Your help is needed!

I've had this pinned to my "Funny" board on pinterest forever! I'm a cat person so I can't help but love this & thought I'd give yall a little laugh this morning! 

On another note, I have an announcement! I'm planning on doing my first giveaway as soon as I reach 100 followers! I'm so excited! Yall have welcomed me back SO  greatly and I really just want to show yall some appreciation! I'm not positive on what I will give away yet, but I do know it will be something from my OWN art/DIY collection! So be looking for that soon hopefully!

On ANOTHER note, I think I have decided to give my blog a little makeover. I don't want anything drastic, I still love my simple look, but it needs a little more! The thing is, I'm not very good at doing the WHOLE site! I know there are many of you out there that offer these services for payment. I unfortunately cannot go this route right now (being in between jobs). So if any of you lovely people would like to help me out or give me a "how to" lesson, I would just LOVE you! I may even feature you on a post and my new upcoming side bar! 

Have a wonderful Wednesday! 

Meet my maids!

This is what I sent my bridesmaids to ask them to be a part of my wedding! I ordered them from Lori at her etsy shop Heartworks by Lori! She was really quick and they turned out exactly like I wanted! I absolutely LOVE lockets and wanted something really simple and versatile for the different girls and these were perfect!   Now time to meet my leading ladies!

EMILY! 

As you can see, Emily has been a part of my life FOREVER! We've been friends since we were 3 years old! We've literally been planning our weddings our whole lives. We went off to different colleges, she lived in LONDON (which I went to visit), now she just moved to New Hampshire to go to grad school! Despite our distance we are still as close as you can be! She is an amazing person, SO smart & I admire her so much! I'll be honored to have her standing with me! 

LAYNA!

Layna has been my bestie since middle school! Apparently we MET in elementary school, but she was scared of me? Side note: She says I wore a red leather jacket (keep the jokes to yourself) and looked intimidating, ha! She has always been my partner in crime! We went to New York together in middle school, walked around time square singing "Save a Horse Ride a Cowboy" (because they talk about Broadway?) acting like we owned the place. That was before a pigeon pooped on me at least. We always have fun together and she is going to hold me together on my wedding day! 

KELSEY!

Kelsey has been around just as long as Emily! The above picture is from high school drill team days! We both grew up dancing and were both leaders of our team in high school. Kelsey is an AMAZING woman! She is married and has a beautiful little boy! She will definitely be my rock to hold onto when I'm FREAKING out during the planning process! She has always been wise beyond her years and has always been willing to listen & help me with my crazy problems! Love this girl and can't WAIT for her to hold my hand!

WHITNEY!

Whitney has been SUCH a blessing in my life! I met her a couple years ago through my sorority, Sigma Alpha. I have no idea how it happened but we immediately hit it off! Before I moved back home a few months ago, we were inseparable! I would not have had an easy time in college if it wasn't for this girl! She held me together! I feel like I've known her WAY longer then just a couple years! We have some distance between us now but we are already doing frequent visits! Another exciting note about her...

She's engaged too! She got engaged 4 days before me! Her wedding won't be until June or July but we are already having SO much fun planning together!

Now you may have noticed I didn't name a maid of honor. This is because I do not have one! I made this decision because honestly I just could not pick! I love all of these girls so much and they all are important to me in different ways! I trust them all to help me in whatever way I ask of them. Some people may not agree with my decision to not include a maid of honor, but I am completely confident in my decision! Did anyone else make this decision? If you are ABOUT to have to make this decision, don't feel pressured to HAVE to pick a maid of honor! As long as you are comfortable splitting up the responsibilities between your girls then don't worry about picking one!    

Glance into my wedding

I've already announced this, but I'll say it again.. I'M ENGAGED!! We already have a venue, photographer and date. The date is April 20, 2013! So I hopefully have plenty of time to plan and save! My next order of business WILL be my dress, but that will probably be the hardest part for me! But for now, I wanted to give yall a glimpse into my Pinterest wedding board! Heres some of my inspiration for my wedding! It will be a combo of a couple styles, so I've awkwardly named it "vintage woodsy chic". Strange yes, but will work great for me! 

I LOVE the texture of this cake! 

I'm already saving jars!

I want to rent vintage dinnerware

Will for sure do this!

Love the book centerpiece!

Easy and cute!

My colors! Plus brown!

Great picture background!

