I need another cup of coffee

It's Monday, y'all.  Blah.  Luckily, it's Thanksgiving week so it's a short week- whoop!

Yesterday, Adam and I scored some free last-minute tickets to see the Atlanta Falcons play and other than the two-mile walk to/from our car, we had a blast.  My awesome in-laws kept Aaron Mo all day so we could go, and it was some much-needed time away.  I am no football fan, nor have I ever claimed to be.  However, yesterday I was standing up screaming, jumping up and down, and high-fiving all the other fans around me like I was Falcons Fan Numero Uno.  It probably helped that I had three Bud Lights and a serious buzz.  I also didn't mind the fact that during breaks in the game they broke out some old school Luda, because hello?!  What's better than hearing "Move B--ch" after a touchdown?  Classic.  We ended the game by getting a funnel cake with powdered sugar AND chocolate syrup on top, which I'm positive blew my calories for the week.  It was absolutely worth it.

I think we all know what today is.  Walking Dead recap time.  Here goes:

• The person on the phone was really Rick's imagination.  No big surprise there.  I kinda figured in the end it would be "Lori" snapping Rick out of his funk and telling him to get his act together.  I think it's safe to say he's back....thoughts?
• I am officially a Michonne fan.....even though she's crazy.  As Hell.  She saved that box of formula (we all know how expensive that junk is!), and pretended to be a walker with zombie guts splashed all over her.  Impressive.
• Can I just say that as long as you don't piss Merle off he's your greatest ally?  When are these people gonna learn??
• The Gov'nah and Andrea got it on.  Shocker.  Single lady in a Zombie Apocalypse- what what!  
• Carol is not dead and Daryl saved her.  Again....shocker.  Are we seeing a parallel (yeah, I just said that) between the Lori/Carl mother/son relationship with Carol/Daryl?  I think Daryl thinks of Carol as a mother figure, especially with him telling Carl the story of his mother's death.  And again let's just put it out there: Daryl's hot.  End of story.

It's going to be interesting to see the Michonne/Rick dynamic.  Also, when Andrea was getting her booty call, and they heard that knock at the door, did y'all SO think that was The Governor's walker daughter?  Would that not have been hilarious??

Enjoy your Monday, folks!

~LL

Thankful

Over the past week, many people on Facebook and Twitter have been posting what they are thankful for each day.  Although I am not posting about my thankfulness daily, I thought I would post some things I am thankful for today and every day.

• I'm thankful for my son.  My sweet, happy, wild, adventurous, spirited, Thomas the Train-loving two year old.  Each day when I hear "Mommy" over that monitor, and I walk into his room and see him grin a huge Sponge Bob smile at me, I know that God gave me the best job on the planet.  
• I'm thankful for my hubby.  He loves me and our little family so much.  He works tirelessly to provide for us.  He is the smartest man I know.  He is the kindest man I know.  I often ask him, "What did you do before we met?  It must have been something awful." because, bless his heart, he got stuck with me (ha)! 
• To add to that, I'm thankful that my hubby has a great job that allows me to stay home with our son.  After going back to work for a very short period of time earlier this year, I realized that being home with our child is where I'm needed.  And for that, I'm thankful for the jobs I did have, because had I not taken those positions I would not fully appreciate being able to be a stay-at-home-mama!  With all of that being said, yes, if I were to have a great career where I made good money and truly loved what I was doing, I would be thankful for that opportunity.  I truly believe everything works out for a reason.
• I'm thankful for parents that offer me and my family all the love and support that we need and my sister- the Tia to my Tamara!
• I'm also thankful for my incredible friends.  It's true, the older you get the smaller your circle becomes.  However, my circle is beautiful, hilarious, fun, creative, loving, and I could not be more blessed for these relationships.  

Okay, a thankful list would not be complete without some randoms so here goes:

• I'm thankful for dry shampoo.  Without it, my day 2 hair would resemble KStew circa 2009:

(Image via: http://www.fanpop.com/spots/twilight-series/answers/show/35787/does-anyone-like-kristen-stewarts-new-hair-cut)

•  I'm thankful for: RyGy, ASkars, and JHutch, and (lately) Adam Levine because you make my dreams so, SO sweet.  

(Images courtesy of: thefashionisto.com, fanpop.com, twilightandtruebloodlovers.com, & wordsmoker.com)

•  I'm thankful for weddings because without them we wouldn't have Bachelorette parties and without Bachelorette parties we wouldn't have a good excuse to listen to old-school Kilo Ali and wear feather boa's.
• This week, I'm especially thankful for Mint Oreo Fudge Cremes as I have already consumed 3 of them.

 

 That is all.....for today anyway. ;)  Happy Friday!!

