Dan & I live in our townhouse in Sterling, VA with our maltipoo, Lexi. Dan is a history teacher & coach at Herndon High School, who just got his Masters in Education; I work as a legal assistant at a criminal/civil law firm in Fairfax & I love my job. I am the planner of our little family & Dan is the go with the flow personality. Our schedules are pretty hectic but when we have free time we love spending it with our family & friends.
Thank you for stopping by & reading what's going on in our lives. :]
A few weeks ago I was perusing the merchandise on Etsy.com & I came across this pillow:
I usually don't get too worked up about pillows, but I think I actually let out a gasp when I saw this one - absolutely love it! Now when I showed it to Dan he said, "It looks scratchy" which means he doesn't like it. My response was, "This isn't one of those pillows you lounge on; it's decorative." He gave me that look like what's the point??
Even though we have no plans of moving anytime soon, I have some ideas to use this in our next home. I'd like to do more of a light, airy feel when we decorate next time. Right now we have a contemporary style with lots of warm colors.
If you have the same taste as I do, click here for more pillow details.
The weekend that we got home from Jamaica we had Arden’s birthday party in West Virginia. It was such a beautiful day & I’m glad we were able to go up & celebrate with her. She had a pool party & crab/shrimp feast at her house. Since Dan was still nursing his sunburn from Jamaica we didn’t swim but we did stuff our faces with seafood. =)
Shortly after everyone ate it was time to open presents. When I found out that we were able to attend the party, I went over to DSW to pick out a pair of heels from Dan & I. At that time I hadn’t decided on a style yet, but I figured I would take a look around & most likely find something. I never have a problem finding something I like at DSW. So, I walked down 3 isles & spotted them:
They're by Guess & yes, they do have a heel but it’s only about 2 inches & I cleared it with her father first. Arden now wears the same shoe size as I do (8!!). She was super excited when she opened them & yelled, “They are so cute!” & proceeded to slip them on. I’m so glad she liked them.
After presents we were treated with Hunger Game cupcakes made by Arden’s Aunt Tina:
I was lucky enough to try Tina's cupcakes at Skylar's birthday party & my taste buds have never been the same. I had her chocolate cupcake with peanut butter frosting & it was the best cupcake I have ever tasted. My mouth is watering just thinking about them!
Before we left to go back home I had Glenn, Arden's dad, take our picture with the birthday girl:
Throughout Arden's party she kept saying, "I am so excited to finally be 13!!" After the 5th time I heard her say this I asked her, "So what can you do now that you couldn't do when you were 12?" She said, "Say that I'm 13." =)
We love you, sweetie & we hope you had a very Happy Birthday.
Dan & I’s vacation this year came a little early when we found out that our friends, Ryan & Traci, were getting married & having a destination wedding in
(you guessed it) Jamaica. When Dan was told that he was a groomsman, we decided to incorporate our vacation into the wedding plans. Neither of us had ever been there, but we heard such great things about the vacation spot & when we found out that it was all inclusive we were sold.
We
flew out of Dulles International Airport on May 28th,
we had a layover in Miami & from there we arrived in Jamaica
around 10:30 a.m. (an hour behind Virginia time). When we
arrived at our hotel, we were greeted with fresh cold towels &
mimosas; while the receptionist found our reservation, we peeked
around & were quite excited that our hotel was so nice. A few
minutes later the receptionist informed us that we were not guests at The Grand but at the Iberostar Rose Hall Suites which was 2 parking lots over. After we apologized for the
confusion, we were taken over to our hotel by golf cart & after an
hour & a half wait we were let into our room. We were unaware
that check-in was at 2:00 p.m.
Our
plans for that evening were dinner at the Mexican restaurant &
then drinks with the wedding party/guests at the hotel bar. From the
bar we made our way down to the beach to watch a private fire show
that Ryan & Traci scheduled for everyone that made the trip. I
had planned on taking photos of this, but once it started I was so
engrossed in what was going on & what the guy was doing that I
totally forgot to take pictures. It just looked so painful – I was
in shock.
Our
second day in Jamaica we got up early to do one of our scheduled
tours – horseback riding! I was pretty excited for this one. Not
only do I love horses, but I really haven’t been horseback riding
since maybe middle school. Once we were saddled up we were ready to hit the trails; Dan’s horse's name was Little Big Man & my horse's name was Scumbi.
After being warned that my horse was a “speedster,” I was a
little worried. He kept wanting to break into a trot & kept
getting super close to the horse in front of him. I felt bad having to
keep pulling on the reins to get him to back off, but the instructor
told me if I didn’t the horse in front of me would eventually kick
him & I really didn’t want that to happen. Once we got back to
the ranch, we stripped down to our bathing suits so we could get in
the water. I have never had so much fun! It was an amazing experience
& I loved every minute of it – even when the horse in front of
me took a huge poop & it was surrounding my legs in the
water...still loved it. =)
When
we returned to the hotel it was time for us to get ready for the
wedding rehearsal & rehearsal dinner. The guests/wedding party were a lot of fun. Sometimes when one of us is in the
wedding & the other is on the sidelines, it can be a little
uncomfortable, especially when you don’t know a lot of people; I
felt comfortable the entire time we were there. Ryan & Traci’s
families were very welcoming & really included us.
Day
3 in Jamaica was wedding day. Dan spent most of the afternoon with
the groom & the fellow groomsmen getting ready, which gave me
some time to just relax. The wedding was beautiful & I was so
glad that we were able to make the trip & be a part of their
special day. After dinner, we made our way over to Mango Walk which
is the disco club at the hotel. Ryan & Traci had their first
dance as husband & wife, but a few minutes into their slow song
they broke out into a couple’s routine that was fast paced. I
thought it was great & I was smiling the entire time I watched
them. They are both great dancers. Not only were they good, but their
family & friends were amazing also! Dan & I were so
entertained by their expert moves that we only danced a few songs
because we were watching them the entire time. To be honest, we
probably spared them from watching our horrible dance moves.
