Let me paint you a picture. It was July 3rd, 2012. I was quickly fishing through my junk folder in my email looking for a message from a friend that never showed up. I decided at this point to multi-task and to delete as I went. Along the way I came across a subject line that was inviting me to the Grammy Awards. 

After picking my jaw up off the floor I started to worry. Was this a scam? We all know how the internet and email is full of phishing scams these day. You always have to be cautious. It was late and the next day was a holiday so I had to wait to call and see if this was legit. In the meantime I called my cousin to invite her to be my guest, cause naturally this was gonna be legit right? She agreed but also had the same worry as me.

The 5th finally came around and I called the number. Not only was it legit, the lady couldn't believe I actually called. Apparently most people just assume its a scam and lose the trip. So fast forward to February 2013. We were being picked up by a car service and whisked away to the airport to catch our flight (Which we almost missed..) to Los Angeles to attend the 55th Annual Grammy Awards.

Now being we are in full award season now and the Grammy's are on Sunday, I figured I would share my experience in pictures. My dream come true. I hope you enjoy!

That's right, we got the water in the car service. Jealous? lol

It was pretty rainy while we were in LA. Wasn't used to this because I don't think it ever rained any other time I was in L.A!

The Red Carpet the night before the Grammys. Look's so fancy!

<3

We were smack dab in the middle of L.A. Live. We stayed at that JW Marriott pictured.

Did I mention it had a roof top pool?

The night before. We so fancy.

This is what Grammy tickets look like.

I clean up good. Yes?

This is what the Grammy's look like straight from the nose bleed section folks!

They had all these pretty lights. The theme idea was stolen from the folk who sing Ho Hey.

After Party! Sorry for the crappy picture- No cameras allowed but I had my cell.

It was bali themed. So cool!

 So there you have it. My Grammy experience! I hope you enjoyed it. Don't forget to tune in on Sunday!

Well friends, the first month of 2015 has already passed and as we transition into a new month, it's time to look at what we accomplished in January. Whether you had a new years resolution or a set of goals you set for the new year, now is a good time to reflect on if you are really going to follow through. For me, I set in motion a year long happiness project in which I am working on becoming the best person I can be. I chose a word for the year and that is Rejuvenate. I spoke about my happiness project goals back in the beginning of January and I think I am off to a great start.


My most viewed post for January was: How to Order Eyeglasses Online

January was all about R & R (Re-focus and Relaxation). I feel pretty good about what I accomplished. I could always do better, but the couple of things I did do, really made this months goal feel like a win. Lets see what I accomplished:

#1 Working with a counselor to manage stress: This is one of the best things I could of done for myself. I was drowning in my own stress mess and had no idea how to get out. My health was on the downward spiral and I was all together feeling miserable. Talking to a third party who has no idea what your life is like is really nice. There is no judgement or harmful criticism to make you feel worse about your situation. You should never feel like this is a bad option. Never feel embarrassed to ask for help.

#2 Signing up for a class: This is something I have been wanting to do since I moved to my new city (3 years ago). I dragged my feet for so long. Finally I saw an ad for a stress relief yoga class being offered locally. It was being offered for 10 people only and something inside of me screamed this was the class I needed to take. Sitting on a plane coming home from Nashville, I sent the email. I was the tenth applicant!

#3 Yoga: I have officially attended 3 yoga classes in the stress relief series. I have learned so much about myself in the 3 weeks I have attended. I am learning to use my breath and clear my mind when things gets overbearing. I am getting a little more comfortable about looking at myself in the mirror and liking what I see. My core is getting a workout and that makes me smile. I love feeling the muscles I forgot I had. It also inspired me to write a beginners guide to yoga by the beginner. I hope you check it out.

#4 Baths: I was given a gift of homemade bath tea for Christmas. I forgot how nice it is to relax in a bath full of relaxing herbs. Epsom salts and herbs were my savior on cold nights when my muscles aches and my mind raced. Being able to fully relax all aspects of my body was very fulfilling. I slept better a night and woke up more rested. Win/Win. Expect a how to on making your own herbal bath teas coming up in February!

#5 Reading: I have been reading my little heart out since November. I strived to finish up my winter reading challenge, but I didn't complete it. I do not consider this a fail though because I have read more books in the past 3 months then I have in a few years. It has also inspired me to use the library and my kindle more often. Coming up in March I am planning an e-reader reading challenge. I hope you join! It will be lots of fun!

