For a wedding rich in earthy elements, we suggest throwing in some succulents! These beautiful plants add a little something different to your wedding decor and we love to see them pop up all over!

We've rounded up the best places to add a little succulent loveliness including bouquets, boutonnieres, ring pillows, flower girl baskets, "escort plants," invitations, tablescapes, cakes and they make fabulous favors!

I have a confession to make: amidst dieting, working out, and trying to cut back on carbohydrates as much as possible, I found the perfect recipe for... pretzels

I originally made them stuffed with cheese & pepperoni, but then had a little extra dough so I just made little bites. Then last weekend, when my mom was in town, I decided to make the recipe again. And the next day, I decided to make pretzel sticks out of the left over dough. And that's when I decided, this must be blogged.

Because who doesn't love soft pretzels?

And better yet, who doesn't love soft pretzels that they can make in less than 30 minutes, stuffed or seasoned with anything they like? (Because if you're thinking "not me" you're not in the right spot!)

So here's the super-duper-amazing-have-to-try-it-now recipe that I think you all should print off and go home and make it. Or at least give the recipe a try during your Super Bowl party. Please?

1. 1 1/2 cups warm water
2. 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
3. 1 package active dry yeast
4. 3 ounces unsalted butter, melted
5. 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
6. 4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
7. 5 quarts water
8. 3/4 cup baking soda
9. 1 whole egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water
10. Coarse sea salt

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together the water, sugar, yeast, and butter. Let sit for 5 minutes.
2. Add the salt and flour to the yeast mixture. Knead dough at medium speed until a smooth and elastic ball forms, 3 to 4 minutes. If dough is sticky, add 1 tablespoons of flour at a time until dough comes together.
3. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled large bowl and turn the dough to coat with the oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
4. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Shape into any form you'd like.*
5. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil. Add the baking soda and lower heat to a simmer. Carefully boil pretzels in batches. Boil for about 30 seconds. Remove with a large slotted spoon. Place pretzel bites on a  parchment paper lined baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Brush the tops with the egg wash and season liberally with the salt. Place into the oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden brown.

When you’re on the moon, your weight is six times smaller than your weight pa Earth.
Because of gravity the water would flood everything, so it works by suction toilet.
People living in outer space. Since 1971, the Space Station people lived for short periods. These stations are on orbits 400 km above the Earth.
Space station Mir, which means “peace”, is in orbit in 1986.
Astronauts need precise programs of work and leisure for life in outer space are to be normal. They do exercise at least two hours per day to maintain muscle you in good condition.
An American astronaut set the record spent six months on board.
People are called astronauts in space, which means, sailors of the stars. “Russian people are called cosmonauts in space which means, sailors of the universe”.
The first man who entered the space was a Russian pilot Yuri Gagarin.In 1961, moved his small spacecraft on an orbit around the Earth before entering the atmosphere.
The record for the highest speed with which a man is traveled is 39897 km/h and was established team of Apollo command module 10 (Thomas Stafford, Eugene Cernan, John Young, all U.S.) during the return flight on Earth, in 1969.

Last week I talked about having fun in marriage. But if we're being realistic, we all know it's not all fun & games. Marriage is work. It's a never-ending commitment to a never-perfect person. And if you're in a relationship like mine - with two strong-minded, high-maintenance individuals who would never be matched up on any online dating site - it's easy to fall out of the fun and into the fights.

So this week I wanted to talk a little about the fights that keep a marriage together.

Maybe that sounds weird. Even as I wrote it I thought, "But yeah, isn't it fights that ruin a relationship?" And then I thought about it, and with very few exceptions I have to say: every fight I've ever had with my guy has made our relationship better, not worse.

The exception to that are fights in which constructive communication was no longer in play. And I believe that is key. Fights - or if you care to call them "disagreements" or "discussions" or whatever - can be productive, if respect and open communication are used.

Our marriage counselor told us over and over again "You are not each other's enemy." I remember thinking that that statement didn't make any sense. Why would Christian become my enemy? And then he left the toilet seat up one time, and I took it as a personal vendetta against me.

So lately, whenever an issue comes up, I try really hard to focus on the fact that Christian and I are on the same team. And miraculously it works! Since I know we're fighting for the same thing, it's easier to compromise or to see his side of things. Of course, I'm not perfect, and very easily fall into the "it's all about me" trap. But I'm trying to move in the right direction.

There are a few topics that we've yet to reach a compromise on - like the toilet seat thing, or when to have kids - so they are ongoing issues that get brought up from time to time. And I honestly don't see an agreement being made anytime soon about them. So we're trying to learn how to live with disagreements. Because, realistically, we're never going to see everything 100% eye-to-eye. And I'd much rather live in a marriage with open disagreement than secretive musings or passive aggressive acts of frustration.

I thought about it, and here's a few strategies I {try to} follow to make sure that a fight ends up making us stronger:

• Approach every subject open-minded and willing to change
• Remember that your significant other is not your enemy
• Remember the reason why you're fighting (and that's not "to be right"!)
• Don't make it your goal to win, even if you know you're right
• Think both long- and short-term, both are important

if you’re following me on twitter you probably know about my sad macbook saga from the past couple of days. if you’re not following me on twitter, shame on you! i’m funny. okay, i lie… i’m sort-of-kinda funny. all of that to say, i’ve spent the past 12 hours sitting merely organizing all 650 gigs … Keep reading →

Keep an eye out for Leslie and Ricky's Barn Wedding that will be featured in the upcoming 2012 Spring/Summer issue of Brazos Valley Bride Magazine!

We worked with some great wedding pros and an amazing couple on this one and we are delighted that it made the magazine! Click here to see the ceremony photos and here to see the reception photos from the barn wedding!

Photos via Butch Ireland Photography.

Man the week flies by! Where does the time go?? Anyway... no sense fretting. How about we just jump right in to my Wednesday tradition?  

Here's what I've been loving this week...

• Coffee art! I really want to print this out & frame it in my kitchen...

• When Joanna featured this recipe for the Best Chocolate Mousse, I almost died!

•  How beautiful is this balloon wall? My sister's about to have a baby girl, I think I know how I want to decorate her baby shower!

•  And here's a beautiful, yet simple, wrapping tip from A Subtle Revelry (and if you're not following that blog yet... you should be)

•  And, finally... how perfect is this blouse?!? It was so perfect, that Anthropologie even responded to my tweet about it! (And I'm a dork & had to share that with you!)

Guy... guys... I wore shorts this weekend. In January.

It was fun to get a little sun on my legs, but even that's really not enough to really make up for the fact that I was actually excited about winter wear this year. But this weekend, I found myself walking around wishing I'd painted my toe nails so that flip flops were maybe an option.



Sure, that particular day was kind of a fluke. The day before & after were back in the mid-50s & it's going to get colder this weekend. But an 80 degree day in January was enough of a shocker to write about.



But I'm wondering... if the heat wave comes back, how do I keep it winter-y without bundling up? As you can see above... I wore a scarf with my T-shirt & shorts. Any other ideas? This Texas girl needs a little inspiration for the next warm winter day!

Because Ed has been complaining that I never post on my blog anymore…

 

So, I've been actively working out for two week now & can't really see many physical changes. What changes I have seen are mostly mental ones.

