Bring me back something french...

My mom called me from the airport this morning. Lucky for her and my dad, they get a pre-Christmas vacay to Aruba. And it is only tradition that the phone conversation before they board the plane, I ask her to "bring me back something French" {bonus points to whoever can name that movie!!}. Usually their island vacations translate into a new Longchamp bag for me and for Sassy and this go around, I originally asked for the expandable Weekend bag, but then realized we are weeks away from Christmas aka that will be a Christmas gift. And as much as I love my ever-growing collection of Longchamps, I know there are way too many other things I need and want a bit more than another perfect nylon foldable bag! So, Santa, if you're still shopping, here are a few things I would LOVE to find under the tree...

For the Mr. Special...

Let's see.

Colorado was COLD. We're talking bathe in Vaseline because your skin gets chapped from being outside 3 minutes. I didn't mind that detail though. I'm quite the Vaseline enthusiast. In fact, I have a pot in my desk and another in my purse. I have a slight obsession, to be honest. You would really be surprised what wonders that little bit of goo can do. I slather it on my cuticles probably 7 times a day. Just a dab to tame the eyebrows. Pat some on your cheeks with a tiny dab of lipstick and you've got a fabulous cheek stain. And the light bouncing off the Vaseline glisten makes you look like you've just run a few miles. Just a tiny dab on your eyelids and voila...your eyes suddenly look brighter. You think I'm joking.

We frequented the local Starbucks where we Skyped with family, checked work email {like I can stay away}and loaded up on that good stuff that warmed up the bones just enough to gain feeling in my fingers and toes.

We went shopping for Christmas gifts and by shopping I mean "point out everything we want so that we can gather ideas for each other." I find this a much better solution than the old guessing game or in Ryan's case texting my sister. And I clearly wasn't a fan when he thought it would be funny to try to convince me that he bought my gift at Sam's the week before...gotta love that little rascal :)

So, I'm back in Atlanta now. Where its not that much warmer. Where the storm that blew in was so terrible, it flooded parts of I 285 {and if you're any bit familiar with ATL, you know this is a MAJOR road} and forced me to take the LONGEST route home in the pouring rain through the international district of this lovely city. Don't worry Mom and Dad, I actually used the old college degree when I went through the Mexican portion.

Christmas shopping is in full force with packages arriving daily and I am always on the hunt for that "perfect gift." No more waiting until December 23 with only a few dollars to spend. This year, I'm looking for things that are functional, affordable yet luxurious, unique and of course, exactly what the receiver has been wanting {although may not have known it until the moment they rip off the wrapping}.

Want to see a few of my picks for that Mr. Special in my life??

Here we go...

I know you're thinking, "Slim Jim's???" But the boy loves them. Every trip to the grocery, we have the tradition of buying the mini four pack. He eats 3 and I get one. I always fight for a bite of the third one, but usually lose. So this year, he's getting a BIG box from Sam's. Beef Jerky...the way to my man's heart.
Ryan has a thing about shaving. He claims that it is "stupid." But I honestly think its because its a hassell to him. However, I know how to convince him to do something he has zero desire to do...Make it fun!! Ummmm, how awesome is this?? In Lenox Mall, there is a fabulous little shop that will actually give you the old fashioned shave in the old chair and of course you can buy your own kit. I think this is just AWESOME!!
"One day, I'm going to buy myself one heck of a knife collection." That's what he said the MOMENT we walked into Williams Sonoma {cutely pronounced as "Williams Somona" by the big ole "five year old"}. Personally, I'ld prefer he save the $2000 that this set will set him back for a nice little down payment on a sparkler. I'm just saying...
What man doesn't love a grill? I've yet to meet one who doesn't gravitate towards them. In fact, at dinner the other night, my brother waxed poetically about all the consumer reports he's been reading about Weber's and how something will rot in it causing food to taste rotten. While that may be true, it isn't stopping him from loving the art of the grill. Give a man a grill and a bunch of grill tools and he will instantly be happy. I know this to be true, especially one that has an added gadget...a stereo system. HEY TAILGATING HEAVEN!!
I believe that every man needs a well thought out bar. And once a man leaves college, he needs glassware that doesn't have beer or liquor logos. Is this not perfection? Whatever, I like them. And it is never too early to start a collection.

The wallet is the man's version of Louis Vuitton. It is quite prized and never leads his side. So functionality combined with aesthetics makes this J.Crew wallet the absolute perfect solution to the quest for the perfect sidekick.
If the man in your life is anything like mine, he has a major obsession with Sperry's. He loves the comfort and could care less about the style. So when it comes time to put on a loafer that isn't meant to be worn on a boat, these would be the perfect solution. And an added bonus, no fights about "those look like something a pretty boy would wear." Simply tell him, "honey these are Sperry's" and you win!

