"....I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." ~James 10:10~

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

{Today....}

Was sweet in many ways!

Mainly because I got a new car!

Which has a cool key and keyless entry which I've never had but always wanted:)

....and then I made a new batch of sugar scrub. SWEET!





Now it's totally time for SWEET dreams!

Love,
Laura

Sunday, September 23, 2012

{Weekend Update}

This weekend was FABULOUS!

Lots of awesome quality time with Travis and my family:)
We celebrated Granny's Birthday + Morgan's Baptism :)
So much to be thankful for! Thank you Lord for EVERYTHING!!!

In other news :)....I've been having fun playing with makeup again lately! 
I rarely ever use dark gray/black shadows but I tried it out today. It can look nice if you use a light hand :)

And my other new favorite...the accent nail:) Although I'm certainly no nail artist like my sistah-friend Mo! Look at her awesome UGA inspired look ;0)

....hoping she'll give me a Clemson manicure this week :) P.S. You can follow all her neat nail ideas on Instagram at colormyworldwithsparkles :)

Love,
Laura

Thursday, September 20, 2012

{Burke's Outlet BARGAINS!!!}

I'm so happy I stopped by Burke's Outlet today!!!

I haven't been "bargain" shopping lately but I think I picked the perfect day to get back at it :)

I got four new pairs of shoes---3 pair were just $1 each at 95% off  ;0)

This pair cost me $6 but I loved them so I "splurged"
A similar pair on the DOLLHOUSE website costs $45. Yay me!

The $1 pairs are Dollhouse too!!!
 Can't wait to wear them with some skinny jeans and a slinky sweater ;)

But that's not all----
 ....43 CENT for a perfume/body lotion set (SJP generic--we'll see:)
Leopard print night gown--$2.60

....Yankee Candle tart for 40 cent
...$2 earrings

....and 30 cent lip plumper---every girls dream....hehe!

Kisses!

Love,
Laura

{We all get a little bit weird sometimes...}

Remember that Hanson song anyone??? Here's the link for your viewing pleasure:)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZh-MKYssLM

ANYWAY....
Some days you just do things that make yourself laugh---like accidentally mailing a package back to yourself...oops!
And dark chocolate makes it ok:)


And eating just the icing doesn't count...

And following it up with an apple takes the cake:)


Happy Thursday!

Love,
Laura

Thursday, September 13, 2012

{love: Oversized hair accessories!}

I'm really into BIG!-BIG!-BIG! hair accessories:)
I was inspired by some of these celeb looks and decided to find my own:)

Luckily, I found one on clearance at Kohls! Yippee;0)

I tried it on before I went to bed last night...
...and now I'm ready to pair it up with a cute outfit and wearing it somewhere special:)

Would you sport a BIG ole' Bow???

Love,
Laura

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

{Just another RaNdOm Wednesday!}

First things first:)

Does anyone know what kind of fruit this is? Travis got it in a fruit basket at work and we couldn't identify it. Should be fun cutting it open:)

Hope everyone had a nice hump day. It really felt like Thursday all day to me, but that's still got to be done tomorrow:) Or from a better perspective....it still gets to get done tomorrow!

I've finished a little more of my fall decorating....
 ..flower pot a la ...umm....turkey feathers?:) Something about those colorful stalks just jumped out at me and I decided that right there was as good a place as any to use them.
As you could probably guess...this was also on the cheap...everything was from the dollar tree:) Minus the flowers and pot.

On another note--I have had some crazy cravings and a MEGA appetite the past few days....and NO, I'm not pregnant------yet:) We may or may not be trying again soon ;)
Been craving SALT! SALT! SALT!
FACT: Pickles are the missing ingredient to a perfect bowl of chili!

P.S. Last night with my Granny and Pop was awesome!

And that is all for now:)

Love,
Laura

Monday, September 10, 2012

{From HAIR to There}

Good Golly!!!---I've got so much on my mind today. And lots on my TO-DO list, too:) But first, I think it'll do me good to put some of my thoughts down and leave them here. They are starting to bog me down....

Let's start with the HAIR---

So....About a month ago, during a very impulsive mood, I decided to drastically change my hair color. Since I'd almost ALWAYS had blonde (or really light colored) hair and I knew it would be a big change and a shock to most people but I assumed they'd get over it and.forget about it and I could go on about life as normal. But that didn't happen. Not at all.

