This weeks Featured Artisan is B Blonski Designs. Unique gift ideas personalized just for YOU!!
You can find B Blonski at:
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Kindergarten!
Today is Kaleb's first day of Kindergarten!
I can't wait to hear all about it...
but mostly, I can't wait to ask Danny how it feels to be the Dad of a Kindergartener...
and to be turning 28 next week!
Gambizzle Jewels GIVEAWAY!
As you know, Mrs. Gambizzle is one of my bloggy bestie! Not only is a she a great blogger she is also super talented. She makes great blog layouts (like mine!) and she makes beautiful jewelery. I am the proud owner of Gambizzle Jewels earrings, necklaces and bracelets...and I love them all!
Now it's your chance to bring one of these beauties home! With the help of Mrs. Gambizzle, I'll be giving away not one, not two...but three pieces of jewelery. These pieces are from the "Earthy" collection. All of the collections are available at her new store http://gambizzlejewels.storenvy.com/. Please be sure to check out all of her jewelery!
Here's what up for grabs!
Giveaway is open to everyone (no anonymous comments.) Each comment must include your e-mail address. Giveaway closes on September 7th at 11:59PM
How to Enter:
1) Be a follower of my blog (Leave one comment)
2) Be a follower of Gambizzle Jewels (leave one comment)
3) Like Gambizzle Jewels on Facebook (leave one comment)
4) Tweet this giveaway, leave the URL of JUST the tweet, ONCE DAILY (leave one comment per tweet)
5) Blog this giveaway (leave two comments)
6) Buy something from Gambizzle Jewels (leave five comments)
There will be three winner, the top 3 commenters win! Any questions...just ask!
Thanks again to Mrs. Gambizzle! Please be sure to check out her store and to become a proud owner of some of her lovely jewels!
Now it's your chance to bring one of these beauties home! With the help of Mrs. Gambizzle, I'll be giving away not one, not two...but three pieces of jewelery. These pieces are from the "Earthy" collection. All of the collections are available at her new store http://gambizzlejewels.storenvy.com/. Please be sure to check out all of her jewelery!
Here's what up for grabs!
First Place
The first necklace is made with real stones, jasper, turquoise and various other stuff.
Second Place
The second necklace is Shell and I LOVE it. It's on a chocolate brown cord.
Third Place
The earrings are dyed shell cut into the shape of a peace sign.
Giveaway is open to everyone (no anonymous comments.) Each comment must include your e-mail address. Giveaway closes on September 7th at 11:59PM
How to Enter:
1) Be a follower of my blog (Leave one comment)
2) Be a follower of Gambizzle Jewels (leave one comment)
3) Like Gambizzle Jewels on Facebook (leave one comment)
4) Tweet this giveaway, leave the URL of JUST the tweet, ONCE DAILY (leave one comment per tweet)
5) Blog this giveaway (leave two comments)
6) Buy something from Gambizzle Jewels (leave five comments)
There will be three winner, the top 3 commenters win! Any questions...just ask!
Thanks again to Mrs. Gambizzle! Please be sure to check out her store and to become a proud owner of some of her lovely jewels!
Monday, August 30, 2010
Adding Email Subscription to Your Blog
I think this is a very important feature of a blog. I will admit, I don't always look through the list of blogs I follow looking for updates. I do have the best intentions, but I don't have the time in the day to do that. BUT! I never miss an email though. Anymore, when I follow a blog, this is the first thing I do after I subscribe...look for the email subscription box. Very few take advantage of this free and easy to set up feature for your blog. I want to walk you through it.
Maybe you don't like to have your email flooded, but I'm more likely to read your blog update and comment if it's emailed right to me. This was handy when I was working full time and even more so now that I'm unemployed and glued to my email. Slowly, I'm going back through the blogs I follow and subscribing to emails to whoever has it set up.
When someone signs up for an email subscription to your blog, they are receiving an email when you have updated it - added something new. How fab is that? Instant gratification. Here's how you add the email subscription. I suggest putting it at the top of your blog in very close proximity to your followers box. (Side note: your followers box should be at the top of your blog, not buried below.)
