Lauren Nicole Gifts – Necklace Review

I am so pleased that I have been given the opportunity to review a necklace for Lauren Nicole Gifts! I was sent a Hand Stamped Silver Necklace and worked with Denise to have it made with my new married monogram and also added beads in my two favorite colors of pink and green. Denise was a true gem to work with and sells many different products on her website. There is sure to be something for everyone and all of her items are handmade in the USA.

The necklace arrived yesterday and was carefully packaged in a pink organza gift bag. Inside the gift bag contained a tin container covered in Lilly fabric. I think this is such a nice touch and adds that extra special something. The necklace was carefully tucked away inside the tin. I put the necklace on right away and it is so pretty and different. I love where it hits on my neck and the beads are so sparkly and pretty. The job that she did on the hand stamping looks fantastic and I could not be happier with how it turned out.

Lauren Nicole Gifts also has a blog and is offering a special promotion of 15% all purchases when you use the code blogger at checkout on her website.

Fabulous Friday – Summer TV edition

Danielle over at Well, That’s Just Fabulous is hosting Fabulous Friday! Today’s Fab Friday topic is on Fabulous Summer TV!

Here are my picks for my favorite and fabulous summer shows:

True Blood

I started watching this last summer and was hooked immediately. When I heard it was about vampires, I was sold. After being hooked on Twilight, I had a feeling that I would like it. I have the first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series and I need to start reading it. Season 2 of True Blood starts soon and I cannot wait.

So You Think You Can Dance

This is probably my favorite show on television. These dancers are all so different and come from many different backgrounds and styles of dance. The choreographers on the show come up with some amazing routines and the show is super entertaining

Wipeout

I think this is the perfect summer show. It’s basically ridiculous contestants trying to navigate their way through an obstacle course that is over the top. I laugh out the loud the entire episode.

Entourage

Geof got me into this show when we first met and I absolutely love it. Ari and Johnny Drama are my favorite characters and I look forward to this show coming back each year. I just wish that the seasons were a little longer.

I also would like to check out Southern Belles and NYC Prep this summer. Southern Belles already started and NYC Prep begins June 23rd on Bravo.

What are your favorite shows to watch in the summer?

Confessions of a Shopaholic

I just finished reading Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella and I would say that it was a light, fun read. I did like it and laughed out loud in some parts, but I thought it was a little predictable, almost like watching a chick flick where you know what you’re getting yourself into. Not that there is anything wrong with that! I would rate it as a great summer read, nothing more and nothing less.

I really liked the fact that Rebecca Bloomwood worked in the world of finance, but had so much trouble managing her own money. There were definitely certain parts of the book I could relate to and felt embarrassed for her. I think my favorite was when she would say that if she gets this certain outfit or accessory, “she’ll be known as the girl with the green scarf”, or the girl with “this” or “that”. It almost seemed as if buying certain tangibles would make her life complete. I thought it was funny only because I think that if I get a certain handbag, I’ll be so happy. And I am, until the next thing comes along!

I never ended up seeing the movie that was made from the book, but I look forward to watching it on DVD. From what I have heard, the movie is a lot different from the book. I guess I will find out soon.

There are so many books on my must read list and my question to you is, are the other books in the Shopaholic series worth reading? Before I read the Twilight books, I only used to read magazines. So I look forward to reading lots this summer with this new found hobby!

Memorial weekend recap

I had a much needed, relaxing weekend filled with friends, family and good times. It started Friday afternoon with one of my besties, Colleen. We went and had pizza at our favorite spot and then went to the movies to see Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. It was cute and predictable, but I liked it. Matthew McConaughey was a royal jerk most of the movie, but I still think he is adorable. After the movie, we came back to my house and then my other friend Kristen came over and we watched my wedding video. It was a blast to watch it with the ladies.

Later, Kelly came over and we got ready to go out for the night. Hubby was tired and didn’t come, so our friend Cory was the only guy that came out with the ladies. We headed out to a place called The Deck and in case you didn’t guess, they have a giant deck. It is built right over the water and it is perfect for drinks and dancing on nice summer nights. We stayed outside all night long and had a blast. A few of Cory’s friends came later in the night and I ran into some people I haven’t seen in a long time. It was fun to catch up and dance, dance, dance!

Saturday, Kristen, Geof and I went to the pool, laid out and swam. Kelly and Dan came later and we all had a nice time. After the pool, we came back to my house and had a BBQ. It was fun to relax and eat yummy food off the grill. Later Saturday night, our friend Jess came over and her and I relaxed with my mom and watched Mermaids, while the boys hung out in the basement.

