Its OK Thursday

It's OK...

...that I cannot believe its going to be March tomorrow - man is the time flying!

...that I'm behind on blog posts HOWEVER I think once I post about Valentine's Day I'll be back on track!

...that according to Goodreads, I'm 2 books (4%) behind on my reading goal of 52 books for the year 2013.  I've got lots to read, my list just keeps getting longer!

...that I'm excited about the work we're going to have done to our condo.

...that we have the travel bug but its not okay that hubby continues to think we have the time and the money to go on said trips.

...that I've distanced myself from the people I wrote about in this post.  I don't need anyone bringing me down and I'm okay with my decisions.

...that I'm excited for hubby's upcoming birthday - he's going to love the theme!

...that I have to be the bad guy sometimes and speak my mind because otherwise people are going to walk all over me, or hubby.

...that I hadn't been on Pinterest in awhile but I've made up for it the past 2 days.

...that I just want to sit and work on projects.

What are you OK with this week?

Flowers

I love the smell of flowers.

When we got married, our wedding colors were wine, champagne, ivory and black.  I wanted something different with my flowers and the florist told me about the wine color tipped flowers that were making a statement and I absolutely loved them:

I love roses.  They come in a close second because you can find a rose in just about any color.

One day I'm going to do my best to have flowers weekly in my house.  I think they add such a special touch and spark to a room.

What 2 flowers do you love?

Coach & IKEA

Thanks to my husband back in October (yes this can be blamed on him) I have fallen in love with Coach.  I mean gifting me with one for my birthday was great:

So when we went skiing in Colorado, we stopped at the Outlets at Silverthorne where there was a Coach store.  I had been wanting a wallet/wristlet to match the big purse Hubby gave me so I browsed around and found it:

It was kind of funny because the sales lady told me it would be a shame for it to get ruined on the plane ride back to St. Louis so she literally packed it up in lots of tissue inside that bag so I could safely carry on with me.  Well, yeah, it didn't stay so pretty because I had to smash it into the suitcase but its the thought that counts ;)

Then before we got to the airport on our last day, my sister suggest we stop at IKEA Denver so we all could explore that for the first time.  Boy oh boy would I be in trouble if there were one of those in St. Louis.  There were a lot of great deals and it gave me a lot of ideas, I really like how they took a small room and were able to decorate it no matter the size.  I did walk away with 2 items:

and I joined the club because Hubby wanted the coffee while we browsed and because rumor has it there might be one coming to KC...and maybe St. Louis in the future.  If so, road trip!

Quite honestly, I think the plane is what saved me from buying more.  But while at the luggage terminal at the airport upon arriving back home, there was a lady who had 6 huge boxes from there so I guess if there's a will, there's a way...and I'm sure the airline loves the extra money from pkgs like that!

Sunday social!

1)  Biggest middle school fashion mistake?
Probably sweatpants and sweatshirts - and scrunchies, and let's not forget braces!

2)  Who were your best friends in high school?
I was the girl with a lot of different groups of friends and of course those groups never wanted to mingle with one another for those petty reasons.  One of the main groups I always hung out with were my "friends" (from left to right) Beth, Dawn, me, Candace & Nicole (also Becky, but she's not pictured).

I can honestly say we are no longer close like we use to be.  We are facebook friends and keep in touch that way and up-to-date but they aren't people I can just call up anymore.  Beth is in Utah as a Ph.D major, not married or with a significant other; Dawn is about to move to TX with her husband & two children; Candace is married with a dog; Nicole is a romance book writer, married with two kiddos and Becky moved to Maryland for college and fell off the planet.  That group had the goal of after HS, finding guys (as none of them had ever gone on a date in HS except for me), get married and start popping out kiddos.  Our major turning point as friends was my mom's cancer diagnosis when I was a sophomore - none of them have ever had a life changing episode like that and they all went away.  So honestly, by far, my best friend in high school was Ellen (and she didn't go to school with me or in the same grade) and we're still besties to this day!

3)  What was a typical weekend like for you in HS?

I babysat all the time and rarely had a weekend that I wasn't doing that for someone.

4)  Did you have any boyfriends/girlfriends?
I did not have any in high school, however I was only one of 2 (the other being Beth) who went to our senior prom with a guy.  I met him there, as he was in his own group as well and we hung out there.