First you will need to set up an account with Google Feedburner. You can do this through your Blogger Settings tab and then click on Site Feed.
Once you have set up your account, you will need to burn a feed. Here, you will add your blog URL. You will need to title your blog feed. This should be the name of your blog.
After you get your success page, you will want to customize your options. You will then be presented with a Dashboard. Click the tab that says Publicize.
On the left handside, you will see a column of links to various topics. Click on Email Subscriptions.
Choose Feedburner and activate.
You will then be on a screen that's titled Subscription Management or go to Email Subscription again on the left (doing this from memory).
You will see a box of code. Don't copy it just yet! You will see a drop down box just under the code box. Be sure to change it to your blog format - Typepad, Google, language etc to your liking. Then go back and copy the code.
You will then come back to Blogger and in the Design mode you will add an HTML gadget. Remember to put the gadget toward the top of your blog!
Save changes and you're done!
Hope this helps you out in increasing your blog traffic and comments.
Maybe you don't like to have your email flooded, but I'm more likely to read your blog update and comment if it's emailed right to me. This was handy when I was working full time and even more so now that I'm unemployed and glued to my email. Slowly, I'm going back through the blogs I follow and subscribing to emails to whoever has it set up.
When someone signs up for an email subscription to your blog, they are receiving an email when you have updated it - added something new. How fab is that? Instant gratification. Here's how you add the email subscription. I suggest putting it at the top of your blog in very close proximity to your followers box. (Side note: your followers box should be at the top of your blog, not buried below.)
First you will need to set up an account with Google Feedburner. You can do this through your Blogger Settings tab and then click on Site Feed.
Once you have set up your account, you will need to burn a feed. Here, you will add your blog URL. You will need to title your blog feed. This should be the name of your blog.
After you get your success page, you will want to customize your options. You will then be presented with a Dashboard. Click the tab that says Publicize.
On the left handside, you will see a column of links to various topics. Click on Email Subscriptions.
Choose Feedburner and activate.
You will then be on a screen that's titled Subscription Management or go to Email Subscription again on the left (doing this from memory).
You will see a box of code. Don't copy it just yet! You will see a drop down box just under the code box. Be sure to change it to your blog format - Typepad, Google, language etc to your liking. Then go back and copy the code.
You will then come back to Blogger and in the Design mode you will add an HTML gadget. Remember to put the gadget toward the top of your blog!
Save changes and you're done!
Hope this helps you out in increasing your blog traffic and comments.
Food vs. My Waistline: Week Two
Inspiration and Motivation. Those are the two things I think you need to reach any goal. I think scare tactics are also a good way to start a lifestyle change. Even changing just a few "habits" will help you out. Take these things out of your diet and you will be taking a step in the right direction!
Last week I weighed in at 129 pounds. This morning the scale read 130 pounds. So, I gained a pound. But still putting the total weight loss at 1.6 pounds.
Monday through Friday is easy. I planned for a cheat night on Saturday, for date night. But what I did not plan was more than one beer and McDonalds french fries. Or Cici's Pizza on Sunday night. That was my major fail of the week. Sunday night I wanted Lays potato chips, Facebook friends talked me out of it. I'm starting to think I might be a closet eater, I purposely did not say I was going to Cici's, because I knew people would talk me out of it. I think that's a problem.
I worked out three times with Natosha. It's great having a workout buddy that has the same goals as me. But she went to Cici's with me, so we need to work on that part of our plan!
Week one was easy, week two proved to be hard. Since I didn't lose any weight, I'm a little disappointed in myself..but today is a new day and I won't let it get to me.
Healthy Dinners
Monday: Shrimp Taco Salad - shrimp, lettuce, black beans, tomato, corn, light homemade dressing and avocado cream
Tuesday: Taco-Barbecue Chicken with Citrus Slaw and Garlic Bread
Wednesday: Me and Danny shared a T-bone (the picture makes it look HUGE, but I had the bone, and apparently most of the fat..ick) corn & broccoli, and potato.
