number 74

Day 2 of the THANKful challenge is: YouTube and other internet fun.

as stated previously. i have a tiny addiction to YouTube vids. andrew is constantly feeding my addiction by showing me funny/cute videos almost every day! here are just a few of my favorites:

kandee johnson is queen of makeup tutorial land. anytime i want a new look for a special occasion (or everyday?) i go straight here! plus she’s really fun, bubbly, and SO positive – it’s so nice to see someone so blessed (in the looks department) with such a bright outlook!

2nd up, i always have to check out and see what miss jayme dee is up to. i really enjoy watching her music covers – she doesn’t sound like anyone i've ever heard before. i may or may not draw a little (or a lot) of inspiration from her when i'm performing live!

your daily dose of cuteness….

this has GOT to be one of my all-time favorite videos. i can’t help but laugh out lout when they come bouncing back around the corner! SO FREAKIN’ CUTE!

round 2

and your second dose of cuteness. i think it’s hilarious that the title of this video is “angry dogs attack cat” GRAPHIC, NSFW, VIEWER BEWARE! haha. just watch it. again – laugh out loud-able

ya’ll have a wonderful afternoon! p.s. if you’ve popped from the blog challenge, i'd love it if you FOLLOWED me!

number 73

oh la la! i just can’t resist a challenge. taking after my best gal, alex, i'm going to make my best attempt at the “plenty to be thankful for” blog challenge. i'm glad to catch this on the first day – maybe it’ll give me that extra push i need to go all the way! even though i'm not participating in the blog swap, this’ll be good to get me in the habit of consistent blogging!
 

todays theme: Today, I’m thankful for my GUILTY PLEASURES!

 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

1 | in my opinion gossip girl is a way better option than teen mom or anything vampire. plus, the fashion is way better! i may or may not have the past 2 seasons already on my amazon wish list.

2 | this goes without explanation – because if you’re reading this right now, you probably have an addiction to pinterest too!

3 | i could stay on youtube for HOURS. makeup tutorials, music covers, and funny kitties consume my lazy sunday afternoons.

4 | sleeping in.

5 | sweet tea. preferably mcalisters, but bojangles, mcdonalds, or panera will do.

6 | candy corn. ONLY brach’s. nothing else will do! lucky me – i'm still polishing off my bag leftover from halloween!

i hope everyone has a wonderful week! – remember to be thankful!

number 72

with so many guests dropping by our humble abode lately, i've had decorating on my mind. just thought i'd warn ya...

my top 5 from pinterest this week:

for the master boudoir

mercury glass. obsessed with it.

'tis the season!...almost!

succulents - hopefully they're low maintenace. i can barely keep a fern alive.

beautiful, perfect, organization

number 71

it’s the freakin weekend!
(click the cat, you’ll be glad you did.)

number 70

ps. check out my girl carrie.

number 69

so since it looks like my hokies came through tonight and that my lovely friends will be making the trek down to crown town this winter for the acc championship (fingers crossed!) – i've decided to share some of my favorite charlotte/nc stuff in and around the webs. enjoy!

it’s no surprise that i love this button/bottle opener/mirror and think it hilarious. primarily because when i get a little booze in me, i tend to speak with allll sorts of different dialects. they can be purchased in a few places i've found around town or here at their etsy shop. i've seen some pretty funny items and tshirts describing (to a T) the neighborhoods and different areas of charlotte. check it out and buy me one while you’re there!

so. freaking. cute. leave it up to inviting company to make an awesome notecard for MY city! i've had a long-time obsession with the company and it’s being fueled sufficiently by these incredible designs. sorry, dc/richmond friends – guess you’ll just have to move here to get a custom notecard designed for your city. oh ps. hit up their line of state designs here.

a few faves for your eating/shopping/playing pleasure:

and just take a drive down queens road west - you won’t regret it.

i cannot WAIT for hokies to start showing up in charlotte so soon. at every get-together, andrew and i are usually cornering one of our friends and blackmailing kindly persuading them to move here! with the upcoming game, you can bet there will be a hokie acc ‘ship gameday attire post coming soon. find it here!

see y’all round charlotte!

number 68

oooh. speaking of essie – just stumbled upon this gorgeous gal:

i will procure this soon. just you wait.

number 67

look at me! i’m 2 for 2! today is wednesday which means it’s “what I’m loving wednesday!” i’m linking up with half of the blog world today, you can too by clicking the pic below:

i’m going to keep this short and simple. i love a lot, but i’m going to just hit on some basics.

