The Doxology...

Weekends are never dull around these parts.

Friday, one of my co-workers asked me what my weekend plans were just as a casual conversation starter. I quickly explained to her that the best weekends are the ones that are never planned. Spontaneous fun, plan things by the minute and just live in the moment... that kind of weekend. And that is exactly what I did.

Meet some of the crew....

Is there really anything more fun than getting all dressed up and heading out for cocktails with friends? Um yes. The process of getting ready!! I got my hair done by my fun buddy, Khrista (pictured above). She taught me the art of BIG HAIR (that's for you, Deck). Trust me, I was VERY hesitant. I was TERRIFIED of looking like a Jersey Shore Misti Dawn and even went to knock on an unbiased neighbor's door for the honest truth. It was big and got bigger as the night went on. As I sat in her bathroom getting my hair sprayed, curled and teased, we joked and laughed while one of my co-workers/friends sat there and watched on a tad bit awkwardly.

Rachel: Chris, on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being, you want to jump off a bridge, 1 you're in Heaven), how much do you hate me right now?

Chris: Are you kidding me? I'm used to this. Having a girlfriend taught me to deal with this and always allow an extra 45 minutes for schedules.

Its fun to be good friends with co-workers. I somehow always do this. Just usually find myself a gal pal. But going along with the theme of my life now, I'm doing things a tad bit differently. It keeps things interesting. You've heard the story millions of times. We HATED each other for weeks. We fought like brother and sister. But somewhere along the way, tossed some of the annoyance aside and became gchat buddies. OH YEH...gchat! I could wax poetically about that beauty for hours. How it gets me through the day. How it keeps me in touch with friends. How it helps me multi-task even more. And in this case, helped start a fabulous friendship full of friendly pokes and jabs mixed in with actual real life discussions. And then invitations to go out to a REALLY fun bar/club where everything is covered. Of course, bring your fun friends Rachel...the more the merrier!! Brother, this is a deal I can't refuse!!

So I was all dressed up, big hair and all, and having the best time ever. Only to get the phone call I've been waiting on for a little over a year. One that I always wondered if it would happen. One that I knew deep in my heart would eventually happen. One that I prayed for thousands of time.

I'm amazed at how God works. I truly am. He took away the one thing I loved the most so that I would slowly fall head over heels in love with Him. He took me on this long, painful but ultimately rewarding journey where I learned that I can't dream of being with the man I love until I fill my heart with the most incredible divine joy that only my Savior can provide. It hasn't been until now that He deemed me ready to bring that earthly love back into my heart.

This time is different. This time, my main squeeze is the man upstairs. He's the one I love the most. I've heard it said so many time, but never have I loved this quote so much.

"A woman’s heart should be so hidden in Christ, that a man should have to seek Him first to find her.” Maya Angelou

Well Maya, you are one VERY wise lady! Why did it take me this long to figure out such an easy, simple concept?

The process was hard. REALLY hard. But the payoff is even better.

So now, I really have EVERYTHING I could ever dream of...

Fabulous friends, an incredibly fun life, a will for my grace, my little five year old back (**no I don't have any kids for anyone wondering) and a new knowledge of how to tease my hair.

Que the doxology now...

Zeeeee...

I was quite tempted to just show these goodies without giving the source. I'm selfish, I admit. I want them all for myself. BUT I love all of you guys, so I'll be generous and share. The following lovelies are from Z Gallerie. Judge me all you want. Some are a little bit out there, but I'm not scared!! I just post what I like!

How cute are these salt and pepper birds???

Duvet cover folded at the end of the bed? Yes please!!

Does this even need an explanation?
Pure heaven.

D.Y.I.N.G.!!!

Too stinking cute!!

Just to see who is paying attention. But I do like it in a VERY wierd way. Not a chance would it land on my walls. Okay, maybe a small one.

Channeling my obsession Don Draper.

Because you can't have enough table/seating for company!!

Will to my Grace...

Please meet the new love of my life...
Ok NO, he is not really my boyfriend, but wouldn't it be fabulous if it was!! This cutie patootie is the Will to my Grace. Also known as m upstairs neighbor. I cannot even explain how much this kid makes me laugh. I literally have to kick him out of my house every night because if I didn't, I could stay up all night laughing. Although that is fun at the time, 7 am comes way too quickly and lets be honest, NOBODY looks good with circles under their eyes. The whole point of this is that I am so amazed at how blessed I am with my life now. Literally never a dull moment. For guaranteed fun and laughs, come visit me!!