I can tell that when I'm actively working out, my mind is more at ease. I'm more confident & more willing to try things out. I'm still (and maybe even more so) tired a lot, but I'm hoping that with more conditioning and regulation my exhaustion will go away. But it's the confidence increase that I really need & really enjoy when it comes along.

I'm most concerned with my weekly meals. Any good trainer will tell you that 70% of weight loss and physical fitness comes from nutrition. So I've been cutting back on carbs, mostly. And increasing those leafy greens. Having Edamame as a snack instead of chips & salsa. Especially during the week. It's much harder that it seems it should be. But, then again, there's a reason why I'm overweight. And there's a reason why I hired a personal trainer to set me in the right direction.

And on the personal trainer note... unfortunately, I could not afford a ton of sessions with him, and unfortunately it's getting close to the end! I'm a little nervous to go off on my own... especially since I respond so much better to external motivation than internal (I do what I'm told).

So consider this my little shout out to myself to stay encouraged and to let myself know that I am capable of staying on track - both with working out & feeding myself well. I know I have a great, encouraging husband by my side & luckily a place (here) to air my grievances. All of that helps to keep me focused and on track.

My goals this week are:

• Document my food daily & analyze it completely at the end of the week
• Drink at least 6 glasses of water a day - and document it
• Work out 4 times - twice with my PT & twice by myself
• Avoid weighing myself until the end of the week
• Have 1 serving of veggie/fruit and 1 serving of protein at each meal
• Create an inspiration board to hang in my closet ♥

Taco Seasoning

1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1… read more

One of the best compliments you can get is when you make these and your husband tells you how amazing these are.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wendy’s Enchiladas

2 lbs skinless Chicken Breast… read more

We had the pleasure of coordinating the beautiful wedding of Amanda and Tim Laird back in October and are so excited to share their photos here with you (click here to see a few of Amanda's gorgeous bridals)!
Photos via Crystal Littrell Photography.

Here's a sneak peek at Amanda & Tim's wedding - a few shots of Amanda's bridals! She was such a blushing bride!Photos via Crystal Littrell Photography.

Last week I pulled out a bunch of different recipe ideas to make during the Golden Globes. I listened to all of your feedback - and then let my husband decide (since he was, after all going to be the one eating the food!).

So I made him sit down and read my post - and he picked out 3 recipes that turned out amazing when all was said and done. We served them tapas style throughout the whole night, and ended up with 3 courses which we served about an hour apart. It was the perfect way to spend the evening!

Here's what I ended up making...

Dish #1: Caprese Kabobs


By far the easiest of the three recipes, we deiced to start with it. So it was our Red Carpet treat. You can't really go wrong with fresh mozzarella cheese, basil and tomatoes! We did decide to spruce it up just a tad bit and get the seasoned mozzarella cheese ("cherry" size!), and I think it added the right kick of flavor. Once the kabobs were assembled, I drizzled a little balsamic vinegar and salt on the top, which proved to be a nice touch.

These would be perfect for your next party!


Dish #2: Ancho Chili Rub Tenderloin Sliders


The phrase "Ancho Chili" doesn't mean much to me... but the taste and tenderness of these sliders definitely made an impact! Whenever I'm putting sliders or mini-sandwiches together, I always opt to use sweet Hawaiian Rolls, which I did again for this recipe. The sweet contrasted with the spicy chili rub and with the tangy Chimichurri sauce to make one of the most delictable flavor combinations I've ever made in my kitchen (and pretty close to anything I've ever ordered at a restaurant).

One note: the meat will be expensive. We bought 1 lb. at $8.00, and it made six perfect little sandwiches. But if you want to make any more, be sure to budget for it! You can't skimp on the meat quality, since it's the focus of the dish.


Dish #3: Caramelized Onion, Bacon & Goat Cheese Pizza 
   
This won our Favorite Dish Award of the night. This "pizza" actually doesn't use tomato sauce. Instead the Caramelized Onions are so perfectly gooey and tender that they are the sauce. (Oh, and did I mention you actually cook the onions in bacon grease? Because that's the best part!)

Which type of pizza crust you use is up to you. I made a wheat pizza dough, which is my favorite (find the recipe here, where I used it making Calzones), but you can cheat and just buy the pre-packaged stuff. Totally up to you!

{For full recipes, click on the hyperlinks. I didn't want to overload you with text ♥}

The day Christian asked me to marry him wasn't the happiest day of my life. The day I wore a white wedding dress wasn't either. Nor the day after. My first wedding anniversary was. That is, until I reached my second anniversary. And I'm sure that when number three comes around that will take over.

Because marriage isn't about a day. Or the result of "the big question". It's a process. And each year when I can check off a successful continuation of this process, I deem it a victory.

I feel we're from a generation plagued with separated parents. And while I'm not part of that statistic, Christian is. And so many of our friends are. And it's honestly heartbreaking. But as I talk to my peers, I realize that those statistics have made us different from the generation before us. And it's really refreshing and promising.

While one of the results of our parent's divorces is that less of us are getting married - or waiting longer to get married - the other result is that those of us who have decided to get married are determined to not only not allow the relationship to fail, but also to have fun while in it.

When we first started dating, Christian and I would jump in the car and drive to Austin to see countless amounts of concerts. We bonded over music, and then over movies. And I remember after about a month or so of dating, my dad told me that the "fluff" our relationship was based on - the movies & music that basically made up our relationship - was eventually going to wear out, and then we'd break up. {Of course I disagreed with him then 100%.}

I know he was trying to talk his hopelessly-in-love 17-year-old daughter down from the clouds, and that he had experience to speak from.  But as I've continued on in my relationship - which lasted much longer than anyone expected it to - I actually still disagree with my dad {albeit not 100%!}. Of course a solid relationship isn't just about music and movies (or whatever your hobbies are)... but I truly believe that it's the fun stuff that makes working through the hard stuff possible.

I fight for my relationship because I know it'll be rewarding (and boy do we fight... more on that later I'm sure!!). Part of that reward is having someone to watch a good movie with on a Saturday night. Christian and I don't miss a single episode of Saturday Night Live, because it gives us inside jokes for the rest of the week that continue to bond us together into something stronger. And if, eventually, the rewarding part of our relationship does diminish, I pray that the bond that has been created over the years will be too strong to break.

So for now, we focus of having fun (in addition to working out those pesky real-life problems, of course). We play board games, watch awards shows and cook ridiculously intricate dinners for each other... and not surprisingly, the more fun we have, the easier it is when we hit a wall.

Ah, Wednesday. My favorite day. Half way through the week and my 2 favorite link ups. I figured today, I'd pull a few pins out of my non-food/non-fashion boards. I blog too much about that stuff anyway (ha! as if that's even possible!).

• I like to dream about places I'd love to visit, like the Balloon Festival in New Mexico...

... or  this amazing Cafe in Poland!

 

• I really want to try these DIY business cards. Seriously how creative and awesome are they?!?

 

•  I've been trying to come up with my next Tattoo idea, and I really love this one:

•  And finally, I would really love this Mason Jar Pendant Light in my kitchen! It'd make it so cute :)

(where my name used to be)

Today I start a new job!!

I think I forgot to mention that before. I've been tweeting about it, but the time just flew by so quickly, that I never got a chance to say "Hey blogging friends, guess what?!?" So... skipping that step I guess.

