GAME DAY WREATH

Look what I got in the mail yesterday....




I ordered this fun A&M wreath from Katherine over at http://justlovelykatherine.blogspot.com/ ! She has so many cute designs for college teams and holidays...make sure you check out her blog & wreaths!

My First Blog Award!!

Thank you so much to Britney @ 'The Miskells' (http://themiskells.blogspot.com/) for my first blog award!! =) Britney is a fellow Houston blogger and we have quickly become friends over our blogs & Facebook. You should definitley check out her blog!
Before I can pass along this award to a few of my favorite bloggers here are a few rules:

Rule #1: Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to them in your post.

Rule #2: Share 7 things about yourself:
1. I have the biggest sweet tooth. I could eat cake for every meal. This is not good...
2. Green is my favorite color.
3. I take a crazy amount of pictures and have an obsession with photography blogs.
4. I usually read a book a week. I love to read and love my Nook!
5. I went thru a little wild phase in college and now have 3 small tattoos and regret all of them. I should be a spokesperson on why not to get tattoos.
6. I went to Donald Trump's son's wedding in Palm Beach, FL.
7. My husband and I LOVE to travel. We have taken over 20 trips together in the past 4 years have a few more planned before it's time for babies.

Rule #3: Pass the award on to 15 bloggers that you have recently discovered- These are some of my favorite blogs! They all deserve this award; go check out their blogs!

http://www.girlintheredshoes.com/
http://thebargainblonde.blogspot.com/
http://slancasteriii.wordpress.com/
http://downwiththedearmores.blogspot.com/
http://www.fairytalesaretrue.com/
http://bryanandkategailey.blogspot.com/
http://www.blondeambitionblog.com/
http://a-life-full-of-laughter.blogspot.com/
http://lifeisasunset.blogspot.com/
http://everydayaem.blogspot.com/
http://www.hellohappinessblog.com/
http://happilyherring.blogspot.com/
http://justlovelykatherine.blogspot.com/
http://lovenotesinabox.blogspot.com/
http://meganandhermadness.blogspot.com/


Thank you again, Britney!!

Wednesday Loves!

Happy Wednesday, friends! Here are some of my loves this week:

~Saturday is my 10 year high school reunion in The Woodlands! CRAZY that it has been 10 years already but I can't wait to see so many people I have not seen in years and see my best friends! Whohooo TWHS Class of 2001! =)



~The 2nd episode of "Revenge" comes on tonight. I absolutely loved this show last week! I did not have high hopes for it based on the previews but I watched anyways and loved it.



~I got my first blog award yesterday!!! YAY! I can't add links to my posts from the computer I am at right now so I will have to post about that tonight.

~Hubby and I have started talking about our 1 year anniversary trip in May. I know it is super early but we want to get the dates and location nailed down and start saving a little each month to go towards the trip. We are trying to decide between the Greek Islands and some of the Italian islands. It will probably be some type of Mediterranean cruise we just have to decide where we want to go. I don't think we can go wrong with either choice...do you??

GREECE


CAPRI, ITALY

~This Sunday, October 2, is our 1 year "engagement" anniversary! Chris popped the question on that day last year. Next to our wedding this was the 2nd happiest day of my life :)


What are you loving today?

Makes me smile =)

New Blog Design!

If you are in need of a new blog design contact Lindsey at Sweet Simplicity Designs (http://sweetsimplicitydesigns.blogspot.com)! Sorry I can't link it to my profile...

She has a ton of pre-made templates to choose from or she can make you a custom design. I am loving my new design so much...Thank you, Lindsey!! =)

Big Texas Hair, Aggie Wives Reunion & A "Stolen" Tahoe

What.A.Weekend... But, I will get to that in a sec!

First of all...Baby Ella arrived on Wednesday morning and she is beautiful! Chris and I got to go visit her in the hospital on Thursday and I went back alone on Friday afternoon. Her Mommy & Daddy are doing great and have been sent home from the hospital. Here are a few pictures of sweet Ella:



Isn't she beautiful?!

