It's been a busy couple of weeks for our little house recently!  And really...I don't see it slowing down too much  anytime in the near future.  Sometimes staying busy is nice, especially when, for the most part, we're not really "busy" people [you know those people - that never seem to have a free minute and always have things going on.  we don't like to live that way...].  But it also can get to you after a while.

Recap - I was in Illinois for work last week.  Had a GREAT time.  Who knew you could like your co-workers SO much??  I love mine, and just wish I had the chance to work with them regularly!  I got back from there late last Thursday night, and Friday afternoon (after working 1/2 day) Brad and I took off for Green Bay to see -->

The Green Bay Packers at Lambeau!  If you follow football at all, Lambeau Field in Green Bay is a legendary venue.  We had a great time visiting some of Brad's relatives - spending time at the Pro Shop, and also getting to visit WG&R, which is owned by Brad's family.  More importantly, we visited August Haven, which is a new furniture store they just opened.  I wish I had pictures of the place, but the only one I can find on Google is this one -

Their furniture was just gorgeous.  I walked in and fell in love.  It's like a Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware all in one.  

We left Green Bay on Sunday morning at 3am, got home around 8:30am and both were at work by 9am.  Needless to say...Monday was a rough day and I am just now getting over a pounding headache that started that morning!

But, my exciting news is that we're going to NASHVILLE!  I found tickets on Southwest Air for $65 ONE WAY from Minneapolis.  So, for Brad and I to book flights there (from a Friday-Monday, no less!) it only cost $340 for both of us!  Seriously??  You can't hardly book one plane ticket for that cost, much less two!  

I found these awesome rates via Airfare Watchdog - I set up Instant Alerts and yesterday it popped up that they had super cheap tickets, so I told Brad about it last night and couldn't believe it when he said, "Let's book it" cause I am forever throwing things at the wall and seeing which ones stick (meaning, trips/flights)!  It will be my 30th birthday present, and I really can't think of a better way to celebrate than by visiting my favorite city!  

Funny thing is that I'm always trying to convince Brad that we need to move there, so last night we were getting ready for bed and I told him, "This will be the 3rd time we've been to Nashville in a year!  I bet it's a sign from the Lord that we're supposed to move there."  And quick as that, he responds, "Or it's a sign that we can live HERE and just visit there a lot."  UGH.  He always gets me on those little smart comments :)  

Oh, and because I always appreciate it when other people do this, here's some new songs for a workout playlist -- 

1.) We Found Love - Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris

2.) Beautiful People - Chris Brown

3.) Breathing - Jason Derulo

4.) Without You - David Guetta feat. Usher

Happy Hump Day!

the zumba report

Alright, I'm going to admit it - I loved Zumba.  Loved it.  And attending the class on Tuesday night definitely affirmed my belief that it's our generation's Jazzercise.  I say that nicely, for the most part :)  I was the youngest one in the class, first off, and while we were standing around waiting for it to start I was able to watch a 40ish year old woman warm up by doing her Zumba moves.  Then another woman came in, she was very pretty and probably in her late 40's?  Very pretty makeup, seemed very sweet and conservative....and kid you not, the woman came alive in the class!  I mean, hip-grinding, butt-shaking, nearly-lifting-her-shirt at one point (yes, seriously). Then there were a few senior citizens in the class, as well, which always makes you skeptical at the intensity in the class.

Overall, I had a blast dancing and felt that, while I didn't get an intensive workout, I got my heart rate up and actually had fun while doing it. If you like dancing, Zumba is a great class to check out.

Did anyone else watch Hart of Dixie on Monday night?

Holy cow, I am obsessed.  First....can we just talk about the fact that it takes place in a small town in the South?  Hello, my dream life.  Secondly....Rachel Bilson and her ridiculously adorable self and wardrobe.  Can I have her hair?  And pretty much everything she wears?  Thirdly...really looking forward to seeing how they play her relationships out with Wade (is that his name?  The bad boy?) and George (who was also in Friday Night Lights, aka Best Show Ever on TV).  The acting isn't going to win any awards, but it doesn't matter.  I'm in love.

