friday.

• I’ll be shopping, dining at an Indian restaurant and seeing The Vow with my sisters on Saturday. I am beyond excited. I feel like I haven’t seen my sisters in forever.

{i can't wait to see them!}

• Less than 3 weeks to Disney World!

• I’m still trying to figure out the perfect birthday gift and anniversary gift for Sean. Why does it have to be so difficult? Any ideas?

• I’m taking Sean out to our favorite Mexican restaurant on his birthday. I think I am more excited than he is. Burritos and margaritas = perfect birthday dinner.

• Sean wants an ice cream cake for his birthday. I love ice cream cake. I wish I could have some now.

• I think about ice cream everyday. Good thing, I don’t eat it everyday.

• I ordered wedges and they are backordered until June. Seriously? June! Why did they allow me to order them two weeks ago if they were backordered? Problem is that I want them so much so I am waiting. Unless, of course, I find something better.

Hubs Can't Keep A Secret

2012-02-07T17:27:00.000-08:00

{and he even got me a pink cover. he knows me too well}

Sean's birthday is on Valentine's Day. It also falls on our dating anniversary. We will be celebrating 5 years of being together. 5 years?! And I am still not sick of him! Win!

I don't think anyone should give a gift to anyone on their birthday and I always tell Sean that a dating anniversary gift is not necessary. That never stops him.

Last year, he bought me a diamond necklace. I could have killed him but it was so sweet so what can you do?

This year, I put on my serious face and said, Sean no gifts for me!

Well, when I get home from work, Sean is beaming ear to ear. And I'm like, what? He's like, Well, you know how I can't keep a secret. And I'm like, who's secret? He's like, my secret. And I'm like, OK, well keep it. He's like, Well, I'm bad at it so I want you to know for our anniversary I bought you the iPhone 4s.

I'm like, are you serious? Why? Why? Why? I told you no gifts for me AND I told you I do not want a smartphone.

{Sorry about all the "likes" in this post}

He gets all pouty and says, Just think you can blog with this thing, even on the road.

He knows me too well. He knew that, that would make all the difference.

I give him a hug, still surprised, happy and slightly annoyed that he got me yet another gift on his birthday. The gift was given a week early so it technically wasn't given on his birthday. Right? Right. So I say, if I can blog with this thing then I am A-OK!

I guess, Sean will continue to give gifts on his birthday for the rest of his life. Next year, I might as well tell him what to get me ;).

p.s. How strange is it that I was just saying that the only reason I would want an iPhone is for Instagram. I guess, I finally joined the 21st century.

Sometimes and Always {#5}

2012-02-07T06:17:00.000-08:00

Linking up with Megan at Mackey Madness for Sometimes & Always :)

Sometimes I stare at Izabella and can’t believe I have a dog
Always I can’t believe how excited she gets when I get home

Sometimes I want to make something from the dessert cookbook my MIL gave me
Always I make an excuse and haven’t used it yet

Sometimes I want to join Twitter
Always I don’t because I can’t join another social network, well, I could but I shouldn't

Sometimes I want the Iphone
Always it is only because of Instagram

Sometimes I go into my closet and say "I have nothing to wear"
Always there is an item with the tag still on it because I haven't worn it yet

Sometimes I wish I didn't have student loans {do you know the type of shopping I could do!}
Always I am glad that my parents found it important for me to learn financial responsiblity

OK, off you go. Link!

Let's Rewind {#1}

2012-02-02T17:28:00.000-08:00

So before we begin the stroll down memory lane, I figured it would be best to share our story. And what better month than February? The month we decided that there was no one else for us, but each other.

In my sophomore year of college, one of my girlfriends asked me to go out with her and a few of our friends to a little bar in town called The Monopole. This was the best place to go for cheap wings. They were .20 cents and delicious! You are probably wondering how I was able to get into a bar when I was just a measly, little sophomore. Well, I have a cool, big sister who I looked just like. It worked like a charm.

{The girlfriend. Happy to report we are still amazing friends and that she was a bridesmaid at our wedding}

Any who, I get dolled up with my sky high Stilettos and off we went for a fun night. She was finally going to introduce me to her new boyfriend. We get to the bar and her new boyfriend is with two guys. Sean happened to be one of them. We were introduced and that was that. I hung with my girlfriends eating wings and playing darts. Or was it pool? Ahhh, I can’t remember.

Sean and the other guy, Jerry {who was a best man in our wedding, fyi} proceeded to talk to me all night. They asked me if I was dating anyone, told me how hot I was, etc. All the flattering was not getting them anywhere because I was not having it. Let’s just say that at that time, I was looking for a brother to sweep me off my feet. It sounds funny to say that but I’m just being honest here. And Sean was just not the tall, dark and handsome man I was looking for. In fact, he was the opposite. I was ~~nice~~ not rude but I let them know I was not interested.

My silly girlfriend {who I love now} decided to give Sean and Jerry my dorm room number. They thought it was a good idea to call me all night. I mean. ALL NIGHT. I would hang up and say, not interested and they will call me again and again. Kinda funny now. Not funny then. I had to take my phone off the hook and my girlfriend got a mouthful from me.

I would see Sean on campus after that but I would pretend that I didn’t see him. He would wave, I would nod. What a witch, I was. Actually, I’m thinking another word but no need for name calling. Two years of college had passed and we didn’t say more than 3 words to each other.

When I graduated from college I decided that I didn’t want to move back to the city. I liked living in a smaller town but didn’t want a town as small as my college town. So two of my sorority sisters and I decided to move a little less than 3 hours away from the city that way I could go home any time I wanted.

When we moved we were excited. We were on our own. We had jobs. We had each other. Life was perfect! I had the most fun after college. It was just the most thrilling experience.

{My sorority sisters/roommates and I after college. We had the best time together!}

At this time, Myspace was very popular. Everyone wanted to be Tom’s girlfriend. Remember that? All of my college friends were on there and that is how I stayed in contact with a lot of them.

A year after I had graduated college, I got a phone call from my girlfriend {the one who’s then boyfriend introduced me to Sean}. She tells me that her now husband {the one I was introduced to that interesting night} received a call from Sean asking him if I was the same girl from college on his friends list and if he sent me a Myspace message would I respond. Her husband said, most likely not.

I know why Sean wanted to send me a Myspace message. It was the picture. It is funny how I remember that. I even remember my song on my page. Regina Spektor’s “Better”. Would you like to see the picture that got Sean all hot and bothered? I know you do.

{Yeah, I would have wanted to send me a message too. Nah, I'm kidding. What a hideous outfit}

At that time, I could not even remember who Sean was. She tried to remind me but my mind was completely blank of any memory of Sean. It is amazing how the brain erases bad memories, haha.

Anyway, a few days later, I receive a Myspace message from Sean. Funnily, he had just moved to the same area I had just moved to a year prior. Even though, I couldn’t remember him it was nice to email and talk about college and what we were doing after college.

Right away, I knew Sean was interested. I mean, he remembered me and the outfit I was wearing the first night we met and my hairstyle! WEIRD! But I was single. And happy. And wanting to hang with my sorority sisters.

On our first date, I wore furry boots. You know, the ones with the fur and Sean complimented them. I wore them because there was no way he was going to like this fashion statement. Well, I was wrong, haha. And yes, I have a picture of me rocking them:

{I was just so cool}

He decided to sleep during our first date too. We saw A Night at the Museum. I guess that is a boring movie. But he liked my boots so that counted for something, right?

When the night ended he dropped me off and I know my roommates wanted to meet him so I invited him upstairs and then well, uninvited him. To this day, I have no idea why I did that and he still asks me. I don’t know Sean, I don’t know.

Let’s just say that Sean must have really liked me because he stuck around. Even after some nights of pure torture where we {meaning my girls and I {Sean would tag along} would go dancing and only hip hop would be played, haha. Sean said he had never listened to more hip hop in his entire life, whoops. Don’t feel bad for him, I have been tortured myself with the hard metal shows he drags me to.

{Doesn't he look hip-hopped out? Haha}

One day, I decided that I liked Sean’s eyelashes. He has the longest eyelashes. I use to say that they were a waste on a guy but now I’m happy that it is my guy. Then I decided that I liked his lips. That icy night, I got out of his car and then leaned back in to kiss him. I made the first move. He even says that I asked him out. And I did. I’m cool like that.

Any way, his lips were the softest and I remember this electricity going through my body. No lie. I remember being so shocked by the kiss that I slipped on the ice. Darn stilettos. I was hooked after that kiss. And the rest like they say is history.

And you probably want to know about the time I finally remembered who Sean was after months of dating. Yeah. Funny. You’ll know.

{Dinner} Crockpot Salsa Chicken

2012-02-01T19:42:00.001-08:00

Again, I have no idea where I found this recipe. If it is yours please let me know. It was delish and incredibly easy so you deserve a load of credit!

You will need:

3-4 Chicken Breasts
1 16 oz jar of salsa
1 can of corn, drained
1 can of black beans, drained
4 oz of cream cheese {not pictured}
chips or steamed rice {I tried it with both chips and jasmine rice and it was delish!}

Put chicken, salsa, corn and beans in crockpot on low for 6-8 hours.

Optional step: Shred chicken {or you can serve whole}.