I really think January was a great start to my goals for the year. I feel like I am on a good track! Now let's talk about February. I am dedicating February to Friendship and Fitness. The reason I am picking those 2 topics is February is American Heart Month as well as the month of Valentines. I think starting here after working on relaxing would be a great time to focus on my health and relationships. I will continue to layer what I learned in January into my February goals.

The goals I want to set are as follows:

#1800 Minute Challenge: I have decided to participate in this challenge that Erin over at Living in Yellow is hosting. I missed it last year and this year it fits perfectly into my plans. It runs from February 1st through March 31st. This is a great opportunity to bring my yoga practice into this months goals.

Eat better: I am participating in a Biggest Loser competition at work starting today and running through April 24th.  Between this and the 1800 Minute challenge I have a lot of motivation to get healthy this month as well as getting myself into the gym!

Make 2 new friends: This is a tough one for me, but it needs to get gone. Meeting friends as an adult it totally like courting someone to date. I am going to try to ask at least 2 new people out for coffee or something that interests us both.

Rekindle Friendships: I have a lot of long distance friendships. Sometimes just like long distance relationships, friendships also need rekindling. I am going to reach out to some of my close friends and get that magic back. Life is hard and busy but it gets easier to have the ones we love there with us.

Read 3 Books: This one doesn't fit in with the rest but I am going to try to meet a book goal each month to keep me reading!

So there we are. My 5 goals this month. They are all pretty big ones. I hope to get them accomplished!

We made it! It's Friday... And.. I have nothing prepared today for my post. So I got an idea as I was waking up this morning and ran with it. My High Five For Friday post will consist of 5 up and coming things on the blog. I have been brainstorming some new fresh ideas and I am excited to hear your opinions on them.

#1 I am planning an e-book reading challenge starting in March. The basic idea of this is to pick your books from all of the downloaded books you have already on your e-reader. I know I can't be the only one who hoards books! More about that as it gets closer, but I'd like to know if anyone has interest in this :)

#2 I have been seriously thinking about offering some sponsor options on my blog. It won't be anything big right away. Baby steps. I am still not 100% sure I can commit to having a bunch of sidebar spots, but I think I can certainly handle a weekend spot where I can promote all week for your weekend post. I think it's a good place to start. What do you all think?

#3 Me and Sarah over at Silly Incantations have been talking about teaming up and starting a wellness link up on Thursdays. It will be a place where you can link up what you are doing each week to get yourself motivated to make better choices for your wellness and fitness. I hope you will all come link up with us once we are up and running! More info to come as we get settled in!

#4 Speaking about teaming up, I am always happy to team up with peeps who want to start something. I have a lot of great ideas I would love to share with others to help bring some great content and fun to our blogs. If you ever want to team up please drop me an email.

#5 I have just recently started using Pinterest with my blog. I am still getting used to posting my pins to my own boards. I would love you forever if you would check me out from time to time and help me figure out this Pinterest journey!

So there ya have it! Lots of fun stuff coming up on the blog in the next few weeks!

Now that we are coming down from the wave of engagement proposals, we are crashing down into wedding planning season. Everyone seems to know one somebody who got engaged during the holidays, or maybe it was you. Brides to be are now working in overdrive to read every tip, blog, and magazine that mentions the word 'wedding'.

As you comb through articles on wedding themes, wedding colors, wedding flowers, wedding dresses, and wedding tips, in order to achieve your dream wedding, we often forget one small detail: wedding guests. When I say guests I also include your wedding party in this category. They are not only representing you and your partner, they are also putting in time and money before hand to make sure your day is perfect as guests.

Now don't get me wrong, this day IS and SHOULD be about you and your partner, but you also want to make sure your wedding guests have a good time too. I know you can't make every single person happy, but from my own experience of all the weddings I have gone to in the past 5 years (always a bridesmaid. never a bride.. lol), I have learned some pretty valuable lessons for planning my own wedding one day.

• Location: We all want our wedding days to be magical. We often dream of tropical islands with beach backdrops. This is all fine and dandy if your are planning a small intimate wedding with a few close friends and family. And when I say a few I mean under 10. Most people cannot afford to fly to an exotic location for a weekend to watch you get married. I don't say this to be mean or shatter your dreams, but lets be realistic. Choose a location that is easily traveled to and will not cost your guests an arm and a leg.