Thursday: Two Surf Dogs - Hot dogs with terryaki sauce and pineapple salsa (I was only going to have one, but seriously, it was SO good!)
Friday: Thanksgiving Burgers - ground turkey mixed with sauteed apples and onions. Topped with cheese a cranberry and light sour cream sauce. On a 100 calorie bun.
Saturday: Date night, we had steamed clams, a side salad and crab cakes with green beans and a sweet potato! So yummy. And a Blue Moon. Then we went out for a few drinks....and McDonalds french fries. OOPS!
Sunday: CiCi's Pizza. I didn't even bother to take a picture of all the pizza...FAIL.
Workouts
Monday: It took me a half hour to mop our kitchen, I broke out in a sweat...THAT is a workout! And me and Natosha dusted off the "10 Days to a Better Body" DVD...we did 15 minutes of it.
Tuesday: None. And rain got in the way of walking the dog.
Wednesday: 15 minutes of Crunch dance video and 15 minutes of 10 Days to a Better Body (back to back..30 minutes total!)
Thursday: 20 minutes of Pilates (abs, butt and thighs) and RAN around the block with Miley and got wicked sweaty!
Friday: None
Saturday: None
Sunday: None
The Ups: Natosha is a great workout buddy!
The Downs: Beers on date night...and french fries, they tasted SO good. But made me feel gross Sunday morning. And last minute pizza cravings...
 | ||
| The Traditional Red Lobster Margarita has 890 calories. That's the equivalent of 7 Almond Joys! |
 |
| Eat This Not That: Venti Starbucks Espresso Frappuccino (290 calories) VS. Large Dunkin' Donuts Frozen Cappuccino with Skim Milk (550 calories) |
 |
| A salad worse than the Big Mac! TFIFridays Santa Fe Chopped Salad (1800 calories!) |
 |
| Stay away from the Grilled Chicken & Avocado Club at Cheesecake Factory 1,752 calories! (And I thought I was eating healthy!) |
Last week I weighed in at 129 pounds. This morning the scale read 130 pounds. So, I gained a pound. But still putting the total weight loss at 1.6 pounds.
Monday through Friday is easy. I planned for a cheat night on Saturday, for date night. But what I did not plan was more than one beer and McDonalds french fries. Or Cici's Pizza on Sunday night. That was my major fail of the week. Sunday night I wanted Lays potato chips, Facebook friends talked me out of it. I'm starting to think I might be a closet eater, I purposely did not say I was going to Cici's, because I knew people would talk me out of it. I think that's a problem.
I worked out three times with Natosha. It's great having a workout buddy that has the same goals as me. But she went to Cici's with me, so we need to work on that part of our plan!
Week one was easy, week two proved to be hard. Since I didn't lose any weight, I'm a little disappointed in myself..but today is a new day and I won't let it get to me.
Healthy Dinners
Monday: Shrimp Taco Salad - shrimp, lettuce, black beans, tomato, corn, light homemade dressing and avocado cream
Tuesday: Taco-Barbecue Chicken with Citrus Slaw and Garlic Bread
Wednesday: Me and Danny shared a T-bone (the picture makes it look HUGE, but I had the bone, and apparently most of the fat..ick) corn & broccoli, and potato.
Thursday: Two Surf Dogs - Hot dogs with terryaki sauce and pineapple salsa (I was only going to have one, but seriously, it was SO good!)
Friday: Thanksgiving Burgers - ground turkey mixed with sauteed apples and onions. Topped with cheese a cranberry and light sour cream sauce. On a 100 calorie bun.
Saturday: Date night, we had steamed clams, a side salad and crab cakes with green beans and a sweet potato! So yummy. And a Blue Moon. Then we went out for a few drinks....and McDonalds french fries. OOPS!
Sunday: CiCi's Pizza. I didn't even bother to take a picture of all the pizza...FAIL.
Workouts
Monday: It took me a half hour to mop our kitchen, I broke out in a sweat...THAT is a workout! And me and Natosha dusted off the "10 Days to a Better Body" DVD...we did 15 minutes of it.
Tuesday: None. And rain got in the way of walking the dog.
