Blogging BFFs.

I have said it once, and I will say it again... my favorite part of blogging is the community!  I have met a ton of lovely ladies through this silly little blog.  (I use the word "met" loosely because actually meeting these ladies will probably not be an easy thing but definitely needs to be a plan!)  

Today I want you to take five seconds to meet my newest blogging BFF.  Please please please please read the little note about her below, then head over to her blog, show her some love, and tell her I sent ya!  I heart her.  I really do.  

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Hey guys!  I’m Lesley over at my lively mind.  I am still new to blogging, but am loving every minute of it. There are so many amazing blogs and people that I've run across and I can't wait to experience more.  Here are a few tidbits about myself.

:: Type A personality. I can’t relax and am a perfectionist.

:: I am a new nurse. Welcome to the real world.

:: I am from the St. Louis area. Good ol cornfields & cows.

:: I am the girl who always has multiple lotions in my bag.  I hate dryness.

:: lover of dogs, the beach, and sparkles.  Simple happiness.

:: obsessed with handwashing  Germophobe.

:: I’ve realized that life is flying by and that I need to slow down and appreciate the beauty in my life.  There is so much to be thankful for.

You never know what you’re going to find on my blog, but mostly ideas revolving around recipes, hair/makeup, product reviews, crafty projects, and things that make life beautiful and interesting.  I love meeting new people and discovering new things along the way.

Stop by my blog and introduce yourself!  I would love to meet you.

Here's the link to her blog again, just in case you missed it above!  Show her some love and give her a big blogging hug from me!  I am still sitting in corporate meetings... pray for me.  I have about 600 of your blog posts to catch up on at this point.  I love and miss you all! xoxo

Dinner with Cowboys and Mules

Goooood morning from a colddddd Frisco, Colorado!  We left home at 4am yesterday, and arrived in Denver around 11:30 in the afternoon, only to be greeted by a horrible headache and dizziness!  Luckily, we planned to have a couple of days for some R&R before my meetings start Monday.  Because this girl needs it.  I spent most of yesterday wishing I was home sweet home at sea level or curled up in a ball sleeping off this altitude change.  Crazy right?!

Anyway - I hope you're ready for a photo dump because boy do I have some fun photos to share with you!  (Again, all taken in my newly learned manual mode!  The fact that it has finally "clicked" for me just makes me giddy!)

Last night my mom and I did a sleigh ride dinner thing here in Frisco.  Two Below Zero, the company we did this through, was awesome.  They will definitely be getting a good review from me on tripadvisor!  :)
 

Before the ride out to the tent I decided this would be a great time to introduce myself to the mules who would be pulling the sleigh for the night! 

The sleigh above was actually the sleigh we ended up riding on.  The horses mules above are Judy and Jan.  They are sisters.  And apparently much cooler than horses.  At least according to our driver... who's name also started with a J.  

 

 These two were feisty!  Agnes and Ada... Crazy fool mules!  But their black fur looks cool with the white snow for photos! I absolutely love the photo below... Amazing what a perspective change will do for a photograph.

 Agnes tried to eat the fur ball hanging off my hat... silly Agnes. 

Then Ada tried to bite my mom's glove...  Silly Ada.   

We took off to the tent as the sun was setting against the Rocky Mountains.  It was about a 15 minute, windy, chilly ride.  Originally I was a little dissapointed to learn it would only a 15 minute ride... then we started on our the bitter cold journey and I was thrilled it would only be 15 minutes!

Thankfully the tent was nice and warm!  (The bathroom outhouse on the other hand... not so much.  I held it like a champ just so I wouldn't have to go out there!)  The waiters were actually the dudes that drove us out there! (The men, not the mules.)  Nothing like some cute cowboys greeting you at your table with hot chocolate and peppermint schnapps!  Deeee-lish! 

Ready for some dinner pics?   The meal started with a hot bowl of spicy chicken soup.  I loved it, my mom - not so much.

That was chased by steak, chicken, veggies and a baked potato!  Minus the potato and the schnapps this meal was totally in my meal plan!!   I also LOVED that all of the food was served on the red metal plates.  It made eating dinner in a tent feel so authentic! 

Of course there was dessert.  A ton of whipped cream with a piece of apple pie hiding under it!  Not so paleo but oh so delicious.  