In fact, I feel like every time I turn around (even a month and a half later) someone has another (unsolicted:) comment or opinion on my hair and it's just getting old :( Many people have said "It's just not YOU" and I think to myself "ummmm, yeah, it's still me last time I checked. My hairstyle or hair color does not change who I am. Is my old blonde hair really what you most closely identified me with? Please! " Oh and for the record God didn't give me that blonde hair, my beautician did.(and she's darn good at it) Let's get that out in the open:) So in actuality, I'm more the "real" me now as I've ever been. Also for the record, I still love blonde hair:)

And then I've heard "You just lit up the room when you walked in with that blonde hair" and then, after wanting to throw up all over them, I think to myself "ok, so now you're basically telling me I no longer "shine" and blend into the curtains." Geez, that's a sweet thing to say to someone...ick:/

The thing I hate the most is that I actually really liked my new hair--UNTIL I let everyone else's opinions make me feel like I'd made some kind of major life mistake. Honestly, the pressure people put on me was as if I'd decided to cut my leg off or something. I don't know if anyone has experienced this exact situation but I bet you can relate. Sometimes people just react so negatively to change of any kind. It makes them uncomfortable. Sometimes people just have their preferences (and should keep their opinions to themselves---especially after they've been voice more than enough) and that's fine. But what's not ok is what I did. Letting those people affect the way I felt about myself and allowing my hair to carry such a heavy load in determining my self-esteem. This post is a reminder to myself: I am WAY more than my hair, I am WAY more concerned with things more important than hair, and I am WAY better off when I choose to base my beauty and value on the things that are unseen. Those things last. Those things are worth worrying about :) And I'm back to loving my new darker 'do....for now. I can't promise what I might do next month...hehe!

So...."Whooooo" wants to move onto a lighter subject?  :)
I finished this wreath for my office  tonight:)
Total cost of supplies: $6.50
Total time invested: 10 minutes (mostly hot gluing on the leaves around the wreath)

Now let's talk YUMMY!
 Pumpkin Spice Hershey Kisses!!!

One more thing I'd suggest that you scrape together all your spare change and buy for yourself ASAP----(dig under the couch cushions or car seats if you have to!)
It will not disappoint! :) It's the perfect combo of sweet, fall, pumpkin, crisp, warm goodness....hard to put such a wonderful smell into words. Just trust me!

After a long day of work and 4 hours in class---I'm pooped! My bed and candle are calling my name:)

Love,
Laura 

Saturday, September 8, 2012

{I Love a Lazy Day!}

LAZY SATURDAY has been fan-tas-tic!

Here's all the important   oh-so enjoyable tasks I accomplished today:

*Slept in until past 10 am

*Ate a big bowl of raisin bran--yum!

*Watched an episode (or two) of "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo"

*heated up my Japanese leftover for lunch and took a nap

*went to Quick Trip for Diet Mnt.Dew and 1/2 price donuts

*ate the icing off the outside of my donut

*ate the jelly out of the inside of my donut:)

*took a long walk with Glory and Trav

*played frisbee with Glory and Trav

*Took a long shower

*Turned on the GA game (just now:)

*Relaxed while Trav grilled some pork chops  (too bad I only have an appetite for sweets right now:)

*so...I'm about to eat another inside and outside of one of my donuts!

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these kind of days!!! Seriously---they are really good for the soul....just maybe not the hips---hehe!

Love,
Laura

Friday, September 7, 2012

{NeW fall WrEaTh!}

New from Old is affordable AND awesome!


OOPS! (Forgot to photo the process) but I just clipped off all the summer flowers that had faded from this wreath and kept the basic greenery that was left.
Then I wrapped two strands of leaves around the entire wreath (found at Micheals for 40% off $5.99!) then I clipped on three big flowers(similar to hair barretts) in the corner (also found at Micheals for 20% off of $1.99 each!)
I was out of glue sticks last night :( so I couldn't finish it totally but tonight I'll hot glue the cute wooden Owl (found at Target DOLLAR SPOT!)in the bare corner beside the flowers and I'll be done:)

Total investement: about $10!!!
Time invested: less than 10 minutes!

My favorite kind of project---cheap and EASY!

Love,
Laura

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

{EASY Fall Acorn Project}

Just 4 easy and FREE steps!

#1: Gather acorns and recruit help if needed :)
I love the cute clusters:)

#2: Find a pretty glass bowl that you already have at home (or you could buy one at the Dollar Tree)

#3. Put acorns in the bowl (told you this was easy!)

#4.  Add a candle to the middle of the dish (Mine is a lemon mint tea mini from Bath and Body Works) and even a cinnamon stick like I did :)

What I loved about this project is the fun of collecting the acorns and especially the the joy of bringing a little bit of nature into your home to enjoy the beauty and simplicity of early fall. It's my FAVORITE time of the year!

Love,
Laura