~LL

Sweet Sundays

Hey dolls!

Are y'all enjoying your weekend?  No complaints here.  I love Sunday's, but I especially love Sunday's at home with my boys and my sweet puppy girl.

The one thing that's suffered this weekend?  My diet.  Blah.  I have the My Fitness Pal App on my phone, and y'all, that app really is great.  It's so easy to just plug in the amount of calories you consumed at each meal, and it even has a scanner that let's you scan the barcode of the box/package of whatever you're eating without having to plug the calories in manually.  I did SO good last week.  Seriously.  I recorded everything I ate, and managed to stay under 1200 calories each day.....then Friday hit.  Aaron and I were out and about running errands Friday morning, so (I told myself) it was just more convenient to swing through Chick-Fil-A for lunch.  I didn't do horrible (Grilled Chicken Sandwich), but I could have done better (Medium Waffle fries).  For dinner?  Since it was the big Braves game and Adam had a friend over, I thawed out last week's Taco Soup (Delicious and low fat), but topped that off with tortilla chips and Sausage dip (complete with Velveeta Cheese).  Then I added 2 glasses of Riesling on top of that.  Bad, bad girl!

Yesterday, me and one of my besties, Katie, drove up to Atlanta to visit another bestie, Kim.  It was the perfect girls day of shopping, and well, lunching.  We ate at Social Vinings (which by the way is amazeballs), on their outside patio enjoying the perfect weather and warm breeze.  We even indulged in dessert (don't judge), and although my jeans were totally hating my guts, my soul was happy and that's all that mattered.

Afterwards, we did a little sidewalk shopping at some of the precious boutique/antique shoppes in Smyrna.  Check out the loot:

Skull scarf, Silver Chandelier earrings (b/c you just can't have enough), & a Keep Calm & Carry On mini book (love these)

Sorry the picture quality's not great.  Anywho, I am absolutely obsessed with this scarf.  And no, I didn't buy it because I saw Kris Jenner wear it on KUWTK (maybe I was a tad influenced but I would've loved it anyway).  Cannot wait to pair this with a white tee, jeggings, and flats and GO!

Sunday's normally aren't my favorite days, but today has just been exceptionally wonderful.  Besides the 6:30 AM wake-up yell from Aaron Mo, it definitely made it worth it when after putting him in the bed between me and Adam, he grabbed my cheeks and said "Mommy, I wuv you."  Ahhhh......heart grows as big as the Grinch's.  I thought, since we're up early we should go to early church.  Did that happen?  No.  And I'm still feeling a little guilty.  Yes, I do think Aaron should be brought up in a church.  But today, I just wanted to cuddle with my boys and Sophie May, and enjoy an early Mexican lunch (while beating the church crowds- ha!).  

And in other news, I just found out we're going to the beach this week- Whoop!  Just me, Aaron Mo, my mom, and sister.  Only for a few days, and only to St. Simons, but hey- it's the beach!  I'm making a note to take my laptop so I can blog while I'm there.  I always seem to get inspired with my toes in the sand.

I hope you're enjoying your day doing whatever it is that pleases you. 

XOXO,
LL

Current Obsessions

Hi friends!  Today I thought I'd put together a lil' list of some of my faves.  I've been blogging around 3 years now (not counting the occasional blog disappearance for, ahem, months at a time), and I don't believe I have ever put together a list of my favorite things.  There are many bloggers that I follow that have done these lists, and I have always enjoyed their "favorites."  I've even taken their advice at times, and tried some of their must-haves to find out that I love them as well.  So, here's my list.  Random and funky, I guess that's just me.

Benefit Big Beautiful Eyes compact:  I was introduced to this little compact of prettiness by my friend, Ashley at Kindredly, last year.  We had met for our usual lunch of mexican grub, and I commented on how pretty her eye makeup looked.  Ashley, ever the fashionista, was using this compact at the time and completely sold me on how pretty (and natural) the colors were.  I don't know about you, but I've always been at constant odds with eyeliner; wanting to use it because I love the way it brings out my eyes, but hating having to worry about it running or smudging after an 8 hour day.  This compact is the best!  The pink and brown shades bring out every eye color, and the brown is perfect smudged in your crease and along your lash lines.  My eyes stand out without looking overdone.  I will say, using shadow as liner takes some getting used to, but once you start doing it, you'll never go back to that plain ole' stick eyeliner.  It typically runs around $30 (definitely ain't cheap), but it lasts awhile so you definitely get your $$'s worth. Loves!