When there is one hour left put cream cheese in and stir.

An hour later, serve over rice or tortilla chips.

My Niece Made Me Laugh Out Loud

2012-01-31T15:48:00.000-08:00

You know the love I have for my niece. She is the most darling little one.

Sean told me that his sister called to let him know about the little conversation they had today.

My sister in law: Nadi, who is the President of the United States?

Nadiyah yells: JESUS CHRIST!

So funny.

Sometimes and Always {#4}

2012-01-31T06:22:00.001-08:00

Linking up with Mackey Madness today for Sometimes & Always.

Sometimes I wonder where life is going to take me.
Always I know that I am right where I am suppose to be.

Sometimes I tell myself not to look up anymore chicken recipes.
Always I do because I can’t help it, I love chicken.

Sometimes I take Izabella out for a walk.
Always she walks me.

Sometimes I really miss my college friends and hate the distance.
Always I know that they are just a phone call away.

Sometimes I have a bad day.
I {Always} know that hubs will try to cheer me.

Go on, link up with Megan and let me know if you did!

Rugby Pub Crawl - Numero Cinco

2012-01-30T14:54:00.000-08:00

Sean’s rugby team had their 5th Pub Crawl on Saturday. Sean is actually the one who came up with this fundraising idea and it has been a success each year. This year, he decided to let go of the reigns and it was nice to actually enjoy it with him, instead of him collecting money and handing out t-shirts.

We dropped Izabella off at my MIL as we reserved a hotel room to stay the night in Saratoga for the crawl.

We had such a good time. The weather was perfect for a crawl too. First pub crawl where I was not freezing my behind off.

Here are some pictures:

Pretty sure she was singing an 80s song on the right :)

Hope you all had great weekends too!

P.S. The rewind posts will begin soon. I’ve been a little busy and haven’t decided exactly how I want to start it. So it will happen, just probably not this week.

Let's Rewind

2012-01-26T07:26:00.000-08:00

When I started blogging I wish I had known about blogging way before that. It would have been incredible to see my life in college, after college, when I began dating Sean, etc. To know what I was feeling at that exact moment.

Because I was a picture crazy before I started blogging, I have tons of pictures from our early dating days. I still have my Myspace page account because I just can't delete all those albums. But since I plan on blogging until I'm 95, what better place to store all my old pictures that way I can finally say goodbye to my Myspace account. I mean, come on, Myspace has been over since 1995.

Although, I don't have the exact thoughts, I have memories because of the pictures. Also, it will be nice to have them stored in one place.

These Rewind posts will be a rewind to the good ole early dating days. You know, the first date, our first travel, etc. It will be nice to remember how young I looked and the questionable outfits I wore. And to remember when Sean biceps didn't look like they were going to bulge out of his shirt.

Hope you enjoy these future posts down memory lane as much as I will when I'm 95.

{Dinner} Thai Chicken Curry in Coconut Milk

2012-01-24T17:50:00.000-08:00

I haven't shared a recipe in a while. There is still a ton of cooking going on in this household though.

Any who, this dish was so delicious. I cannot wait to make it again!

You will need:

Cooking Spray

Curry Paste

Chicken Breast {Cut into strips}

Onion

Green bell pepper {Or red}

Lemon zest {1 tablespoon}

1 cup of coconut milk

1 tablespoon of fish sauce

1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice

Heat cooking spray in skillet over high heat. Heat the curry paste in the spray for 30 seconds. Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes.

Stir in the onions, bell peppers, lemon zest, coconut milk, fish sauce and lemon juice and bring to a boil.

Cook until the chicken is cooked through about 5-7 minutes. Serve over rice {I used Jasmine Rice}. And enjoy.

And try this hot sauce. It is incredible. We put it on pretty much everything we can.

Friday Date Night

2012-01-23T15:46:00.000-08:00

Last Friday, we had date night at Applebees. I can count on one hand the amount of times Sean and I have eaten at an Applebee. We received a gift card on Christmas so we took advantage of that. There are few things that are better than a free date night.

And I loved the food. It was really good and I think we would try to go there more often. Great prices and the food was/is delicious.

{Here are some pics of us {mostly me} before we headed out}

{Car picture. I haven't shared one of these in a long while}

{Food}

{Sean got a steak meal but there was no way he was letting me take a picture of it. Lame}

Before, we got seated Sean recognized a girl that he once dated was the waitress for our table. Sean got so red. It was hilarious. I was seriously eating it up and busting his chops. I told him that I was taking pictures of her for my blog. Of course, I wouldn't do such a thing but he didn't know that. I mean, I bust out my camera at the oddest time like any good blogger so of course he would believe me.

It also helped for me to bust his chops because I liked how I looked.

Anyway, Sean was hanging out with her before we got together but once we met again we were pretty much inseparable. We got to talking and it hit me that if anything had happened differently, Sean could be with this girl. And it made me realize just how happy I was that I was eating with him at that moment and not her.

She asked another waitress to be our waitress, which was kind of strange because it was so obvious, since she was working every table in our section. I guess, 5 years later she is still mad at Sean for picking me.

It was a delightful date night :)

Fyi: Those boots I bought at JC Pennys a few months ago and they are SO comfortable.

p.s. I am having so much trouble commenting on some of your blogs. I don't know if my computer is about to give up and go to the light or if Blogger is just trying to annoy me.

I'm It, Again

2012-01-22T12:48:00.000-08:00

I was tagged by Sunkissed & Southern to play along.

The rules:

1. You must post the rules.
2. Post 12 fun facts about yourself on the blog post.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post,
and then create 12 new questions for the people you tagged.
4. Tag 12 people and link them on your post.
5. Let them know you've tagged them!

12 Facts About Me

1. I've never been to Disney World but that changes in February. I cannot wait!

2. If I could eat ice cream everyday, I would. Especially Ben & Jerry's, Smores.

3. I love Indian food, but can never get Sean to go with me because he doesn't care for it.

4. I don't check my email. It is too overwhelming.

5. I miss my cat. He is always in the basement now because of Izabella. Everytime I go down to the basement, I pick him up and pet him. I love to hear him purr because it lets me know he still loves me even thought I allowed another fur baby in his territory.

6. I have been watching episodes of "My So Called Life" on Netflix. Why did they cancel that show? I have to google that.

7. I still can't let Izabella lick my face. I don't know how people do it. It feels so weird and gross. I guess, I'll like it someday???

8. I like casinos. I don't like losing money so I'm kind of not sure why I like casinos.

9. I can't remember anything I learned in college.

10. I go to bed at 11:59pm on the weekdays.

11. I worked as a camp counselor during the summer when I was in high school.

12. I still find Uggs to be incredibly unattractive but they are so warm and comfortable. I have been living in mine the last few days and my feet thank me.

My Tags:

1. Ashley @ Life After the Aisle
2. Jessica @ you are my color
3. Tenecia @ Boobs, Barbells and Broccoli
4. Brittany @ Fun with the Fullwoods
5. Carlie @ Life Full of Stories
6. Redwhitebride
7. Chrissy @ Everyday with the Jays
8. Elizabeth @ Love is the Adventure
9. Amy at Making Mrs. Mauritz
10. Musings of A Geek Goddess
11. Dani @ Me and My New Life
12. Michelle @ Sweet Peas and Seashells

Sunkissed & Southern questions are:

1. Which day of the week is your favorite and why?
Saturday. Any day I don't have to work is a perfect day to me.

2. What is your favorite season?
Love the Fall. Everything about it.

3. Name 2 life changing events that changed you for the better.
Getting married to Sean and graduating from college.

4. Pizza or nachos?
PIZZA!

5. If you could trade situations with Kate Middleton (and replace your love, family, etc with you)...would you want that life?
Honestly, no. It just seems like it would be too much for any person to handle.

6. Whats the weirdest thing you've ever eaten?
Hmm, tribe. I think that is how you spell it. It is a cow's tongue and I kinda liked it. It is chewy.

7. How long have you known your oldest friend?
I consider Emma, my sister, to be my oldest friend. So 29 years.

8. What is the strangest job you've ever had?
Hmmm, I was a receptionist for a brokerage firm. The things that went on around there were definitely strange. I still wonder about it.

9. Any fears?
Losing someone close to me.

10. How did you get into the blog world?
I was bored after my wedding but I was still on the wedding website. One day a bride posted a post that asked if anyone had a blog. I didn't have one and was curious so I checked them out and decided that I wanted one too.

11. What was the first blog you were hooked on?
From Marriage to Motherhood . It was because of her blog that I decided to continue to blog.

12. Do you think Bobby Flay is handsome? Um, who is Bobby Flay?

Now my questions are:

1. If you could be given ANY gift what would it be?
2. What is your favorite TV show of all time?
3. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would it be?
4. What is your favorite item of clothing and why?
5. Apple juice or orange juice?
6. What is usually your first thought when you wake up?
7. Name 1 thing you miss about being a kid.
8. Name 1 thing you love about being an adult.
9. What's your favorite song of the moment?
10. Do you have any hidden talents?
11. What would be your dream job?
12. What's your favorite thing to do on a Sunday afternoon?

Peeve on Peeves

2012-01-18T12:01:00.000-08:00

You know what I dislike more than anything about blogging. A blog post that is targeted to point out to others what they dislike about other people's blog.