I'm so excited to start! I'd been at my old office for over four years. I started as a student worker, and got hired full-time right before I graduated college. It was a wonderful place to start my professional career, and it had the added bonus of being so laid-back that my wardrobe choices were easy. I basically wore whatever I woke up in the mood for!

But it was time to move on. I am still working within Texas A&M University. Mostly because I love my alma mater and I also love my benefits the people who work for the University♥

What I'm most excited about is that with a new job comes a new wardrobe. Right? At least that's what I've been telling myself.

My new office is in charge of all the technology for all the classrooms in two buildings on campus - and part of my job will be to tend to any issues in the classroom if there's no one else around. Which means crawling on the floor in front of 100 college kids, or climbing up on a table in front of 30. I've thought about these - and a few other described scenarios - in addition to the fact that I now have to walk 5 minutes across campus to get to my new building from my new parking spot - and realized that my usual wardrobe of heeled sandals and a dress, or flip flops and a skirt, may not be the best options.



Luckily, I just bought a few Blowfish flats that'll be perfect for the duration of the winter, and I have tights to keep my legs properly covered, if I opt for the skirt/dress route. But once it starts getting hot again, I'm not sure how I'm going to cope.

So here's where you come in... I'd love your input!! How do you figure out how to balance "work appropriate"-ness and cuteness?

It's never been an issue for me before. And while I'm excited about the challenge, I'm also nervous!

Can't wait for some tips!

One of my goals in 2012 is to give back to you guys more. I love every comment & Twitter reply sent my way. I know it takes commitment to follow someone's blog & to invest time reading it. It's something I struggle with and am trying to get better at!

So to thank you for your time... how about a giveaway?

The very first giveaway I hosted a year ago was probably one of my favorites. And I wanted to do it again this year, by giving away something that is not just a one-time gift, but a year-long one....


So... do you like Real Simple? How about Cosmo or Southern Living? Cooking Light? I've always been a fan of Elle Decor and InStyle myself. It could even be a subscription to an online magazine, if you'd like! (for all you Kindle/iPad-using people out there!)

So here's the fun part - TO ENTER: Be a follower of CRH via Google Connect & Leave a comment below with which magazine you'd love to receive each month in your mailbox (or inbox!).

For additional entries... (leave a comment for each one)

• Follow me on Twitter
• Like CRH on Facebook
• Follow me on Pinterest
• Tweet about the giveaway
• Follow CRH on Blog Lovin'

Good luck!!! Winner will be picked & announced next Saturday, January 21 ♥

*with my approval - try to keep $30 or less :)

As I sat watching the Golden Globes Red Carpet show, I couldn't help but get a little jealous of all the beautifully clad women. And then I hear Sofia Vergara admit she's been doing two-a-day workouts to get ready for the event. And then there's of course Melissa McCarthy whose over-the-average Hollywood weight never seems to phase her. She was gorgeous, confident, and highly praised.

My 3 favorites - if you exclude Claire Dane's front of the dress

One of the positive things about the ridiculous amount of cameras, behind the scenes interviews, and over-analyzing of every fashion choice at these Awards shows, is that the Hollywood veil is broken down a bit. And it's a refreshing reminder that these women and men are really humans. They have teams and teams of people behind them to make them look that way.

SNL women, represent! (did you catch this meme?)

So, instead of beating myself up, I'm taking last night's Golden Globe's beauty and channeling it into motivation.The women on that carpet are so confident in themselves - or at least they come off as confident. I love seeing these beautiful glammed up girls still having fun and joking through the whole ordeal.

Three dresses that I think I liked...but I'm not 100% sure. They're thinking pieces...

And that's what my goal this week is going to be: finding the inner confidence to hold myself high and give myself what I deserve. Gym trips, better meals, water breaks, and even mental-health breaks. I'm prioritizing that this week. I hope to come out of this week with even more confidence and drive to keep up my fitness goals ♥

All red carpet photos from The Hollywood Reporter

And speaking of getting a little glammed up, I joined up with Jess from Stilettos and a Fishing Pole in her Accessory Swap! I was paired up with Stephanie from Living the Young Life - a mid-twenties girl from Tennessee who has big style & bold tastes. It was so much fun shopping for her, because I could get a little out of my comfort zone & buy a few pieces that I'd probably never wear. (Hope she liked it ♥ )

But even more exciting was receiving my gifts! I opened up my giant box with great anticipation and found an array of goodies - a teasing brush (something I don't own but have wanted top pick up for forever), a manicure set & face mask, an awesome set of OPI nail polish, new nail stick-ons in my favorite color, and an adorable Love necklace & matching earrings!


It was really fun getting a little present in the mail! I can't wait to see what all the other girls received ♥

My favorite time of year is upon us... awards season.

My guy & I are total dorks when it comes to the big two awards shows (Golden Globes & Academy Awards). We make sure to watch every Best Picture nomination, print off ballots and vote for who we think is going to win... but best of all, I always try to create the perfect menu for such an occasion.

In college, my menu consisted of mini chocolate chip cookies served on a platter with toothpicks in them. Gradually my menu got a little more in depth. And then last year our plans changed the day of the Academy Awards and I actually had the opportunity to watch it at my parent's house - and we even got my mom in on the fun!

This year, I've decided to go a little more in-depth, and actually plan out and execute a high-end h'ordeuvres tray that would impress any Awards Show addict.

Here's a few things on my list right now.


And of course, we won't forget the bubbly ♥

Something I really want to focus on over the next year is one of the biggest areas of my everyday life.

My marriage.

While last year I wrote here and there about some ins and out of being married, I never really breached the surface. And I want to change that. Since my marriage - and family - are such a pertinent aspect of my personal life, it's only fitting I make it a bigger part of my blog. And even though I'm still trying to figure what I'm going to write about, be ready to see my take (and hopefully other blogger's takes) on being married.

My first leap into this realm is talking about how my relationship began. I'm going to get more in depth in the future, but here's a few things about my marriage that you may not know:

1. I met my guy standing in the lunch line in high school. His version of the story is that I butted into a conversation he was having, and he apparently decided he didn't like me.
2. I had my first kiss when I was 17 the day before my Senior year of high school began. And you can read that story here ♥
3. I asked my guy to marry me the night of our high school graduation - Boy Meets World style. He said no.
4. We ended up going to the same town for college, but we both made our decisions separately. Fate's a funny thing.
5. After our first year of college, my guy dumped me & I finally learned what all those break up songs meant.
6. After 9 months of being broken up, I won my guy's heart back by dressing up as Pam from The Office for Halloween.
7. My marriage proposal was a complete surprise and came a year before I was expecting.
8. A bottle of wine, my father's insistence, and an offer we couldn't refuse resulted in me getting married before I graduated college- something I swore I'd never do.
9. I quickly learned how much more work marriage is than dating while I tried to juggle it with my Senior year of college.
10. I finally was able to accept, acknowledge and take responsibility for the fact that I am a complete & utter slob, thanks to my guy's gentle pestering.

I want to cover most of those topics in greater detail. My experiences are many, and I want to share them - for better or worse - with you.