• Favors: This day in age we know a lot of people who are not living local to us or where our wedding is going to be. Traditionally weddings happen in the brides hometown, and today most of us do not still live in our hometown. Many guests may be flying to get to you. Think smart when planning favors for everyone. Liquids, jams, and anything over 4 ounces that may be suspicious to a TSA agent at the airport should be crossed off your favor list stat. I take this tip to heart when I packed away some jam that was given me as a gift, not even thinking and was pulled aside and searched at the airport. No fun!

• Intentions: When getting married, we are left with the duty of choosing our wedding party. This can sometimes be very daunting because we can't pick everyone. Do not invite the people who did not make your bridal party list to participate in the bridal games so to say. A friend and I had this happen. We got invited to do all of the pre-wedding events (ie: mani/pedi's, bridal brunch, ect) yet were left to clean up all of the messes and handle last minute issues. In theory it sounded like a good idea. In reality we were really upset we got stuck with all the problems when we had planned to come and celebrate her wedding. Not be her runner.

• Children: This is a biggie. If you are NOT planning to have children at your wedding, you MUST make it clear. Never assume your guests understand they should not bring little Johnny to the reception. If you feel like this will be an issue you may either want to call the guests with the children to let them know personally or plan to offer a childcare option for anyone who cannot leave their kids at home. This is a sensitive subject but it is your party and at the end of the day this is your decision.

Now I am sure there are loads more things that I am missing, but these are some biggies. You don't ever want to make it difficult for your guests to make it to your wedding. You never want them to get searched at the airport. Never make your guests into your slave for the day. And certainly never make someone feel bad about having kids. These are all things you can easily fix by thinking ahead. Think ahead and your wedding will be great for everyone involved. 

I am wishing you a a successful journey on all things wedding planning. I hope some of these tips have helped you workout something you haven't even thought about yet.

Do you have any tips you would like to add? Anything happen to you as a guest?

It's no secret that I am not a fan of Winter. I would be happy if we only had 3 seasons a year. If I really had it my way It would be Summer and Fall. My two favorite times of the year. Although one thing that does get me excited about winter is all the hot tea I consume and all the hearty meals I am making. The things I can live without is my flyaway hairs on my head, dry skin, and products that make the dry skin worse.


Influenster must of been eavesdropping on my thoughts because when I received my Frosty VoxBox it was packed with things to ease the cold punch of winter. You may remember seeing these items on my VoxBox unboxing video. Today I want to talk about all of the products and give them my ratings!


Ecotools Sleek + Shine Finish Brush: This excited me because I really needed a new brush. Mine was a few years old (Oh my god the horror!) and was really starting to fall apart. The bristles on the Ecotool's brush are super soft and non-damaging. I can brush my hair and not have a ton of breakage and it looks nice and shiny when I'm done.  Score: A+

Fruit Vines: These babies were so good they didn't make it past the first day! I am a big vines fan to begin with and having them in bite size pieces is really dangerous. That bag didn't have a chance with me! If you are a fan of the vines you will be a fan of these. Same product, smaller size. Score: A


Rimmel London Just Let It Go: I am not sure how I feel about the name of this because honestly Frozen is EVERYWHERE these days and I am kind of tired of it. #sorrynotsorry. As for the product itself it is pretty great. It is gentle on my skin. It takes off the makeup, especially the dark eye liner.. Speaking of eye liner:

Rimmell London Scandal Eyes Kohl Kajal in Black: I really liked the consistency of this eyeliner. It went on smooth and seemed to hold up all day (and night, racoon eyes ya'll?). But I am also very fond of black eyeliners so it's hard for me to find one I don't like. The combined score for both of these is a B+ (Only because the remover was called "Let It Go..")

Happy Saturday friends! It has been a week since I got back from my mystery birthday bucket list cross off. Man say that sentence 10 times fast! As you can read in the title of this blog, I was in NASHVILLE, TN. Me and my other half boarded a plane at 5:30am and were wisked away to Louisville, KY. Yeah you read that right. The good new is, we were supposed to land here. The bad new; IT WAS COLD AS HECK! I thought we were supposed to be in the south, or at least more south then New York.

We proceeded to rent a car and head on our way. Fun facts on why we flew into Kentucky: A. It was butt loads cheaper B. We have a work location in Louisville and I have family there; so we got to visit peeps we knew and C. Nashville is only 2.5 hours away. We stopped in and visited our Kentucky co-workers and headed to Nashville.