Yes, most of the time the posts are general but I often wonder, why anyone wants to put something like that on their blogs.

I understand that by me writing this post I am doing the same thing but I just had to say it because I'm kinda sick of seeing these posts. They get so much attention and they make me sick.

For instance, I understand that some people cringe at the thought of grammar errors. Yes, they happen. To the best of us. But when you make a post just to poke fun at people who make them it gets to me. If you don't like a post because of grammar errors then unfollow and keep it moving. Why make a whole post that way you can get others geared up to say other things they dislike about bloggers?

If a blogger wants to post a million and one pictures of the same thing, their child, etc, what do I care? It is their blog after-all. They can post whatever the hell they want. If you don't like it, unfollow and keep it moving.

If a blogger wants to showcase every single outfit they wear, let them. If you don't think they have the style to showcase their outfits then again, unfollow, and keep it moving. You don't like their style in clothes? Who cares? You aren't wearing it. Does it hurt you in any physical way?

I am certain I do plenty of things that annoy other bloggers. So for me to go out of my way to point out things that annoy me about other bloggers is just ridiculous. None of us are perfect so there is more than one person that I annoy the hell out of. And do I care? Not at all. Unfollow me and keep it moving.

All of this to say, if you have nothing nice to write about your fellow bloggers, write nothing at all.

I might delete this post depending on how I feel in a few hours. So the few of you who get lucky enough to read this, awesome.

Not My Greatest Decision

2012-01-17T12:51:00.001-08:00

I decided to eat a whole bag of chocolate covered pretzels, minus four, and I regret it. My tummy is yelling at me. If I wasn't at work, I would be yelling at me.

I would like to give the remaining four to Sean but then I would have to explain that I ate a whole bag. I was going to come up with something, like a co-worker gave the remaining four to me and I just didn't want them. But it would be pointless. He knows when I am fibbing so why even bother.

p.s. Thank you all so much for the prayers and thoughts regarding my grandmother. I read every single one and had/have the greatest feeling of gratitude for all of you. I got to see my beautiful mother this weekend and she was in high spirits so I am feeling so much better. I truly adore you all!

Sometimes It Makes You Feel Better...

2012-01-15T16:33:00.000-08:00

To begin the day with this:

And end the day with this:

My Grandma Passed Away

2012-01-14T23:50:00.001-08:00

In 2002, I met my grandma for the very first time. She lives {or is it lived now?} in Ghana, Africa so my sisters and my parents visited for a month trip.

At that time, I wasn't a picture taking crazy. Oh, how I wish I was. I wish I could share a picture of the beautiful woman that she was.

Since we {my sisters and I} don't speak the language fluently everything we said to our grandma had to be translated. That really stunk. It made it harder to connect. But she was such a lovely little lady. Reminded me so much of my mom.

When I spoke to my mom after my grandma's passing, she was strong. She said that grandma is with the Lord but I could hear that her voice was about to break. And then we cried. I cried for my mother. I cried because I wasn't crying because my grandma died but because my mom was sad. I feel horrible that I didn't really know my grandma. I feel horrible that I don't know my extended family. I feel horrible that I can never truly feel the pain that my parents feel when a family member passes away because I don't know them.

That is the saddest part about being born here and my extended family still in Africa. We don't know them. So we can never feel the pain our parents feel.

It got me thinking about how much I want my future kids to know my parents. I want them to cry with me because they feel the pain too and not just because I am sad. I want them to remember all the great things my parents did for them and all the memories they shared. Because if I could, I know that I would feel like a better daughter at this time. I would feel that my mom knows that I know what she is going through because I feel the pain too.

Please pray for my mom. Please pray that God gives her the strength to go through this difficult time because all her siblings that feel her exact pain are thousand and thousands miles away.

Tag, I'm It!

2012-01-11T17:26:00.001-08:00

I have been tagged three times. I will do each tag on 3 separate posts just to break it up a bit.

The first tag was by Ruthy Ann @ Discovery Street. Thanks for tagging me!

OK, here are the rules:

1. You must post these rules.
2. Each person must post 11 things about themselves on their blog.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
4. You have to choose 11 people to tag and link them on the post.
5. Go to their page and tell them you have linked him or her.

11 Things About Me:

1. My real name is Ruthfaith. But people don't get it. It is one word. ONE WORD! I get called Faith Ruth a lot, Ruth Ann or Ruth which I would rather not be called until I'm 85. So to make it easier for those who don't get it {and my ego} I introduce myself as Faith but everything is signed Ruthfaith.

2. My nickname in my sorority was Stiletto. Because I wore them every.single.day. Even in the snow. Oh, how things have changed.

3. I watched 3 seasons of the Sons of Anarchy in 2 weeks. I'm addicted.

4. Izabella follows me everywhere I go and I think I like it.

5. I use to want to be an actress.

6. I wish I were crafty.

7. I was 24 when I "met" Sean.

8. My 5th dating anniversary is coming up on February 14th which also happens to be Sean's birthday. Best gift he ever got. He told me.

9. My favorite color is green.

10. I am cooking Chicken Spaghetti actually Chicken Bowtie as I type this because I can multi-task.

11. I am going to a concert on Friday to see Everclear and I'm secretly hyped up about it.

11 Questions Ruthy Ann asked me:

1. Introvert or Extrovert?
Extrovert.

2. Who is your celebrity look a like?
No one looks like me and vice-versa, I've checked.

3. If you had to live one place for the rest of your life, where would it be?
Maybe San Diego, I visited once and it seemed like it would be my type of place.

4. What's your favorite holiday and why?
Christmas! Jesus' birthday.

5. Favorite book or movie?
Anne of Green Gables

6. What are your top 3 favorite blogs?
Oh boy, I really can't choose. I follow way too many awesome blogs.

7. What are you great at?
I am great at cooking.

8. If you could choose between a personal chef or housekeeper, which would you choose?
Def. a housekeeper because of the answer above.

9. How long could you go without your phone?
Forever, I hate that thing.

10. How many bones have you broken?
None {knock on wood}

11. Are you on twitter? What is your handle?
Nope and I intend to stay away.

My questions for the 11 people tagged are:

1. What’s the #1 most played song on your iPod?

2. What chore do you absolutely hate doing?

3. What’s your favorite indoor/outdoor activity?

4. What is one of your favorite quotes?

5. If you could have a $10,000 shopping spree to one store, which store would it be and how long would it take you to spend the $10,000?

6. What is your favorite meal to prepare?

7. What is the silliest prank you ever played on someone?

8. Who would you want to play you in the movie about your life?

9. How many siblings do you have?

10. What is your guilty pleasure?

11. What food/dessert couldn't you live without?

Tagged In No Particular order

1. Kathy @ Lovelace Files
2. Nini @ Mrs H
3. Jamie @ What I Did Today
4. Nancy @ House of Hudspeth
5. Monique @ Tipa Tipa
6. Jenni @ The Sweet Pea Life
7. Tiffany @ The Chocolate Knot
8. Samantha @ The Long Haul
9. Dana @ Sweeping Through Life
10. Ashley @ Stink & Schmoop
11. Gina @ Blond & Dangerous

Sometimes and Always {#3}

2012-01-10T05:28:00.000-08:00

I missed "Sometimes and Always" with Mackey Madness the last couple of weeks but it's back! ;)

Sometimes – I make a grocery list and then go even further and put the list on my phone
Always – I forget something on our grocery list

Sometimes – I don’t want to do laundry and the dirty clothes pile up
Always – I love clean clothes

Sometimes – I miss my relaxed hair
Always – I am glad that I made the decision to never relax my hair again

Sometimes – I go clothes shopping and nothing looks right
Always – I leave with a new pair of earrings because they always look right

Sometimes – I have several voice messages on my phone
Always – It takes me several days to return the message {I’m working on this!}

Sometimes – I want to order something different when I get sushi
Always – I get the same thing

Go on, link up with Mackey Madness. You want to.

2012 Resolutions

2012-01-09T10:12:00.000-08:00

{Would you think I was a dork if I wrote "Twenty Dozen" Resolutions? I was so tempted to}

1. Read the bible more. Build a closer relationship with God.

2. Be an incredible, supporting, loving, understanding wife to my husband. I am not the most patient person that ever lived so I plan on getting my impatience in check especially when it comes to Sean.

3. Get to my “happy weight” – I know I can do this because I made some changes last year. I still am not at my “happy weight” which I call my wedding planning days. I know I will get to it this year!

4. Be a better daughter, sister and friend. This means that I need to get over my hate of the phone and pick it up. Since I don’t stay in touch with friends via Facebook, I really need to start to pick up the phone.

5. Pay off my 2 remaining store credit cards. I know I can do this! And it excites me to know that I will end ~~twenty dozen~~ 2012 without any store credit cards! College days are stupid. I'd never own a store credit card again.

6. Draft out what our goals and expectations are for our new business venture and how we expect it to grow in the upcoming years.