With the apple pie came the entertainment.  Meet David Peel.  His voice sounded a little like Neil Diamond meets Johnny Cash.  I loved it!  He even gave us a little John Denver West Virginia shout out with some Country Roads, take me home... to a place... where I belong... Blue Ridge Mountains...  You know the rest, right?

Then we had to face the cold again.  And the mule butts.  And head back to the parking lot.  All in all, it was such a fun night!  A little expensive ($80 each) but since we are not skiing or doing anything super exciting today, it was justifiable.  When else am I going to be able to say cowboys served me dinner, in a tent, in the middle of a snowy Colorado?  

And since I have the song stuck in my head, I want it stuck in your head too... Happy Sunday friends!

PS...  I just asked Siri about the current temperature outside... you ready for this?!  Shiver Me Timbers!

Flip Flops to Snow Boots! Oh My!

Today I wore flippies.

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Tomorrow I will have to wear eskimo boots.

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(I totally wish I had boots like those above - but other than tomorrow, I would have no reason to ever wear them!  They look pretty sweet though don't they?!) 

It was unconditionally warm here in Virginia today!  81 degrees!  So of course I was wearing a tank top and flip flops as I serviced my accounts and began to pack my stuff.  Thank you so much for bearing with my this week as my blog post have been... well... not so stellar in my personal opinion.  There's that tiny bit of added pressure because so many of you are new readers!  I promise the best is yet to come.  But for right now, I am in the midst of a crazy work schedule because I am flying to Denver for a week of meetings at our corporate office.  (Why corporate can't be located in the Bahamas is beyond me!)

I will try to keep you posted on my goings-on in Denver!  I will have two laptops and my ipad with me, so let's stay connected, okay?

I am going to leave you with a little Rocky Mountain quote since I will be enjoying their awe and beauty tomorrow afternoon...

- I expected the Rocky Mountains to be a little rockier than this...

- I was thinking the same thing.  That John Denver's full of s%#t! 

Name that movie - it's one of my faves!  :)  xo 

PS.  Prayers for safe travels, great business meetings, and no temperatures below 30 degrees are highly encouraged!  Have a great weekend!  

Things I Love Thursday!

Ohhh Emmmm Geeee!!  I have been so incredibly slammed with things lately that I didn't have time to post anything yesterday!  Soooo sorry, to everyone, but especially those new readers from Living In Yellow!

Since I have a hot 10 seconds I decided today I would chat with you about ten things that I am currently loving.  That's one thing a second.  That means I have to type REALLY fast!  Ready?  Okay, let's do this.

One.

Despite all the craziness of the week, and the fact that I had to make a surprise two hour drive to Richmond, VA just to drop off a box this past Tuesday night... I was thrilled because I got to meet the tiniest baby I have ever met in my entire life!  AND I got to spend an hour with Katie, her momma!  Congrats again to my sweet friends Katie and Chris.  Kinsley is absolutely adorable!  

Two.

Saturday I am leaving on a jet plane!  I am heading out to Denver, Colorado.  (Do you say Coller-ah-doe or Coll-ah-rad-oh??  Just curious.)  It will be nice change of scenery for the weekend.  Then I will have corporate meetings until Friday.  Although I am not so keen on the meetings, I am looking forward to seeing all the pretty faces of the people I talk to and email ALL THE TIME in person.  :) 

 Three.

Did I mention that it is February and 72 degrees outside right now?  Yep.  Gonna kill me to pack up snow clothes for the weekend!  

Four.

Since we are on the subject of weather and work... Remember this post - the one where I told you that I was announced as number 5 in the company for resale sales?!  They announced where we are going... And it's the happiest place on earth!  (No, I don't mean a sunny island with hot men and fruity beverages where there is no such thing as work, stress or laundry...)  I mean - we are going to Disney World!!  

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Five. 

Although the company isn't letting us bring anyone along on the trip to Florida, it looks like it might work out that Michael and I will be able to take a couple days off an head down there early.  He's never been to Florida or Disney!  So exciting!  You haven't lived until you've met Mickey Mouse.  Am I right?!

Six. 