One-N-Only Argan Oil:   Last summer, I read about this oil hair treatment in my monthly Glamour subscription.  Since I was in the process of growing out the unfortunate bob with side bangs, I was willing to do anything, including putting a jar of mayo in my hair to make it grow (yes, I really did read that that works- no lie!).  I stopped by the local Sally Beauty Supply, and after looking on shelf after shelf for 30 minutes I finally found it.  (Side note: the container is tiny, but heed my warning: a little goes a LONG way!)  The first time I used it, I put a quarter-sized dollop into my hair and literally had a greasy head for 4 days (shampooing every day, nonetheless).  I don't use this product every day, maybe 2 times a week.  As soon as I step out of the shower, I apply a dime-sized amount in my ends only.  Brush through, dry, style, and voila: instant healthy and shiny hair!  This little container has done more for my hair growth than any vitamin, cream, or shampoo will ever do.  Cheers!

Nicki Minaj:  When Amy and I went to see Britney a couple of weeks ago, Nicki opened up for her.  I knew I liked her, I mean I am all about some "Super Bass" and "Moment 4 Life."  I had no idea she would be my next girl crush.  Let's just put it out there, girlfriend's got's it going on!  She raps and wears a bodysuit and Christian Louboutin's, what's not to like??

Flipping Out:  If you aren't watching this show, go to Bravo right now and set it up on your DVR.  Best show on television!  Tuesday's, 9 pm- hook.it.up.  Jeff Lewis is an incredibly funny hottie (he's gay, ladies, but gahh he's fun to look at!)  who used to "flip" houses, but due to the real estate crash, is now just designing.  He and crew are hilarious, crude, and lovable.  Go watch now!

Paula Deen: I don't know if it's because I have now hit the point in Weight Watchers where anything that's below 10 points bores me, but I have been on a PD Cooking spree, and while my waist line is not loving it, my hubby and son sure are.  This past weekend I made her: Toffee Brownies ("num, num, num, num" as Aaron would say), Corn Casserole, and Walk Away Baked Spaghetti (my personal fave), and I can without a doubt say, my days have never been happier.  Life's too short to stay under "29 Points" every day!


So there we go.  My current obsessions.  Hope you enjoyed!

~LL

The Moment

Have y'all had a moment in your life when you see a picture of yourself and think enough is enough?  Well, I had mine Sunday night.  As I was tagged in yet another unflattering photo of myself on effin' Facebook, I decided from this point on it's officially diet time.  So, I started my low-carb diet Monday, and I'm doing pretty well so far.  Basically, I'm trying to stick to carbs (good carbs) in the AM, and nothing but protein and veggies for lunch and dinner.  It's hard.  We celebrated my lovely cousin's 33rd birthday yesterday over lunch, and my aunt (who happens to be a fabulous cook) made Hot Chicken Salad topped with crumbled potato chips (YUM!), Yeast Rolls (Hello? I'm dying here), and a bowl of strawberries, melons, and pineapple.  It took all of my willpower not to devour two helpings of chicken salad, eat two yeast rolls, and load up on the fruit.  I held myself together though, and had one helping of chicken, half of a yeast roll (shared the other half with Aaron Mo), and all strawberries (figured those were better than the melons and pineapples?).  I'm praying to God this works.  I want to be in this by June:

I might not be Adriana Lima, but I'll take her flat tummy!

~LL

Recaps

I have been incredibly slack about posting the last few days.  We had a super busy weekend of family, friends, and football, and I was still recovering yesterday.  

Since I'm on this huge diet kick right now, I made a couple of appetizers from the Hungry Girl Cookbook for our little football party; Sliders (Recipe here) and Cocktail Weenies (Recipe here).  I have to say that I was a little proud of myself because they turned out delicious!  And the best part was that it was half the calories!

Sunday, Aaron and I met up with Ashley for a Mexican lunch, and some catching-up back at my house.  We had a blast!  It's always so nice to get together with friends that you don't see that often.  Looking forward to our next lunch date, A. :)

I think I'm going to order Jillian's 30 Day Shred.  I've lost 5 pounds so far on my 1200 calorie diet, but I want to kick it up a notch.  This post-pregnancy weight is a pain!  I've never had 10 extra pounds cling to my body like this before.  Somethings gotta give.

I'm exhausted.  I'll do better tomorrow.  Promise.

Shenanigans

"Blah" is the word for today.  It's Monday, I completely screwed my diet this weekend, and most importantly, my Aaron is sick. :(  I'm so sad.  I think I'm taking it harder than he is.  This morning he had a temperature of 101, and I called the Doc immediately.  Basically after they pricked his finger to get a blood count, I was told that monkey man had a cold.  Boo.  He's napping at this moment, and I'm hoping he's getting some good rest so he can get better.  

My in-laws kept Aaron Saturday night, so I could go to a Bachelorette Party in Atlanta Saturday night.  They took him to church yesterday, and here's a picture of my dapper little guy all dressed up in his Sunday best:

Isn't he just a love?