Now I have never been to Nashville, so I wasn't 100% sure on what to expect. On first impression I thought it was SUPER tiny. I didn't realize how small the city is. It was really easy to navigate even with all of the road closures do to construction and that night's big NYE bash. Our hotel was located only 2 blocks from Broadway where all the festivities were. Gold star for the other half! We checked in and got these fun festive cake pops and "Happy New Years" necklaces. I was going to sport these babies ALL NIGHT LONG. Yes I am a teenage girl in a 32 year old's body.


 We got all settled in and went out to see what this city and it's party was all about. I will tell you, it did not disappoint.

It's finally here! My birthday! (Or New Years Eve if you celebrate that...) A couple of posts ago I told you all about the top 10 reasons having a December birthday sucks, so today I want to move on to something I have adopted to make my birthday more fun. A bucket list. I made the decision a few years ago to try and visit some of the top places to celebrate ringing in the new year. Even more fun is I am celebrating today in one of these cities listed. Can you guess which one? It was a birthday gift to me from my other half and I am going to keep it a secret a little longer. (Hint: Follow me on Instagram to see some clues of where I am!)

/*/ New York City- Checked off in 2006 into 2007!

/*/ Disney World - Made it here for Christmas in 2008 but never New Years!

/*/ Vegas! - Made it here for the summer of 2005 but never New Years!

/*/ New Orleans

/*/ Nashville

/*/ London

/*/ Australia

/*/ Singapore


So I still have quite a bucket lists of places to get, but no matter what it is, my birthday is always anything but ordinary! I always celebrate with friends and in style :)




Happy New Years everyone! I hope it is a good one! Stay safe and have fun! See you in 2015!!

Happy Thursday everyone! We are almost o the weekend and there's no better way to celebrate than to be highlighted over at The Grits Blog! I have been having a blast hanging out on her sidebar for the past month! Ashley is such a sweetheart and you should all hop on over to check out my answers to her fun questions and look around! She has such a fun blog with lots of topics!

I hope the rest of you week flies by! Make it a good day folks!

I have always thought of myself as a crafty do it your-selfer. I can navigate myself through the craft stores like its nobodies business and if there is a sale on sparkly things, its all over! Once Pinterest was born, it became even more evident that I could make stuff and have it come out well. There have been numerous projects I have taken on and surprisingly succeeded at. No Pinterest fails yet...

So over the weekend I decided to get all my crafting stuff out. We are only a few days into August and I am already starting to think about Christmas presents. Yes I said the "C' word. I craft my way right through the holidays using my ninja crafting skills. Homemade gifts to me are more personal and tend to get more use. I find it more successful to make something for my friends and family rather than trying to pester them into telling me what they really want.


This year I wanted to get started early because I have SO many great ideas. I need to plan out my ideas in order to get them all done in time for the holidays. Homemade gifts can sometimes take some time, but that's the magic of the gift. Seeing the person fall in love with something you made for them. Something you put your time and energy into just for them. If that is not a gift, I don't know what is.

Everyone has a skill. Whether you realize it or not, you probably can do something that your friends can't. Use this to your advantage when thinking about gifts. Just in case you can't think of something right off the bat, here are so ideas for gifts using different skills..

*Are you crafty? I'm sure you own some scrap booking paper and modge podge. Use these items to make coasters! There are so many variations to them online. Find one you like and get to it!

*Do you like to bake?: Who doesn't like food around the holidays? Whether you decided to bake cookies or throw together one of those cute little jars with all the ingredients, its sure to be a hit with everyone on your list.

*Are you an artist?: Do you paint or draw? You could always frame some of your prints and give them as gifts. People love art, but a lot of time won't spend the money on it. Pay attention to your friends when you show them your latest master piece. They may be hinting they want something for their living room. Instant gift idea!

*Do you like to take photos? Same concept from above. People love stuff with great images, but not everyone  has the eye for a really great shot. Use your photos to make personalized gifts.

*Can you knit or crochet? Make scarves!  These a great gifts for the holidays and people love them! You can personalize these into colors you know the recipients will love.

 Now those are just a few ideas. There are so many options. Search Pinterest and you will have more ideas than you have time for. Spend some time looking and planning and you will have yourself some great homemade gifts come Christmas time!

I normally don't do a wrap up of my weekend, but because I crossed off so many things on my "vacation in my city" bucket list, I needed to talk about them! Friday was also exceptionally wonderful. I also normally do not post on Tuesday's but I really wanted to do this amazing link up yesterday, so I had to move this over to today. Lots of exciting things going on all around!