5)  Did you have any secret codes with your friends?
Nicole, who was very peculiar with who she hung out with, didn't like this one girl who was more so Dawn's friend than anyone else's (back then, anyway).  This girl apparently spilled chocolate milk on Nicole's pants one morning as we were hanging out at the lockers and Nicole started calling her, "chocolate milk b**ch" and she never let up on it.  To this day, they are fb friends but Nicole is still quick to correct her, etc.

6)  If you could relive one day/moment/experience from MS or HS, what would it be?
I would have to say graduation.  Because I knew I was leaving St. Louis after everything I had been through and I was ready for a change, ready for new friends and ready to start the next chapter of my life.

I had set goals when I stepped on the campus of SEMO and I was quite happy that many of them were reached.

Of course I'd change a few things if I could back then but that's why its the past.

Happy Sunday!

Holiday Vox Box 2012

I love mail and much to my surprise I was selected by Influenster to recieve their 2012 Holiday Vox Box:

This was my first VoxBox and I was super excited to see all the goodies that arrived:

1)  Quaker Real Medleys Oatmeal

2)  NYC New York Color Liquid Lipshine

3)  Kiss Nail Dress

4)  EBOOST

5)  Goody QuikSyle Brush

6)  Sole Society

I have yet to have a chance to try everything but the oatmeal was delish, the liquid lipshine is a great addition to my makeup collection and the brush does wonders with wet curly hair.

If you haven't checked out Influenster yet, you definitely should.

There's a button on my page or you can click the link above.

I can't wait for more exciting things from Influenster!

Book Club Friday

This week I'm reviewing the sequel to the book I reviewed last time (if you'd like to see that first, click here):

Goodreads says:

Fifth-grade was full of unforgettable events for Mr. Terupt and his class at Snow Hill School. Seven students were particularly affected by Mr. Terupt. Now those seven students are back, and they've been granted the rare opportunity to send one more year with their beloved teacher before they graduate from elementary school. Peter's parents expect him to attend private school after sixth-grade, but Peter has plans to stay right where he is. Eager to grow up, Alexia gets in over her head with some older kids. Danielle suspects that her family is keeping a secret from her, and she's determined to find out what it is. Jeffrey makes a life-changing discovery. Curious about her teacher's past, Jessica uncovers startling details about Mr. Terupt. Anna finally decides she's ready for the truth about her absent dad. And Luke's keen observations lead to questions with unexpected answers. 

It's a roller coaster of a year as Mr. Terupt helps his students be the best they can be—and enlists their help to pull off an extra-special project. But will there be a happy ending for all?

I say:

This book was a good sequel.  It shows how a community comes together after an incident and they do everything they can to get control again.  It shows that things do turn out they way they are supposed to in the end.

I gave it 4 stars on my Goodreads list.

What are you reading this week?

Wine down with Yelp!

To kick off 2013, Yelp Elites were invited to Edgewild Restaurant for a night full of food, wine, beer, a warm fire, live entertainment, and a shot ice sculpture.

Upon arriving, Keith & I were handed a specialty drink and ushered into the main room of the restaurant.  There we heard the sounds of Trixie Delight playing as we mingled.  My favorite spot was in front of the fire:

Before I knew it, some of my favorite ladies showed up and we had fun trying all the food, listening to the music and just mingling.

 

The food was amazing!  We had items from the Taste of Edgewild (artisan sausage, cheese tray with crostini and lavash), pistachio crusted herb goat cheese topped with white wine quince, steak bruschette, roasted shitake mushroom cakes topped with avocado-jerk salsa and friend calamari, and chardonnay poached salmon.  Then the best part - a dessert tree!

Keith and I had been wanting to try this restaurant for a long time and we loved that we got to experience its awesomeness with our Yelp friends.

Have you checked out Yelp in your city?

If not, do it - you won't be disappointed!

(and add me as a friend if you do!)

Bullseye!

I feel like I have one of these on my back

and all people are doing nowadays is shooting their arrow into the bullseye.  Of course, when I try to get them to stop, its always my fault in some way shape or form.