i’m LOVING my new boots – not so new anymore. i got these pretties in september for my birthday, but they’re still new to me, whatevs. i wear my boots about 3 or 4 times a week and get compliments on them ALL THE TIME! they’re much richer than the photo appears, not too casual with the little wedge heel, and lucky you – they’re on sale! buy them here, now. do it.

i’m LOVING essie and their polishes. i might be the last person on earth, but i recently started using essie because, before, i figured ‘nail polish is nail polish’. i stand corrected. with 1 stroke, i could certainly tell the difference. AND to make it better, i was able to get 2 polishes for HALF OFF at CVS because they were ‘last season’s colors’. OKAY IF YOU SAY SO! 1. really red is never out of season and 2. last time i checked mauve is definitely a fall/winter color!

lastly, i’m loving my awesome husband. he’s been working super hard lately, so i’m heading out now to get a big dinner ready for him tonight! who knows? maybe i’ll BLOG about it tomorrow! you should be so lucky...

number 66

is this real life?

man oh man, have we been busy. andrew and i have lived in charlotte for a little over 10 months now – almost a year, and it’s so hard to believe! mostly because we’ve barely spent any time here! so many friends have entered the world of matrimonial bliss, and we’ve been along for the ride. the fall and summer have been filled with showers, parties, weddings, and SO much fun!

we are still very much in love with our new city and neighborhood! i’m currently working 2 part time jobs, one in web design and the other in print design. i’ve really enjoyed the flexibility of my schedule and learning SO many new things! we just got wind (as of last friday) that andrew is getting a little promotion at work! big smiles all around for recognition of AWESOME work on his part, but big frowns for more hours he’s gotta put in. i’ve assured him that the payoff ($$) will eventually be worth it!

you may see new changes every now and then to the blog (providing that i’m consistently posting again) just because i get so excited about new web features i learn! i know how much enjoyment i get out of reading blogs – even though i don’t post every day (or week!), i do catch up on most of my faves VERY often. here are just a few of my current favorite reads:

and, of course, like everyone else in the interwebs, I make a daily stop (or seven) on pinterest - falling short at #2 behind diet coke in the addiction rankings.

that’s a short but sweet post for the day! i’ve still got a long list of to-dos at work today and a big night tonight. i've recently made singing more than just a hobby! a few times a month, i've been singing at various locations in the charlotte area. tonight, see me here – fo FREE! for more information on our band (!!!) you can check out our facebook, youtube, and twitter accounts.

YAY! go me! new post again tomorrow for “what i’m loving wednesday”!

number 65

one of the things that i look forward to most on fridays is my good friend alex’s friday five blog posts! since it’s been such a big hit, she’s decided to FINALLY start letting us link up.

head on over there to play along and comment on how awesome her new blog template is! *wink*wink* now that my friday is more than halfway over, i’m posting some of my favorite things that are getting me through today (so far) and the weekend!

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

1 | ok, so maybe i did just listen to this just a few minutes ago, but i have a feeling it’s going to be played many more times this weekend in the car with the windows rolled down, or on the patio with a beer in hand (see #4)

2 | after taking a 4 mile walk to get to this place today, i was convinced that yes, it was in fact worth every stride. not that bad for you, but VERY good to your taste buds. + charlotte has 3 locations!

3 | my nails are in dire need of a mani. even if i wind up doing it myself to save some pennies. i’ve been hooked on coral-y orange colors lately, and i think this (tart deco) is just the shade to carry me into spring.

4 | this could be on my list only because we met the CEO last night at a bar, but dude makes some pretttty good beer. check them out and have fun saying bad words while placing your order!

5 | i’ve been sporting these pretties since christmas, and no matter what i’m wearing, they make me feel dressier and in-style. plus, the old school wayfarer style looks great on anyone.

i hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and gets outside to enjoy this gorgeous weather! it’s only february! what a tease!

testing 1...2...3...

number 64

yay yay! i’m trying, really- i’m just not so good anymore with the consistent blog posts. i’ve been busy applying for jobs and trying to shake my cabin fever. however, i was too excited about what i’m loving wednesday not to do a quick little post!

today, im LOVING that the rest of my week is filled with visits from loved ones! tomorrow, my mom, friday, my dad, and sunday, andrew’s longtime friend, andy!

i’m LOVING that tomorrow, mom and i are planning on exploring new areas of town, scavenging vintage stores and Goodwill for some cheap patio finds, and eating delicious food, no doubt about that. hopefully we’ll find something along the lines of these:

i think these look really comfy for metal chairs and have a really quirky feel. this weekend, the temperature is supposed to be in the low 70’s (hello spring!) Therefore, outside recess will be mandatory! i LOVE it!