Sunday, my aunt and uncle invited us over for a cookout. We were worried it was going to rain, but it turned out to be a really nice day. We relaxed, caught up with family and had a nice time. They have a pool and it was nice later in the afternoon to just relax and dip my feet in. Once we got home, Geof and I relaxed for the rest of the night with the two of us.

Monday, it was nice to sleep in and then kick back at home in the early afternoon. Later in the day, Geof and I went to pool to hangout for a few hours, then had dinner and came home. It was so nice to see everyone over the long weekend and have some good times!

New watch for summer

I had wanted a white watch for awhile and had my eye on one from Michael Kors. I waited too long and then when I went to get it on the Macy’s website, it was gone! This is something that happens too many times to tell and then I get mad that I waited.

My last resort was to go Macy’s and see if they had one in the store. They did and I was so happy. I got the last one and used my gift card that I got from Macy’s for registering for my wedding there.

I love this watch and cannot wait to wear it!

SafetySuit

I have found a new band that is quickly becoming a favorite. They’re called SafetySuit and I just ordered their debut album Life Left to Go. I ordered it because I loved their first single, Someone Like You that was released a few months ago and this weekend I heard their new single, Stay on VH1. The song Stay has a great melody and a beautiful chorus. Both songs are wonderful and I read some reviews stating that if you like those two songs, you will love the entire album. I have to believe that it’s true after listening to a preview of each song on Amazon.

Some new bands hit the music scene and they’re awful. That is not the case with SafetySuit. They have a sound that is a cross between Puddle of Mudd, Fuel and 3 Doors Down. They’ve also been compared to U2. It reminds me of the rock/pop I used to love in my early 20’s.

This band also has good roots and seems to be grounded. According to their website, the band has been friends forever and got their start in Tulsa, OK where after some time playing together they entered a Battle of the Bands competition and won. After that it was time to move and got a fresh start, so they moved to Nashville, TN. where they were discovered by Universal. They recently toured with Puddle of Mudd and I wish them much success. I hope they continue making good music and that there are many more albums to come.

Weekend recap

This weekend recap only includes two highlights considering I worked the entire weekend. I am desperately in need of some rest and relaxation. Here’s to hoping next weekend brings it.

Saturday afternoon, I was able to tear away from everything with hubby for a few hours. It was so nice because I don’t feel like we’ve seen each other much all week. First, we went to dinner at an Indian/Thai fusion restaurant called, Spice. I love Thai food, but was a little apprehensive about trying Indian Food. I wasn’t sure if I would like it. To say that I ended up liking it would be an understatement. Everything was delicious and so different. For an appetizer, we had panner, which is an Indian cheese. It was lightly fried and seasoned and was served on kabobs with peppers and onions. For dinner I had chicken tikka. The chicken was marinated in yogurt and had different spices like cumin, ginger and pepper that gave it an incredible flavor. It also came with a side of white rice and a mint and masala sauce. With dinner, we got a side of nann, which is an Indian bread. It was like a pita bread but better and the kind we ordered had scallions and panner in it. We found out that the restaurant is B.Y.O. and will definitely be bringing a bottle of wine with us the next time we visit.

After dinner, we went to see Star Trek. I was kind of dreading it because I thought I would hate it. There were some scenes that people were clapping that were obvious fans of the franchise and I just rolled my eyes. Overall, I thought it was action packed and entertaining. It also had some funny parts, which I wasn’t expecting. After seeing Wolverine last week and Star Trek this week, I’m in need of going to watch a good old chick flick.

A fun tag!

Kathie @ My Net Finds tagged me for this meme to list 6 unimportant things that make me happy. The way it works is super simple. I mention the person who tagged me, list 6 unimportant things that make me happy, then tag 6 more lucky bloggers. So, here goes.

The six unimportant things that make me happy are:

Cinnamon Dolce Latte w/splenda & skim milk from Starbucks

One of my favorite guilt-free treats from Starbucks

Reef flip flops

They are the most comfortable flip flops I’ve ever had a I look forward to wearing them every summer. I wish I could wear them everyday!

Legally Blonde

This movie always cheers me up when I’m in a bad mood.

80’s music

I get nostalgic and an old song can bring back so many fun memories.

Chap stick/Lip balm

There is nothing say except for the fact that I cannot live without it.

People StyleWatch

This is the one magazine I read cover to cover every month.

I now tag anyone that would like to play!

Sweet dog needs a home & another award

My friend, Tasha at Biology Gal has taken in Neko, a beautiful and friendly Siberian Husky. He was given up by his owners and the story just breaks my heart. If you live in the Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida or Tennessee area, please consider taking this sweet boy in. You can find all of the information here.