7. Start discussing seriously when we want to bring little Seans into the world.

8. Go on 2 big trips/vacations and 2 small weekend trips with Sean.

9. Get Fella and Izabella to love each other {i am only half kidding about this one}

10. Be true to myself & have the best year ever!

How I did with my Resolutions of 2011

2012-01-08T17:52:00.000-08:00

Before I go into how I did with my resolutions of 2011, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for the well wishes. We are excited, nervous but really happy with our decision to purchase an investment property. We are putting all of our faith in God that it will be successful and that we will be able to own more than one investment property in the future.

Moving along,

The below was my resolutions last year and I am proud to say that I didn't fail :)

1. Most and foremost, I need to build a stronger relationship with God. I don't think I've ever used the term "most and foremost" in a sentence before.

{I always want a stronger relationship with God so regardless of the year, this will always be a resolution or goal of mine}

2. Keep the communication doors open between the husband and I, to ensure that we always have a healthy and happy relationship.

{Our relationship is stronger than ever. If we continue to do what we're doing we are going to spend the rest of our lives ~~annoying~~ loving each other}

3. Get back in shape (workout 4-5 days a week) and choose healthier foods to eat.

{I lost 20 lbs! Yea, I did. I still did not get to my pre-wedding weight but I will do that in 2012 with continuing to work out 4-5 days per week and portion control. Here's some pictures for comparison from last year}

{2011 NYE, just look at my cheeks}

{2012 NYE}

4. Go natural

{I did it! Best decision for my hair, ever!}

5. Pay off 2 credit cards, those suckers suck.

{I paid off 3!}

6. Be the best friend, wife, family, me I can possibly be.

{This year, I made sure to spend a lot of time with friends and family. But of course, there is always room for improvement especially in the calling people on the phone department}

I'll write what my new resolutions are for 2012. Some might repeat but I have a feeling it will be more than 6. We shall see.

......and we're Landlords

2012-01-07T20:53:00.000-08:00

{sorry for the crappy picture}

Hubs has wanted to get into real estate for the longest time.

Well the dream has finally come true and we are now proud owners of an investment property.

Now hubs has no choice but to become a handyman. I'll just pick out the paint.

2012, you're looking good already.

Scenes from New Years Eve

2012-01-04T16:56:00.001-08:00

This NYE we went with some friends for somewhat of a fancy dinner and then to our friend's house party. To say that we had a great time is an understatement. And I took a lot of pictures. Because I'm a picture taking crazy and Sean did not mind being in pictures this day. Win, win.

{All ready to go. I even had Sean apply fake eyelashes for me. It had rhinestones on it so it was a must. And I'm not sure he would be proud of me to say this but he did a mighty fine job}

{I felt pretty. That's always a nice way to welcome the new year}

{Before we headed out for dinner we all met up and had some wine}

{Then it was off to The Van Dyck for some dinner}

{Menu}

{And somewhat of a group picture}

{Couples}

{We had to take a picture of us with the tree}

{Crab cake for my appetizer. It was so good}

{See, I told you Sean didn't mind being in pictures that day}

{Filet Mignon for Sean and Chicken Francais for me}

{The band}

{Chocolate Stout Lava Cake for me and Apple Crisp a la Mode for Sean}

{After a delicious evening, it was off to the house party to welcome 2012}

{Nothing says a celebration like a Chocolate Martini}

{What has happened to my husband? And can he stay around?}

{Then it was time for some board games. Girls vs boys. I hate losing which we did}

{And when the clock struck mignight we celebrated. And I took silly pictures of hubs}

{Seriously, my husband kills me. Only he would flex with a tiara on his head}

{It was a perfect night}

{And just because I liked my outfit so much}

Hope you all had a wonderful time bringing in the New Year. Wishing that 2012 is an incredible year for all of you. Xoxo.

Thank You & 2nd Blog Birthday

2012-01-03T06:43:00.000-08:00

I am always surprised when I check my blog and I see I have a new follower. Not going to lie, it makes me so excited and I always have to tell Sean to guess how many followers I have now. He knows how excited this makes me so he always plays along.

I started this blog shortly after hubs and I married. I needed something to keep me busy because the wedding was over. It is crazy just how much your mind turns to wedding when you are planning one. You think about it, you dream about it and then you think about it again.

After the wedding, I didn't know what it was I did before the wedding planning. I also didn't know what to do with myself and this free time. There was nothing to check off the list, there was no vendor to ~~harass~~ call and there was nothing to follow up on. Blogging came at the right time because soon after blogging, I no longer had wedding brain.

I remember when I reached 30 followers, I was stoked. I didn't think it was possible that 30 people would want to read about what I had to say, and sometimes, I am still surprised.

Of course, there are those days when you see that someone has un-followed you and for a minute you wonder what it was that made them say goodbye. You wonder if it was a post you made that left a horrible taste in their ~~mouths~~ minds, or if they followed you just because you followed them or they thought your blog was going to be about something else and it just wasn't what they signed up for. I always wonder this each time someone un-follows me. But then I realize that if my blog is not what they are looking for, I am glad they un-followed. I would rather see the people who are truly following me versus the ones who skip my posts on their dashboards.

I always tell Sean I have the best followers. I seriously feel that when someone follows my blog it is because they genuinely want to know who I am. I say this because of the comments I get from each posts. You lovelies let me know that you are there, reading, cheering me on and I just love that about ya'll.

Any who, this post is just to say thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog and to comment on my posts. I sometimes write the silliest posts and you lovelies write something and it makes me think that maybe it wasn't so silly after-all.

I appreciate you all so much and enjoy reading your blogs and getting to know who you all are. Cheers to many more blog posts from me and cheers to many more blog posts from you! I'm looking forward to continuing to share my journey with you and you continuing to share your journeys with me.

xoxo

2011 in Review

2011-12-31T12:09:00.000-08:00

January

rang in the new year with our friends.

i decided to stop relaxing my hair and go natural. best decision for my hair to date. i'm so excited to see what my hair becomes in 2012.

February

we went to Atlantic City to celebrate Sean's birthday & our 4 year dating anniversary.

enjoyed a girl's night out with some of my favorite ladies dining on sushi.

March

hosted a fun night in with our friends where we played Dance Revolution. so much fun!

April

Sean was promoted to Operations Manager at his job!

May

Sean graduated with his Masters

we enjoyed the tulip festival

we went to Virginia Beach on vacation

June

we went to a concert to see Skillet

i went to my best friend's Stacy baby shower

i went to the city for Jihae's bach party

my sisters and i threw a surprise birthday dinner for our parents

July

celebrated 4th of july with my ex-college roommates

August

i met my best friend's baby Carter for the first time and fell in love

September

enjoyed Jihae's wedding festivities

went to the city with hubs for a day trip

celebrated my sisters 22nd birthday

October

hubs and i went to Miami on vacation where I had my very first blate :)

celebrated my 29th birthday with my sisters

my parents in law took me out for a birthday dinner to my favorite Mexican restaurant

November

we went to a wedding and celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary

helped throw our friend a surprise birthday party

celebrated Thanksgiving with my incredible family

December

celebrated my nephew turning 2

we rescued Izabella and hosted Christmas dinner for my family in law.

2011 was an incredible year. but i have this feeling about 2012, it is going to be even better.

Happy New Year lovelies! Hoping that the new year is everything your hearts desire plus more!

Stop Over and Celebrate Marriage

2011-12-29T06:15:00.000-08:00

Today, I am over at Mrs. H's blog celebrating marriage. She is doing a series of celebrating marriage and I was completely honored to be asked. Go on, stop by and read what other fabulous ladies are saying about their marriages. You know you want to.

Scenes from Christmas Day

2011-12-26T17:09:00.000-08:00

I was SO spoiled this Christmas.

{A beautiful blog friend mailed me this gorgeous knitted cowl. Thanks so much Michelle! I cannot wait to rock it and when I do, I will be sure to post a picture for you}

My favorite gifts were:

{A pizza roller pin from my sister who was sick of watching me use an empty wine bottle to roll my pizza dough}

{Adele's CD from my SIL. So excited to play this CD over and over again}

{A dessert cookbook from my MIL that way I can start to bake in 2012}

{And so much more but I don't want to appear too obnoxious by mentioning it all. But can I say that I really like stocking gifts. I never did it growing up and didn't start until I met Sean. I love it}

{But hubs topped it off with this gift}

{Yes, I am a tad bit obsessed. I cannot wait to wear it with my new cowl}

{Any who, here's some scenes from Christmas Day}

{Absolutely in love with her. Now if only Fella would come out when she is out}

{I made two lasagnas for Christmas dinner and they were such a hit. My family in law gave me so many compliments on it and I'm happy that others besides Sean and I understand that you do not need to use Ricotta Cheese to have lasagna :)}

{My delicious plate}

{My gorgeous niece, Nadiyah, who lovingly told me that I am her best friend and that she wishes she can have a baby sister who is just like me. Does it get any sweeter than that?}

{I also realized that I didn't take any pictures of the rest of the family. Shame on me}

These are my favorite cookies of all time. It is seasonal so I can only purchase them during the holidays. So on November 1st, I get on their website and order tons of star cookies. I won't say that I ordered 5 boxes and there is only 1.5 left. Anyway, are you ready for a story regarding these cookies? Well, here goes.

