a few of my favorite things...

I am not dead. I promise. I have just taken a little unintentional break from blogging. I don't really have an excuse either... but to play catch up a little, here are some things I have been loving lately.

Christmas is officially one week away. I know everyone says "I can't believe it's Christmas already, blah blah blah" but seriously...can you believe it's almost here? I feel like it always takes FOR.EV.ER to get here and then, suddenly, it's here. One of my favorite things about Christmas is giving things to people I love and one of my favorite gifts this year was to my favorite "little" brother.
This is Jack. He's a beagle and he stole everyone's heart in 2.7 seconds. It was VERY hard to give him up.

Of course, any and all Christmas-y drinks at Starbucks:

This Christmas candle from Bath and Body Works:

One non-Christmas related item that I have been in love with for a while is a lipstick from Too Faced. They are called La Creme and they are la mazing...too much? Anyway, check them out. They remind me of the ever popular Revlon Lip Butters, but they are better in my opinion. They are pretty pricy, but you actually get a lot more actual product than the revlon ones. I have six shades..... help. (I have Spice Spice Baby, In the Buff, Honey Bear, Sweet Maple, Naked Dolly, and Cinnamon Kiss.)

Another makeup related item I've been loving all fall and into "winter" (not winter to me unless it stays below 70 degrees) is this blush from MAC. It's called "Plum Foolery" and (from experience) it only takes a little bit.

I was just introduced to this stuff by a friend. It's Caren Original's Hand Treatment. I don't know how easy it is to find this brand, but I've seen it in several boutiques around. I'm not big on lotions and such in general (I just don't think about using them unless they are right in front of my face), but this is the best hand cream. The scents aren't to die for, but they're subtle, so it doesn't bother me.

obsessed

I've been crazy in love with this show for a few months now, but I just bought the first and second seasons on dvd a few weeks ago. The obsession is back. It is a show about an aristocratic, British family (and the servants who work in their home, Downton Abbey) and how their lives are changed after the sinking of the Titanic.

I can't even explain why this show is so good, but it REALLY is. Go get it. The third season aired (in England booooo) last month, and will be in America in January. You can pre-order the 3rd season here on Amazon. Check it out!!

never forget

This is a day that will always make me feel a little hollow. It is so very sad to think that there are people in this world who grow up hating the United States and everything the citizens here stand for. I was in seventh grade on September 11, 2001. Even though I didn't know anyone who passed away in the events, its shock waves reached the entire country. I'll never forget that day, even though I was too young to begin have a clue how important everything was. I watched the 2nd plane hit the 2nd tower live from my classroom at Pike Liberal Arts . It is one of those moments I can still picture in my mind. It's engrained there. But that day is not what I like to think about...it is those days following. Even though I was so young I will never forget the way our mighty country stood up and squared its shoulders to face what was the greatest act of terrorism on our soil. As the towers fell, America stood up. And got mad. There were no Republicans or Democrats...we were just all Americans. It was incredible to see. It breaks my heart to think some have forgotten the helpless feelings of that day and those who fought and still fight to make sure we never feel that way again. I thank God that President Bush made it clear who we needed to turn to as a country...God Himself. I will never forget.

absent

I have just realized that I have not posted in almost two months...oops. I wish I could say I have a good and interesting excuse, but I don't. :) My apology is most sincere. Here is something for YOUUUU

society6.com

ohhhh...hellooooooo

here's to the next 365

Last Wednesday was a special day. It was our anniversary. It always seems strange to me that another year rolls around, because it seems like just yesterday that we became MR and MRS. Then at the same time, it seems like we've always been together.

In honor of our anniversary, I decided to post some things about my sweet husband that make this girl smile.

1. He is a man of God. This is 100% the reason we are together: the Gospel.
2. Justin is the most self-less person I've ever met. He is always thinking of others before himself and it is a quality that I have loved in him from the minute I met him.
3. He balances me out perfectly. If any of you know me, you know I can be a little uptight and that I worry about everything. Justin is so laid-back and (I'll admit) sometimes annoyingly care-free. I am a planner and he is spontaneous. He is so good for my crazy.
4. He is not picky. I mean, this guy will eat anything. He'll admit he doesn't like something and still eat it. I hope our kids are like this! haha
5. He doesn't pop popcorn in the house, because he knows the smell makes me gag.
6. I can watch almost every college football game of the year with him.
7. He has always fit perfectly into my family.
8. He is always making me try new things. He makes something he knows nothing about look so enticing. Did I mention he's in sales?
9. He randomly washes the dishes, cooks supper and cleans the entire house before I get home. It always seems to happen on days I needed it the most.
10. He has the best laugh ever.
11. He always sees the good in people first.
12. He can't watch our 2 cats walk across the room without throwing something at them.
13. He has a good sense of humor.
14. It is near to impossible to make him mad.
15. He loves me. And has never been afraid to tell me.

I love you, Justin.

faceeeee

since I haven't posted in a while, I thought I would post another "favorite products" post. I always love reading these when bloggers do them, I want to do another! (Check out my bff's latest one here.)

So, I'll start with my favorite beauty item EVER.