Now, on to the weekend... I woke up early and drove to Dallas on Saturday. Chris was heading to College Station for the A&M vs. OSU game so I had made plans to go to Dallas for my friends, Laura & Lauren's, birthday weekend. I got there about noon and we headed to the mall for a little shopping and lunch. After that we got mani's and pedi's then had appointments at Dry Bar for blow outs. I have seen these places popping up in Houston but never been before...it is literally a blow dry bar. They wash your hair and blow dry/style it and that is it. No color or cuts. They have a menu to choose what kind of style you want and everything is $35! I love love love this concept!! It is perfect if you have a wedding to go to or an event and you want to wear your hair a little different than normal, but don't want some big fancy updo. Look how cute this place is:




And here are the 3 of us are after our blow outs:


Oh, and did I mention it is bottomless mimosas?! Yes please!

So, that night we went to Sangria for dinner & drinks. Laura's fiance, Chance and Lauren's husband, Hunter both came along too. My husband was in CS, very, very angry over the loss that A&M had just suffered...
We had tapas and sangria then headed to Palamino at The Crescent to sit outside and hang out. It was such a fun night and I love spending time with my fellow Aggie Wives :)


Sunday involved me taking an unexpected road trip thru some small towns and dirt roads in the middle of nowhere Texas to try to get to College Station. I almost ran over 2 chiwawa's on a dirt road in the country...it was crazy. But, thank the Lord for my GPS, I finally got to CS. I made this unexpected trip to CS because Chris thought his Tahoe had been stolen. Long story short- we found it 5 minutes after I got there. We raced back to Houston so we could spend a couple hours together before he had to fly off to Birmingham for work for 24 hours. Whew!

It was eventful to say the least ;) I am happy that the next 2 weekends we are both in town together and during the weeks we finally have some free nights.

Happy Monday, Yall! Hope you had a great weekend!

Book Club Friday- Heaven is for Real

Today is my first day to link up with 'Blonde...Undercover Blonde' @ http://www.blondeundercoverblonde.com/ for BOOK CLUB FRIDAY!



I started reading Heaven is for Real this week and have about 10 pages left. This was a really, really good book. It will change how you think of Heaven and bring comfort to you if you are a believer...If you've recently lost a loved one or maybe you are a mother who has lost a child to miscarriage you can find something here that will warm your heart and quite possibly help ease your pain. This book is a sweet, touching, and amazing story.

Publisher's description:
Heaven Is for Real is the true story of the four-year old son of a small town Nebraska pastor who during emergency surgery slips from consciousness and enters heaven. He survives and begins talking about being able to look down and see the doctor operating and his dad praying in the waiting room. The family didn’t know what to believe but soon the evidence was clear.

Colton said he met his miscarried sister, whom no one had told him about, and his great grandfather who died 30 years before Colton was born, then shared impossible-to-know details about each. He describes the horse that only Jesus could ride, about how "reaaally big" God and his chair are, and how the Holy Spirit "shoots down power" from heaven to help us.

Told by the father, but often in Colton’s own words, the disarmingly simple message is heaven is a real place, Jesus really loves children, and be ready, there is a coming last battle.

{Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins}

Here is one of my favorite recipes to make during the Fall. It is only 3 ingredients and they are delicious! I make them probably 20-30 times during the Fall and holidays. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 box of Spice Cake Mix (I always use Duncan Hines)
1 can of Pumpkin
1 bag of Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips



Directions:

Mix the cake mix with the can of pumpkin together then add in chocolate chips (as many as you like. I usually use about 3/4 of a bag ). Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes! And that is it! Really difficult huh?

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

Happy Wednesday all! Here are a few things I am loving today...

One of my best friend's, Jen, just gave birth to a beautiful baby girl this morning!! I can't wait to go visit her in the hospital tomorrow or Friday!!


All my Fall shows are FINALLY back this week and there are even a couple new ones I am excited about- DWTS, Biggest Loser, The New Girl, Up All Night, Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice!