My PT job is going through transition in terms of people in the higher positions.  This is for the better for many reasons however its causing some key players under me to not do their job.  Which makes me frustrated and angry because if they don't do their job, I can't get my job done.  Then when you report everything, you feel like you're the bad guy for trying to get the job done but I don't want it to fall back on me.  In time this will work itself out (I hope) but I gotta do my best to keep my sanity until then.

I've been slapped in the face (figuratively speaking) the past few weeks by my sister in law (Hubby's sister).  She and her husband had this brilliant idea to buy a house out of their means, without selling the one they lived in and move without telling any of us.  Only because I asked her if she was going to the gym with me did I find out that they moved...and its all gone downhill from there.  She blames Hubby and I for her issues and for her parents finding out that they moved and even though I have stood my ground with her, she's so not normal right now that she isn't seeing clearly.  Then I found out that there are going to be teaching positions open in the grade she teaches at her school.  Did she tell me, her sister in law who is looking for a classroom again - nope!  Our mutual friend tells me, which really hurt me and when I questioned my SIL about it, she changed the subject.

Then I'm also starting to realize a pet peeve that's really starting to annoy me even more.  Hubby has a friend who is divorced and dating.  This friend always wants the girl of the moment to meet us and hang out because he wants us all to be friends.  He's currently entertaining with 2 girls.  There's one we cannot stand (and he knows none of his friends want to be around so he doesn't force that) and then there's another who seems like a great catch.  She fb messages me the other day about life and I messaged her back with, "how are things with you and the friend?"  Apparently me asking that sent her into a tailspin, questioning her relationship with the guy and she had to have him read the email with that question to see what he thought of everything.  Then I get an email last night telling me not to question things like that, she's insecure about things as it is and then the guy also writes (under her profile might I add) that I shouldn't be sticking my nose where it doesn't belong.  All because I asked, "how are things with you and the friend."  So now I told my hubby that I refuse to hang out with him and the girl of the moment anymore.  I'm tired of it, tired of trying to be friends with people that he wants me to and me get blamed when asking a general question.  Hubby tells me that his friend is lost, which he's that and a lot more, but its just like really?

One of my goals for 2013 and on my "31 while 31" list was to make me happy first and now seems like the perfect time to start that even more.  I do my job and if others don't, I'm not going to care anymore.  I'm not going to put out as much effort with people since I'm not getting it back.  Time to focus on Julie and making sure my life is going the way it is suppose to.

...and I guarantee people aren't going to be happy with it.

But that's what I got to do.

...and that's the pouring of my heart!

3 stores

3 stores that I just can't do without!

Kohl's is just awesome.  I seriously find so much here, its unreal.  Not to mention, if you have their credit card, you get unbelievable savings throughout the year.

If I were to take all the clothes in my closet and divide them into groups of where they are from, funny enough I think this pile would be quite high.  I love their clothes, they are fun, professional and you can always get a great deal.

I needed a specialty bra back in high school for a dress one year for a dance and I went into here to get it and I've never looked back.  All my undergarments have come from here and they last a really long time.  I have a lot of other items from here as well, and I love their perfume.

What 3 stores can you not live without?

Keystone

We were uber excited for a week away from St. Louis and eagerly boarded out Southwest flight to Denver on that Tuesday that we left.  Upon arriving in Denver, I had to go straight to the Southwest office because my luggage was broken by them at all the handles...which of course isn't something they cover.  They told me my options were vouchers for a future trip or talking to corporate - well I took the vouchers and I have an email into corporate.  I've never ever had problems flying until this trip!

Once we got our rental car, we hit the highway and picked up our ski equipment at Christy Sports (the best place for ski rentals) and stopped to eat at Toby Keith's I Love This Bar and Grill.

One word: delish!  If you are country music fan, the atmosphere is superb and the food is very good and there's something for everyone on the menu.  I loved the restaurant sized guitar on the ceiling.  One of my sister's roommates from her college days in Colorado joined us so we got to catch up, hear about her upcoming baby and wedding and just have fun.