This is the Clarisonic Mia Original (there is now a Mia 2, with 2 speed settings instead of one) in pink.

These things are a little pricey, but I got mine on sale at a boutique in Troy about a year ago. I absolutely LOVE IT. It does a much better job than just your hands and it lathers cleansers beautifully. I actually bought the deep cleansing brush head to put on mine (it comes with a sensitive one, but I felt I needed a little deeper exfoliation).


My next "must-have" is my Philosophy Purity facial wash.

This stuff is really gentle, but still does a really good job. I've been using it for a few years (after I got a free sample from Sephora, yay) and if I have ever (for some reason) tried anything else, I always go back to it. It's simple. Plus, Philosophy's line is always packaged really cute-ly.


Next is my moisturizer.

This is Bliss' Triple Oxygen+C Energizing Cream. The name is a little ridiculous, I know, but I got this at that same boutique in Troy the day I bought my Mia. I have since been through 2 jars of this stuff and I love it. It smells like oranges and it isn't oily or sticky. Perfect.


This is my Pink Grapefruit Scrub by Neutrogena.

I don't need to exfoliate with scrubs as much (enter clarisonic), but I like using this scrub about twice a week in the shower. It's acne-clearing components are good, and it smells HEAVENLY. And it's cheap.


I'll post my make-up later! Woo, this was fun!

college grad

well, i haven't posted in a while because i have been so busy with school...but now i am DONE! i am so happy to be finished! (notice in honor of being done with english classes and research papers forever, i am not going to worry about punctuation/spelling/capitalization errors woohoo!) needless to say, the last couple of weeks have been crazy! my mama graduated from auburn and is now a dr. almost a week later my sister, kristen, and i graduated together from troy. and my brother graduates from high school in just a couple of weeks! we have been so blessed for these opportunities! my daddy is elated! it is hard to imagine not being in school ever again, and i've tried to come to grips with it. it's so weird. i'm constantly thinking about things i need to be reading/writing for class and there just isn't anything to do! i don't know what to do with myself! i need a hobby... anyway, here are a few pictures from the fun going on..

dr. penelope messick!

getting her doctoral hood

diplomas...woop woop

me and my boyfraaaand

justin, me, paul, kristen, and chad

i love my sister and brother!

the graduates.

28

Happy birthday to my husband, my supporter, my sanity, my heart, my rock, my best friend. I love you Justin!

umm

I must say that I have been super busy with school lately, so I haven't had much time for playing on my blog! I have not had time to breathe! BUT! The good news is that I have *drumroll* only NINETEEN DAYS until dead day! That's official days of class, not counting weekends. Then, I'll have a few more added after the 19 when I'm actually finished with finals! I AM ECSTATIC. REALLY. I AM.

spring has sprung

I love spring. I love the weather, the sunshine, the flowers, and Easter. Here are some new things I have come across that I'm drooling over for spring.


Nothing reminds me of spring like the smell of gardenia. Except maybe fresh cut grass...but I don't think they have a grass-scented candle yet. I bought this candle earlier this year in the largest size they make. I've almost burned it all up. I love it.



















KEY LIME CUPCAKES yum. J and I went to a cooking class earlier this year and they had a booth with these beauties. Ever since I've been looking for a good recipe. I found one on (duh) Pinterest finally.
























Margarita sweet potato vine. I bought a little of this last year and it grew like crazy. It's perfect for beginners like me! and it's so pretty and vibrant.
























Kate Spade Mug - this is adorable. I've been kind of into gold lately and this is so cute! They have other mugs that are just as cute.

























This would be the prefect place to read on a spring day....ahhhh.
























I bought this a little while back and I love it. It's Mrs. Meyer's Lavender Dish Soap. It smells like spring....


























I'll add more later!

i have something to say:

spring break! spring break! spring break!


that's all.

thoughtful tuesday

There were times growing up when I thought I was where I was meant to be for the rest of my life. I'm so glad I was wrong. And I'm so glad it wasn't up to me. I'm so glad God knows what He is doing. Just imagine if we actually got everything we rashly wished for...we'd be ruined.

Jeremiah 29:11

lol-ing

I just had to share this... I came across it somewhere online and thought it was hilarious. I know, I'm a little cheesy.

bff

since I know you're reading this... I MISS YOU!


This is my best friend Emma. I love her dearly.



(sorry, this is the most up-to-date picture I had on my laptop. sad.)

Mere Christianity

I'm taking a break from studying to write about one of my assignments this week. Seems a little weird, right? This week for my Fantasy class we're reading this:



I have been so ready to read it this semester! We have finally gotten to it and it has not disappointed me. C.S. Lewis is a genius. I've read two other books of his before. (You may be wondering why we're reading this for a "Fantasy" class. We're actually reading the Chronicles of Narnia, which ARE fantasy stories and also by Lewis. We're using Mere Christianity to kind of compare with his writing of Narnia. I'm not complaining...FINALLY something we're reading that really matters in the grand scheme of things!) Anyway, here is one of my favorite exerpts from the book so far.