My sisters and I always bought these cookies growing up. There was this grocery store that sold a cookie for 5 cents each and it was definitely a favorite. One day my sisters and I got to talking and we suddenly had a craving for these cookies. We hadn't had them for years. We went to the grocery store and they no longer sold it. In fact, the store was owned by a new owner so we couldn't get the information about the infamous star cookie. For about 4 years my sisters and I searched high and low on the Internet to find them.

One day, I get home and there is a package at my door. I see it is from my older sister and I'm surprised because there was no occasion. I open them and inside laid these cookies. I cried my eyes out. I could not believe that she had found them.

Moving on, after dinner we went to Sean's aunt's house for dessert where I brought my red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and green sprinkles and Oreo Truffles. Can you guess which ones Nadiyah helped me with? :)

{Then when we got home, I enjoyed a glass of Red Cat wine, staring at our Christmas tree and Izabella. She was entertained for hours with the big bone she got in her Christmas stocking}

{I think the bone wore her out}

{Is anyone else super sad to put away their Christmas decorations? I am. I am going to hold off until New Years Day and then quite possibly shed a tear or two}

Well, that's my Christmas Day in a nutshell. Hope you all had incredible Christmases too! xoxoxo

Scenes from Christmas Eve

2011-12-26T07:50:00.000-08:00

After a beautiful church service, we decided that we did not want to go out to eat. So we did the next best thing. Ordered Chinese takeout.

I ordered Shrimp Lo Mein with Spicy Beef Fried Rice. Sean ordered Boneless Spare Ribs with Pork Fried Rice. I couldn't ask Sean to put down his food that way I could take a picture. I know he would have said, "Um, no".

{We had our choice of drinks}

{Sean's choice of entertainment & it was not Christmas movies}

{And Izabella laid on the blanket she has taken a liken to. This is her blanket. Don't forget it}

{Then we opened some presents}

And I was surprised to see a new camera. I know that I have been wanting a new camera. The really, really nice ones. But I decided that I really didn't need a new fancy camera and I didn't want Sean spending tons of $$$$ on it. So I asked him not to get me a new camera.

Well, Sean knows that the camera I had was/is a BIG piece of doodoo. Like major doodoo. So on Black Friday, he picked up the Nikon Coolpix L105 for me. It was a steep $100.00. And is 100% better than my old camera. I am thrilled that he bought me a new camera even though I told him not to, and even more thrilled that he didn't spend a lot of money on it.

Then I took it out and tried to figure it out without reading the manual. Go figure. I've read it now.

{Sean's new surround sound}

{Sean figuring out his new surround sound without reading the manual. We're a match made in heaven}

Then I took some more random pictures and I think I am getting the hang of this camera :)

{Glass of Skinny Girl Sangria, yum!}

{Drake gift for me and Lord of the Rings gift {Return of the King} for Sean. He was so excited we were watching it in no time}

{Typical}

{I love when he pretends he wasn't just sleeping}

But when we get preggo, we are getting that fancy, new camera. Because then I would have someone super important to take pictures of. Besides, what better excuse is there to spend that type of $$$$???

Hope you all had an incredible Christmas!

{Stay tuned for Scenes from Christmas Day}

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree

2011-12-22T20:38:00.000-08:00

We've had our tree up for a couple of weeks now and I've taken pictures but I just haven't shared them yet. I still find our new living room arrangement awkward so picture taking feels awkward. I'm happy to report that hubs agrees that the switch-a-roo was not the best idea and after Christmas it will go back to normal.

1 for Faith, 0 for Sean.

I took so many pictures of our tree. I can't choose which ones I like better so I have picture overload.

{Last year, we started a tradition to choose a new ornament each year together. The one to the left is this years and the one to the right is last years. We truly need to buy our fur babies their ornaments to place on the tree}

{Just tree ornaments we bought because I liked them}

{The picture of our tree on the left appears fatter than it really is. Hmmm, I want a fat tree now}

{We added a little more wrapped presents underneath the tree and we still have more to wrap}

And there you have it. Our Christmas Tree!

Happy 2nd Birthday Zach!

2011-12-21T07:08:00.000-08:00

My nephew's 2nd birthday is today and since we won’t see him today {insert sad face} we gave him his birthday gift on Sunday.

It was the sweetest thing when he opened his gift. He said, “WOW” at least 10 times and it made me so happy. His eyes lit up, his lips broke into the biggest smile and he did not let his gift out of his sight.

I miss having that reaction when I open gifts. I want to be a child again to just remember how awesome it was to jump up and down and clap non-stop because you had been given the most perfect gift.

I might try that this Christmas. I’ll just get up and start jumping up and down, clapping my hands and I'll say, "WOW!" over and over again. As long as Sean promises not to lock me away, I’ll do it for each gift, haha. OK, maybe not, but you understand what I mean right? I miss that.

I didn’t get the best pictures of his reaction as I was too busy watching him when he realized what he had been given. I had the warmest feeling inside, the feeling you get when you realize you have made someone's day. But of course, I got a few.

{You sure it's OK to rip all this paper?}

{He loves his cars so we got him a Remote Controlled Hummer. My poor sister. She already told me that he stayed up until midnight playing with his new car. Haha. She'll get me back one day.}

4 more days til Christmas! ♥

Early Christmas Eve Dinner

2011-12-20T17:14:00.001-08:00

Christmas Eve, I would normally make Sean and I a huge dinner for just the two of us. I love having leftovers for days, don't you?

Any who, I would make dinner while Sean helped and then we’d stuff our faces, go for church service, open presents when we got home and then watch Christmas movies for the rest of the night while sipping hot chocolate topped with marshmallows.

Well, at late notice Sean’s mom asked us to host Christmas dinner so I decided I wasn’t going to cook two big meals in a row. Mostly for my thighs. So on Sunday, I made us our big meal.

And my sisters & nephew joined us. It wasn’t planned for them to be there and we don’t have as much leftovers but it definitely was much nicer to have them for dinner.

They wanted to know what the big occasion was and I explained what we normally did. Let just say they were thrilled to visit that day and my little sister said, “This feels like Thanksgiving”. And it did. Perfection.

{Corn & Broccoli} & {Mashed potatoes from scratch}

{Turkey and Stuffing with Dried Cranberries. Best stuffing ever!}

{My plate. I helped myself ~~two~~ three times!}

Now to figure what we will do on Christmas Eve. Hmm, maybe we'll go out to dinner and have someone else slave over for us in the kitchen.

Sometimes and Always {#2}

2011-12-20T05:32:00.000-08:00

It's "Sometimes and Always" time! My favorite link up in blogland.

Sometimes: I hate my job and wish I didn’t have to work.
Always: I am grateful that I have a job that pays all our bills.

Sometimes: I wish I was ready to have babies.
Always: When I hang out with my nephew I am glad I’m not. He is a handful!

Sometimes: I wish my love for sweets would disappear, that would be nice to my figure.
Always: I savor biting into that delicious piece of chocolate, caramel goodness.

Sometimes: I make a schedule regarding everything I am going to do for the week.
Always: I never follow it.

Sometimes: I enjoy taking the time to polish my nails.
Always: I am annoyed when it starts to chip and wonder why I even bother.

Sometimes: I don’t want to work out and would rather pig out on the couch and watch movies.
Always: I want to get back to my wedding planning weight.

Sometimes: Date night is at home with a home cooked meal, pajamas and a movie.
Always: I enjoy getting dolled up and going out to eat for date night.

Head over to Megan's blog and link up and let me know if you do that way I can check you out! :)

Christmas Quiz

2011-12-19T10:08:00.000-08:00

I stole this quiz from Moske Monkey Business. What better time to get more excited for Christmas!

1. Eggnog or hot chocolate?
Hot chocolate of course!

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree?
I didn't believe in Santa growing up so he didn't do anything.

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white?
I've only had colored lights but maybe next year we'll do white. But to be honest, I don't really care what the color of the lights are on the tree.

4. Do you hang mistletoe?
Nope, maybe next year.

5. When do you put your decorations up?
The day after Thanksgiving

6. What is your favorite holiday dish?
I love making Oreo Truffles. But I enjoy having lasagna too!

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child?
Dressing up in new dresses with my sisters to go to church. We always looked so cute during Christmas time!

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?
I always knew.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
Yuppers

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
We have had purple, green and accents of red. I love the colors together. They are not suppose to go together but for some reasons they work for us. But maybe next year {hehe, what's with me and next year} we'll do something different.

11. Snow! Love it or dread it?
I only like it when it doesn't stick. Besides that it really is a pain in the behind. But I have to agree that it is SO pretty and there is nothing quite like a White Christmas

12. Can you ice skate?
Yes, until I fall on my behind.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift?
Hmmm, not sure. Maybe the Uggs Sean got me last year. I had been wanting them for a while but refused to spend the money.

14. What’s the most important thing about the holidays for you?
Appreciating that God gave his only Son to come down as a human to wipe away all my sins. Remembering that the most perfect gift has already been given to me. After reflecting on that, I love the feeling of being with family and celebrating God's love.

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert?
Oreo Truffles!

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
I enjoy Christmas Eve with hubby. We make a big dinner for just the two of us, go to church, come back and open presents and watch Christmas movies while drinking hot chocolate topped with marshmallows.