So, I went to a Bachelorette Party this weekend.  It rocked.  Six of my girlfriends and I headed up to Atlanta for a raucous girls night out on the town.  I'll say it again, as I've said it before:  I can't hang.....not anymore.  I was already drunk by the time our appetizers landed on our table at 10:00 pm (we had late dinner reservations).  We dined at Season's 52, and it was amazing.  Their Hawaiian Pineapple Cosmo was absolutely delicious, refreshing, and strong.  So strong in fact, that I had to order coffee in order to make it to the bar.  I was that girl with my eyes half-closed, stupid smile plastered on my face, and laughing incessantly.  Such a dork.  Anyhow, we all shared several appetizers, and can I just say they were delectable?  We ordered: Edamame, Goat Cheese Ravioli, Crab & Shrimp-stuff Mushrooms,  Sushi, and a Goat Cheese flat bread.  Needless to say, by the time our entrees arrived we were stuffed.  I had the Tiger Shrimp Penne pasta, and it was scrumptious.  Later, our waiter brought out shot glasses of mini desserts, that included: Rocky Road, Peanut Butter Mousse, Key Lime Pie, and Blueberry Cheesecake.  Heaven.  The awesome thing about this place was that everything was under 475 calories; although, I'm sure between the martinis, appetizers, entree, and dessert I had easily consumed at least 1000.  I was totally convinced that if I ate another bite, my ass would totally rip my "jeggings" in half; especially since I definitely planned on requesting that "Pretty Boy Swag" be played at least twice when we got to the bar.

After dinner, we headed over to East Andrews for the dance party.  Our first stop was Andrews Upstairs, where we all took turns getting in the "cage," and pretending we were Jessica Alba a la Sin City, while singing every word of "Oh Sheila!"  After wards, we went downstairs and after a few tries in the phone booth, got into their private lounge, Prohibition, where we drank martinis and smoked cigars.  Don Draper would have been so proud. We then took the party back outside, and danced until 3 AM.  Here are some pics taken before the night began:

Lauren & I posing before the night began.....

The bride!  Isn't her veil the cutest?

It was an awesome night, and we had a fantastic time.  Thank God for girlfriends and GNO's; I don't know what I would do without both! Congratulations to our bachelorette, Nicole, who will be getting married in 3 weeks- whoop whoop!

Off to check on my baby love.  Crossing my fingers for a better day tomorrow......

Yummies: The Baby Edition

A few weeks ago, I was chatting with my sister-in-law about all things baby.  Last April, her and her husband adopted a baby boy that was two weeks younger than Aaron.  I'm sure you can imagine how much fun (and trouble) we're going to have with these two as they grow up.  Anyway, she told me that she was making baby food, and how much money she was saving doing it.  I was super excited hearing this, as Adam and I are all about saving money these days.  I also love the idea that it's organic in that it's made in my kitchen, it's healthier for Aaron, and I'm sure the taste is better.  

Friday afternoon, armed with a sweet potato and steamer basket, I dived into the world of baby-food making.  After peeling the sweet potato, and cutting into chunks, I decided to document.  Here you go:

Sweet potatoes, cut in pieces, arranged in the steamer basket inside stock pot.  I had already boiled around 1/4 of a cup of water; added the basket with the potatoes, and let it sit for 20 minutes with the lid on top.

After the potatoes cooked, I then put them in the food processor and pureed until soft.

Scooped the potatoes out, put them in ice cube trays.  This is 16 days worth of food from one potato.  Wow!

I put a sweet potato cube in a freezer bag to thaw over night in the refrigerator.  Put the cube in a bowl, heated it up for around 10 seconds, added a little water, and Aaron is officially about to try Mom's homemade sweet potatoes..........

And, he likes them!!!  Next up, green apples!

Happy Labor Day!

Is everyone having a good Labor Day weekend?  Our time spent with the fam has been great.  Aaron and I have had a great time catching up, eating, playing outside, eating, napping, eating, shopping, eating (did I mention eating) all weekend long.  I've just given up on dieting.  I figure that if apply the art of "everything in moderation" to everything that I consume, and "work on my fitness" at least 4-5 times a week I should be okay.  Of course, the "everything in moderation" rule has been hard when my mom is whipping up goodies such as French Dip Sandwiches, Cheese Grits, and Potato Salad (just to name a few).  In the spirit of yummy food that's not so yummy for my waist line, I made Paula Deen's Strawberry Cream Shortcake for our Labor Day cookout tonight.  Here's the finished product:

It was pretty good if I do say so myself.  :)

Enjoy the rest of your Labor Day weekend, friends!