Wednesday: 15 minutes of Crunch dance video and 15 minutes of 10 Days to a Better Body (back to back..30 minutes total!)
Thursday: 20 minutes of Pilates (abs, butt and thighs) and RAN around the block with Miley and got wicked sweaty!
Friday: None
Saturday: None
Sunday: None
The Ups: Natosha is a great workout buddy!
The Downs: Beers on date night...and french fries, they tasted SO good. But made me feel gross Sunday morning. And last minute pizza cravings...
Miscellany Monday
1. It's Monday Already?
Don't you hate how weeks drag along but the weekends fly by? We had a great weekend. Saturday we went to New Bern for date night. We love trying new places and try not to eat at the same place twice. We ate at Captain Rattys. And I was psyched to eat some steamed clams! Not the same as New England, but they will do. THEN we called up our favorite couple, Carmen & Mike, and headed to a haunted bar! We didn't see any ghosts, but we had a great time!
2. I'm Craving the Smell!
I love the smell of fall. I want to smell it right now! Apples, pumpkins,cinnamon. I've been daydreaming about a new autumn blog layout, Halloween costumes, and apple picking. We're having a turkey dinner tonight...if that doesn't scream FALL I don't know what does!
3. Check My Pulse, Please!
Miley and Danny let me sleep in til 9:00 yesterday. I don't know how he kept her quiet, but it was great! But instead of waking up refreshed, I woke up thinking that Danny probably should have checked my pulse. I haven't slept that late since before we got married!
4. This Just In: I'm Cheap.
I decided on a dress for the ball! My sister sent me one of her old prom dresses. So, I'm going the "free" route. It's super cute: long, black, low back, with some jewels, and it's a halter. Pictures soon, I promise! It needs to be hemmed...badly.
5. I didn't Watch the Emmys.
But this is my review of the winners. I'm sad that Matthew Fox didn't win for Best Actor in a Drama for LOST. I love that Jim Parson's won for Best Actor in a Comedy for Big Bang Theory. I'm so happy that American Idol did not win for best competition show...and that Top Chef did. And after looking at a bunch of pictures, I decided the show was missing something: good fashion!
6. "Mom, Let's Play Fetch!"
Miley has a new toy. She found a tree to play with.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
More slim pants - Review: Ann Taylor Capris sz 00P
Many petite favorite retailers are offering slim pants this season and I coudn't be more thrilled. I've always loved slim pants for work, but previously only Theory carried them in small sizes. J.Crew jumped on the bandwagon with the Minnie pant, and now Gap, Ann Taylor, and LOFT each have their versions.
In Boston, most women commute to work in flats, so cropped, slim cut pants are a must-have for me to avoid tripping over long hems. I find them to be more versatile than boot-cut trousers, and much easier to incorporate into weekend casual outfits.
Even though I just bought a pair of Gap slim crops, I was enticed by Chloe's claim that these pants ran small. They are more like ankle pants on my short 28" inseam legs, which some of you may find asthetically awkward, but I don't mind at all. Continue reading for my review...
Fit: The 00P was very fitted throughout the hips and thigh, but left me with a 1.5" waist gap. Unlike the Gap pair I reviewed, these are side-zip and do not have a trouser front nor belt loops (like the J.Crew Minnies), which is a minus. Under a top, however, the gap isn't too noticeable and the pants stay up fine because the hips are so fitted on me. A trip to the tailor should be able to fix the gap.
Please note that 00P is an online exclusive size for Ann Taylor. This is kind of a bummer since LOFT and BR both carry 00P in stores.
Color: I really love this "cliffside" color...it's like a grayish taupe. All my skinnies are black so this is a welcome change.
Material: 52% cotton, 42% rayon, 6% spandex. This twill feels nice and stretchy and I hope it holds up well after a wash. I asked Chloe beforehand to make sure the material isn't too wrinkle prone, but I did find that it wrinkles at the back of the knee.