Hanging jars.. yes! 

FAV mascara review

Today I will do my first EVER makeup review on my blog! To be honest, I am NOT the biggest fan of makeup! I wear powder, eyeliner, mascara and maybe on a good day a smudge of eye shadow just on the corner of my eye. I just don't really like the feeling of it! As some of you know, I used to be a dancer in high school, so I had to CAKE it on then. So maybe that turned me off? Who knows! ANYWAYS, this is about my currently FAVORITE mascara! I'm going to show you 2 different kinds, a cheap option and a more pricey. I'm including pictures of my own lashes with ONLY mascara on! No eyeliner or anything else so yall can really see what the mascara can do. I also did not use a curler! So without further ado..

 Maybelline Volum' Express The Falsies Flared

 

You can get this at Ulta for $6.99! I own this version and the waterproof. It has a curved brush so it helps curl your lashes without using a curler. I love the flared because it flares out your outer lashes, which def helps make your lashes look longer! I literally hardly have any lashes so I have to take what I can get! 

Maybelline 

It helps separate your lashes really well, but doesn't give a lot of boldness or volume. 

Benefit Cosmetics They're Real!

You can get this at Ulta for a whopping $23.00! Quite a difference yes! I feel like i should throw out there that I did not pay for it, it was a gift from my mother (the true makeup guru). I LOVE this mascara though! It really lengthens my lashes and makes them actually look full! My favorite thing about it though is that it truly does last all day! It doesn't even smudge! My lashes were clumpy before I put it on, so the picture isn't perfect. 

Benefits Cosmetics

I recommend both obviously! It really just depends on how much you are wanting to spend & really just what look you prefer! Have any of yall tried these? If so let me know what you think! 

Nephews are the best

So I am basically obsessed with my nephews. I have 3 nephews and they are the cutest things in the world! They used to live in all different places because my brother was in the Navy, but now they live in the same town as me! It's been so great being there for them! Here's a few adorable pictures of them because I just KNOW yall wanna see them! 

At the end of their school year this year they had a talent show! They wanted to do a dance in it and had me choreograph it. They picked the song and everything! The 2 oldest were in it, along with one of their friends. We only practiced a couple times, so they did AWESOME for that! I have to show them off, so here is a video! The two on right (your right) are my nephews!

Is anyone else obsessed with their nephews/nieces? Tell me about them! 

Me, Myself, and I LINK UP!

I'm joining Breanna from My Beautiful, Crazy Life with her new "Me, Myself, and I" Link up! Since I've been gone for a while I thought it'd be a great idea to do some of these to help yall get to know me again and for those new followers out there! 

Question #1) What is your biggest phobia?

I'd have to still say my answer is TORNADOES! I've said this as a little kid and still stick by it! I've never really been in one too close so its the fear of actually being in one that gets me. Yet one of my favorite movies is "Twister"? Oh well. 

Question #2) If you could relive any day of your life, what would it be and why?

A couple years ago in April, the day my grandfather died. I was 4 hours away when he got bad and got the surprising call from my mom, but she urged me to stay where I was because they weren't sure of anything yet. My whole family was there with him, but I wasn't. He ended up passing that night, which would have given me plenty of time to go there. Sorry for a depressing answer!

Question #3) If you could choose to stay a certain age forever, what would it be?

That is a really hard question! Honestly, I don't think I'd WANT to! Every age has its ups and downs. And you always want more no matter your age so you'd never be content if you stayed one age forever!

Question #4) Which celebrity do you get mistaken for?

No one. But I've gotten comments that I kindaa look like some. The main one is a NASCAR driver, Danica Patrick. 

Question #5) What songs are included on your soundtrack to life?

I'll have to get back to you on that! 

So much has happened!

This may be a long post but I'm going to try and make it short & sweet! A lot has happened guys in the past couple months! I did move back home which has been good! I've had a job then lost a job and am back out there looking. I unfortunately have had a lot of deaths in the family. But a lot of good things have happened too! My little brother graduated from high school in May and will be moving off to college this summer. 

He is going to be a longhorn at the University of Texas in Austin!

I rescued a dog last weekend! I saw it on the side of the road but drove away then came back 30 minutes later to see if it was still there and it was! So of course I had to get it and Ryan (the boy) and I spent the night with it in a tent in my backyard! Unfortunately we can't keep her though we want to, so I'm in the process of looking for a home for her! 