Every man needs a stylish jacket in his closet. This is actually quite a task to find one that is stylish but that he actually will agree to. I love this one. You can thank Jenna Lyons at J.Crew for thinking this through. Thank you Jenna for ALL that you do!

And if I REALLY feel like pushing my luck, these suckers make for a VERY stylish man. Guaranteed that he will turn his nose up to them for at least 2 weeks, but I am 100% positive I will show him that style is not simply for "pretty boys."

And last but not least, Ryan and I do a lot of traveling these days. In fact, we made a mile long list of all the places in this world that we want to travel to some day. If you've flown anytime recently, you know that it is in your best interest to not check luggage. So if you think things through for more than a split second, you'll see that taking a carry on suitcase paired with something like this is genius. Go ahead and pat yourself on packing smart and saving a good $70!

Lord, Help me!...

I'll be short and sweet {no worries a long post to come soon...hopefully more entertaining}. I'm out in Colorado in 20 degree weather. Where 20 degrees sounds warm to the locals. Where no amount of ugg boot/scarf/hundreds of layers/gloves/ear muffs/etc. combo makes you feel normal. Where it hurts to breathe because the air is so dry and thin and where my hair is static city. And though it sounds like I'm complaining, very from that actually. After a LOVELY thanksgiving dinner with friends in their new beautiful home, we're pulling the Rachel/Ryan usual and chilling at Starbucks right now. That makes for two days in a row. And now we're just in countdown mode for the holiest 4 hours of the year...IRON BOWL that is. I'm decked out in orange and blue and so is RY and Buffalo Wild Wings is calling our names. Until then, I've left it up to Ry to decide what we are to do and here was his request.
RY: "Let's just go to Target and Best Buy to look around. I've never gone shopping the day after Thanksgiving."
Rach: "Ok, what are you looking for?"
{Keep in mind, we are 80% done with Christmas shopping, big pat on the back}
RY: "Oh nothing, just wanted to look around."

LORD HELP ME!

You never wanted to know...

One of my REALLY good friends, Tiffany, recently posted about all the things you don't know about her that you probably never wanted to know. And it was just fabulous. I begged her to send me a list of questions to answer about myself I find it hard to come up with these random facts about myself. I remember at my college orientation {Camp War Eagle}, we were divided into groups of probably 15 people and one of the ice breakers was to tell something about yourself that nobody knows. Immediately my mind went BLANK. People were telling all kinds of cool random facts and I could come up with NOTHING. Well, I'm here to tell you that I have some weird quirks and random facts that most people don't know. And if you're bored enough, you'll suffer through this post.

So here goes.

1. I've NEVER trick or treated. Yes. I said that. A lot of my friends know this, but I do believe that this is one of those facts that wow the crowds when these icebreaker activities happen. So, the story is that my mother doesn't believe in Halloween for religious reasons. Growing up, I didn't understand it one bit. Every year, my siblings and I would BEG her to allow us to make that year the exception, but she never budged. I have to say that I'm quite impressed that she stuck to her guns because we were relentless. So no, I've never dressed up as a princess and rang a neighbor's door and held out the plastic pumpkin to be filled with candy. In fact, when the day comes that I take my children trick or treating, I will have NO clue what to do. Not that it is complicated, but still. I will let my kids participate, but I will never allow them to dress as devils, witches, ghosts, vampires or anything else "evil" like that.

2. I'm obsessed with handwriting. I have several fonts I alternate between. When I was in second grade, my Grandmomma and I pulled out the Encyclopedia and literally practiced cursive for hours. She is just that awesome. Its probably one of my sweetest memories with her. I receive compliments all the time on my handwriting now,except from my mom {who claims its hard to read, but we agree to disagree}.

3. I'm a major creature of habit. I have routines like no other. I guess its the OCD coming out, but I do them to make life easier. I don't ever wonder at 2pm if my back door is locked. I KNOW its locked.

4. I'm constantly imagining new things for decorating my house. Constantly.

5. I am a magazine freak. LOVE them. I read them once and then display them. Weird, I know.

6. I'm a romantic sap at heart. I'm pretty sure that every boy I've ever had a crush on, I've at some point imagined being married to him and what life would be like as his wife. However, I can honestly say that I've only done the 4th grade write out your "future name" with his last name with two boys. I take that seriously. And the other day, I heard a co-worker on the phone with a client whose name is Rachel Nelson. I got VERY weirded out when I immediately responded.

7. Speaking of names, I've had my future kids' names picked out for years. If you know me at all you already know what they are. However, one has changed in the past few months. Maybe in a few years, you'll see what I've claimed. And for any of you gals who take one of these reserved names, I'll hunt you down. Just kidding {a smidge}. In fact, an old friend somewhat ripped off one of the names. And lets just say we are NOT friends anymore. You know who you are :). Its silly, but whatever.