**UPDATE: Neko is going to stay with Tasha and her hubby. This is so heartwarming and I give her a lot of credit for giving this sweet boy a happy and loving home.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On a happier note, a big thank you to Miss Pretty at Pretty Woman and Classy Too for passing along the Queen Award! Miss Pretty is a lovely girl and you must pay her a visit.

First steps to being a Queen:

1. List seven things that make us awe-summm!!!
2. Pass the award on to seven bloggers, I read religiously.
3. Tag those 7 bloggers.
4. Don't forget to link the Queen that tagged us.
5. Copy the pic and put it into your sidebar.

Okay, here goes:

1) I know how to ice skate and some people tell me that it’s awesome I can do it and do it well!
2) I love going to baseball games, playing sports and hanging with the guys.
3) People tell me that I’m friendly, funny and loyal.
4) I love going to the pool and relaxing by the beach.
5) I am obsessed with the color pink and purses.
6) I am honest.
7) I may be far from perfect, but I try to lead the best life possible for me.

I now present this Awe-summm award to the following ladies fit to be a Queen!

1) Lis Loves
2) The Browns
3) My Chihuahua Bites!
4) Biology Gal
5) Sweet Tea Diaries
6) Well, That’s Just Fabulous
7) Peeptoe Pumps and Pearls

Random Wednesday musings

1. I’m still sad Tara didn’t win The Biggest Loser and I think Helen got too skinny.
2. I was sad to see Danny go on American Idol, but I’m happy Kris is still in it.
3. Finally caught up on Gossip Girl and loved the 80’s tie-in and fashion. Blair’s prom dress was beautiful and I can’t wait to see what happens with her and Chuck.
4. Hubby is the best and brought home soup, salad and breadsticks from Olive Garden for dinner tonight. I did not feel like cooking, so this was perfect.
5. Our wedding video is finally done and I cannot wait to receive it.
6. So You Think You Can Dance and The Bachelorette are starting again soon and I can't wait.
7. I watch too much television.
8. We had our association meeting last night and the shady president I was telling you about the other day left us with a surprise.
9. I cannot believe they’re starting a Lingerie Football League in Philadelphia. The team is going to be called the "Philly Passion". Wow.

Lemonade Award & A Swap!

Thank you to The Gifting Gumshoe who was so sweet to present to me the Lemonade Award! I hope you know that I appreciate it very much. If you have not paid this nice lady a visit, you must. She always has the best ideas for gifts to give and receive.

The Rules of Accepting and Sharing this Award:

1. Put the logo on your blog or post
2. Nominate at least 10 blogs that show an attitude of gratitude
3. Link to your nominees within your post
4. Comment on their blogs to let them know they've received this award
5. Share the love and link to this post and the person who nominated you for the award. Tell us how you've come to have an attitude of gratitude

I have come to have an attitude of gratitude for all the wonderful people I have “met” through blogging. All of you are so nice and the support I see in this community is overwhelming.

Ten Blogs that I nominate:

1. Polka Dot and Cupcakes
2. Just Another Day in Paradise
3. Nautical by Nature
4. All Things Southern & Preppy
5. Pink Julep
6. DC Prep
7. A Hokie & Wahoo
8. My Life in Pink and Green
9. Missy in Pink
10. Little Miss Michelle
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In other news, Angela over at Sweet Tea Diaries is hosting a fabulous swap! It is for all things summer related. You can get your favorite summer beauty products, flip flops, maybe a beach read...whatever you like and send it off as a surprise to another blogger. In return, you will get a wonderful package full of summer surprises too! It sounds like fun to me.

Weekend recap

Nothing too exciting happened this weekend. I worked late Friday off and on until about 11pm. It was not my idea of the perfect Friday to say the least. Geof went to a Phillies game with our friend Dan and my mom came over and kept me company. My mom and I decided to watch a movie and ended up watching The Women. It wasn’t what I expected, which turned out to be a good thing. I loved Meg Ryan and Annette Bening’s characters in the movie. Eva Mendes was evil! Overall, I thought it was a good movie and made for a nice night in.

Saturday, Geof and I went out to get my mom’s Mother’s Day gift and to look at some houses. Right now we’re on the fence about putting our home on the market. Mortgage rates are so low and we have put a lot into our house, so we think we can make some money on it even though we’ve only been there 2 years. We’re not rushing into anything and since my mom works in real estate, she is helping us look and figure out what we’re going to do. I’m just trying to take it easy and not get stressed about the idea of moving if this is the direction we decide to go in. Moving is at the top of my list of things I cannot stand.