Get ready! ♥

- Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina, Chapter 1, first line
Russian mystic & novelist (1828 - 1910)

Successful teams are also alike, while failing teams come in infinite variety.

read more

Although it's a new year, some things are staying the same. And that includes my weekly link-ups with This Kind of Love and The Vintage Apple. I've met some great girls through these two link-ups and definitely do not plan to stop participating anytime soon!

Going through my weekly Pinterest finds is always such a treat. Especially because I always seem to pin things & then forget about them!! (Please tell me I'm not the only one to do that!) So here's what I've been loving this week:

• Watching "Gossip Girl". I just started during Christmas break & am loving the series!

• These fig & cheese appetizers. I'm thinking I'm going to have to try them during my Golden Globes party ♥

• Getting back into working out! I've even hired a personal trainer to help me get started!

• This amazing room. I want a chalkboard wall like that!

• These words of inspiration for the start of the new year! I've got my goals set & I'm ready to get them done!

• Photograph and share 1 outfit a month
• Create 1 new outfit a week out of my own closet
• Continue to Pin outfits and clothing I'm interested in to Pinterest to document my findings
• Learn to appreciate and dress my body type
• Allow myself 1 shopping trip - be it thrift store trip or mall trip - a month to discover new fashions and put my skills to the test

There you have it!

I was bored so I made a bunch of cute, cheap little rings.  They can be seen over at my craft blog, Craftaholic.com.

 

It rained all day today and it was chilly.  The weather has been really mild… read more

Last year, we introduced y'all to the beautiful David's Bridal White by Vera Wang Collection. This year, we want to show you what's new for the 2012 collection!

The 2012 collection includes whimsical wedding dresses like this little beauty... How incredibly stunning is that ruffled detail?!? The cost for that gown, you ask? Less than $1,500! That's right - all of the detail, the flowing organza, and that precious bow, designed by Vera - for less than $1,500!

Here are two others we simply adore...For Spring 2012, there are nine styles in total that range from $500-$1500 and are uniquely designed to cater to a bride's needs for her special day.

With 20 David's Bridal locations in Texas carrying the White by Vera Wang 2012 collection, Lone Star brides can step out in style on their big day!

Go over to my craft website http://craftaholic.com/?p=57 and view the bracelet tutorial.  Register as a user here and at craftaholic.com  I will pick two random winners (one from each site) on Friday, January 13 to win one of the… read more

Never underestimate a good cup of coffee, a brisk winter morning & inspirational music. That and about 3 hours of uninterrupted "me" time was all it took to get myself ready & excited for 2012! Seriously, I'm so excited for where I want to take this blog in 2012, and where I want to take myself. I see this here blog as an extension of my life, and so when I'm mapping out where I want to go over the next 12 months, its only natural to integrate my blog ideas with my other personal goals.

2011 was a year for moving. And I think I succeeded in that. Now it's time to transition. The word for my life in 2012 is implementation. I want to take all the experiences from the past year, and all the knowledge I acquired, and put it into action. There's no point in experiencing something if you can't do something with those experiences. So that's what I'm going to focus on over the next 12 months.

Are you ready? Because I am!

I'm not going to look back at my 2011 To-Do List. ( It's still there for you to check out if you'd like.) Instead I'm just jumping in to my 2012 Goals. Which are:

• Read 2 books a month - I loved doing this last year, and I want to continue making it a monthly goal
• Learn Photoshop
• Design & Publish a website, from top to bottom
• Watch all the Oscar Best Pictures - Again, this is an on-going goal from last year
• Find & feature 1 new blog a month - This is part of my larger personal goal of learning to network better
• Exercise 4 times a week
• Lose XX weight by March & XX by August & maintain through the holidays
• Plan my meals for each week
• Read through the entire Bible in a year - While I don't talk about my faith much here, I've never actually done this & figured if I put it out in public, I would stick to it

That's it as far as my 2012 To-List is concerned. I've set some other personal goals, but those are my little secret :)

I also went through all my posts from last year to remind myself of what was best received and what I enjoyed writing about the most. And, because I am a task-oriented individual, I've set up a new schedule for myself. I did this when I first started to blog, and it worked out well for me, so I'm going to try that again.

One thing I'm really excited about is getting more giveaways going on here! I want to say THANK YOU to my reader more! So stay tuned for those ♥ (And if you have an Etsy or other shop, and would like to host a giveaway here, email me!)

The holidays are over so now we gear up for the next festive day of the year - Valentines Day! We've searched around and have found a few FREE printables that are perfect for parties, mantles, classrooms, the office or just about anywhere you'd like to spread a little V-Day cheer!

Check out Very Merry Vintage Style for the above free printable pennant banner. Here's another pennant banner from Simple Crafter that you will "love." These cute little printables are great for frames that you have around the house! "Keep Calm and Kiss On" can be found at Lolly Jane Boutique. This sweet little printable as well as party pack printables can be found at The Paper Blossom!Tons of great free printables can be found at Living Locurto. Check out these adorable Valentines Day cards; perfect for the little ones to give at the class party!
Sending you all love and happiness for Valentine's Day 2012! xoxo

Part 3 of 3 :) Almost to the end. By the final stretch of my Project 365, I was almost bored. Trying to figure out why I was doing it to begin with. But, because it was a goal, I pushed through and finished. It's only been 5 days since I've been done & I have to be honest: I felt a weight was lifted. I ended up enjoying the thought of the project instead of the project itself, which just goes to show that maybe I'm not a photographer? (shocker) Or maybe I like doing things that I can easily share?

Either way, I am glad that I had this time to go through every picture one final time. It is refreshing, and has been a great reminder for me. But I'm also ready to move forward, and look ahead. I haven't set any resolutions yet. I haven't even come up with my 2012 To-Do List yet!! I'm planning on spending this weekend writing down my thoughts & setting my plans into action.

But before that, here's the final curve of memory lane: Fall & Winter

September

September is awesome (as I noted in my Welcome September! post) for 3 big reasons: (1) It's my nephew's birthday ♥ (2) TV shows start back up & (3) football! I posted my first V-log, listed out 100 books that should be on everyone's list, and started a little Who Are You? series (which I'm thinking of bringing back!). The big post of the month was my blog's birthday celebration and my first outfit post. And I started 30 Days of Creativity... which I never finished. (Think I know what I'll be trying again soon?)

October

By October, our life settles into a fast-paced rhythm of football, traveling & food. C gave me one of my favorite presents of the year ♥ I found motivation from my favorite blogger, found motivation in myself after dieting failure, and decided to try my hand again at a fashion post. Fall settled in completely and then I went on my trip and left you guys with my Let's Talk About Travel series (which is one of my favorites!!). And when I came home, I got to share my travel photos with you guys!

November

Doesn't November seem like forever ago? It sure does to me! I saw my old roomie get married, went on a Broadway musical kick, saw First Ladies Barbara & Laura Bush at a symposium, & went to a German festival with my family. And after my fabulous Thanksgiving weekend, I had to seriously re-consider how to diet during the holidays!