Is it feeling like Friday to anyone else today???

dubious

Being that it's Fall [in fact, we should be hitting our peak colors here this weekend or next week.  Un-freaking-believable...] I'm due for a hair color change.  I've found that, in a small town, getting your hair done is so reasonably priced that I typically can go about 4 times a year for coloring.  Health of my hair aside...I usually go dark blonde in the spring and lighten it up even more in the summer, and in the fall I'm always drawn to warm, rich colors.  Except that I've dated/married a man who just really doesn't want me to go dark with my hair.  I've appeased him all these years except for one, and here's the proof:

That also happened to be my year abroad when we weren't dating :) 

My hair appointment is this Friday, and here's what I'm thinking --

This is a little darker than I would probably go, considering that she's got gorgeous olive skin and I have very fair, pale skin.  But I really like the rich color of it.

Here's one other option --

This girl is much more my coloring, and the hair is a shade or two lighter than what I would want.  But I like the warm honey color.

I think I'll take both pictures and see what my stylist thinks.  I'll make sure to post pics once it's done.

On an un-related note, I'm attending a Zumba class tonight.  I'm a little dubious just cause something about the Zumba craze reminds me of the Jazzercise craze...and we can all remember how popular that was with moms in the 90's.  The Zumba instructor is in my Spinning class and she said she sweats as much in Zumba as she does in Spinning, so that should mean something cause I sweat like crazy in Spinning.  Plus the dancing aspect sounds fun.  Here's to hoping it's not cheesy!

inspiration + photo dump

Happy Saturday! I cannot even begin to tell you how much I have loved the weekends lately. We have had amazing fall weather (even if it's been a little rainy, ick), so we've been having campfires, spending time outdoors, I've set up my fall decs, got my pretty red mums on the porch...as much as I hate seeing summer leave, this is my favorite season of the year and because it's SO short-lived up here, we try to take full advantage of it!

First piece of business. I've been on a re-decorating kick lately, mainly in my living room. It's mainly been a lot of warm earth tones the last couple years - oranges, tans, olives, etc - and I'm over it now. I want lots of black and cream with tan. I just think something about black and cream is so beautiful.

See below. I love so many things about this room...

via House Beautiful - you can check out the whole article here

See those black and white striped pillows on those chairs? From the moment I saw this picture in the magazine, I knew I needed to have them one day. Here's a closer shot:

I believe those pillows were from Ikea?  Seeing as how I'm 3 hours from the nearest Ikea, I found some very similar fabric at www.babybedding.com (funny, right?  No babies here, fyi).  Using some fabric pins (cause I don't sew), here's what I came up with:

My fabric is a gorgeous black+natural canvas, very thick yet easy to work with.  I haven't finished with the pillow yet, that's just to see what it would look like with one.  I may do a simple duck cloth pillow there, not sure just yet.  Oh - and yes, that is an ugly old chair I think I got for $10 that I covered with an ivory sheet.  I'm sure you can tell :)  Hey, you do what you can with what ya got, right??

And finally, here's some of my latest photos of myself...mainly cause I have realized that, within the last year or so, there's hardly any recent photos of me on Facebook.  Or anywhere, for that matter.  So I guess if something ever happens to me, Brad will have these stellar bathroom/bedroom self-portraits to remember me by.  

Okay, funny thing.  This is what my hair usually looks like:

[@ a county fair eating a chicken wing in my girlfriend's fiance's fry shack.  she was taking pics of me trying all the terribly horribly awful food her fiance makes...chicken wings, deep fried cookie dough, deep fried butter, etc etc]

Usually pretty flat and straight.  Boring.

So I've been on this teasing/volumizing kick.  Here was the first picture (sorry it's so dark).  

Um...hello, bed head/mushroom head/messy hair...

Here it is after a little taming....

Too bad it only looks like that about once a month, ha.  

Here's another recent one...wearing my LC Lauren Conrad shirt.  (Kohl's site is being goofy and can't link)

Well, I think that's it for photos.  I'm heading over to my town's Fall Fest, which is really just an outdoor craft fair on Main Street with fair foods.  But it's still fun, nonetheless.  

Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend!

Lauren Conrad for Kohls

Growing up, I swear that the only place my mom ever took me school clothes shopping to was Kohl's. As a result...I hate Kohl's now :) However, I had some time to kill earlier this week in the next town over (actually 45 min away, blech), so I decided to stop in to Kohl's and see what I could find.

Now...I knew Lauren Conrad (famous from MTV The Hills) was doing her own clothing line, and I totally blew it off as, "She's famous and rich, it will probably be crap like all the other celeb lines." Until I actually saw her little section in my Kohl's store.