17. What tops your tree?
A silver star that lights up!

18. Which do you prefer: giving or receiving?
Without a doubt, GIVING! Probably everyone would say this but I just enjoy heading out and finding a gift that I know someone would love and appreciate. And the look of happiness when you have nailed the perfect gift, well, there is nothing like it :)

19. Candy canes: yuck or yum?
Not a fan unless it is not flavored peppermint

20. Favorite Christmas movie?
A Christmas Carol

21. Saddest Christmas song?
Happy Christmas - War is Over {John Lennon}

22. What’s your favorite Christmas song?
Honestly, I love them all!

Meet Izabella

2011-12-18T19:19:00.000-08:00

On Friday, I took the day off to hang out with the hubs and finish our Christmas shopping. All we have left to do is pick up one more gift card. Yay for us!

We decided to visit our local Humane Society and we left with Izabella.

Hubs has been talking about having a dog for a while but I wouldn't agree. Fella is my baby and I just didn't want a dog to scare him.

Let's just say that it is totally the other way around and Fella needs to get it together or Izabella's sweet nature isn't going to be so sweet.

Hubs best Christmas gift. Best wifey award.

Hope you lovelies had perfect weekends. Xoxoxo.

Miami - Part 6

2011-12-15T04:47:00.000-08:00

We woke up and Mother Nature decided that we deserved no sun. When the rain stopped we decided to head outside and enjoy the day. We still were on vacation, afterall.

i just loved this tree.

The next day was going to be hot, a perfect beach day. Nini told me so.

Wish I Looked This Good In A Box

2011-12-14T06:09:00.001-08:00

"Mom, do you want to join me or something?"

I wish Fella. Oh how I wish.

p.s. 11 more days for Christmas. I cannot wait! ♥

Sometimes and Always

2011-12-13T04:28:00.001-08:00

I'm linking up with Mackey Madness "Sometimes and Always" today. I don't normally link up as you will learn from my blog but this is one that I found to be so neat and one that I would actually like to do weekly! Also a great way for ya'll {haha, I said ya'll, so southern, ha} to learn more about me.

Here goes nada:

Sometimes: I want to save every penny I earn.
Always: I want a new pair of heels.

Sometimes: I think my cat purposely rubs himself against me when I'm wearing black pants just to spite me.
Always: I know he loves me and that him rubbing himself against my newly washed black pants is how he shows his love.

Sometimes: Hub gets so excited to watch a movie.
Always: I know he will fall asleep within 15 minutes of it.

Sometimes: I feel like I am ready to watch a scary movie because I am aware that it is fake.
Always: My heart begins to beat, I have to peek behind my hands or blanket AND then beg hubs to turn it off, because that scary crap really can happen in real life!

Sometimes: I think I am paranoid and just need to relax. No one is going to hurt me Criminal Minds or CSI style.
Always: I check 3 times before going to bed to make sure that hubby has locked the door.

Sometimes: I wish I wasn't such a pain in the butt when we were buying our first home {I wanted something small that would be easy to manage for our first place} and that we would have purchased a bigger house.
Always: I am glad when it comes to cleaning days because if I'm annoyed now, I can't imagine cleaning a bigger house.

This was fun! Ya'll should do it too! Let me know if you do, that way I can check it out!

Rugby Christmas Party.

2011-12-12T17:18:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, we had Sean’s rugby Christmas party. We decided that we would spend the night in Saratoga for the party as it is such a fun time and it is always a drag driving back home afterwards.

The hotel greeted us with holiday cheer and I knew it was going to be a great night.

All ready to go!

Any who, the party consists of eating, drinking and award giving. Almost like a thank you for spending ~~all~~ lots of weekends playing games at home and away. Not everyone gets an award so it is pretty sweet when you get one. There are funny awards like the “Crybaby Award”, “Butter Finger Award” and then serious awards like “Most Improved”, etc.

This year hubby did not get a silly award. He received “Most Improved” player of the year. That was extremely awesome and surprising as this was his first year playing in this position called Hooker. Look at this awesome personalized wine bottle he received as well.

Look at that face. So proud of himself :)

Picture with my favorite rugby player's wives

After the party we went back to our hotel room quickly that way I could change my shoes and walk to McDonald's, haha. Those gray stilettos were not made for walking. Hubby had to have McDonald's & I didn't stop him. We all know that McDonald's at 2 in the morning is absolutely needed. Oh, you don't know that? We do.

Might as well leave you with a picture of hubby sucking my cheek.

Have a great week! Xoxoxo.

Miami - Part 5

2011-12-09T07:07:00.000-08:00

{Yeah, yeah, I know. It has been months. But I haven't finished recapping Miami so I shall. Skip this post if you want to. I will still love you, maybe.}
______________________________________

I am sure you know that hubs is a rugby player. He loves this sport. I tolerate it and I understand the game. More than I want to understand. And don't tell Sean but sometimes I actually like it. But more when he isn't playing.

It just happened that we would be on vacation while the Rugby World Cup was on so we went searching for a pub that would be airing the game that way we could watch and eat.

All ready to watch some Rugby:

We even met some other rugby crazies.

After the game ended we just took random pictures.

I liked the red chair. And hubs wanted to take pictures this night. Took advantage of that.

Love this picture. It's so cool.

We ended the night with the most delicious, biggest slices of pizza we've ever had. I am still looking for this tomato, basil, cheese slice. Pure perfection.

We went to bed that night, hoping that the weather forcast was wrong and that the sun wanted to play with us. I mean, come on, we only had 2 days left.

Blog Award. Yes! Yes! Yes!

2011-12-07T19:23:00.000-08:00

I get awfully excited when I get an award. I never really received any awards before, so blogland has done well in making me feel incredibly special. I actually did get an award in high school but I can't remember it so it must not have been that good.

Anywho, the lovely Dana @ Sweeping Through Life passed this award to me. Thanks Dana!

Liebster means "beloved" in German. I am honored when a fellow blogger feels that my blog inspires and challenges them especially when you love their blog as well. I am passing on this award to 5 other bloggers who also inspire and challenge me.

1. Lil' Woman @ Little Woman, Little Home. She is newly married and has the best sense of humor. Big points that she loves Christmas almost as much as I do ;)

2. Nancy @ House of Hudspeth. I just love how much she adores her family and it inspires me so much. I hope that when I have kiddos the love I feel for them will shine through my blog the way it does in hers.

3. Monique @ Tipa Tipa. She is absolutely stunning and has the most amazing style! You all know how much I wish I was a fashion blogger. She is the reason. I just love how everything she pulls together seems so effortless but yet so amazing at the same time. Love her!

4. Melly B @ Monster. She is hilarious. All her posts make me laugh out loud. I know we would be amazing friends in real life or at least I hope that someone as awesome as she is would want to be my friend in real life.

5. Married With A Pup. She is so sweet and it comes off in her blog. Not to mention that she is absolutely gorgeous and has the most adorable pup who writes blog posts too! Genius pup!

Ok ladies, go ye forth and spread the love!

Pre-Christmas Gift, But Not Really.

2011-12-06T16:34:00.000-08:00

Hubs went to the outlets with a few of his co-workers last week. He wanted to get some Christmas shopping done and I’m a bit nosey so he knew he had to get some done without my knowledge.

Side note: Sean does not like my big purses. He refers to them as suitcases. He has been telling me to get a wristlet for the longest time but I don’t know why I haven’t bought one. My girlfriends always carry one when we go shopping or when we go out. But I just haven’t had the urge to purchase one on my own.

Sean called to tell me that he had gotten me a gift.

Faith – Yay, another Christmas gift to be placed under the tree!

{We all know that there is nothing more exciting than tons of wrapped gifts under the Christmas tree!}

Sean - No. This isn’t a Christmas gift; I just want you to have it.
Faith - Um, what? Why? I don’t think anyone should receive any gifts with just a few weeks to Christmas unless of course it is your birthday.
Sean - No, I want you to have it now. Besides, it was dirt cheap.

I get home and there is a red and white shopping bag on our dining table. I open it and inside lays a cute little wristlet. Sometimes your husband just knows that if you aren’t going to do it, they will have to do it.

Here I am rocking my pre-Christmas gift. Oh, how I love that man.

p.s. Notice anything different behind me. Hubby decided he needed to re-arrange the living room. Sigh.

Christmas In Our Abode

2011-11-30T16:42:00.001-08:00

We don't have our tree up or the lights up in the front of the house. But the rest of the Christmas stuff is out. Take a look!

We actually have gifts wrapped already. Just waiting to be put under the tree. What a difference from the slackers we were last year.

If I could eat a candle, this one would be it!

Salt and Pepper Gift Shakers

Christmas Tree Candles!

I LOVE this time of year! Have you all done all your Christmas shopping & decorating?

Ahhh, I Just Love Thanksgiving Weekend

2011-11-28T20:18:00.000-08:00

Hubs, my little sister and I went down to my parents the night before Thanksgiving. My older sister's birthday was a few weeks ago so we decided that we would bake her a cake and surprise her when she reached with my parents a couple of hours later.

We baked a pretty cake and everything. Red velvet, her favorite.

My mom knew what we were doing because we told her.