i’m loving our orange kitty, bang. over the past couple of weeks, he’s been ‘fetching’ these little furry toy mice. no really, we throw the mouse, and he brings it back! it’s really funny, and pretty freaking adorable.

i’m LOVING this blog: her layouts are so fresh and her taste is very similar to my own. it’s been a recent discovery and i look forward to reading new posts every day! hopefully you’ll enjoy it as much as i have!

along with every other middle schooler in america, i’m LOVING glee. last night’s episode made me really happy. my nana even loves it!

img via

and i think dianna agron is the prettiest of pretty.

img via

ok. im going to wrap it up. ive got another blog post up my sleeve for later this week. i can’t spoil it all mid-week.

lastly, i’m LOVING my handsome husband because i got a TON of chocolate for valentine’s day and i’m enjoying every piece!

number 63

after a fun weekend back in virginia, our bags are unpacked, the laundry is drying, and the place smells like a cajun dream. i’m no expert in the kitchen, and i get really excited when something i make actually turns out GOOD! i’m a big fan of slow-cooker/crock pot recipes – anytime i can let something else do the work, i’m up for it!

so here’s the yummy (and healthy) low country cuisine that’s smelling up my apartment: red beans and rice! mmm! first, i started out with this recipe, then i quickly realized that i used more seasoning previously and added a teaspoon of paprika, thyme, and a bay leaf for good measure.

try it out, i think you’ll be pleased! and if anyone has any tips on cutting onions, sent them my way!

number 62

how is it that celebrity candid photos look like they just woke up, threw on “whatever” and somehow make it look stylish enough that i want to copy it? is it that every item they own is THAT stylish, so everything they put on just looks fantastic?  i understand that there definitely are exceptions this theory, but this is what i mean:

  

ok, so maybe reese is the only celebrity in my theory because she really does ALWAYS looks great. i realize that this “i don’t really care, i just threw on things in hopes that they look good together” is my current style and it’s not working for me so much. yes, i’m in a style funk. revamping my wardrobe isn’t going to be something i can swing while i’m “between jobs”, but i can get my game plan together.

does anyone have any suggestions for great style blogs? or a fashion version of copy cat chic? i understand that i can’t wear forever 21 forever (hah, despite its ironic name), and  i’ll have to break down and spend a little on some important staples – maybe some tory burch flats or a great pair of jeans. and maybe once i have a new job, that won’t be such a shock to my wallet.

so here we go: help! send me links! i need a little guidance on my new endeavor. i’d like to keep the anthropologie-jcrew-modcloth feel that i strive for now, just amped up.

number 61

if you’ve noticed that my blog header has changed in the past day and thought to yourself “laura doesn’t live in a big city” you would be mistaken. as of saturday, andrew and i are proud to be residents of charlotte, north carolina!! we spent the weekend getting settled in and acclimated to our new place and basically falling in love with our new town.

without having a job yet, i’ve had a lot of time on my hands to explore my surroundings and my mind has been hooked on interior decorating. since we’re renting, i’ve decided that in hopes of saving some time and effort, i won’t be painting the walls. we painted our last apartment and LOVED it, but were only around to enjoy it for a little over a year. without the paint, i’m now on the hunt now for chic design on a budget. enter copy cat chic. go there now.

and since i’ve been looking forward to this all through my blogging hiatus, i’m linking up to join in on the fun with

YAY! i’m SO excited! my list is going to seem really mundane to most, but they’re all small luxuries that i’ve been living without for the past year+.

I’M LOVING my dishwasher and garbage disposal. laugh it up. dinner cleanup last night lasted about 2 minutes – tops! – with the help of boo, of course.

I’M LOVING that i did laundry this afternoon and was able to do as many loads as i wanted and didn’t have to walk down to a musty basement to get to the washer/dryer!

I’M LOVING going to bed at night not hearing ambulance sirens and semi-trucks outside our bedroom window. don’t be deceived, we live IN the city, just not on a major highway anymore. i’m loving our silent nights (with the exception of a couple of kitty pitter-patters).

I’M LOVING my new color scheme for our master bedroom. i picked up a pretty throw and a couple of pillows at homegoods (thanks al) yesterday to coordinate with my white down comforter. i’m pleased so far. here’s what i’ve come up with:

i could go on and on, I’ll wrap it up by saying that I’M LOVING my husband for working today in this gross rainy weather just to bring home the bacon.

who wants to throw me a ‘welcome back to blogging’ party?