Worth a thousand words...

Can we talk?

Let's talk about a few pictures I came across and fell in love immediately with.

You know what, let's save the chit chat and just let these pictures do the talking.

Pool Necessities

I've just treated myself to a nice little Sunday date...with myself. Pedicure and a movie. I can honestly say that this was the first movie I've ever gone to by myself and it was wonderful. I'm not sure what pushed me into this Sunday funday, but it was a refreshing break from my usual weekend past time.

Normally, you will find me parked at the pool with my fun neighbors. So, I figured that tonight I would post about what I've found to be the absolute essentials to make a day at the pool the absolute best.

First you're going to need a really hot body. I can't believe that someone was snapping pictures of me at the pool. At least pay me for it. But in all seriousness, you DO want to have a super cute swimsuit that isn't going to leave terrible tan lines. Although it isn't exactly the most flattering top, the bandeau top is hands down the best as far as bronze shoulders go.

Next, you HAVE to invest in some Tervis Tumblers. Since glass is not allowed around any pool, these are by far the best thing to keep your drinks cold. And if you're smart, you'll make sure yours looks exactly like the one above. But really, these things are GOLD. I have them everywhere. Stacks on my desk at work, a few rolling around in the car somewhere and several that permanently stay in my beach bag.

Obviously you're going to need some beach towels. But I always stick to the notion that Cher so cutely said, "the more the merrier!!" Literally. There's always someone who shows up without one and you dont want them dripping on your floors when they come into your house. I keep mine stashed in my pool bag.

And most importantly, you need a Bose Ipod station. Bring the life of the party with you. Yesterday, someone was playing some lame music and we decided that some Bob Dylan would be A LOT more entertaining.

The Crew...

If you're like me, you've somehow landed on a mailing list that sends daily emails for basically any store imaginable. Its pure temptation every morning around 11am when the J.Crew email rolls in. And with incredible deals, I REALLY have to exercise some serious self control. However, as my mother has always said, "just because I'm on a diet, doesn't mean I can't look at the menu."

So I've been following the new fall collection and I somehow fall more in love with this concept every single time. Check out a few of my favorite pieces.

Seriously craving this jacket and skirt. Sheer perfection.

Through the years, I've put together quite the collection of jewelry. So now, my co-workers are constantly coming over to see what I have on and ask where I got it. I just hope if I ever have a daughter that she will appreciate all of it. I can just imagine walking in a room seeing everything on the floor and her covered!! This bracelet is a definite must!!

I tried on these pants last weekend and I will admit that they are extremely comfortable. Essentially, they are a dressier version of leggings. LOVE these! And at $88, who wouldn't??

Doesn't even need a caption.

Simply reminds me of a dance recital costume I had when I was VERY young!!

Seriously in love with these!!

On the Table...

As I've mentioned earlier, I'm in pure re-decorating mode. I'm guessin it came about from finally embracing the fact that my place still had that "hey I just moved in look." Currently, I've tackled the living room. I still actually NEED a new coffee table, but my tastes change quite frequently, so I'm not in commital mode...yet.

So I've semi-narrowed it down. While on the hunt for the coffee table, I may or may not have added a few other tables to my wish list...

Up and Running...

Once again, Blogger is annoying me with its opposite picture loader. I don't have the patience to change it, so we will just go in reverse order for this one!!

So, guess what! I'm FINALLY up and running with cable and internet in my house. Everyone has thought I'm neurotic for going all summer without it, but honestly, I've really enjoyed it. But for those of you who depend on reading entertainment {aka my pathetic-ness if that is a word at all}, I'm BACK!!!

Ok, so last weekend, we took and impromptu trip back to Auburn to visit one of my best friends in the world and her incredibly adorable little boy, John Wells. Feast your eyes on this cuteness...

When Jenny said that her mother in law was in town to keep John Wells, I knew it was time to get in the car and drive the 1hr 20 min to get to Auburn for a night out with my partner in crime. It was all innocent fun. I felt old. That's that. But I had so much fun and probably lost 5 lbs from the non-stop laughter. Thank goodness I brought my camera to capture some of the funniest things EVER.


SCRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATCH!!!!! Wait, when did this happen? My last time I partied in Auburn, we did not wake up at 8 am the next morning with coffee and we DEFINITELY did not have mommy/baby time while we re-told stories!! I believe this has become one of my favorite pictures. I'm not going to lie, I REALLY liked the baby in the mix. Like, REALLY liked it.

{Sidenote: Why does this happen?? I know its a natural thing for women my age to want babies, but still. Give me 2 seconds with a baby and I'm obsessing. Seriously. Well, it will continue to be an obsession, at least for several years}



Stay tuned, I've got a list a mile long for ideas for this thing!!!

More than words...

No pictures tonight.

Tomorrow is the day to take all these. Finally.

But since I haven't had the opportunity to log in and blog, I'll at least do a recap.


Here we go.

I'm currently in re-do the living room mode. All out, balls to the wall, out with the old and in with the new. I FINALLY bought the rug I've been lusting over for months since I saw it in House Beautiful. I want a new sofa, but I just cannot bring myself to do it. Yet. {Santa, Baby, you interested??} So, being the impulsive girl that I am, I decided to take a cheaper route and purchase new covers for the sofa shell as well as the cushions in what I thought was going to be THE perfect shade of charcoal. Fast forward to 5 minutes later when I take it out of the box, only to discover that it was B.L.A.C.K.!! EWWWW. Not a good look for me. At all. And if that wasn't enough, I realized 2 minutes later that I somehow made it out of the store sans receipt. Well isn't this just sweet? Thankfully, Denise in Customer Service did not mind my 9pm frantic call and reassured me that they will honor my return {major shoutouts to Denise!! Okay, I totally made up her name.}.

In the process of re-decoration mode, I've also started to whip out my "greenthumb." Currently, I have basil and rosemary growing in my kitchen. And as tribute to the most incredible grandmomma EVER, an aloe plant that we've affectionately named, Grandma. Burnt your finger on a casserole dish?? Grandma will solve that!! Want to make a delish mozzarella, tomatoe and basil salad?? Come on over!! I'm currently researching other useful herbs like cilantro, thyme and maybe even some lavendar to use to cook and make things with. Suggestions are welcomed.

What else?? Currently in the beginning of a long BEAUTIFUL Rachel Zoe Project Marathon. Why you ask? Oh, maybe because I met a former Zoebot who was just fabulous. I've been obsessed with Zoe for a long time, but after meeting one of her previous proteges, I couldn't help but slip back into obsession mode. That and watching the Season Premier!! Speaking of that, Bravo is my BFF right now. With the beginning of Rachel Zoe Project, Flipping Out and The Real Housewives DC, I've FINALLY caved and made an appointment to get cable. I know, I know. Redic. The hiatus was refreshing but its almost over.

Moving on. After a long stinking time of whining, begging and pleading, I think my hard work finally paid off. Sara and Tyler started a blog. They're some of my absolute favorite people. Guarantee you that you will LOVE this blog!! Sara is absolutely precious and such a one of a kind gal. I love her more than I could say!!

One last thing {if you're still reading this}. I'm considering adding space for sponsors. I've had numerous people encourage me to do this, so I figure, now or never. To get up and running, I'm going to go crazy and do something experimental. I'm offering spots for free for the first month, so email me if you are interested. I'll always keep it classy on here. You will never see google ads or anything like that on here and I can guarantee you that I will give you ample space to get the exposure you want.

Casual Friday...

Fridays in my office mean a little down time for us. On my lunch breaks, I like to do a little window shopping while I eat a boring lunch of chicken and veggies. And its rather frequent that a friend will send me a link to a website with a specific item she's lusting over. I need to keep a running tab of all the finds because I am quite inspired from 9-5, but not so much when I get home.

Anyway, Fridays at my office are a little bit different. For starters, we have breakfast brought in {who doesn't like a yummy free meal to start the day??}. And then on top of that, we have casual dress.

{Sidenote here that only Hines and Lana will appreciate. My last job, Jeans Fridays were earned. And earned is not even the correct phrase. Basically, blood, sweat and tears must have been shed to merit sporting the J.Brands...}

I'm bound and determined to not get frumpy again like I was in Florida. My chinos have made appearances, but there are always heels, cardigans and jewelry involved. To keep up with the vow, I'm a little bit on the hunt for how to make Jeans Friday still professional. So the outfits are looking something like this...