December

December was sad, because it meant no more football :-( But it meant finding my perfect fall outfit, and creating my Christmas wish lists - One, Two, & Three. Plus, I got to decorate for Christmas, of course! And take Christmas pictures ♥ I even got a little crafty :)


And that, my dear friends is my year in a few posts. {In case you missed it: January-April & May-September} I truly loved 2011! It was a great year of doing. Now to focus on 2012... I'm still trying to figure out this year's theme, but I know it's going to be good. I got a feeling ♥

Here is a video of my husband flying his RC airplane at night. He built it himself and has a group of friends he “flys” with occasionally. It is really neat to watch him do tricks with the plane in… read more

I have decided to revive craftaholic.com.  I will be doing some crafty how to videos and posting them over there.  Yay!  The first will be a tutorial on how to make the beaded wrap bracelets that are hot right… read more

With the release of PANTONE's 2012 color of the year, Tangerine Tango, we want to know what you think about it's use for 2012 weddings!

"Tangerine Tango, a spirited reddish orange, continues to provide the energy boost we need to recharge and move forward" says PANTONE. The bright, airy feel of tangerine is perfect for spring and summer weddings. The orange hue even lends itself to work very well in fall weddings. Take a look below for some tangerine tango color combo ideas!
What do you think? Are you using this color or a similar tone in your 2012 wedding?

Photos via The Custom Wedding.

What an amazing year we had in 2011! The opportunity to work with awesome clients, amazing vendors and to make lasting relationships with them all! We are blessed to have had such a great year!

Weddings, graduation parties, charity events, and showers made for an exciting 2011; we can't wait for what is to come in 2012!

The 2012 wedding trend buzz is hitting all of the bridal blogs, magazines and social networks. One of our 2012 wedding trend predictions for Central Texas is the use of succulents in spring and summer weddings. Their natural, easy look fits perfectly in line with the relaxed feel of many outdoor weddings held in this part of the world.

Coming up on the blog, we show you how to use succulents in bouquets, centerpieces, on cakes and even as favors! You'll soon see why we're suckers for succulents!

I can't even explain how much fun yesterday's post was for me to write. Going through a year's worth of posts and picking out what impacted me the most is so telling. And it's such a good reminder of how much I am truly blessed with. Especially you guys... re-reading my posts means I also get to re-read some old comments. And they just make me smile so much :) Thank you for reading throughout the year. I don't think I can say that enough.

And since I'm having so much fun, why not keep going? That's my thought, anyway. Here's more of my Project 365! And... it's summer time! (The fun time of year ♥ )

May

If I thought April was crazy, then I wasn't quite ready for May. The start of summer is always crazy, but on May 1, the story of Osama Bin Laden's death just secured that fact. I fell even more in love with my nephew, gave a shout-out to my bestie Mer, and paid tribute to my favorite mothers the week of Mother's Day with my Mama I Love You series. I saw my favorite movie of the year, Tina Fey secured herself as one of my favorite women on the planet, and then I made one of my favorite recipes of the year. (Maybe May is my month of favorites?) But it wasn't all good... I went on a failed rafting trip and the month ended on a sad note with the Missouri tornadoes.

June

 After April & May, I needed to slow down a bit. So I did... by declaring that I'd blog less. And then I decided to make some changes. I started my A Time For Change series, got glasses (eek!), and turned 23!! My birthday was of course the highlight of the month... I had great food & got my favorite piece of jewelry of the year ♥

July

July slowed w-a-y down for me... so much so that I got a little lazy & missed a few things here and there. I started off the month super excited about everything it had to offer! July is my favorite month of the year :) After all, July is my wedding anniversary month ♥ And this particular July marked the last of the Harry Potter movies. But I also got to have quality family time AND I got to see 3 bands in concert (Katy Perry included ♥ )

August

August was one thing: HOT. So I came up a with a few tips to beat the heat, and when that didn't work I just had lots of fun with friends. (Giant Jenga included!) I got to celebrate my Mom's birthday, my 6 year dating anniversary with C, discover corn pancakes (which I topped with salsa... yum!), and had to deal with a nasty cold (boo!). But the best thing about August was seeing my bestie Mer for the first time in a year. She visited from Canada & we escaped to the beach for the weekend. Ah, good times!!

2011 was a growing year for me. I wasn't sure of my direction in life, but I knew I wanted to move. So I set a bunch of goals for myself on my To-Do List and checked things off as I went along. But I also kept up a Project 365 for the year. I wanted to test myself to see if I'd be able to just do something without praise or comments or stats to check in on. I wanted to see if I could commit to something and stick to it just because. And while I strayed a few times and had to catch up, I am here today happily saying that I did in fact complete the Project 365 in 2011.

I uploaded 1 photo a day for a year to a Tumblr account. And now I get to share some good times with you. ♥ I love how my life pictures and what I was blogging about at the time are so integrated. It just shows that I blog what I living. Is there really any other way?

January

Last New Years brought in new life and new interests. Besides starting the Project 365, I also tried my hand at new vegan recipes, including my favorite Orange Scones and Spaghetti Squash. I also finished off Reverb 10 a little late, which was fine, because reflection is never quite over. I was moving into my second year of marriage, got a new car, and tried my hand at my first DIY project. My biggest moment in January was hitting 10,000 blog page views, which I celebrated over tasty German cuisine with my closest friends ♥

February

The month of love. One of my favorite posts of the entire year was a photo post of C & I from the past 7 years ♥ I probably was mushy because I celebrated my 2 year engagement anniversary with this post, and made Chocolate Lava Cakes. I also had some fun family time, loved on a friend a little, and had my first design project!! But the biggest thing in February was getting my first tattoo :)

March

March was one of my busiest months. Looking through my posts, I remember running here, there & everywhere, including getting to see Wicked for the first time. Of course the Japan earthquake was the biggest story of the month world-wide, but switching to a Vegetarian diet was our house's biggest event. I interviewed two amazing photographers: Jared Tseng & Abbey Henderson, and made my favorite dessert of all time: Nutella Merignes. We sent my brother-in-law James off to the Army basic training and then eventually to Germany.

April

April was kicked off by my college's Women's Basketball team going to (and winning!!) the National Championship! We also kicked it off by eating Vegan (eek!), but I made Polenta Butternut Squash Lasagna (with Vegan cheese, of course) which made the week worth it. Once the Vegan week was up, though, I made cupcakes in Orange peels and Roasted Leg of Lamb for Easter (Yum!) I per-ordered what ended up being my favorite book of the year, started writing for another blog, discovered a new favorite musician, and had to say goodbye to an old friend.


All of that is just in the first 4 months of the year! Which is just crazy how much I really get to experience. Without taking the time to stop & appreciate it, how many memories could have passed me by? I love re-living it through pictures! I may have to look over it all again :) Stop back by tomorrow, I'll be going through the next few months.

So every year, as you may or may not know, instead of making a list of new year’s resolutions, I go through  my goals list and mark of the ones I accomplished over the past year (and add a bunch that I thought of at some point). I don’t take things off the list, even if I don’t want to do them any more…this gives me a great way to look back at where I’ve been in my life. Let’s see what I’ve done!

Adrienne’s Life Goals (List started December, 1996 and updated each year since then) I’ve bolded the ones that I accomplished since I last updated the list last year.