8. I have a major obsession with nail polish. In high school, there were 3 classmates who had the most gorgeous nails. I was so incredibly jealous. Since then, I've always worked to keep my nails looking just like theirs. To this day, whenever I see them, that is the FIRST thing I look at. And no, I will not admit to who these girls are.

9. I secretly want my own reality show just so I can watch all the little odd things I do that I have no idea I do. You never know that you have have a staring problem until someone points it out. What better way to discover this than have cameras documenting your life?

10. I am terrified of the noise that dirt bikes and four wheelers make. But only if I'm in the woods. I grew up in a neighborhood that had a huge field behind our house. And by field, I mean woods. Without fail, if I heard a dirt bike off in the distance, I would have a panic attack. Still to this day, if you were to put me in the woods and monitor my heart rate when a dirt bike is close by, it would be off the charts. This is also my recurring nightmare, that someone is coming after me on a motorcycle. Ironically, I REALLY want to do a weekend Harley ride. Strange, I know.

11. I despise instructions. Anything that requires me to follow step after step...I'm not a fan. Recipes, furniture assembly, sewing...you name it, I hate them.

12. I only wash my hair 2 or 3 times a week. You think gross, my hairdresser tells me this is perfect to keep my hair healthy and shining.

13. The sight of a snake makes me nauseous. In high school, I was out with friends when we came across a dead 6 foot snake. My friend Sara stopped the car, got out, and put the snake in a garbage bag where we proceeded to track down our Environmental Science teacher in the grocery store and insisted on showing her. I was terrified the whole time. Snakes make me sick.

14. I secretly want to play super market sweep. I also want to scream when its silent in church. Just a few things on my bucket list. :)

15. I drive like a grandma. And I have the accident history to prove it. ZERO that were my fault!!

There you have it. If you survived reading that without falling asleep or drooling, let me know and I'll send you a gift in the mail :)

Folded Catalog Pages...

In keeping with the Christmas wish list theme, have a sneak peek of the things I've got folded on my J.Crew catalog.

I'm always looking for a multi-purpose bag. One that I can take to the grocery, tag along with me for a fun night out and also function as one of my carry ons for all the traveling I do. I do believe that this is just the perfect option!!

As you know, I'm a jewelry freak. I love it all. And what I really love is laying different looks. This bracelet is rough and simple. Perfect to be paired with something like this...

This just looks like it came from a grandmother's collection. I think it is pretty enough to be worn alone with your favorite LBD {think Christmas cocktail parties that are quickly approaching} and versatile enough to be paired with the leather bracelet pictured above.

But for you ladies who don't feel brave enough for that, there are still options for you. If you're the Yurman clad type, this would look SO amazing paired with a stack of yurmans!!

This fall I've organized my size challenged closet to have enough room for my growing cardigan collection. However, I've quickly noticed that I could use a few that more with some za za zu. Wouldn't this just be the perfect one to add??

Because jeans, t-shirts and fleece jackets don't cut it here in Atlanta, I need a few stylish yet comfortable pieces for the weekend trips to Kroger and Trader Joes.

Christmas List...

I decided to spend the weekend at home this weekend. We spent the morning visiting my Grandmomma {who is beyond precious} and now I'm on the edge of my seat watching my Tigers.

In the car, my mom kept probing me for Christmas gift ideas. And while I don't have anything major that I want, I CAN tell you this. I would like to see any of these under the tree.

I've wanted this book for YEARS. This was sold in the boutique I worked in during college. I would read through it all the time. I WILL have this on my coffee table one day.

I hope she doesn't read this, but Ryan's sister Heidi will be receiving this for Christmas. We always joke on the guys for thinking that a meal can consist of meat, meat and more meat. In fact, one time we allowed them to make the meal without our intervention. There were three types of meat and several sauces. When we asked where the sides are, we were told that we "don't need them."

Men.

I've been told this book is everything I would imagine it to be. I REALLY want this!!

Enter Heaven on a stick. Literally.

A few weeks ago, a co-worker of time brought some of these in for someone's birthday.

Just take my word for it. These are hands down the yummiest thing you will EVER eat.

Auburn Recap...

I promised pictures so here they are. They may be late, but here we go.

A few weeks ago, we had a FABULOUS weekend visit to Auburn. I'm pretty sure I haven't been this happy in a while!

Sassy and her bff, Gracen came to our tailgate.

Here we have a convert at Toomer's Corner. When I informed him that I'm buying season tickets next year, he was quite excited!!

Tailgating with my old college roomates. Heidi works at Under Armour, so we scored some AWESOME parking spots for our tailgate...please notice the stadium directly behind us!

And the caption for this would be funny. Evyan and I were in Sky Bar looking around at all the young ones going wild. And then we both realized that we had on cardigans. How does that happen? We were out at THE "it bar" dressed like Grandmas! And we called it a night at 12pm. I threw the towel in first and everyone followed immediately.

More to come this weekend. I have several ideas of things to post. HAPPY FRIDAY!!