I started reading Heaven Is For Real last night and I almost finished it in one sitting. It is an amazing story that will change how you view Heaven. HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend this book :)


I get to spend the weekend in Dallas celebrating Laura & Lauren's birthdays!! Whohoo!


And last but not least...I love my hubby =)

Flora & Muse- Coffee & Flowers + Bistro & Bar

The concept of this place is great...one part coffee shop, pastries and fresh flowers; one part bistro and bar. It is beautifully decorated, has a nice, large patio and the food and cocktails are good. My friend Christa and I met here around 5 on Tuesday afternoon for a drink and early dinner. It was not crowded at all. And the bistro side is a lot bigger than what it looks from the front. We actually thought it was TOO big for what it was. When I think of a bistro I think of a smaller, cozy little place but this was very large and open. Once we were seated we ordered some Strawberry Margarita's and we each ordered a Panini. The drinks we had were good and very pretty...they were served with fresh berries and flowers :) I got the Turkey & Spinach panini and it was good, but not $12 good. It should have been cheaper. Our server was nice but she was a little coo-coo and seemed high or something...
Anyways, we enjoyed this place and think it is a great addition to City Centre. Their brunch menu looks delicious so I would definitley come back for that. And the pastries were hard to resist, so I will have to try those next time. :)

A sad reminder...

Last night I got the news that my brother's best friend, Thomas, was one of the US Marine pilots that had been killed earlier in the day in a helicopter crash at Camp Pendleton in California. Hearing this news broke my heart...this was one of my brother's best friends, his best man at his wedding and a big part of my brother & sister-in-law's life. I had not seen or spoken to Thomas in years and never got the chance to know him that well but I do remember him being one of the nicest guy's I have ever met and I know my parents loved him too.

So many times I think we forget that we not only need to pray for the men & women in the military when they are overseas and at war but we need to remember them and pray for the ones who are here in the US training every day. Each day they take part in training excercises that are extremely dangerous. So many times I pray for the men and women that are serving in Iraq and Afganistan right now and I forget to pray for the ones who are right here in our country training, fighting, flying helicopters, jets and more and learning all the skills they will need when they get overseas.

This is such a sad reminder how short life can be and how precious our time here is. I am so sad for my brother and sister-in-law and all of Thomas's friends and family but will pray for comfort, strength and peace for all of them. I will also remember to pray for the safety of our military who are training each and every day all over the US.


My brother & Thomas at my brother's wedding


My brother & Thomas at their commissioning at Embry Riddle



Brother & sister-in-law's wedding where Thomas was the Best Man

DIY- Halloween Ribbon Wreath

Thanks to Pinterest I am now obsessed with wreaths. I have found so many cute ones! I decided to start with an easy ribbon wreath since it was my first time making one.

Here is what you need:

1 Wire Wreath- I got mine at Michael's. I think it was $3. There are a few different sizes. I got the biggest one but wish I had gotten the medium one.



Ribbon- Depending on how full you want it and how big the wire wreath is you will need quite a bit of ribbon. I looked thru the sale bin at Michael's and the section of cheaper ribbons so that it would not be so expensive. I think I ended up using 12 or 13 spools of ribbon and I bought 5 different prints. Here are the ones I used:



Scissors- used to cut the ribbon


Directions:

Start by cutting your ribbon. I cut each piece so that it was about 5-6 inches long. Start tying the ribbon on the wire wreath. I started with one print and tied them randomly all over first, then moved on to the next color/print. Keep tying and tying, filling in all the spaces so that you can barely see the wire (I meant to take a picture of this step but forgot!). And that is really it! It is super easy, just a little time consuming. Tying all those ribbons takes awhile! I bought a wooden "C" and painted it black and will have it hanging in the middle, open space of the wreath. I need to get some bigger, wider ribbon to hang it with though. And here is the ALMOST finished product-




I plan on doing a Texas A&M ribbon wreath next then doing something a little more advanced for Christmas :)