1. Rollerblade in every major city in the world (Don’t know if I want to do this one any more or not. I’m really not all that into rollerblading. Biking might be a more feasible option).
2. Win a Nobel Prize
3. Study insects in the Australian Canopy (I used to get a magazine as a kid that advertised scientist-led trips in the back. One was a trip to the Australian Rainforest where you’d get to help survey the insects. They said you’d probably find several new species. I have to get there).
4. Become fluent in Spanish (took it in high school, remember little)
5. Be written about in some major tabloid
6. Make a major discovery in cancer research
7. Breed some sort of animal (I finished this one in 1998–I bred crane flies, beetles, crickets, and whatever else my boss brought in for a year)
8. Get married and raise a family (Part one–done 9/3/00! So that part two thing won’t work. Anyhow.)
9. Get a PhD in Entomology (Done (ish)! I successfully defended my dissertation in December of 2011, so I’m kinda counting this). 
10. Make a major entomological discovery (I’m really not sure what counts as “major.” I guess I’ll figure that out as I go along)
11. Become a college professor
12. Ear $20,000 a year with my harp (I think I will work on this in 2012)
13. Read the entire works of Shakespeare (did I mention I’m really into Shakespeare?)
14. Learn to ride a bike well (I’ve decided the tandem doesn’t count, but is a hell of a lot less scary than riding alone)
15. Study insects in Madagascar (the first day of my high school freshman geography class the teacher gave us the coordinates for Madagascar. I’ve wanted to go ever since)
16. Visit Kangaroo Island
17. Become the president of something major
18. Be able to give my Alma Mater something big, and have something on campus named after me
19. Rollerblade 10 miles (so, I didn’t have a bike as a kid. I taught myself to rollerblade instead. Don’t do it so much anymore, but for awhile there it was my only means of transportation)
20. Become fluent in sign language
21. Take a major biking or blading trip
22. Become very physically fit
23. Graduate from any higher education institution with a 3.0 or higher (I vote I’m done with school!!)
24. Work at the Smithsonian
25. Lear how to spell “Smithsonian” (Done! 1996. Have I mentioned I’m dyslexic? Oh, man, in 5th grade we had spelling tests every week, and my teacher made anyone who failed go to detention after school on Fridays and copy the dictionary. I got through “C” by the end of the year. She was nice enough not to make me go right before Christmas break and the last week of school. After my year she stopped using that as a punishment for bad spelling. I am a liberator of 5th graders!)
26. Live to be 100 (This one will take me awhile)
27. Own a motorcycle (Done! 1999. It got stolen, but who’s counting?)
28. Fall in love (Done! Valentine’s Day, 1997. Can you guess who?)
29. Write a book
30. Visit Canada (Done! 2005. Our anniversary. We took a ferry from Washington)
31. Take a cruise (Done! Alaska. Awesome). 
32. Become the best in Entomology
33. Be rich enough to buy my parents a cabin or car (Part of this list was written when I was a starving student. I mean, really starving…like ducking the landlord, saving up for Taco Bell starving. I lived on popcorn and oatmeal for most of a year. I was super thin)
34. Own a home in Australia
35. Travel the world
36. Own a large house with my husband (I also wrote a good portion of this list right when I met Dean, so “husband” and “love” are mentioned a bunch) (Done! 7/2008:  4 bedrooms is large, right?)
37. Have a large wedding (Done! 9/3/00)
38. Tour Iceland
39. Visit Greenland (Notice I don’t want to tour Greenland)
40. Know a song on the harp by every major composer (As soon as I define what a “major” composer is, I’ll get started on this one)
41. Meet someone famous (so, who’s gonna be famous so I can check this off? I’ve met a bunch of famous forensic entomologists, but I’m not counting them for some reason.)
42. Begin an Art, science and cultural center
43. Weigh 120-135 as long as it’s healthy (it stopped being healthy a while ago–right around the infertility time)
44. Create a cross stitch tapestry (Working on it!)
45. Learn to draw (Done! Spring 2000. I’m no Ivan, but it’s good enough for government work)
46. Learn to tango (Done! Summer 2000. I hated it)
47. Get a degree in something totally unrelated (Done! June, 2007. I have a degree in Emergency Prehospital Care. If you’re dying, call me! I’ll tell you to go to the hospital)
48. Own a company (Done! 2011. Have ya heard of New Republic Brewing? No? Look it up!)
49. Maintain a very large garden
50. Arrange a musical festival
51. Go on an African safari
52. Be someone’s inspiration
53. Stay in the best hotels in the world
54. Backpack across America
55. Sponsor a Shakespeare festival
56. Throw at least 1 major formal party
57. Tour England
58. Visit every major museum in the world
59. Love wine (Done! I have no idea when this happened exactly….)
60. Become adept at herbal studies
61. Study at least 3 religions other than Methodist (Done! Mormonism, Judaism and Jehovah’s Witness. I ended up with a boyfriend in each religion, which really made the study easy. Mormons wear sacred underwear. Don’t tell them you know!)
62. Watch or be in every Shakespeare play
63. Organize 5 missions (So I grew up in a Methodist church, and Methodists are really into volunteering. All through high school I went on youth missions organized by the church–I’ve been to Mexico 12 or 13 times to work on churches and houses, I went to Yuma, Arizona several times and worked on the Indian reservation there, and I helped organize a huge mission to Alaska, but I couldn’t go. This is the one thing I miss about not going to church anymore. My old church went to Mississippi last spring to rebuild houses destroyed in hurricane Katrina. I wish I could’ve gone)
64. Study scarab beetles (they’re shiny!)
65. Visit Egypt
66. Never have to worry about money (once again, I was a starving student at this point….)
67. Become adept at rock climbing
68. Visit every state in the union (I’m working on it!)
69. Visit Easter Island
70. Perform in a large theater (Done! Christmas 1997 and 1998. I was part of a Christmas show playing in LA. I played the harp–3500 seats in that theater)
71. Visit Morocco (Ah…here comes my travel list….)
72. Visit Sri Lanka
73. Visit the Philippines (Earl? When we going?)
74. Visit Norway
75. Study cancer (When I add to my list each year, I sometimes don’t go back and review everything first, so there are a few duplicates. Apparently I really want to do these things)
76. Visit France
77. Visit the Eiffel Tower (just in case I was gonna miss it while in France….)
78. Visit the Statue of Liberty again (I saw it when my class went there in Jr. High, but I was a bit boy crazy and didn’t really care about the big green woman)
79. Visit the Leaning Tower of Pisa
80. Stay in a small Russian town
81. Go to a health spa (Done! I now do this as regularly as possible)
82. Win a major contest
83. Become a photographer (I don’t think I have much of an eye, but I can try)
84. Visit Dublin
85. Become monetarily comfortable (still hungry!)
86. Own a store
87. Learn to fence (Done! 2004. Hated it!)
88. Learn a martial arts (Done! 2004, black belt in kenjo ki karate–better known as kickboxing)
89. Visit a homeless family
90. Learn massage
91. Write a major research paper (Done! June 2007. It’s going to publication this year W00t!!)
92. Work in a vineyard (Done! Spring 1997, Cal Poly SLO. 1 year. It was fun)
93. Witness a controlled burn (Done! Summer 1998. We had to do several controlled burns in the orchard that summer)
94. Save an insect species
95. Discover an insect species (I like me some insect species)
96. Biologically solve a pest problem (I haven’t decided if I want to do this on a grand scale or not…if not, then done! I’ll leave it unmarked for now, though)
97. Read Moby Dick, A Tale of Two Cities, Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Hans Christian Andersen series, The Metamorphasis, The Fountainhead, It, The Lord of the Rings, and a book by Chaucer. (Some of these are done. The hardest so far is The Lord of the Rings. How do people get through this?!?)
98. Fall asleep in a hammock overlooking a beautiful beach and sea under a full moon (Aw! Aren’t I romantic?)
99. Learn to horseback (Done! Did you know that Dean’s grandfather raised horses?)
100. Take a trip to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
101. Be interviewed by the press (Done! 2005 FFAS conference. CNN interviewed me about entomology)
102. Go to England to see the Shakespeare Festival
103. Help to solve a crime (Done! I’m a forensic entomologist!)
104. Learn to belly dance (I keep meaning to do this one. Someone help!)
105. Discover the purpose of an insect and use those facts to save it from extinction
106. Write out the entire rocky scrip, block it and use it to get a show started (This is half done–I have the script.)
107. Plan an orchard
108. Read the Bible (This may end up harder than finishing Lord of the Rings)
109. Read the Book of Mormon (And this will be harder than the Bible)
110. Read the entire works of Edgar Allen Poe