Here's a few of my faves from her (Kohl's) website:

This fall I have noticed myself only wanting to buy ivory, rose, and gold tones. They're immensely flattering on any skin tone - especially a fading tan skin tone, so sad - and just feel so girly and pretty. I actually purchased the ivory blazer up there, and I'm wearing it now with a white v-neck and gold jewelry. It's classic. The tanks up at the top I could picture with some dark trouser jeans, or skinnies & flats (or under a black - or even better, ivory! suit coat - Annie!) Her dresses are also gorgeous and worth checking out.

Best part of her line...it's well-priced and seems to always be on sale!

side note pet peeve - why do the mannequins have no chest?? very odd.

perils of a small town

95% of the time, I love living in a small town. I love seeing people I know every time I go to the grocery store, post office or coffee shop. I love that getting anywhere takes 5 minutes at the most (for us, anyway, we live close to town). I love the rural setting, being able to leave your keys in the car and not worry (trying to break this habit, though...while we've never had anything happen, I know it's risky, ha!). My list of reasons why I love a small town are very long...

But yesterday challenged my love of this little town. I had a check I needed to cash at a bank that we don't bank at, so I asked Brad the night before to check and see when they opened. He told me they opened at 7:30. The next morning I drove to the bank early only to find out that the drive through doesn't open until 8:30. And closes at 4:30. Hm...that's convenient for stay-at-home moms and the elderly.

So then I decide to go get some coffee at our local coffee shop. The only coffee shop in town. I wait in line and order an Iced Coffee that came to a couple bucks. I hand the woman my card, and she says, "Oh...we actually have a $5 minimum for cards now." Well, I didn't have any cash (and I really never carry cash) so I said, "Okay, you can cancel my order, thank you" and she goes, "Oh, we'll take care of it today and the next time you come in we'll charge you for it." So they did end up giving me my drink, but I can't even tell you how frustrating the "minimum charge" is. I understand that credit card companies are robbers to their merchants with their charges, but hello, that is the cost of doing business! And at a coffee shop, most of the time your purchases don't come quite to $5. (Plus, I would like to add that, per most credit card companies, setting a "minimum charge amount" is a violation of policy and can be reported by consumers). Anyway, I visit this place a lot and I rarely have cash, so that leaves me in a pickle.

And then the final thing yesterday that caused me to roll my eyes was when I called to make a nail appointment at a local hair salon and every day that I requested, the nail tech left by 1:30. Um...most people are working during those hours and I'm afraid my boss might frown on me leaving work to go get my nails done.

Which is why I'm trying with all my might to talk Brad into moving to Nashville.

starving

a girlfriend of mine recently decided to do a juicing fast for about 7-10 days, and she would randomly put updates on facebook about how it was going. I decided it was a great idea, but Ididn't have a juicer. last Sunday night, though, Brad and I were at his parents house and I remembered that his Mom had a juicer (side note, his mom beat ovarian cancer 6 years ago by doing all natural treatments in Mexico at a clinic that wasn't FDA approved - no money in it, ha - and it included doing lots and lots of juicing). I asked if I could borrow it, and a few hours later I was at Wal Mart picking out tons of fruit and veggies.

At first I thought I would juice exclusively for 3 days, but after almost wrecking on the drive home from work due to extreme hunger, I decided to just juice for breakfast and lunch and eat salads for dinner.

That lasted for 2 days. So now I'm juicing breakfast and lunch and eating veggies and fruits in between whenever I get hungry. I'm not gonna lie...I don't feel any better. Maybe it's cause I'm still drinking a cup of coffee in the morning? I don't know. Maybe it takes a while to see the benefits of it, who knows. All I know is, I'm starving most of the time, and when I'm starving, I'm cranky.

In other news, my sister-in-law got married a couple weeks ago! She was a beautiful, beautiful bride. Here's a picture of me, Marie (the bride), my sister-in-law Leah (brown hair) and Brad's Mom, and also Halle, Leah's daughter (the flower girl. She was my flower girl, too!)

picture via Wonderful Life Photography

I would like to add, I had approximately 7 minutes to get ready for this picture (I did all the photos besides the ceremony & family/wedding party photos), hence the icky hair! I did not wear it like that for the wedding :)