July 2012

July promises to be a month of HOT weather, longer runs and bike rides, more hours at work, good books and nights in with the man I love.  I cannot wait to conquer July.  I have a feeling it will need to be conquered, but I am happy to do it.  I have my knight in shining armor to help me when I need it.  

Since my quote for the month is about books I feel like I should mention what I plan to read this month...and that will be my next post.  Today is all about fun and purging last months ball of stress.  

July is about popsicles, or at least it should be. So wish me luck!!

P.S. sorry I am a lazy poster lately, hopefully I will get my groove back

April Running/Jogging/Walking

That's right...there are 20 pictures there.  Over the course of the month of April, I walked/ran/jogged/biked 53.57 miles.  I even managed to get a buddy on a few workouts, plus bike with Nick.  Nick isn't a big runner, but loves to bike, so we borrowed bikes from his family and have been out a few times.

Running has become so much fun over these two months.  I love getting out there and letting nothing matter but my stride and breathing.  Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not good nor am I some guru.  I have just learned to love the freeing nature of it.  I can get out and just listen to tunes or think and pretend that I'm good at it.

On the health side of it, I have lost roughly 10 pounds; which equals 2 inches from my hips and 1 1/2 from my waist.  I love knowing that it is working and that it means more than losing weight.  Running has become more about being healthy.  We have been focusing on eating out less and eating fewer processed foods.  It doesn't always work out, but we are trying.

I can't wait to finish this next month of workouts.  I have slowed down a tad over the past week, due to my yucky infection, but I have been doing 3-4 jogs a week.

Sushi

I absolutely LOVE sushi.  I'm probably not what one would call an expert though.  We've only been to a few places, and there are only a few rolls that I truly like.  Either way, it makes me so happy lol.

There is a great place a few towns over, Miyagi's,  that has a happy hour from 3-6pm Monday-Thursday.  It is perfect for our Sushi fix because my favorite of all favorites is the Spicy Tuna Roll and it is half off during happy hours.  They also have amazing Edamame (also half off during happy hours).

Supernatural

Folks....Supernatural is on Netflix!  You heard me right.  Sam and Dean Winchester at the touch of a button.  Let me just say, when I had my horrible cold, the boys took care of me.  They make me laugh and fight off all of my fears lol.


Okay, so that might be an overstatement.  The Winchester's have kept me entertained though.  I have seen the first 5 seasons before, but I am a huge fan of re-watching my favorites and this is definitely one of my favorites.  It's the perfect mix of sci-fi, laughter and scare with family drama added in.  The first 5 seasons are the best though.  The show was only meant to last that long and the episodes after it aren't nearly as good, but I am still intrigued about the newest episodes.

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Beautiful Morning

What a beautiful day to enjoy a cup of coffee, grapefruit and my new favorite nail polish (OPI Cajun Shrimp)!!!

Happy Endings

I have a new favorite T.V. show.....

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Nick and I have fallen in love with this show over this past T.V. season.  We started watching in season 2 and have kept up with it regularly (which is odd for us).  There are only a few shows that we watch every week these days.  


Happy Endings is hilarious.  It follows six friends that live in Chicago.  Their lives mingle with each others in a mix of pop culture references and "ahh-mah-zing" situations.  


Do you have any new shows that you love?

Things I LOVE

I have become obsessed with some really great products lately.  I don't typically LOVE things as much as I LOVE the products above, unless we are talking about movies or books, of course.  


1. This beautiful Barr-Co. Candle was purchased at Anthropologie.  It has this amazing aroma that changes as it burns.  A little coconut, a little freshness and boom, my whole apartment smells relaxing and cozy.  It lasts a long while too!  I am on my second candle and can't wait to buy my third.


2. Let's face it, I LOVE dessert; however, I do want to start getting into shape and all of my sources says that dark chocolate is the way to go.  Enter Dove Dark Chocolate Squares to save the day.  Plus I got it on sale after Valentine's Day.