111. Build my own harp (You can get kits for not that much and build your own lap harp. Want!)
112. Visit all the National Parks
113. Live in France
114. Design and build a custom lab for my work
115. Have a maid or cleaning service (I don’t do windows! Or any other cleaning, for that matter)
116. Visit all the amusement parks in the U.S.
117. Design a set (Done! Fall 1997. I designed the sets for a performance of Hamlet)
118. Be a main part in a show
119. Picnic on top of a mountain (Wouldn’t this be fun? Hint!)
120. Ride the trolly in San Francisco (Done! Summer 1998)
121. Try Sushi (Done! And I never looked back)
122. See 100 Rocky Horror Picture Shows (I’m at 82)
123. Plan a very romantic trip somewhere and take it with someone I love (Done! We went to Costa Rica for our honeymoon)
124. Help someone in need (I don’t think I’ll ever mark this one off, no matter how many times I do it)
125. Buy my own car (We’ve been given our last several, so I haven’t really had the chance yet. Not that I’m complaining…we’ll happily take anyone’s car off their hands! It’s what we do!)
126. Visit Alaska (Done! Summer 2010)
127. Be loved by someone I’m not related to (Done!)
128. Don’t die lonely
129. Retire
130. Fall asleep in someone’s arms (Done!)
131. Have my own CD
132. Pass Music Theory 1 (Done! I got a B! Stupid class)
133. Figure out how to raise Jerusalem Crickets (Done! Those bastards are a pain in the ass to raise. And they bite super hard!)
134. Finance my education (Done! That was hard, and now I’m in debt forever, but done!)
135. Create a large folder of research on raising insects (Done! 2011)
136. Have something published (Done! July 2008, my very first article. Ask me and I’ll let you read it!)
138. Turn my car into a work of art (Done! You should have seen it….)
139. Get an A in Beekeeping (Done! Easiest A ever. I like bees)
140. Manage my own beehive (Just might happen soon…I have plans)
141. Have a webpage (Done! Ah, remember the early days of the web when webpages were novel and only geeks had them?)
142. Get into grad school (Done! For years and years!)
143. Learn to sew (Done! July 2008. I learned, now I just have to get good at it)
144. Finish the Chaos book (It’s a book about Chaos theory. I really only started reading it because I was dating this super cute math major who told me it was good. It’s sitting on the shelf with a 10 year old bookmark in it. I’ll get back to it eventually. I’ll probably have to start from the beginning, though. That’s gonna suck)
145. Create at least one of my clothing designs (So I took this design class for my minor–I had to design clothes. I based all of them on insects)
146. Get an award from a scientific association
147. Get certified in some aspect of entomology
148. Present an original paper at a scientific meeting (Done! June 2008. Presented “Seasonal Distribution and Abundance of Forensically Important Flies in Santa Clara County. It was well received)
149. Get my masters (Done! June 2007)
150. Save 1 million dollars
151. Buy a house (Done! July 2008, and it’s beautiful. Come and visit! We have cookies)
152. Visit every state in the nation (See what I mean about duplicates?)
153. Start a consulting business (Plans, again. Plans.)
154. Read every book in the library (Wanna watch? Or help? Join me!)
155. Visit every country in the world
156. Learn to ride a motorcycle (Yep, this is gonna be done this year. Someone teach me, please!)
157. Climb a mountain
158. Start a journal (Done! 2006. I now have blogs instead)
159. Volunteer somewhere
160. Write a book (I must really want to write that damn book!)
161. Be on tv
163. Create an intricate treasure hunt
164. See a musical on Broadway
165. Be self employed with an actual income
166. Own a cabin
167. Plant 100 trees
168. Read 1000 books (up to 310 since I started counting)
169. See an iceberg (Done! 2010)
170. Get rid of that dead place inside of me (Done! 2007 or 2008. Ask me about it sometime, if you really want to know)
171. Ride a snowmobile
172. Take a speed reading course (Done! 2009. It was bullshit)
173. Learn to surf
174. Walk across a swingy suspension bridge (Done! Malaysia, 2011)
175. Arrange a harp song
176. Learn Latin
177. Visit Walden pond (Then talk about it all snooty like)
178. Create a hedge maze (How cool is my house gonna be?!?)
179. Be a groomsman (You see, I’ve been every part of a wedding–Bride, bridesmaid, acolyte, harpist, flower girl, officiant, guest on the bride’s side, guest on the groom’s side, but I’ve never been a groomsman. That would complete my takeover of all things wedding!)
180. Have a grand library (With a fireplace and leather chairs and a secret door) (I’m so close!)
181. Have a cabin on a lake
182. Take a gondola ride (Hey! Another great date idea!)
183. Hold a hawk
184. Rehabilitate a wild animal
185. Fire a sniper rifle
186. Fire an automatic weapon
187. Fly first class across the ocean
188. Go hot air ballooning
189. Stay on a houseboat
190. Go hang gliding (But not by myself–with a trained professional so I won’t die. I want to live to be 100, remember?)
191. Do that thing with the parachute hanging off a boat (Doesn’t that sound like fun!?!)
192. visit the Bermuda Triangle (And not get lost)
193. Put $500 a month in my IRA (Up to $350 a month, as of now. See…I’m well on my way to saving 1 million!)
194. Go see the Ice Hotel (I love the Discovery Channel)
195. See Grand Central Station
196. Drive across America, coast to coast
197. Climb the highest mountain in California
198. Renovate a house
199. Cross the Panama Canal
200. Finish the world’s largest crossword puzzle (Don’t really know if I want to do this one any more, but there you are)
201. Go a month without TV (Done! 2008. I was super busy, and TV is the first to go)
202. Buy some aboriginal art in Australia (I blame Chris and Yanira for this–stupid HDTV showing Australia and stuff!)
203. Be married for 60 years (at least!)
204. Make a quilt
205. Go white water rafting
206. Own a sports car (A green RX-7)
207. Buy a house in Costa Rica (Love it there!)
208. Bike 1000 miles in a year
209. Create the perfect, craveable Thanksgiving dinner (I think I’m close! I shall see)
210. Ride the orient express
211. Stay in a haunted hotel (Done! 2009, actually…we stayed in Le Pavllion in New Orleans, and apparently it’s haunted. Who knew?)
212. Be under 30% body fat
213. Be nominated for a teaching award (Done! Fall, 2008, distinguished teaching award at Texas A&M)
214. Visit the poles (The South and North poles you dirty minded people!)
215. Go sailing
216. Go on an Alaskan cruise (Yep, really wanted to, and now we have!)
217. Attend a movie premiere
218. Spend over 2 weeks at a nice hotel just enjoying the grounds (I got this idea from reading The Shining. Maybe that’s where I got the haunted hotel idea, too)
219. Attend the Rockettes Christmas Show (I hear this is great!)
220. Celebrate Day of the Dead in Mexico (you know, after they figure out all the drug killings and kidnappings. Still wanna live to 100)
221. Adopt a toddler or baby (Decided this year we will not adopt. Gonna leave this one on the list just to remember, though)
222. Visit the Louvre (I wonder if that’s even close to how it’s spelled)
223. Kiss Dean in Paris
224. Do a food tour of the USA: Pizza in Chicago, Blue Crabs in Maryland, Cheese Steak in Philly, (and a bunch of other stuff I haven’t come up with yet)
225. Learn how to write my name in Japanese
226. Celebrate Christmas in New York and London
227. Air Boat the Everglades
228. Pay off my student loans ($32,000 and counting….)
229. Become known for great Thanksgivings
230. Have an art show (Maggot art, baby!)
231. Live in the mountains
232. Take a trip in a motor home
233. See the great barrier reef (But there’s no need to scuba dive…I’m morally against going anywhere I have to take my own oxygen. We need it to survive, people!)
234. Create a secret garden (I love that book! And play! And movie!)
235.Drink mint julep in the French Quarter (Done! June 2009. It was super fun. We bought art).
236.Enter a cooking contest
237. Have a pool
238. Put all my photos/mementos in scrapbooks (Done! It’ll be an on going process from this point on, but most of it is computerized now)
239. See all the movies on AFI’s top 100 list (30 down, 70 to go)
240. Visit Alcatraz
241. Try real absinthe (Done! 2007. It tastes like licorice, and has no hallucinogenic effects)
242. volunteer at a homeless shelter or food bank
243. Look good in a 2 piece
244. Have $100,000 in my IRA
245. Paint a really big painting
246. Get certified with a handgun
247.Ride all the rollercoasters in the US (30 down, 602 to go!)
248. Work at Quantico
249. Get 5 articles published
250. Go back to London, at least once
251. Have a real office that I don’t have to move out of every semester
252. Pass my quals (Done!!!!)
253. Write my lab manual
254. Own some art by someone famous
255. Become a consultant (a final duplicate!)
256: Win a teaching award (Done! December 2009. I won the Vice Chancellor’s award for graduate student teaching. Woo!)
257: Build three projects for the house
258: Build a deck
259: Sew a dress that looks good on me
260: Learn how to tailor clothes and tailor some of my own.
261: Learn to fold a fitted sheet