Price: At $78 these cost the same as J.Crew's twill Minnies, but there are some pros and cons to each. The Minnies are dry clean only, whereas these are machine washable. The Minnies come in more colors and have nice belt loops, but Ann Taylor has frequent sales and coupons. I got these with the $20 off pants promo, plus another coupon so they came out to be $46.40. Still not cheap for me, but I know I'll get a lot of wear out of 'em.
Verdict: Despite the waist gap, I'm keeping!
The next color on my want list for slim pants is charcoal gray. I'm eying the J.Crew bi-stretch minnies pictured below...oh please, please give us a sale : )
Readers - are you buying in to the slim ankle pant trend? Or do you find it to be too unflattering on shorter legs?
In Boston, most women commute to work in flats, so cropped, slim cut pants are a must-have for me to avoid tripping over long hems. I find them to be more versatile than boot-cut trousers, and much easier to incorporate into weekend casual outfits.
Blouse: Banana Republic 00P
Jacket: Theory Caprine 00P
Pants: Ann Taylor Stretch Twill Capris sz 00P (also comes in black)
Pumps: Ann Taylor Perfect Exotic Pump sz 5
Belt: J.Crew (similar here - love "heather dove")
Even though I just bought a pair of Gap slim crops, I was enticed by Chloe's claim that these pants ran small. They are more like ankle pants on my short 28" inseam legs, which some of you may find asthetically awkward, but I don't mind at all. Continue reading for my review...
Fit: The 00P was very fitted throughout the hips and thigh, but left me with a 1.5" waist gap. Unlike the Gap pair I reviewed, these are side-zip and do not have a trouser front nor belt loops (like the J.Crew Minnies), which is a minus. Under a top, however, the gap isn't too noticeable and the pants stay up fine because the hips are so fitted on me. A trip to the tailor should be able to fix the gap.
Please note that 00P is an online exclusive size for Ann Taylor. This is kind of a bummer since LOFT and BR both carry 00P in stores.
Color: I really love this "cliffside" color...it's like a grayish taupe. All my skinnies are black so this is a welcome change.
Material: 52% cotton, 42% rayon, 6% spandex. This twill feels nice and stretchy and I hope it holds up well after a wash. I asked Chloe beforehand to make sure the material isn't too wrinkle prone, but I did find that it wrinkles at the back of the knee.
Price: At $78 these cost the same as J.Crew's twill Minnies, but there are some pros and cons to each. The Minnies are dry clean only, whereas these are machine washable. The Minnies come in more colors and have nice belt loops, but Ann Taylor has frequent sales and coupons. I got these with the $20 off pants promo, plus another coupon so they came out to be $46.40. Still not cheap for me, but I know I'll get a lot of wear out of 'em.
Verdict: Despite the waist gap, I'm keeping!
Readers - are you buying in to the slim ankle pant trend? Or do you find it to be too unflattering on shorter legs?
No More Desserts!!
No, seriously I need to lay off the baking and do some firing instead! (pardon the messy photo) What you see above is the last chunk of "Heaven and Hell" cake...aka "Cake of Doom"...aka Hubster's Birthday Cake! Alternating layers of Devil's Food cake (with a little coffee in the dark chocolate batter) and Angel Food cake sandwiched together with peanut butter mousse and the whole thing was coated with chocolate ganache! Do you see how thick that ganache coating is? I actually had to analyze who I chose to share the extra slices with...I was afraid I might kill someone!
Janet of Pink Poppy Studio shared some of her earring photos with me...to share with you! Aren't they gorgeous? 
And beyond that...the photography...isn't this a spectacular example of great lighting and backdrops that don't overwhelm the jewelry? 
Continuing on my jewelry designer love fest, Dana of Colors of the Woods used an Ocean Sari pendant in her yummy nummy cool shades necklace. For those of you in the toasty heat, doesn't this make you feel cooler? 
On to the other things that I've been doing instead of playing in clay... My parents came to visit for the week so hubster was able to get us hooked up with Disney tickets. We hit both parks which was great since I've only been to California Adventure once... I'll spare you my photo with Sully from Monsters Inc...although I will tell you that he was verrrrry tall and furry! 
Last but not least, we also made it to the zoo. If you've never been, the San Diego Zoo is truly spectacular. I leave you with...a furry polar bear butt :)
Army Ladies WINNER!