3. Bath and Body Works has long been my staple for amazing smelling lotions and body mists.  Last summer I fell in LOVE with Forever Sunshine.  It is a mix of apricot and summer smells. I have the lotion and body spray in this fragrance.  


4. I have been searching my whole life for a Chapstick that works well for me.  I typically lose it or it just doesn't work the way I want it to.  I demand a good mix of softness and usability from my lip balms.  C.O. Bigelow's Rose Salve wins the award for best ever!  It comes in a little tin, so I don't lose it, and it works wonders on not only my lips but also on my chapped hands.  It also gives my lips a nice shine, which I appreciate.


5. Eye shadows are something that I tend to LOVE or hate.  This has become my new favorite.  It is Ulta's eyeshadow quad Girly Girl.  It has great colors for my skin tone.  I can make it look dark or light, which makes it easy to switch from night to day.  I work long hours and having an eyeshadow that stays on and doesn't make my eyes look dark or have creases makes me a happy lady.

Wall Art

Nick took a week off of work in January, and we decided to get some DIY art accomplished.  Most of the walls of our apartment have pictures or paintings on them.  I think it makes it look more like a home and less like an apartment that we won't live in for very long lol.  At any rate, our dining room really needed some wall art.  We found some cool art online that we decided to replicate.

1.  See the poor sad wall space :(


2. We picked up three canvases from Hobby Lobby.  I wanted them to be different sizes to add depth to the art and to make it more interesting.


3.  We took blue painters tap and ran it across the three canvases.  We also bought three different shades of purple.  We picked a swatch from Menards that had three different shades that we liked and asked the lovely attendant to mis us samples of each color.  


4.  From there we separated the canvases and painted each a different shade.

5.  We LOVE the final results!


6.  The only thing that annoys me is that the edges of the white lines are a little fuzzy.  I think it is mostly because we had to paint two coats of each color and the tape shrank up in between coats.  Either way, it was a cheap and easy project that we fits perfectly in our apartment.

February

I mentioned that I was working on a calendar.  Well, I finished it a while ago.  Nick hung it up in our kitchen.  I LOVE it!

Valentine's Day

So, what did you folks do for Valentine's Day?  


Nick and I kept it pretty quiet.  I worked during the day, but had the evening off.  I got Nick some Reeses Pieces and gum, and Nick got me a cupcake from Gigi's (so tasty).  Then we went to dinner at Mo's Irish Pub.  From there we went to the movies!  


I know I've told you multiple times how much I love the movies, but this time it was extra special.  We saw a sneak peak of This Means War with Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine and Tom Hardy.  It was so much fun to know that I was seeing a movie before it actually came it.  Don't get me wrong, I didn't have that much of a head start, it officially comes out today.  


It was such a good movie though.  Funny in all the right places and sentimental with everyone ending up happy.

My Poor Sad Blankey

Remember the crochet blanket I was making....you know the one, right?  I have been working on this puppy for YEARS.  Isn't it beautiful?

I absolutely love it; however, it still isn't finished.  I've given up on it to be honest.  Here is why...

Check out the huge holes that have started appearing all over the blanket.  There are about five now.  I suppose that I tied the initial tie incorrectly, or that I have gotten all of the use out of the blanket that I could since I've been working on it so long.  Either way, I'm super bummed.  I've decided to give up on finishing it; instead, I just use it on my chair and keep it fold so you cannot see the sad state of the rest (even though I planned on finishing it for my birthday list).

December Movies

We spent December at the movies!  I'm sure I've mentioned multiple times my love of movies, and this year just seemed to be a movie theatre bust.  December, however, gave us many options.  
We saw...

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

We Bought a Zoo

The Adventures of Tintin

I think my favorite of the three was We Bought a Zoo.  I loved the characters and the love story of it all.  Not only was it a story of love lost, but also of a new adventure between a family, a group of animals and new friends.