Just a few done this year, but gearing up for another great 365 days. What are your goals?

–Adie

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I keep trying to write something sentimental about ending a year and beginning a new one, but everything seems to come up short. Probably because I'm sick & slightly delusional. But also because it's hard to sum up an entire year in a singular post. So this week will be reflection week. I want to make a newer & better me for the new year, and I know in order to do that I need to look at my failures and successes of the past year.

I'm going to look through my Project 365, check out my 2011 To-Do List, and take a look at those promises I made myself here in public during my 2011: A Time For Change series.

I’ve been off for Christmas break this past week, so there weren’t very many outfits to share. But I did have a few…  And yes, I know, I shop at Kohl’s too much!

December 21, 2011

Dark blue skinny… read more

Hi everyone,

Our company needed to pick up another Android phone this Christmas. I really wanted to wait until the spring to purchase a phone and activate another two-year agreement, hoping on developments with the iPhone 5 or a price reduction in the new Nexus, but we couldn't.

I spoke to many Andriod owners over the last month, and combined with our recent experience, I'd like to offer the following suggestions:

Processor Speed: at least 1 gigahertz (1.2gh dual-core preferable)
RAM: At least 512 megabytes  (1 gigabyte preferable)
Storage: at least 16g (32g preferable)
Rear Camera: at least 5mp
Front Camera: at least 1mp
LED Flash: rear
Video: at least 720p (1080p preferable)
Audio Out: 3.5mm standard jack
Screen: at least 4"
Battery: at least 1500 mAh (1800 mAh preferable)
Network: at least 4g (4g LTE preferable)
OS: at least 2.3.5 gingerbread (4.0 ice cream sandwich preferable)

Of this list, I give priority to processor speed and RAM. Your life can be miserable without enough of either.

This is a pretty strong suite and well above the standard fare offered as a "free" phone from the primary carriers, but if you are going to be happy in three months, let alone two years, you need to buy "up."

We run our phones hard, heavy on social networking and location services. I can't stand phones that slow down, or are unreliable. Unfortunately, technology is progressing much faster than the typical two-year contract.

I hope this is helpful for post-Christmas shopping.

You can follow the New Technoloy Working Group on twitter or our facebook page for more tech tips!

Blue skies,

Sam
www.SamWhiteRealty.com
979-589-4487 

Today is our family Christmas party. I tried a new style from The Small Things Blog

We've been putting the final touches on our holiday plans. Each year it seems that the week between Christmas and New Year's goes by so swiftly you don't even get a chance to really enjoy them. Even though it's really a time that you should be enjoying to the upmost.

I'm lucky enough to get the entire week off of work between the two days. And I'm planning on using that week up in the best possible ways. There's going to be a lot of reflection and planning going on over here. Where to take this blog? Where to take even my life? I'm planning on learning new things, re-focusing on old things, and getting to take that little baby step closer to finalizing goals.

So as we go out into this next week of holiday cheer, I am wishing for you a successful and fun time! I hope you all have fun with your family, and are able to fully appreciate what's in front of you. I know I'll be trying to do the same over here ♥

I may be gone a few days... but sometimes it's good to live life just for living's sake.

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Today is a day of old traditions and new. Big changes are coming for 2012 in my life, and today I am enjoying where I am at and what I have with the person I love more than anything else in the world.

Today is a day for PJs, cinnamon rolls, and presents during our annual "married persons Christmas" celebration. Hope you're having a fantastic day!! Please excuse my absence ♥

At 4 days before Christmas, these link-ups have now become my "if I could get ANYTHING" list. Which really is a "clothes I want to buy" list. Because, let's face it... I'm a terrible wonderful online window shopper ♥

Here's a few of my favorite things...

• Sassy Heels, $196.80

We're 5 days away from Christmas!!! Here's a scenario for you....


Even though I've never experienced this scenario before in my life. (Ha ha, yeah right). My go-to, last minute idea is to bake ♥  Here's a few of my go-to Christmas treats....

Things on my to-do list this week...

1. Finish Christmas shopping.
2. Wrap gifts.
3. Spend quality time with C.
4. Remember to relax.
5. Water the Christmas tree.
6. Cook a  nice meal, for just the 2 of us.
7. Finish Start the gingerbread house.
8. Find an appetizer recipe to bring to Christmas Eve.
9. Drive to my family's house.
10. Remember to give thanks & be joyful.