Well, when they were turning onto their street my mom called my little sister to let her know that they were on their way. You know when there is a surprise the lights go off. Not sure why that happens because the person will be surprised regardless if the lights are on or off if they don't know. Well, my older sister sees the lights go off and proceeds to freak out. She starts to tell my parents that they have to call the cops because there has to be some type of intrusion because why else would the lights go off.

My mom did not help in easing her fears. Lets just say that the 32 candles melted onto the cake and we had to walk outside with her birthday cake and scream surprise. Yeah, awesome. Surprise!

It was funny but lots of work went into decorating that cake. Advice to all: Don't light the candles until you are sure the person is walking through the door.

We didn't even eat the cake that night because it was a bit waxy.
____________________

Thanksgiving Day:

Hubs and I woke up early and went to the gym in the morning. If we were going to stuff our faces we were going to do it with no regret.

When we returned it was non-stop cooking in the kitchen. I had a blast. We made so much food and I am still eating it. I think I might cry when all the leftovers are finished. So sad I have to wait almost another year for Thanksgiving Day.

Here are TONS of pictures of the day.

Hubs carving the 23 lb turkey. SO delicious!

Get in my belly!

Jaloof Rice {an African dish}

My nephew all ready to eat:

Let's just say that Sean did not enjoy waiting to eat. I don't blame him. It was torture waiting for my sister to get down from showering. This picture makes me laugh out loud!

The weather was so nice so I asked my little sister to take a picture of Sean and I, outside. Sean did not object. It could be that I asked in front of my dad, haha.

After we ate we proceeded to take pictures with each other. Some of them are so funny because of the expressions. I have to frame a few of these!

Seriously, look at my smile. Too funny.

Sisters and my mom.

Sons and my dad.

It was such a great time and I just felt so blessed all weekend. I hope you all had fabulous weekends with your love ones as well! Have a great week! XOXO.

p.s. I saw Breaking Dawn with my girlfriends on Saturday and I absolutely loved it. Definitely my most favorite movie of them all!

I'm Thankful For....

2011-11-23T07:36:00.000-08:00

When I sat down and began to think of all the things I am thankful for, I became a bit overwhelmed. You never truly realize just how amazing your life is until you sit down and reflect on what it is in your life that makes your heart skip a beat.

So the day before Thanksgiving I am listing all the big and small things that I am thankful for.

1. God – If not for Him, I won’t be able to count my blessings. He has made this life of mine worthwhile. He has kept me healthy; He has kept my friends and family safe; He has given me everything I need in this life. He has kept me safe from harm and for that I am so incredibly thankful to Him.

2. Sean – He is amazing. I don’t know how I got so lucky. I get a feeling of complete peace knowing that this is the man I will grow old with. Have a family with. Learn with. I love him with every fiber of my being.

3. Family – I have the best family. I know everyone says that but I do. They are absolutely perfect for me. I can’t imagine growing up in any other family. My family has completely shaped me into the person I am. My parents are the most God fearing people I have ever met and sometimes I am ashamed that I am not on their level. But I'm striving everyday to be on their level. As for my sisters. I love my sisters. Growing up, you sometimes would like to kick their behinds but now we have a bond. A bond that regardless of how many disagreements you may have, it cannot be broken. They are my best friends.

4. My In-laws – They are incredible. They have welcomed me with open arms. I remember my first Christmas with Sean’s family {this is before we were married} I was excited to just hang out with them. I don’t know what I was expecting but I wasn’t expecting what happened. I enter the house and there is a stocking with my name on it stuffed with all the little things I love. I was completely blown away because I was not expecting that at all. I was not expecting to feel as though I was a part of the family because I wasn’t. But it didn’t end there. Every single person in his family proceeded to give me gifts. Yes, gifts are not the reason for Christmas but when you see just how people have gone out of their way for you because they really love you and are so happy their son has you, your heart warms up. From that day, I knew that I was going to be in their lives forever. They accepted me and loved me. It was the best feeling and I would never forget it.

5. Fella – Our little man. He truly is the cutest little fella. I have never met a cat like him. He is a cuddle bug. He follows you everywhere you go. He wants to eat everything you eat. He talks to you when you get home and jumps on the chair to give you a big hug. I’m serious. He comes up to your face and kisses your lips. I’m serious. He is the most amazing pet {and only} and because of him I know that our pets are our family. I understand why people love their pets so much. They never complain. They listen when our hearts are broken and they adore the feet you walk on. Even when I step on his tail because I didn’t see him, he forgives me right away. I love him and am so thankful that Sean picked him out of the bunch!

6. Friends – I have the most incredible friends. I truly do. I can honestly say that I have never been back stabbed by a friend. Maybe because they know I would hunt them down with a shovel. Ha, kidding. Or am I? They know too many secrets so they would have to be hunted down with a shovel. But seriously, I have been so blessed in the friend department. I adore every single one of them and I am so thankful for their friendships. Days when nothing seems to be going my way, I can always count on them to listen and be there.

Now on to the little things. The things that I never think to be thankful for, but boy am I thankful for.

7. Chapstick – If it weren’t for you my lips would be chapped and bleeding. The weather is getting so cold and my lips thank you for your service.

8. Conditioner – If it weren’t for you, my transition would be horrible.

9. Boobs – If it weren’t for you, hubby would not have noticed me.

10. House – If it weren’t for you, I would have no where to lay my head down.

11. Blog – If it weren’t for you, many of my memories would be lost.

12. You – If it weren’t for you all reading my blog and leaving the most amazing comments, that everyday I think I know each of you more, I wouldn’t continue to blog. Thank you for your sweetness. Thank you for reading. Thank you for cheering me on. Thank you for being a big part of my life although many of you, I might not ever meet. That makes me sad but I am thankful that this blog has allowed me to “meet” so many of you.

I adore you all and hope you have amazing Thanksgivings with the ones you love the most.

I Love Me A Short Week

2011-11-21T15:22:00.001-08:00

It was so hard to concentrate at work today.

All I could think about was turkey. And stuffing. And gravy. And cornbread. And mashed potatoes. And Black Friday. And my mom's cooking. And seeing my parents. Gosh, I am so excited to see my parents.

And of course my sisters and my nephews.

I'm excited for the car ride down Wednesday evening. The massive amout of self pictures I will take in the car. The amounts of times Sean would tell me to stop. I'm excited for that.

I'm excited to wake up Thanksgiving morning to go crazy in the kitchen with my mom and then even more excited to go around the table to tell everyone what we are so thankful for.

It is going to be harder to concentrate at work tomorrow because then I will be one day closer. One day closer to Thanksgiving and one day closer to decorating for Christmas.

{Dinner} Crock Pot Fajitas

2011-11-20T15:04:00.001-08:00

You will need:

*Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

*Can of chicken broth

*Large jar of salsa

*Packet of fajita seasoning

*Sliced/chopped onions and peppers

*Flour tortillas

Mix all of the above ingredients in the crock pot. I cooked on low heat for 4 1/2 hours. If your meat is frozen when you put it in the crock pot then cook for at least 5 hours.

Fill tortillas with the chicken mixture, roll up and enjoy!

This was deliciousness and super easy!

Hair Update

2011-11-19T17:44:00.000-08:00

Its been a while since I've talked about my hair on my blog. Today before stepping outside, I decided to take a quick picture of my hair and my makeup free face.

I have been transitioning for almost a year now. I now have more natural hair than relaxed hair. To be honest, I could easily just snip off the remaining relaxed ends because it is the smart thing to do but because I told myself that I would do it on January 1st, I am going to wait.

I can't wait to rock a twist out. January 1st can't come quick enough.

Hope you're having fabulous weekends!

Miami - Part 4

2011-11-14T16:35:00.001-08:00

We woke up. Excited to start our day with some delicious breakfast and then spend the rest of the day at the beach. You know, all the awesome plans we made when we walked back to our hotel from dancing. The thing is that when you're on vacation you don't check the weather because the weather is going to be perfect. I mean seriously, the weather knows I'm on vacation.

Well, Mother Nature is a witch because this is what greeted us that morning. Awesome.

I had to go back and get an umbrella & try out a new hair style. I didn't want to look or smell like a wet dog. We were still going to enjoy our day. We were on vacation regardless of what Mother Nature thought.

We needed to eat so we found a cute restaurant and had delicious breakfast.

I am only smiling because our delicious food was finally on our table.

While we ate we took great humor in those outside. People watching is a sport.

We were finally done eating so we decided it was time to enjoy the day.

They are all over Miami. Hubby was in car heaven.

Do you see the wind yet?

We decided we deserved some delicious drinks.

After our deliciious drinks, I tried attempting to walk on the beach to get to our hotel room. Well, the wind was so strong that the sand began to beat my legs up. Seriously felt like needles were poking me in my legs. It was horrible and tears began to stream down my face. All of that to say, that we ended up walking on the boardwalk instead.

Since the weather was getting crappier by the second we ended up renting a movie from Redbox and spending the rest of the day in our hotel room. That was a first. Too bad my plans for the beach all day were shot but that didn't mean that Sean would miss the Rugby World Cup. No siree.

Fall In Our Abode

2011-11-13T17:50:00.001-08:00

I have had my fall decor up for a little while now and I figured I might as well share like I did last year. I love Fall and I love the colors of Fall. I feel like the colors of my home is always Fall, year round.

Pie Candle on the kitchen's windowsill. It smells so yummy!