Friday

So even though today is Friday, and I should be very excited about the weekend ahead...

I'm not.

I work a double today at work and the dinner shift tomorrow.  I want to sit at home and crochet and read and watch movies.  Or go out and pick pumpkins and go to the movies and out to dinner and have fun.

But, in the meantime, I am going to dream of...

Apparently I have homes on the mind.

Home

Fall has always felt like home to me.  I'm not sure if it is the cold, which creates a need for blankets, or if it is the idea of hot drinks and good books.  Either way, I always feel more comfortable in my skin.  

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Discoveries

Things I have learned in October:

1. If I thought September was busy, I never dreamed of October!

2. I love whipped cream cheese on an everything bagel.

3. Coffee keeps me alive.

4. Making food with friends and hanging out is more relaxing than watching T.V. by myself.

5. I want a comfy oversized sweater... like this one from Gap:

6. Fall/Autumn feels like home.

7. I get wrapped up accomplishing lists and forget to blog. 

On Our Nightstands: #7

The month of September has been very busy work wise.  Usually, I go on here to blow off steam and spend my spare time.  I, however, have been reading like crazy instead.  


A friend of mine at work shares a passion for reading with me, and we talk books often.  For my birthday, she gave me a list of books she thought I might like.  And, boy do I ever like this book.


I started reading The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss just two weeks ago and am currently more than half way through the 700+ page book.  It is amazing, so far.  It is the first book in the Kingkiller Chronicles, so I do not know how it will end, especially since only two of the three books are out now. 


The book is one man's life story told by him to another character in the book who is recording the story for him.  It follows his progress through Rothfuss's created world where demons live among us and magic can be done by knowing the name of the elements. 

I cannot wait to continue readin this book and moving on to the next one.  Thanks to my friend from work for recommending this amazing book to me!

Flowers

So, folks, birthday week has begun!!!


Nick and I spent the weekend running around Indianapolis.  We went to our favorite spots, and Nick bought me flowers.  

Aren't they lovely?

Photo Editing

When I posted the new pictures of our bedroom, I was a little ashamed.  Not of the bedroom itself (it is my favorite room), but of the photos.  They just were not good.  Despite my ability with Illustrator and In-Design, my Photoshop ability and knowledge is very very limited.  So, I typically do not edit my photos, but I saw somewhere that iPhoto had a decent photo editing option.  Here are the bedroom redo pictures again, but better!

Crazy, Stupid, Love

A few weeks ago, one of my college roommates and I set out on our date.  We planned to go see a different movie, but ended up seeing Crazy, Stupid, Love.  Now, don't get me wrong, this movie had a lot of, um, PG13 geared things in it; 




HOWEVER




I loved it.  Not only was it smart and funny, but it had a great twist that made me love the characters more.  Also, I am in love with 80s movies.  You are reading the blog of the owner of Top Gun, Pretty in Pink, Breakfast Club, St. Elmo's Fire....(the list could just go on and on).  At any rate, this movie threw me back there in an interesting way lol.  At any rate, I highly recommend this date movie!

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Bedroom Redo

I promised some photos of our bedroom along with our inspiration.  Sadly, I do not have any before pictures, but I promise, it wasn't that great beforehand.


So first, here is our inspiration.

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The last is my favorite.  The different woods and clam colors are my just to die for.

Now, time for the end results!

Our nightstands and dresser are from IKEA, the HEMNES collection.  I love the color of the wood and how large the dresser is.  It is also handy that the nightstands can be closed, so they don't have to be pretty on the inside.  

The comforter, lamps on the nightstands and mirror are also from IKEA (a theme, if you will).  

The lamps on the dresser are from Target.  Beyond that, everything is either hand-me-downs or things we have gotten along the way.

The only thing not finished is the headboard.  I'm not sure what to do with it.  I can't decide if I want to paint it white, coral or upholster it.  Either way, I like it for the time being.