Then the last of my updates for now is a big one! Drumroll please.........

I'M ENGAGED! 

Ahh! So excited! It only happened about a month ago! We have already set a date though for April 20, 2013 and have secured our venue! I'm so so excited! 

There is the gorgeous ring! It is so perfect! It's off being sized right now which is so depressing. I won't get it back until the END of July! Oh well, right!?

This is how Ryan proposed. He had me over for dinner at his apartment with flowers, tablecloth, fancy food, the whole bit! At the end he brought out a "gift" that had these scrapbook pages in it. I saw the green one first "Why I Love you" and just loved it! Underneath it was the White "Will you Marry Me" sheet! He made both of these, even putting the little touches like the lace around the edges! It was really cute because on our 1 year anniversary (so long ago!) he made me an actual scrapbook then left the last page blank for ADDITIONAL pages! So this was absolutely perfect! 

Liebster Award!

Wow guys! It has been too long! So much as been going on in my life since February, it's just been kinda crazy! I have thought about coming back many many times but just didn't do it. THEN I got an email with a comment from Sarah over at A Buckeye in Badgerland with a nomination for the Liebster award! I have been gone for months yet she still thought of me as one of her 11 nominees! I was so touched! Thank you Sarah because you just brought my blog back to life! So here is my post for the award & yall really need to go check out Sarah's blog! I've been a follower of her for a long time and really enjoy her blog! 

"The Liebster Blog Award is given to upcoming bloggers who have less than 200 followers. The Meaning; Liebster is German and means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing and welcome."

 

Here are the rules:  
1. Each person must post 11 things about themselves.
2. Answer the questions the tagger has set for you plus create 11 questions for the people you've tagged to answer.
3. Choose 11 people and link them in your post.
4. Go to their page and tell them.
5. Remember, no tag backs!

MY 11 FACTS:

1. My cats are my children. 

2. On that same note, I have a magnet on the back of my car that says "I <3 my cat". Yes, really.

3. I have a soft spot for all animals.

4. I will order the same thing at a restaurant for months then switch to something else. 

5. My favorite flower is a sunflower but I hate cutting them to put in vases.

6. I've had the same car since I was 16, now 22. Black Jeep Liberty.

7. I love drawing and painting but will go months without doing it because of lack of inspiration.

8. I love reading! Suspense is probably my favorite.

  

9. I danced for 15 years and miss it!

10. I drink sweet tea on a daily basis. 

11. I taught myself to type using a Timon & Pumba typing game on my grandparents ancient computer.

ANSWERS TO SARAH'S QUESTIONS:

1. What TV show do you never miss? Vampire Diaries. 

2. What piece of jewelry do you wear every day? My ring with a copper heart on it. I got myself and my mom matching ones after she had heart surgery.

3. Do you call all facial tissues Kleenex? I actually do not! They are all tissue. 

4. What book would you recommend for my summer reading list? "Juliet" by Anne Fortier 

 5. What's one thing you do but you feel you're too old for? Play with my food, guilty! 

6. What's one thing you do but feel you're too young for? I'll always hate paying bills! 

7. How do you like your eggs? I don't really eat them but if I DO I prefer scrambed with cheese.

8. Which of your Pinterest boards has the most pins? Wedding Board! 

9. What current fashion/beauty trend do you hate? Jumpers because theres no way I can pull them off. 

10. What's your favorite holiday tradition? Decorating for Halloween! 

11. What's your favorite dessert? Chocolate covered strawberries! 

My questions:

1. What book are you currently reading?

2. What is your all time favorite book?

3. What is your all time favorite movie?

4. Do you take vitamins regularly?

5. What is your favorite flower?

6. What is your favorite way to work out?

7. How many animals do you own if any?

8. Are you a night owl or early bird?

9. Why do you blog?

10. What is your favorite make up brand?

11. What is your favorite season?

The 11 Recipients: 

Cassie @ Candidly Cassie

Danille @ d.landy

Alyssa @ Happiness & Hydrangeas

Laynah @ Laynah's Corner

Anna @ Life is Sweet*

Sarah @ Peace, Love, & Sweet Tea

Maddie @ spark.

The Good Girl

Candace @ Together for the better

Helen @ With a Little Sparkle & Shine

Now yall have fun and please check back because I'm back! Thanks again Sarah!