Thank you so much to all the lovely Army Ladies who entered this giveaway! I can not believe only three ladies entered to win this beautiful necklace from Your Charmed Life.
I want to thank Kelly for making something so beautiful to giveaway. Please be sure to check out her awesome store and buy something for yourself! I promise you will find something you will fall in love with!
And now to the winner. Because there were only three entries, a random number would have been pointless, so I had a third party read them (my Mom!) She chose the lucky winner!
I want to thank Kelly for making something so beautiful to giveaway. Please be sure to check out her awesome store and buy something for yourself! I promise you will find something you will fall in love with!
And now to the winner. Because there were only three entries, a random number would have been pointless, so I had a third party read them (my Mom!) She chose the lucky winner!
Read her entry, my Mom said "I found my self being put in her shoes and wanting to believe all that the Army is telling her and OccDoc. By the end I am a blubbering idiot... not a tear rolling down my cheek....but a pool of tears on my desk"
Congrats!
Please e-mail me at fsc200408@yahoo.com to claim your prize!
Thank you to everyone who entered, check back in a few days for another great giveaway! And please stop by Your Charmed Life for all of her great jewelery!
Guest Blogger - A Little Pink in a World of Camo
Hello there, I'm Mrs. P from A Little Pink in a World of Camo and I'll be your lovely blog host today! A little about me... well, I'm a Marine Gold Star Wife (or for those who have never heard that term, like me before I became as such, a Marine Corps widow). I'm 23 and have one little girl who, in my belief, is the most beautiful thing on the planet, but hey, I could be biased. Oh, I also tend to over use commas.
Today, I'm going to talk about unity but I'm going to open up with a few jokes. Please take these jokes as they are supposed to be - funny - and don't become offended. Any branch can be replaced with another to make that joke for your own branch, and it will all make sense in the end, promise.
Today, I'm going to talk about unity but I'm going to open up with a few jokes. Please take these jokes as they are supposed to be - funny - and don't become offended. Any branch can be replaced with another to make that joke for your own branch, and it will all make sense in the end, promise.
** A Marine and a Soldier are in the bathroom using the urinals. After doing their business, the soldier goes to the sink to wash his hands and notices the Marine heading for the door without doing so. The Soldier says to the Marine, "In the Army, they teach us to wash our hands after we pee." The Marine replies, "Well, in the Marine Corps, they teach us not to pee on our hands."
** A Sailor is driving from Miramar to Camp Pendleton, and a Marine is driving from Camp Pendleton to Miramar. In the middle of the night with no other cars on the road they hit each other head on and both cars go flying off in different directions.
The Marine manages to climb out of his car and surveys the damage. He looks at his twisted car and says, "Man, I am really lucky to be alive!"
Likewise, the Sailor scrambles out of his car and looks at his wreckage. He too says to himself, "I can't believe I survived this wreck!"
The Sailor walks over to the soldier and says, "Hey man, I think this is a sign from God that we should put away our petty differences and live as friends instead of archrivals"
The Marine thinks for a moment and says, "You know, you're absolutely right! We should be friends. Now I'm gonna see what else survived this wreck"
So the Marine pops open his trunk and finds a full, unopened bottle of Jack Daniels.
He says to the Sailor, "I think this is another sign from God that we should toast to our new found understanding and friendship"
The Sailor replies, "You're damn right!" and he grabs the bottle and starts sucking down Jack Daniels. After putting away nearly half the bottle the Sailor hands it back to the Marine and says, "Your turn!"
The Marine twists the cap back on the bottle and says, "Nah, I think I'll wait for the cops to show up."
**Two Marines boarded a quick shuttle flight out of Dallas, headed for Houston. One sat in the window seat, the other sat in the middle seat.
Just before take-off, an Army soldier got on and took the aisle seat next to the two Marines.
The Soldier kicked off his shoes, wiggled his toes and was settling in when the Marine in the window seat said, "I think I'll get up and get a coke." "No problem," said the Soldier, "I'll get it for you."