Of course, its J.Crew! I could literally write 2 pages worth about my love for that line. I've been known to check in on them daily to see what is new. Unfortunately, Jenna Lyons' genious doesn't come at a cheap price. So, I'll just continue lusting. By the way, I hear that students get a 15% discount just for showing their ID card. Whip out your Tiger Cards ladies!! Also, this discout applies to the sister store, Madewell {TDF if you ask me!!}. In fact, I believe its a 20% discount there. Doesn't sound like a lot but that is a rather significant chunk of change to be saved. Stash that away for a nice brunch at Murphy's or indulge in a pedicure!!

And I'll leave you with the one item that would simply MAKE my day if it just magically appeared at my door {address is suppliable:) }.

Enter the sequin skirt. Don't take my word for it. Pop over to www.jcrew.com and watch the video about the concept of this fall's looks. The ideas that woman comes up with is just out of this world.

On a MUCH more exciting note. I have FINALLY convinced my friend Sara to start a blog. She's new to it and a little timid with the idea of it. But as soon as she gets it all going, I will be sure to post her link. She and her husband have done some AMAZING things with their house on a budget. She happens to be my chat buddy to discuss decorating during the day {P.S. I am ALWAYS wanting to google chat during the day. SERIOUSLY!!!}.

Happy Friday!!!

Recap...

I just logged into my blog only to realize that it has been over a week since I posted anything. I don't want to sound like a broken record, but I'm afraid that I have just stayed way too busy to even get online. Its funny how quickly life can change. In a matter of only two months, I went from living the most boring, uneventful life ... desperately trying to convince myself that I was happy {and for the most part I was} to this new insansely fun life I have now. Everyday, I have to pinch myself because I honestly don't think its reality. Any minute now, I'm sure I'll wake up only to realize that all this time I've been dreaming.

A brief catch up session for anyone who literally has nothing else to do because it will probably be a boring story.

Let's see...where to even begin??

Last weekend, I went to Whitewater {the water park} to celebrate one of my friends birthdays. Despite the enormous mass of people {several rather unattractive swimsuits, hairdo's may have been involved} and scary lightning storm buzz kill at the end of the day, I had an amazing time. I'm not one to wait in lines {especially in a bikini...come on. Like, what do you do with your hands the whole time? Do the celebrity hand on hips pose?? Yeh, I wasn't fooling anyone. I was in a swimsuit, barefoot, uncomfortably close to strangers barging in my invisible 3 foot bubble. So two rides was plenty for me}. The rest of the time, I parked it in the intertube in the lazy river or on a lounge chair. I was fine with it. Did NOT get a tan that day, however. Probably slathering on 50 SPF on an overcast day wasn't the best way to bronze up. Sunday, I simply slept. I take that back, rented 3 redbox movies and stayed in bed all day. Treat yourself to a day like that soon...it was incredible.

Nothing too eventful during the week minus the dead battery crisis in the middle of the Home Goods parking lot. I was traumatized. I've always had either a boyfriend or guy friend or my Dad to come to my rescue with things like this. Not this time. Fortunately, my friend Amanda happened to be with me and she happened to know quite a bit about cars and kept me from the panic attack zone.

Moving forward to this weekend. Ryan came in town for the weekend on Thursday. We made quick buddies with my neighbors and spent the weekend with them as well as other friends. He treated me to THE BEST sushi I've EVER had. It tops Harbor Docks. Yes, I said it. That insanely amazing. Whenever you're in Atlanta, let me know, we will go there immediately!! We went to church this morning {which I've been meaning to blog about...more on that soon} and I just felt the Holy Spirit in that place. It was undescribable, but I do know this, it felt so good to be back in church with him.

Okay, so about the new church. Many of you have probably heard of it, but Buckhead Church is just incredible. I've been going there since I moved to Atlanta, and the minute I walked in the doors, I knew I was at home. I've always been most ministered to through music, so I know God's hand was 100% in this because the music at this church is just amazing!! I've been brought to tears within the first song and I've found myself walking out rejuvenated and ready to face another week. So incredibly thankful for this place!

Let's see, what else?? There is so much, but I'll spare you the play by play. It all boils down to the fact that I know I've finally landed where I'm meant to be. Every day, I sit back and think to myself, "this is one fabulous life." I know I'm extremely fortunate to be blessed with this.

Coming up soon: I'm on the hunt for some large scale geometric print black/white or grey/white fabric. Send me your sources and soon I'll post about the project in the works.