I also love the smell in my house right now.  I have had my top secret White Bean Chicken Chili recipe brewing all day!  I am entered into a Keller Williams Chili Cook-off tonight!  This is a two time award winning chili recipe... let's hope I can win again tonight!  (Who would've known, when they planned this months ago, that today would be almost 75 degrees?!) 

Seven.

My cat Rockie just can't get enough of me right now.  Is it sad that I absolutely love it when my cat is absolutely in love with me??  Any cat owners out there will know exactly what I am talking about... my two cats are nothing like my dog.  For the most part Chloe always loves me.  The cats on the other hand, somedays they could really give a crap about me.  While other days they are incredibly obsessed with me.  Today, Rockie just wants to sit with me and look at my pretty hair.  :)  

Eight.

I won a blog giveaway!  One of my dear blogging friends, Jenn over at Passenger Seat Perspective had a giveaway going on for one of her photographs.  And I totally won!  Craziest part though, she was the girl who won the teapot last week from me!  I swear this was totally legit!  Now I just have to head over to her etsy shop and pick out which photograph I want.  Decisions decisions!  Why don't you head over there and tell me which one you would pick if you were me!!

Nine.

I am trying to plan way too many vacations right now!  (Sounds painful... I live a tough life... I know!)  I love looking at my calendar to see what I have planned for the future.  The biggest thing I spend my free money on travel, so to realize that I will be going somewhere every couple months just makes me giddy!  Denver, CO this week.  Orlando, FL in April.  New England (probably New Hampshire and Maine) in June!  And if I find a cheap enough flight I may start thinking about Switzerland for Thanksgiving to visit some family!  CRAZY RIGHT?  But it makes me ohhh so happy.  Like almost as happy as a calorie free bowl of "Birthday Cake Remix" from Coldstone would make me everyday of my life.

Ten.

The last thing that makes me so happy right now... hm... how do I put this?  You!  Thank you for all of your readership and support and awesome comments!  It sounds cheesy but thank you for becoming my friends!  I actually felt sad yesterday because I didn't have time to read your blogs.  I now have 181 blog posts to catch up on!  Thank you to those who have jumped on board for the bracelet giveaway and my "Say No to Naked Wrists" Campaign!  You still have many ways to enter and several days to tell folks about it!  It doesn't look like the etsy shop will be open until I get back from Denver - so stay with me on this one.  :) 

I hope you all are enjoying this lovely Thursday!  As always - thanks for reading!  xoxo 

Say No to Naked Wrists! - GIVEAWAY!

Gooooood Morning Everyone!  Especially those visiting from Living in Yellow!  Erin's awesome isn't she?!  Anyway, I am super excited about today because just like yesterday, you are totally in the right place at the right time!  Here's the deal...  

I love fun jewelry!  You know those pandora bracelets?  The ones with the fun and colorful beads?  Yeah, those.  I love them!  But I don't love spending a trillion dollars on one or two of those decorative beads either.  So... I started making Pandora styled bracelets myself!  And hopefully, by the end of this week, I will have my own etsy shop up and running!  I know!  Hooray!  

Do you want to be one of the first to get your hands on one of my lovely bracelets?!  You totally can!  But here's the catch!  I do not actually have a bracelet made up for you yet!  I wanted to wait and see who the winner is first.  That way you can have a little bit of a say in what color beads you will get!  Again, can I get another Hooray?!  

When you win - we will get in touch and you can let me know what color, or color combo you want!  All whites?  Purple and gold like the one above?  Maybe you want a black and white one that will go with a million different outfits.  Are you one of my Keller Williams agents... we could do a red and black one for you!  Or green for St. Patties day by chance?  Possibilities are endless friends!  And I will leave that up to you.  (Actual bead choices will be made by me.  Color choice will be up to you though.)

So how do you get your name on the list to win one of these gems?  Don't you fret!  It's easy!  And I have numerous options for you!