After lunch we began our descent into the mountains and to Keystone Resort.  To get to this part of Colorado, you either have to go through the Eisenhower Tunnel or over the tunnel via Loveland Pass.  If you know my Dad and have been around my family, we take the road less traveled so Keith got to experience his first pass, and the Continental Divide:

Once over the pass, you begin your arrival into ski country and the heart of the Rockies and before we knew it, we were home for the week at Keystone:

 

Our condo was in the River Run Village, at Expedition Station.  Talk about a dream place to live.  I could totally get use to it:

 

Wednesday was our first day of skiing and we took a semi-private lesson together at Ski Cooper.  This is a smaller resort in the town of Leadville and it was the perfect place for Keith to learn for his first time.  I was getting refreshed so the lesson was mainly for him.  By lunch time we were already off the bunny slope and onto the main green slopes.

We were beat by the time the slopes closed.  It was my sister's birthday so we headed over to Breckenridge for Kenosha Steakhouse to celebrate and stumbled upon the Budweiser International Snow Sculpture Championships and we got to watch the teams create what they considered their winning masterpiece:

Thursday we opted to not ski so my Dad and sister took on the slopes of Keystone.  We wanted to explore so we ended up walking around the entire town/resort and spending the day watching everyone else.

Friday we were on the slopes of Keystone as soon as it opened.  The mountains just take my breath away and I love being on top of the world.  Keith and I did our own thing for most of the day then my Dad and sister met up with us at the end of the day to ski a few greens.  Keith even went night skiing with Dad.

We did our apres skiing that night at Kickapoo Tavern at the base of the mountain.  What a way to end the a great week of skiing.

Saturday we had to leave this gorgeous view to head back to St. Louis:

On our way to the airport, we stopped at Denver's IKEA to explore that for the first time (cannot wait until there is one closer to STL when the one in KC is built) and ate at Rock Bottom Brewery before leaving on a jet plane.

Our first ski trip together was a success and I believe we're already thinking of doing one next year!

Thank you Keystone for a great time!

31 while 31 update

Seeing that its already February 9th and my 32nd birthday is going to creep up before I know it in October, I thought I needed to see how much more I've completed on my 31 things list.

31 things while 31

1)  Go to the Lake of the Ozarks - completed October 7

2)  Apply for my first passport - completed January 2013

3)  Travel out of the country

4)  Read half of the books on my goodreads list

5)  Scrapbook our Memphis and Disney trips

6)  Go camping

7)  Try something new or do something I haven't done in a long time

8)  Take hubby skiing for the first time - completed in January 2013

9)  4 new tires for the good ole Honda

10)  Lose some pounds and maintain

11)  See a show at the Fox - completed and saw Wicked in January 2013

12)  Run/walk in some run that will be in St. Louis this year

13)  Go to a Rams game

14)  Clean the house once a month

15)  Get my own classroom again

16)  Clean out my friends list on facebook

17)  Visit Hermann, MO

18)  Go to an adults only Halloween party - completed Oct 2012

19)  Ring in 2013 in style!

20)  Buy something just because

21)  Own a designer purse - completed Oct 2012

22)  Repaint a room in my condo

23)  Visit a new home community just to see the show house

24)  Buy a pair of heels

25)  Combine all accounts

26)  Attend a cooking class

27)  Have a spa day

28)  Make homemade bread...from scratch

29)  Attend my workout classes but in the morning

30)  Eat a cupcake from Jilly's Cupcake bar or The Cup

31)  Make myself happy before everyone else.

6 things out of 31 aren't bad considering its only January.  Gotta get it going more!

Spread the Love Valentine's Swap

A few weeks ago as I was making the rounds on all my favorite bloggers, I caught this on Erin's blog:

I had so much fun with Bri for our Ornament Swap that I thought this would be great for Valentine's Day.

The person assigned to send me goodies was Martha, who blogs over at A Southern Transplant.  She is such a sweet and generous person and we instantly became bloggy friends.  She sent me a lot of goodies:

I was to create a box of goodies for Elise, who blogs over at Three B's.  I saw her link up today that she received everything and enjoyed it, yay!

Thank you again Martha for my goodies, I love them all!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to all my favorite bloggers!

and if you are one celebrating::

Many happy wishes and love to everyone, no matter how you celebrate!  Keith and I won't be celebrating until Friday night and he's planning it all so I will definitely post up what he ended up planning.