The problem is that I love our house. It isn’t big, but it’s perfect for us at this stage in our lives. We have an association that we pay fees to for the lawn to get cut, trash to be taken out. etc. The long and short of it is that the man that runs the association has been fooling with our fees (and all of our neighbors) and it seems that no matter what we do, we can’t vote him out of his position. The community has even taken him to court. We along with our neighbors are making one last attempt to work things out. We have a meeting scheduled and we’ll see what happens. If he refuses to cooperate, I don’t think we have any choice but to go. I see the community going downhill and I don’t want our property to lose value.

After looking at houses, Geof and I went out to dinner by our favorite movie theater. We went to a place called The Winner’s Circle and it’s your typical sports bar, but they do have some creative things on the menu. For instance, they have a burger that is sandwiched in between a glazed doughnut with different toppings. They also have a double burger with an Angus beef hotdog in the middle of the beef patties. I don’t know what the burgers are called, but they should be named a Cardiologist special! I stuck with a chicken wrap and it was tasty. After dinner, we went and saw X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Hugh Jackman was amazing and it was a great movie. I loved the action and special effects. I’ve seen all of the X-Men movies, so it was kind of fun seeing where Wolverine came from. You also can’t go wrong when Hugh Jackman, Taylor Kitsch and Ryan Reynolds are all in the same movie together :) We got home in time to see Saturday Night Live and Justin Timberlake did it again. I think he is very funny and loved the “Mother Lover” skit.

Sunday was Mother’s Day and we took my mom out to celebrate. She deserved a day to relax and be treated. We went out lunch to avoid the rush and spent most of the afternoon together. Once Geof and I got home, I was beat and took a nap. He said he kept trying to wake me up, but I didn’t get up until around 7. We caught up on some TV and called it a night.

What did everyone else do this weekend?

Bedroom inspiration

I know that I’m all about the pink, but when it comes to decorating, I love some blue! I have wanted to change our bedroom for awhile and haven’t had the inspiration to do it until now. We don’t have the biggest bedroom, but I still think it’s a place that should be cozy and peaceful. Long story short, when we moved into our town home it was a mess and therefore we got a great deal. With that mess came along cosmetic changes that needed to be made like getting new carpets, flooring, paint and making minor repairs. Let’s just say with buying a house, moving, cleaning, painting, etc. I wasn’t exactly in the right frame of mind to make major decorating decisions, so everything is pretty neutral. I am very happy with our first floor, but the bedrooms could use some help. I love the idea of using a tiffany blue and then accenting with browns and incorporating a damask pattern as well. Who knows when/if I will do this, but here is my inspiration for tonight.

1. I like the white shag carpet and the red chandelier. The chaise lounge is nice too.

2. The pattern on the wallpaper is so nice. It has a gold tone to it almost and I love the chair and headboard.

3. This beachy theme is perfect!

1. I love the 4 post bed frame and the damask pattern on the bedding. The contrast walls look so nice.

2. I just loved this wallpaper and had to post it.

Grey’s 100th Episode

Spoiler alert: Foiled again! Just when I thought Meredith and Derrick were going to tie the knot, a wrench gets thrown into everything. We knew that was going to happen though, right? Then there were all of those college graduates dying in a car accident. I think about things like that happening in real life and how tragic it would be. The day that is supposed to be a new beginning, being the end. That is up there with one of the worst things I can imagine happening. I found most of the episode utterly depressing. I think we’ve seen the writing on the wall, but it really seems like Izzie is going to die. I think more often than not, I shed at least one tear during each episode. They have really been pulling on the heartstrings lately.

Izzie looked beautiful in that wedding gown and I thought it was so sweet when George helped her down the aisle. Alex’s vows were great and I think it’s nice that they’re married. It kind of reminded me of that movie A Walk to Remember (so sad!). The season finale looks good and it will be 2 hours long.

Tervis Tumblers

So, Lis turned me onto these little wonders and now I’m hooked. I made Geof come to Bed, Bath & Beyond with me last weekend to see if they had any in the store and they did. I got a 2-pack of the 24oz. “Big T” Tervis Tumblers and of course used my trusty 20% off coupon that they love to send (and I love to get). I’ve been drinking my favorite green tea and lots of water out of it ever since. I also went on their website and saw all of the cute personalizing that you can do to these tumblers. Tervis also has lids and straws that you can purchase to fit the tumblers and prevent any accidents from happening.

Geof thought it was ridiculous to spend the money on what he called “plastic cups”. I told him that we’ll see about that. As predicted and just this evening he was asking where his tumbler went. Thank goodness I got two!