"God is the only comfort. He is also the supreme terror: the thing we most need and the thing we most want to hide from. He is our only possible ally, and we have made ourselves His enemies."


I highly recommend reading this book! It will really open your eyes to things in Christianity and also just in humanity itself. He really "sees" people and puts things in such a "duh" way that you wonder how you never noticed it before. By the half-way mark smoke was coming out of my ears...

to live by....

My mama sent me the following email on New Years Day. I typed it up in cute different fonts and sizes, printed and framed it. It is sitting on my desk and definitely worth looking at every day!

Drink plenty of water. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy. Make time to pray. Read more books than you did in 2011. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Sleep for 7 hours. Take a 10-30 minutes’ walk daily. And while you walk, smile. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment. Don't overdo it. Keep your limits. Don't take yourself so seriously. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip. Dream more while you are awake. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with His/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present. No one is in charge of your happiness except you. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree. Call your family often. Each day give something good to others. Forgive everyone for everything. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6. Try to make at least three people smile each day. What other people think of you is none of your business. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch. Do the right thing! Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful. GOD heals everything. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up. The best is yet to come. When you awake in the morning thank GOD for it.

minimalism

Ever since Justin and I got married he has fussed at me about throwing/giving things away. I hate having things we never use. I don't particularly know where it comes from, but I just can't stand a bunch of stuff everywhere in my house. I thought it was just a(nother) weird "quirk" (I have a lot of those) of mine, but turns out, I'm a minimalist! hehe I know, I'm a freak. Anyway, I've been reading this book lately that only encourages my behavior. *insert Justin rolling his eyes and calling me the opposite of a hoarder*

-warning - I promise you won't make it through the first chapter without putting it down and cleaning something.

hubby

I just want to take a minute to tell you just how wonderful my husband is...

Last night I was poking around on Pinterest and I was reading a recipe for Pioneer Woman's Chicken Spaghetti. Justin said he would cook supper and asked me what I wanted. I said, "chicken spaghetti." Of course, I was joking. Joke was on me! He made chicken spaghetti!

And today I came home from school and all the dishes in the sink were washed and in the cabinets. He had washed them on his lunch break!

I love him bunches!

little wonder

I have recently fallen in love with something. 

It's called the Beauty Blender.  It's only a sponge for applying makeup, but I love it.  The pointed end is for hard-to-reach places or for more concentrated coverage, like with concealers (below, in corners of eyes, blemishes, hairline, etc).  The larger end is for the rest of your face with your foundation (I use liquid foundation, not sure how it would work with creams, etc.).  Justin tells me I look ridiculous rubbing a pink Easter egg all over my face.  He just doesn't know.

crazy

This week has been absolutely insane.  Wait, really since I've started school things have been crazy.  I have not had time to breathe! I am SUPER ready to graduate in May! I just hope I don't so crazy in the process...

So this week my daddy went in monday to get 2 of his 3 kidney stones crushed (it's called lithotripsy.. not sure if I spelled that correctly).  He came home that afternoon, but had to go back that night because he was in severe pain.  Then came the stresssssss.  To make a long story short, there were complications with the surgery.  He had to have another surgery, lots of pain meds, etc.  But he FINALLY came home today! He is feeling much better and I'm so glad he isn't in pain anymore. 

So with going back and forth to see daddy in Montgomery every night, my school work has kind of taken a hit. I feel so behind, I'm exhausted, and I had so much extra stress worrying about daddy. So, I've finally caught up and I'm determined to not do a thing this weekend.  NOT. A. THING.

goodbye 2011

It is really hard for me to believe that 2011 is already gone. It will take me until june to stop writing 2011 on my checks, etc.


Overall Justin and I had a really great year. We are so blessed and it is never more evident to us than going through the holidays. They are all such special times to us. My favorite part during the holidays is the Candlelight Lord's Supper at my home church. We go into the sanctuary as a family and take the Lord's Supper together. The church started this about 6 or 7 years ago (I think) and since then it has been so special to me. It's a time when we can go home, get together and praise God and tell eachother what they mean to us. It's something I look forward to every single year. God really has blessed us so much this year. I can't say enough about His love. And may I say, I loved the Christmas was on a Sunday this year. What better place to be than His house on the day we celebrate His birth?


We rang in 2012 at our church, praying in the new year outside the front of the building. I think it is such a witness to the people still out and about. It's has been a really special time to us. I have high hopes for 2012 and I know it will be a good year (if my plans happen or not). God has taught me so much this last year and He's already starting this year... yesterday I watched the sun rise. I just happened to see a baby calf born whie I was sitting there. The whole experience was new to me and as I was watching that baby learn to walk it hit me.. that has to be what we look like to God. Just stumbling through life. We stand up, get cocky because we did it, and then fall back down. How many times of that does it take before we trust Him? I was reading Isaiah chapter 52 as I was sitting there. It talks about where God redeems Jerusalem. He tells them that they have given themselves away to NOTHING, and that they will be redeemed without money. In this new year I pray that I keep focused on Him, trust Him more...and stop stumbling through life and giving myself to the things of this world. It is so hard when you like shiny things. HAPPY NEW YEAR!