While he was gone, the Marine picked up the Soldier's shoe and spit in it. When the Soldier returned with the coke, the Marine in the middle seat said, "That looks good, I think I'll have one too."
Again, the Soldier obligingly went to fetch it and while he was gone, the Marine picked up the soldier's other shoe and spit in it. The Soldier returned and they all sat back and enjoyed the rest of the short flight to Houston.
As the plane was landing, the Soldier slipped his feet into his shoes and knew immediately what had happened.
"How long must this go on?" the Soldier asked.
"This fighting between our services? This hatred? This animosity? This spitting in shoes and peeing in cokes?"
(Yeah, I know I made them so they all had Marines, but like I said, I'm a proud Marine Wife! And hey, the Marines got it in the last one, ok?!)
Anyway, the point of all this is...
Aren't we all on the same team?
Yeah, the jokes are funny (at least I think so) and yeah it's fun to be proud of your branch and 'know' you're the best, but when is it too much? As wives, we represent our husbands in the military (I can't seem to get that through some people's heads, but it's the truth, like it or not) and often times, we find ourselves falling into the same pattern.
"Well my husband's tougher because he's a Marine"
"Well my husband's smarter because he's a Corpsmen"
"I have the best husband because he is a soldier"
"No, my Coastie is the best and bravest"
"No, my airmen is clearly better than all of yours"
One thing I've found through the milblogging community, to my great delight, is an awesome sense of unity. It seems people here really get it - we're all military spouses (girlfriends, fiancees, significant others...). After my husband died, I was blown away by the mass amounts of support I got from not only bloggers but people who weren't bloggy friends who happened to read from all branches of military (as well as civilians, but I'm focusing on branches here today, not to discredit civilians they're wonderful people too, it's just not my focus, don't make me lose my train of thought!). I just want to encourage this to continue, because it is just great. I have friends who are spouses (or other kinds of significant others) from each branch of the service, Marine Wives, Army Wives, Navy Wives, Airforce Wives, and Coast Guard Wives. And while I've met people from all branches, including my own, that I didn't like, I've met far more from all branches that were awesome. We are already at war with other nations which is taking the lives of our military, let's not be at war with ourselves too.
It saddens me when I hear about wives who have been put down because of their husband's branch of service - they should be commended for being a milwife no matter what branch, because it's tough on us all! And ya know, having grown up an Army brat and then marrying into the Marine Corps I realize that it's not all that different. Our men are all putting their lives out there on the line, some how, some way, and our lives are all hectic, some how, some way, by following and supporting our men.
My husband and I used to joke around about the differences all the time. While I am a super de-duper proud Marine Wife (OORAH!!) I would tease him about "The Army Way" and he would of course always assure me that the Marine Corps was the best. And while there are jokes out there, remember, they're jokes. They're supposed to be funny. They're not meant to be taken seriously. Don't take life too seriously, no one gets out alive.
So, I hope I gave you all a chuckle, as you arranged the jokes to put your branch as the "winning" one in the punch line, and maybe even a chuckle for your husbands as well! But please remember, unity - we are all on the same team - America (F- Yeah! ... anybody seen Team America? Love it. Hahaha)
Good night and God Bless,
Semper Fi
Mrs. P
Saturday, August 28, 2010
My Thoughts on a Early Saturday Morning
I'm supposed to be birthday shopping for Danny.
Instead I'm staring at this
and this
I'm also thinking about how sexy Josh Turner is.
This is my favorite song of the summer.
I'm on my second cup of coffee.
But what I really want is
And finally, I'm thinking about how I missed Lake George with the family.
(even thought I think it's super boring up there!)
I totally would have gotten matching sweatshirts with Mom and Dad!
Friday, August 27, 2010
Thank You, Thank You!
I have received three blog awards over the past few weeks, and I think it's about time I pass them on!
The first award is from Punk Rock Momma. Thanks so much for the "You Make Me Smile Blogger Award!" I have to say something that makes me smile, then pass it on to five blogs that make me smile!
The first award is from Punk Rock Momma. Thanks so much for the "You Make Me Smile Blogger Award!" I have to say something that makes me smile, then pass it on to five blogs that make me smile!