I think this one would be so cute with my monogram on the other side:

I also got a Woodwick candle in Cotton Flower while I was at Bed, Bath & Beyond. The scent is so fresh and clean. These candles smell wonderful and I love the little crackling noise they make as they burn.

Hello sun, where are you?

It has been raining, dreary and wet since last Saturday and I am waiting for the sun to come back out. I don’t think we can expect a nice day until Mother’s Day.

Since it’s so blah outside, I decided to play around on Polyvore and came up with a fun summer outfit. I can see myself coming up with all kinds of combinations on here.

We had a low key Cinco de Mayo. Hubby went to the store and brought everything needed to make tacos. He is the best taco maker I know and they were so delicious. We caught up on our shows and had a nice and relaxing evening.

7 Month Anniversary

Here we are, another month leading up to our first anniversary! April was also a very important month in our relationship because it marks 4 years that we have been together as a couple. Sometimes I feel like I just met Geof because the time has flown by and it keeps getting better.

I know most months I say how wonderful he is and how lucky I am. This month I’m going to say some of the funny reasons why we’re perfect for each other.

1. We love cheesy 80’s movies like Weird Science and Better Off Dead and can laugh every time that we watch them reminiscing about the good old days!
2. We’re always silly and have no problem embarrassing ourselves for comedy. Basically we have a similar sense of humor and think the most ridiculous things are funny.
3. We look forward to every October because we love the fall and all things related to Halloween. I get so excited around August and tell hubby that “Harvest” is coming (that’s our silly way of referring to it).
4. We love going to places Dave & Buster’s, water parks, the boardwalk at the shore…anywhere that we can act like big kids together.

And now, some more photos from our October wedding taken by Cindy Guessford:

Coming down the stairs, ready to go

Monogrammed garter

Dad stealing a kiss

The ladies

The boys and I minus Cory

So happy

So hubby

Mackenzie, my little cousin and flower girl

Prayers

There's Cory! He hurt his hand and had to go to the ER wedding morning. He made it for the ceremony.

Our guestbook with our engagment pictures

A toast

Tables and centerpieces

Dancing it up!

Prom night 90’s style!

I was tagged by my lovely friend Jill at Peeptoe Pumps and Pearls to post a prom picture from high school.

Here are the rules...

1. Upload your prom picture. If you don't have one, email your mom and have her send it to you.

2. Don't forget to include the year it was taken. Again, don't be shy. The older the better.

3. Grab the "Prom Queen" button on my sidebar and add to your post. Isn't the button adorable? Thank you Danielle, The Design Girl. You must check out her fabulous sale!

4. Copy and Paste the rules to your blog

5. Tag 5 others!

Now for my senior prom picture, taken in 1996:

You have to love my bangs! My dress was a red satin, sweetheart neckline gown. Surprisingly, I don’t think I made a bad choice for being 17 at the time. I went with something a little more plain and classic. I don’t think it’s the greatest thing ever, but it could have been a lot worse ;)

For the record, we didn’t do Prom King and Queen at my school.

I now tag anyone that would like to play!

Extreme Makeover: Blog Edition & A Tag

I was the lucky winner of a blog makeover from Danielle at The Design Girl. She worked with me to pick out a design that I liked and took the time to listen to how I wanted my blog to look. She did a fantastic job and I encourage anyone that is considering getting their blog redone to check out Danielle.

Right now she is having a special sale for reaching 70,000 hits. If you place your deposit on or before 05/03/09, she will give you $20 off the deposit price for the basic & standard blog packages.

****************************************************************************

Many thanks to BLC at The Company She Keeps for tagging me!

THE RULES: Step 1: Answer all, replace if you don't like, and add one of your own. Step 2: Tag others!

Current obsession: Reading and loving Confessions of a Shopaholic
Namesake: Juliana
Favorite Dinner: Filet mignon
Favorite brand of jeans: Gap…comfy and not too expensive
Favorite tea flavor: Green tea. My favorite is Diet Green Tea from Turkey Hill
Favorite owned jewelry: My engagement ring and wedding band
Favorite TV show: Gossip Girl
Favorite scent: Clean cotton/clothes fresh from the dryer
Listening to: Dateline in the background and the dogs playing
Bathroom cabinet holds: Lotion, mouthwash, cotton swabs…the usual
Childhood dream: Veterinarian
I miss: My grandma
If I could go anywhere in the next hour, I would: Visit my dad in SC
Person I want to meet: My blog friends!
Five-Year-Plan: Buy a bigger house and have children
Today is special because: It’s Friday and hubby is coming home from his work trip in a little while
Where I blog: Dining room table
My perfect day: Laying by the pool or beach on a warm summer day with friends and a good read.

I tag anyone that would like to play!