...and now onto

Its OK:

...that I am going to struggle but I am giving up dessert for Lent.  I gave up hotel food for the year in general, so now I'm doing this.  As far as I know there aren't any special events coming up during this time so I should be good.

...that I really should be giving up working out because I never have time for it anymore ;)

...that my body is exhausted!

...that I thought a guest was drunk the other night when they told me I was giving off beams of joy while at work.  I had been on my feet teaching and then at my PT job so if being exhausted is me giving off joy then I'll take it! ;)

...that we aren't celebrating Valentine's Day until Friday...which then its just like a normal date night for us except we're giving each other a gift.

...I have a lot of blog posts to write...but I gotta find the time!

...that I want to travel bad!  We have the Rivera Maya in July, then I hope the Lake again for my bday in October then I jokingly told hubby we should do Vegas for New Years...and I think he's liking that idea!

...that my laundry from Colorado is folded but sitting on the floor still.  I hate putting away laundry!

...that I love our condo but need more space - if I could just add one extra room I'd be set for the rest of my life.

...that I'm excited for the St. Patty's Day parade - I missed Mardi Gras so this is the next best thing in STL!

What are you OK with this week?

4 Things About Me!

So you wanna know 4 things about me?

Where do I start?  Hmm....

1)  I collect keychains

I really cannot remember how this started but I started collecting them and my collection just grew as people traveled they would bring me back one for a souvenior.  My dad even made me display boards for them.  They are currently not up but I plan on getting them up as soon as possible.  I have well over 250 of them and its a great and easy way to highlight some of the places I have traveled.

2)  I have been to 40 of the 50 states

My Dad is a very busy businessman and growing up we would travel every chance we'd get.  We'd go skiing once a year and then a big trip in the summer due to his meetings all over the USA.  We've made a lot of tracks and I can't wait to revisit some of those places.

3)  I am a Girl Scout...and a Boy Scout.

I started in GS as a daisy and worked my way up to earn the highest award in GS, the GS Gold Award.  When I turned 14 I decided to join the Venture Crew, which is the co-ed group of the Boy Scouts.  Both groups were very fun and I encourage all to join if they have the opportunity.  There are plenty of things I've done with both groups that people can only imagine doing.

      

4)  I love pictures!

I never go anywhere without my camera or the camera on my phone.  I believe a picture says a 1000 words and one day someone would have wished they had a picture to remember something they did.  I am always taking pictures and people love that because I've captured some great moments.  I also need a bigger house to display many of these pictures...one day!

GNI cotton anniversary

I love my friends and I decided to start a monthly tradition with those ladies who are my closest friends.

Each month someone would host at their abode, pick a theme and plan us all to bring something to share in the fun.

A few weeks ago we marked 2 years of being a group.  Its been awesome, the parties great, and I know everyone looks forward to Girls Night In.

Tradition states that 2 years is the cotton anniversary so I made sure to highlight that:

Jamie, Ellen, Sam and I were the only ones able to make it for our cotton anniversary but we knew that Katy, Becky, Lisa and Aimee were there in spirit.

Here's to another great year!

Sunday social

Happy Mardi Gras weekend!

With Missouri's ever changing weather, I am stuck at home while the parade and festivities are going on.  I.will.be.there.next.year!

Until then, enjoy another enstallment of the Sunday Social!

1)  What was your first car?
I was safe and snug in a 1996 GMC Suburban.  This car got me everywhere and could haul lots of people!


2)  Who was your favorite childhood teacher?
It is a tie between Miss Mitchell in 2nd grade and Mrs. Mullen in 5th grade.  Both were fun, creative and helped encourage me to be a teacher today.
 

3)  Were you involved in any sports/extracurricular activities?
My biggest activities were swim club, Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts Venture Crew.
  

4)  What was your favorite birthday party?
Wow honestly I don't know and remember that far back.  Probably when I was able to start having sleepovers.  However won't be showing some of those pics! ;)


5)  Who was your teen celebrity crush?
Jordan Knight from NKOTB of course!


6)  What show/movie did your parents not allow you to watch?
Quite honestly, my parents didn't enforce rules like that.  They trusted us and would watch it with us.  I can't remember anything my parents said no to in terms of that.

Have a great weekend!