A little fall in the bathroom

Next I get to go a little crazy for Christmas. I can't wait. Sad that Sean insists that we wait until the day after Thanksgiving. Too bad all of our Christmas decorations are in big boxes that are terribly heavy in the basement. If I wasn't worried about falling and snapping my neck, our Christmas tree would be up. I don't want to hear him say, I told you so.

Happy Birthday Emma! ♥

2011-11-11T10:13:00.000-08:00

I remember being so jealous of my older sister because she always got her birthday off.

I remember being bossed around to sing songs and being yelled at because I couldn't hit the high notes. My sister at that time did not understand that some people are sopranos and others are altos. Not everyone could hit the high notes she did.

I remember my sister beating up my bully when she stole my teddy bear. Why I took a teddy bear to school is beyond me. Maybe it's the reason that ridiculous girl bullied me. Note to self: Future kiddos can take no such thing to school. But that girl stayed clear of me from that day forward. She knew I had a big sister who would kick her butt.

I remember wanting to be as pretty as my sister. She was always the prettiest one. Everyone said so especially the boy I had a crush on in middle school. It was a great day when one of my sister's girlfriends told me how much I looked like her and sounded like her too!

I remember my sister going off to college and crying my eyes out because I was going to miss her.

I remember my sister coming home from college break and counting down the days until she left. She was becoming like my mom and that was not a good thing at that time.

I remember her wedding day and being so excited for her. She was so happy and in loved and looked the most beautiful than I have ever seen her.

Today, I am so proud to call her my big sister. She is freaking hilarious, intelligent, gorgeous and a great role model.

Happy Birthday Emma.

Pop out those kids already.

I kid. I kid.

My Birthday Dinner With The Inlaws ♥

2011-11-10T16:08:00.000-08:00

Yes, I am so behind. Like almost a month behind. And I still haven't completely recapped Miami. But I will. Same thing happened when we went to Vegas last year. I never finished recapping that trip and I regret it to this day. So I will recap Miami even if it is 10 months down the line.

As you all know, I was terribly sick on my birthday. I am never sick so it caught me by surprise. My inlaws wanted to take me out the week after my birthday but because I spent my birthday weekend pretty much not feeling the best they took me out to my favorite Mexican restaurant two weeks after.

It was a great time. Delicious food, fine company and amazing margaritas.

Look at hubby's face as I take car pictures. Haha.

Margarita before my inlaws got there that way they don't think their son married a lush ;)

He was just full of funny faces this day.

p.s. I just love my mother-in-law. On our anniversary, a few days ago, she wrote a sweet post on my wall:

"Happy Anniversay to both of you I Love you and am so happy my son found someone as speical as you Enjoy your Day love Mom!!!"

Seriously, how did I get so lucky?

We Were Meant To Be

2011-11-07T16:18:00.000-08:00

Hi lovelies! Hope you all had amazing weekends. I did! :)

You all know that hubs and I decided on a $10 cap for our anniversary gifts this year. I liked doing it so much that I think we might continue it except for the big ones like the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, you get the gist. But the only reason is because I am sure I can't get a diamond for $10 and seriously after 10 years everyone deserves a diamond.

Any who, my amazing friend Tami gave me an incredible idea to buy cotton candy for hubs. And I was all about it. Hubs LOVES cotton candy so it was going to be the most perfect gift. Also, I was going to get to stuff my face with it and we all know that the best gifts to give are the ones we can use and eat too. Am I right or am I right? ;)

Well, I went searching. And searching. And more searching. No luck. My heart was broken because now I had NO idea what to get.

I decided to head into Target and walk up and down the aisle until something hit me. And I ended in the section full of slippers. Soft, cotton slippers. Perfect for the weather we will be getting any moment. I found hubs size and I was off. Happy that I had something, sad that I won't be enjoying cotton candy later.

Hubs opened his gift first.

And the first thing out of his mouth was, "Are you kidding me?" Of course, immediately, I am thinking, What a jerk! Who says that outloud?! So I go, "What do you expect for $10?!"

He goes, "No, no, no. Open yours. You'll understand."

I open mine and inside are a pair of leopard cotton slippers. {maybe it isn't really cotton but no need to tell him that, ha}

We start to laugh and look at each other like we are little freaks that need to be locked away.

I think this says it all. We were meant to be.

730 Days of Love

2011-11-06T08:23:00.000-08:00

Sean,

You know when people say "I love you even more today than the day we got married." I use to wonder about that. I don't wonder any longer because I know exactly what they mean now.

It is true. I love you more today than two years ago. I love you more than the day I fell in love with you. I love you more than the day I knew I loved you.

I get excited thinking about the coming years. How I would love you even more then than I do now. I get excited thinking about what the next years together will bring.

But today, I want to say thank you for loving me. Thank you for treating me like a queen. Thank you for putting me in my place. Thank you for doing the dishes when I don't want to do them. Thank you for folding our clean clothes when I don't feel like doing it. Thank you for cleaning Fella's litter when I don't feel like smelling his crap. Thank you for making me laugh so hard my belly hurts. Thank you for keeping your cool when I am freaking out on you. Thank you for our inside jokes that only the two of us understand. Thank you for having my back even when I am so wrong. Thank you for making me the most luckiest woman in the world for getting to spend the rest of my life with you.

I freaking love you.

The Weekend Can't Come Fast Enough!

2011-11-03T06:48:00.001-07:00

It's been a long week. I'm ready for the weekend.

We have a wedding on Saturday and I'm excited for that. I've been in wedding withdrawal. This wedding is perfect timing too because our 2nd anniversary is on Sunday so we technically are getting a fancy dinner with free drinks. Doesn't get better than that.

We decided not to do any expensive gifts either. Our cap is $10.00. Yup, that's right, 10 whole frickin' dollars! We're rolling in dough here.

Any who, 2nd year is cotton. Have any ideas what I can buy for $10.00 that will keep with the theme of cotton? You all know I am not crafty so I will have to buy. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

Xoxoxo

Miami - Part 3

2011-11-01T04:22:00.000-07:00

Hope you all had fabulous weekends! I am looking forward to seeing all of your amazing costumes. As for myself, there was no costume wearing. Hubs and I spent almost 4 hours last Thursday looking for our costumes. Nothing spoke to us so we ended up just going out for dinner and drinks. It actually worked out because we were blessed with a lot of snow and it would have been just too much work to go all out and freeze.

Any who, on to Miami! I have to get these recaps done before the year is over.

We wanted to have one night of dancing so we decided to go to a club called Set.

Here I am all ready to go. All I have to say is that Miami's humidity was not kind to my hair.

Look at hubby all handsome in his shirt. Too bad no one told him that you had to dress professional to go to a club in Miami. Yes, we were turned away at the door. But we really wanted to go dancing so we decided to go back to our room and have him change into a button down white shirt and a sports jacket.

Hubby didn’t understand he kept on saying, “But Pauly D wore t-shirts in Miami.” I said, “Yes, babe, but you are no Pauly D.”

While we walked back to our hotel room we passed something I have never seen. Mannequins with hugemongo boobs. Nice.

Hubs quickly dressed and we were off to dance. We decided to go back to Set and it was nice that the promoter who turned us away at the door let us in without have to wait on the long line.

It must have been house music night because that is all they played. I was fine with it for the first two hours but after that I began to itch to hear other music. As for hubs he was having a blast. His arms and body swinging as though he was having a seizure. That’s the beauty of house music. You don’t need to look right to do it.

After 4 hours of dancing we headed home. While we walked we began to plan our next day. We were going to go the beach, lay out and just be lazy bums. Mother Nature had other plans for us. The witch.

I Actually Think I Can Do This

2011-10-29T15:25:00.000-07:00

I have never been one to engage in link parties. I am not exactly sure why but I just haven't been eager to do them. I then saw one of my favorite bloggers do it and then I wondered, hmm, maybe I can do it. Then when I saw another one of my favorite bloggers do it, I figured it must be a good link party so I might as well join. It would give me the opportunity to meet other bloggers out there that I haven't had the chance to meet yet and vice versa.

*My name is Faith.

*I just turned 29 on October 13th.

*I will be celebrating two years of marriage to the most delicious man on this planet on November 6th.

*We love Vegas.

*If we had the money to go twice a year, we would.

*I like to travel. We try to vacation twice a year.

*If we had the money we would go 7 times a year.

*Why 7? It's my favorite number.

*I have 3 lovely sisters.

*No brothers. Lucky me. Didn't think that when we were growing up and sharing one bathroom in a NYC condo.

*I love fashion. Wish I could be a fashion blogger but I have a sucky camera and I don't have anyone who would actually take daily pictures of me. Hubs is allergic to the camera. Taking them and being in them. Every picture that you see of the two of us, I had to beg him to be in it. Every picture that you see of me, where it is only the two of us in the scene, I had to beg him to take it of me. I am not bitter about it.

*I love to cook.

*I'm rather good at it if I say so myself.

*Might be the reason why I have failed to get back to my pre-wedding weight.

*I'm working on it.

*I love to blog and I love the new friends that I have made due to blogging.

*Looking forward to this massive blog hop party. Woo-hoo!

*I am aware that I am a day late. I didn't know until today. Don't hold it against me :)