Lots and lots of this stuff makes me smile early in the morning!
I'm giving this award to....
The next award is from The Marine & The Civilian. She passed the "Your Blog is Awesome Award" onto me! Thank you so much! All I have to do is pass it onto five awesome blogs!
5) A SoCal Story
And the final award is from G.I Joe's Wife. Thanks so much for the SassyPants Award. I just love the name of it! The rules, say 3 things you might not know about me, and then pass it on to 3 more blogs!
Three things you might not know...
1) My favorite Disney movie is Aladdin
2) If I know pictures are going to be taken, I make a conscious effort to wear something that I have never been photographed wearing.
3) The opening scene of musicals always make me tear up (yes, including the cheesy show we saw at Busch Gardens...)
And for three Sassy Blogs
1) Jess the Mess
2) Amanda and Don
3) Life as a Sailor's Girl
And the final award is from G.I Joe's Wife. Thanks so much for the SassyPants Award. I just love the name of it! The rules, say 3 things you might not know about me, and then pass it on to 3 more blogs!
Three things you might not know...
1) My favorite Disney movie is Aladdin
2) If I know pictures are going to be taken, I make a conscious effort to wear something that I have never been photographed wearing.
3) The opening scene of musicals always make me tear up (yes, including the cheesy show we saw at Busch Gardens...)
And for three Sassy Blogs
1) Jess the Mess
2) Amanda and Don
3) Life as a Sailor's Girl
Flashback Friday
Even before I lived in North Carolina, I loved it down here. You can thank One Tree Hill.
It all started in 2005 when me and a friend roadtripped to Wilmington to stalk the cast. This is way before the Visitor Center gave maps of filming locations. We literally drove around to all the house, the mall, anything that was even shown on the show...we visited. We made friends with a tech guy, who drew us a map of how to find even more houses. We were obsessed. We were extras on the show. Remember the scene where Lucas steals money out the cash register at Karen's Cafe? Yep, I'm there.
The next roadtrip was for three reasons: to see the Tar Heels at open practice in New Jersey, visit UNC Chapel Hill...and to go to the One Tree Hill Charity Basketball Game. I think I was pretending to be a basketball fan. It was a fast trip, but we had a lot of fun! The only thing I really remember is that Chad Michael Murray showed up late and that I had no interest in meeting him.
In June 2009 I made the big move to Carrboro, North Carolina. I loved the town, it was so hippie and artsy...so me. My roommate was the worst (the girl I went on roadtrips with...) so I didn't spend much time in the area. I'll never regret the move though, if I didn't do it, I never would have met Danny!
It all started in 2005 when me and a friend roadtripped to Wilmington to stalk the cast. This is way before the Visitor Center gave maps of filming locations. We literally drove around to all the house, the mall, anything that was even shown on the show...we visited. We made friends with a tech guy, who drew us a map of how to find even more houses. We were obsessed. We were extras on the show. Remember the scene where Lucas steals money out the cash register at Karen's Cafe? Yep, I'm there.
The next roadtrip was for three reasons: to see the Tar Heels at open practice in New Jersey, visit UNC Chapel Hill...and to go to the One Tree Hill Charity Basketball Game. I think I was pretending to be a basketball fan. It was a fast trip, but we had a lot of fun! The only thing I really remember is that Chad Michael Murray showed up late and that I had no interest in meeting him.
Me and Fergie from One Tree Hill
In 2007 we roadtripped again. We did more stalking of the cast, did some historical stuff, went to the beach, saw a play...and met Chad Michael Murray. I'll let the pictures do the talking for this one!
Look how "happy" I am to be meeting him!
I visited again in 2008. This was the last trip I took before I decided to move down here. I was visiting my friend who I did all my roadtrips with. We ate at Top of the Hill, saw a basketball game...and then did what we did best, roadtripped back to Massachusetts!
My first time at Bojangles!
Who would have thought that after my first trip to Wilmington, NC that I would be living less than an hour away? Instead of a 13 hour trip, it's an hour trip. So strange how things work out!
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