Day
4 we woke up early to make our second and final tour of the trip –
ATVs. I have to admit that I was more excited about the horseback
riding than I was for the ATV tour, but I actually had a great time.
Each of us got our own 4-wheeler & we were in a pack of 10, not
including the tour guides. Our main tour guide was “Mad Mike” who
continually broke out in song & dance throughout the morning; he
was pretty funny. They took us out on some muddy trails that I was
hesitant to drive through at first – I would slow my speed down &
try to lift my legs in the air so I wouldn’t get my shoes filthy.
After about 3 huge puddles, I just gave up & decided to go with
it. I then started flooring it as I went through the mud & I was
laughing so hard that I started to lose all motor function, no sound
was coming out & my eyes started to water – not to mention that
my 4-wheeler started to drift toward the grassy part of the trail. I
quickly got it back together but had a smile on my face throughout our ride.
Dan enjoyed himself too, but commented at the end that he wished he
could’ve driven faster. By the time we got back to the main
building, we had mud from head to toe & we had to throw our shoes
away when we got back to the hotel.
Our
last day was spent sleeping in, nursing Dan’s sunburn from 2 days
before & packing to leave for the airport that afternoon. Unfortunately on our last day in Jamaica I woke up with a sore throat, a low grade fever & feeling quite crappy. Who gets sick on the last day of their vacation? Well, apparently I do. I wasn't looking forward to our flights back home because I was already feeling miserable & being packed on a plane like a sardine was not my idea of fun. Thankfully, Dan took pity on me & upgraded our seats to first-class. He quickly told me not to get used to this kind of treatment & I couldn't help but laugh. Once we landed at Dulles Airport I said, "first-class is the only way to travel." =) We
spent a total of 4 ½ days in Jamaica
& the weather was beautiful, the company was great & after booking an all inclusive vacation we realized that's the only way to go. Below is a slideshow of our vacation photos - we hope this shows just how much fun we had while we were there ("everything is irie"):
Dan & I have an ongoing annoyance in our house - every weekend we go to the store to do our weekly grocery shopping; we pick out the cereal that we want & then eat it throughout the week. I'm not sure how this started, but one of us ended up eating most of the others cereal & only leaving a handful in the box. Very recently, Dan did this to me with my Special K cereal with the dried strawberries in it (love that stuff!) & I was pissed. This past Sunday we went to the store & Dan bought the Oh's cereal which used to be one of my favorites - obviously it didn't last long.
This evening I came home from work to find this sitting on the counter:
"I knew you would take my Oh's! Guilty!"
The back of the box: "Seriously?"
Dan usually leaves before me in the morning, but he was able to sleep in today leaving me plenty of time to eat me some breakfast! I could not stop laughing when I saw this. My first thought was - serves you right!
Yes, I know I'm extremely behind on this post but I actually have a good reason this time...Dan & I were on vacation & the weekend that we returned I woke up with the flu. =/
Now on to the reason for this post....SHOES!
I came across these a few days ago & even though they're a little out there I can't stop thinking about them; I even tried to move on to a different pair, but just couldn't do it. Of course I have the same problem that I always have with these shoes - I have nothing in my closet to wear them with!
I love the small silver accents on the strapping as well as the color blocking which really breaks the shoe up nicely. The side zipper is a nice change & I also like the green & gray color option.
So now that the weather has been getting a lot warmer I've been researching & trying out some new hair tutorials that I found on youtube. Usually when I get tired of my hair & want a change, I start surfing through the web to try & find new ways to fix it, style it, etc. I have a feeling if I didn't do this then I would chop all of it off - Dan would kill me if I did that!
The reason for this post is to share with you a video that I came across last month; I've fixed my hair this way a few times now & each time women have asked me how I did it. I just love it when I can share! Here you go:
Hair tutorial - Organic Ponytail:
If you like this video & want to see more, check out MiMi & Layla's other hair tutorials on their website at LuxyHair.
Let me know if you end up liking them as much as I do. =)
For those of you that watched the MTV Movie Awards on Sunday, June 3rd, you probably saw Emma Stone being presented with the Trailblazer award. She's one of my favorite actors & I've loved her in every movie she's been in - even Zombieland & I hate scary movies. After watching her acceptance speech it just made me love her even more. For those of you that missed it, click {here}. I think she's inspiring & such a class act.
On Mother's Day weekend I decided to drive up to my parents’ house & surprise my Mom. My Dad already knew that I was coming up, but we decided to keep it a secret from my Mom & Ben. It was just Lexi & I this time because Dan had baseball and golf plans. The weather was supposed to be really nice so Dad had mentioned that us girls should go out for lunch & then do some shopping. I thought that sounded like a great idea & you only have to tell me once when shopping's involved!
We ended up going to one of my family’s favorite restaurants in Washington called Old Mexico; Mom & I both got the chicken chimichangas which were fantastic &, of course, too big for us to finish them. We then made our way over to the Tanger Outlets – our first stop was the Coach store because Mom wanted to get a new handbag & I’m always up for looking at new accessories. A few hours later & several stores later, my Mom & I went back into Coach & purchased 2 new handbags:
Can you guess which one is Moms & which one is mine?
We then drove back to Waynesburg with Phoebe's top down & munched on some chocolate/caramel
covered pretzels. =) We had a great time, but wish it could’ve been a family trip.