First things first. Remember when I posted that internal interview post back in early July? (If ya don't click on the link silly!) On Friday I got official word that I GOT THE JOB! Ahhh! This is wonderful news because I needed a raise like nobodies business and I can do my current job in my sleep. I don't have an official start date yet but I am thinking by mid August I should be taking on my new duties. I am so excited! Okay now onto my bucket list cross offs as promised...

On Saturday was the first day of the Route 90 50 miles yard sale. I have never been and it is a yearly local event that happens on the last weekend of July.  This yard sale started back in 1988 and has grown along the scenic byway or Route 90 in central NY.  It now hosts up to 500 sales making it a fun day event where you can score some great deals. You can also come across some interesting things. I wish I took more photos of some of the stuff I saw. Next time! The road was packed with people and cars so you really need to pay attention to where you are going. I was only able to spend about an hour on the route, but I scored some awesome pasta bowls for only $0.75! Can't beat that deal!


After braving the crowds of the yard sales, we went home and relaxed before heading out to play number 3 (Number 2 for the weekend). We decided on the last night of the showing of Hamlet. Another Shakespeare goodie! If you are ever in the Finger Lakes area in the summer look in on the Cornell outdoor plays. They are cheap (Only $10) and are very well done. You bring your own chairs (or make it a picnic and bring blankets), food, and beverages. It is a night of fun, food, and entertainment outside.

Sunday was a sleep-in kind of morning. I rolled out of bed at 9am and got ready to meet some friends for brunch! This ended up being another bucket list cross off because they took us to a lovely cafe/winery that we have never been to. We arrived to find a half hour wait before being seated. This was the best news because if you were there for brunch and had to wait, you get a complimentary wine tasting. We got to taste 6 wines and I fell in love with the haunting flavor of Apparition. This sucker was coming home with me one way or another. We headed on into brunch and the food was also amazing. What more can you ask for on a Sunday? Brunch AND wine? I'll take it! We had such a nice day. Great conversation with great people. Just what I needed. A relaxing day to ready me for another busy week!

All of these event I took part in this weekend have also created some new ideas for blog posts as well. This is why it is so important to live your life. It gives you things to write about. What do you do to keep your ideas flowing? Is the weekend your down time, or a time to cross off those bucket lists?

Make it great Tuesday everyone!

I decided it would be fun to link up with the Sunday Social with Neely and Ashley! Get to know me a little better by taking a look at my answers to the questions.. then answer them yourself!




 1. What was your college major? Did you ever change majors? I started with a Business Administration degree and ended up focusing on Marketing. I graduated with a Bachelors degree in Marketing.  I am also a certified Optician.

2. Best purchase you’ve made lately? It would honestly have to be the 3 bras I scored from the Maidenform flash $8.00 bra sale! You can't beat 3 bras for under the cost of what one would cost!

3. Something silly we don’t know about you and go… I love to make up words to songs on the radio as I am driving. I belt my little heart out with my new made up words. Yes people do stare sometimes. hehe.

4. Favorite Holiday? I am really starting to love Memorial Day. It represents so many things and you normally get really nice weather!

5. The first thing you do when you wake up? Turn off my alarm which leads to me checking social media since my alarm is my phone.  (Super bad habit by the way.. )

Happy Sunday All!!

Happy Monday! I hope your weekend went well. June is here and all things summer start lingering on the mind. I can't help it. Everywhere I go I smell wonderful bbq cooking, I see kids running around in the park, and I hear music being turned up while the windows are being put down. Its a great feeling. I had a wonderful first experience last Thursday where I attended the Ithaca Festival Parade. I have heard it is a really unique parade and one you have to see at least once in your life. Let me tell you, it didn't disappoint. The only way I could really capture the uniqueness of this parade was to take photos. I have picked out the more unique ones to show. I hope you enjoy and get a chance to visit this parade in the future!

Lots of people!

Stilts!

Ahh Fun stuff!

Horses

Mini car

Balloons

Make Fire!

Groovy truck!

Cupcakes!

Birth Control Man?

Lots of culture here

Now the one thing I have always heard about as a must see is the Ballerina Volvos. Yes there are no words for how unique this is, You really need to experience it in real life, but until you do here is an idea of what to expect!

Add caption

There you have it! The most unique parade I have ever been to! Have any of you been? Whats the wackiest parade you have ever attended?