1. This one is mandatory!  You must be a Google Friend Connection Follower OR be a subscriber to the emails.  Leave a comment below letting me know this is you!
2. Head over to the 2 Cats & Chloe facebook page and become a fan! Leave a comment on that page with the color bracelet you would love to win!  And please leave a comment below telling me you are now a fan!  (This way I can keep you all in one place!) 
3. Leave a comment below and tell me what color bracelets you would love to see in my etsy shop that will hopefully be opening this week!  
4. Post about this giveaway on your blog or facebook page!  You can steal one of the photos from this post if you would like.  And yes, come back here and leave the link below letting me know you posted about this giveaway.
5. Put my 2 cats & chloe button on your blog.  Don't forget to leave a comment below letting me know you did this! :) 

So are we cool?  All on the same colorful, beautiful bracelet page?  :)  I promise you- you totally want to get your paws on one of these.  I get compliments ALL THE TIME on mine.  I actually wore a different one every day at my work meetings this past summer.  One of my co-workers was shocked.  She swore they were real Pandora bracelets!

Since I will be going out of town for business next week - this giveaway will last until Sunday March 4th.  The winner will be announced that night!  We cool?!

Now go get your naked wrists qualified to win a bracelet! xoxo

PS.  Once the etsy shop is open, I will probably offer you one more chance to get yourself entered to win.

PPS.  Super thanks and many hugs go out to my sister who came over last night to take some pictures of these for me!  Who knew how hard it would be to take a picture of the bracelet you are wearing... :)

Saturday in Williamsburg!

Hello Friends!  Are you ready for a weekend Saturday recap with a TON of pictures?  Good.  Then you are in the right place at the right time.  Love it when that happens, don't you?!

I am proud to say that I took all of my photos in manual mode this weekend!  Hooray right?  I decided it was time to learn and practice.  So the photos you are about to encounter may or may not have the awesome blur effect that I will be known for as a not-so-pro photog.  Practice makes perfect though, so bear with me. :)

Saturday Michael and I went to Williamsburg, Virginia for the day!  It was nice to spend more than five minutes together.  Let me walk you through our day...

This is the guy that I hung out with all day!  Cute right?

He was so nice to give me some photography lessons in "Suz Terms."  I really need to take time to visualize what buttons do what, and when to do what to get the exact image I am looking for... tricky.

Our first stop was at the Williamsburg Winery.  We did the $10 tour and tasting, which took about an hour.  We got to taste 7 delicious wines and some delicious gouda cheese!

See... blurry.  Gotta work this little issue out... 

Did you know one barrel yields 300 bottles of wine?!  Crazy right?!  Did you also know that you can purchase these barrels for only $75?!  I got so excited when I heard that.  Think of the craft projects!  And then she said there was a 5 year wait list for one of these suckers.  Lame.

Since we were so impressed by the gouda cheese, and our dinner reservations weren't until 8:30pm, we headed to the colonial area and visited the Cheese Shop!  

For $20 we got a cheese plate for two and one glass of wine for me! :) 

I really do love cheese. 

I made sure the brie was scraped clean!

After the cheese we wandered around the downtown area.  Again, killing time and enjoying the scenery.

Oh and being tourists... even if we are only 20 minutes from home.  Mike refused to let me take a picture of him doing this.  Silly boys.

I learned that manual mode, in the evening, without a tripod isn't the easiest thing.  But I do like this picture below.  See the stars in the sky?

We sat on this bench, like an old couple for about 30 minutes. 

Then we wandered around the William and Mary campus.  I felt old.  And I missed JMU.  And being a screamy college freshman.  Then I realized I was happy not screaming to get boys' attention and all was well again.

Finally it was time for dinner!  I did a little costume change in the car since we were going to a fancy dinner!  Time to put on nice pants and some heals!  I wish I had a picture of us without our coats on... we looked nice!  Mike actually wore khakis and a button down!  Gasp!  I know! 

We started at the bar and I decided a cocktail was in order, since we never ever do this!  I got the Almond Joy!  It was delicious!

You know it's a fancy joint when your waiter leaves this on your table for you... 

Dinner was good, but not excellant.  I hate to say that, but it's true.  I also hate to spend a lot of money on dinner, but Michael said it was okay and that he was treating.  So when we are spending $30 - $45 a plate, I expect fireworks!  The presentation was excellent!  We had told them that we were going to split the two meals and they actually divided them up in the kitchen and made them look pretty on both of our plates!  That impressed me.  But the food... meh.  Good thing the company was awesome.

All in all, it was a great Saturday!  I hope I haven't bombarded you with too many pictures!  :)

Come back tomorrow because I will be announcing a new giveaway!  If you like jewelry you will like this giveaway!  I promise!  :)  Happy Monday Friends!  xoxo