So...if you don't want the sappy post about the boy-toy, go ahead and skip number 1 and scroll down to number 2...but fair warning, you'd be missing out.
1.
My boyfriend, Chris. I'd like to introduce him and tell you a bit more, so that one day he can guest post and you can be as tough on him as you want ;)
Chris and Toby have a love/hate relationship...I like to think of their relationship as Michael Scott and Toby from The Office.
That's the hate...feel the love.
Such a softy ;) Oh how I love my boys.
Check out the response I got prior to posting this blog...
This is what I deal with people. But I love him.
Chris is in law school at U of A and for those of you that don't know, that's in Arkansas. We live 10 hours apart, but he is my best friend and we have been making the long distance thing work for half of our relationship. (we've been together 3 years).
Besides my dad, he's the best guy I know. (and I've got to include my brother in this "best guy" spill).
One of the things that I like most about Chris is his heart. He has the biggest heart, but hides it behind his sarcasm (which I love too, because he constantly makes me laugh). For example:
I was texting him pictures of this Kate Spade purse I really wanted, it was on sale too. He told me to get it and I said it was still pretty expensive. His response..."I bet if you don't feed Toby for a week you can afford to get it."
Anyway, let's wrap this mushy post up. Again, I just wanted to introduce you to the guy that helps hold me together at the seams, my better half.
Seriously though, when I finally let him guest post on here, don't be afraid to be brutal. His ego needs it. ;)
“You only need one man to love you. But him to love you free like a wildfire, crazy like the moon, always like tomorrow, sudden like an inhale and overcoming like the tides. Only one man and all of this.” - C. JoyBell C.
I've recently purchased some Mary Kay makeup primer. At first, it was just a purchase to help a friend out, but after using it for week, I LOVE it!
It smells like chocolate and coffee and it goes on very thinly. It only takes a small amount and my makeup stays on longer each day. My skin is naturally oily and this primer prevents excess oil from escaping.
If you sign up for this giveaway, please list my name in the "who referred you" box! :) Thanks! Good luck!
Ohsoamelia will be hosting another HUGE giveaway as the $100 cash giveaway was such a success last month! Interested in participating in this awesome giveaway? Keep reading for more details! You can now sign up for free by re-posting this post or purchasing a link from $5!
We are giving away an Ipad Mini! That's right! One lucky reader will win an Ipad Mini 16gb in the colour of their choice! Last months Giveaway was a tremendous success for our participants and of course for our winner Bex who was super lucky to win $100 in paypal cash! The giveaway rang in an enormous amount of bloggers and traffic to all co-hosts blogs. Participants on average saw a growth of 200-500 GFC followers each! Don't want to participate? Don't forget to come back February 15th and enter for your chance to win! :)
Over the next couple of months I'm going to be doing a series called "Take a Tour Tuesday".
Each Tuesday I will be taking you through a room in my, or one of several friend's, apartments.
I hope that this series will give you ideas for home decor and insight into the inspiration behind each women's style.
Week 1: Jaime's Living Room
What is your style:
I like to think that my style is "eclectic". I once heard it said that people with "eclectic" tastes are just people that are too poor to buy matching furniture. Haha, I'm not saying that I am poor, but I sure don't have matching furniture in any part of my apartment. I like to buy on the cheap and make a lot of the pieces in my apartment.
Who or what would you say influenced your style:
My Gran is probably the person that most influenced my style and choices. She could afford matching furniture, needless to say, but she was a pro at making everything so home-y. Other than my Gran, I would have to say that my freak obsession with all things HGTV, probably played a big part in my decor choices.
Where did most of your furniture come from:
Well, let's see here...
Large sleeper sofa- Gran's old couch with a slip from Target
Love seat- Value City Furniture
Coffee table- Gran
Lamps/lighting- Target
Pillows- TJ Maxx
Baskets under console table- Joann's Fabrics
Console table- Dad and Chris made it :)
Yellow window- A to Z Custom Creations (window + painted only $40)
Box shelves- Target
What is your favorite thing/piece in your room:
Probably my wall decor and console table. I like to think it's pretty unique and I constantly get compliments on it each time someone comes over. As far as the console table goes...it was made with love from my two favorite guys ;).
Well...that's it for week 1!
I'd LOVE to hear about any of the following:
1. What you think of the decor.
2. Suggestions for other decor options or ideas for improvements.
3. Any other questions you have that this questionaire didn't cover.
4. Opinions on this series...
Stay tuned for next week! We will be showcasing Lenae's living room
1. last night i had a long overdue facetime date with my bff, whitney! it's hard living in different states than your family, best friend, and boyfriend, but facetime makes it a little less agonizing.
2. my sister--the camera/photo genius-- introduced me to "picstitch". now i can actually attach all these photos like a pro.
3. my blog got a makeover this week. holla! found it on etsy, ordered it, and now it looks "totes presh"!
4. this will probably always be one of my H54F post pictures...i love the devotional my mom got me for Christmas. it's called "Jesus Calling". check it out!
5. (picture on the left) this is what i go to sleep to...
(picture on the right) this is what i wake up to...
Who has the best dad and boyfriend in the whole world??? This girl does!
Thanks to the two most awesome guys, and a little help from me, we built this console table in the span of less than a weekend. We took the picture below (my cousin's table for sale at about $300) as inspiration and direction and built this bad boy for right at $100. I consider that a win!
Featured below are my other two family DIY furniture pieces.
First up is my magazine rack my lovely little sister made. She got this rack on the cheap and painted it grey, adding yellow modge-podged scrapbook paper on the sides. It's perfect right next to my front door. I throw my bills, papers, books, etc. in it as I walk in or out. Love it!
Next up is my wooden tray. Chris's grandparents made this for me last Christmas. It was the sweetest gift ever! I have no idea how to make this, so please don't ask haha. However, I was thoroughly impressed with how they curved the wood pieces into that perfect oval. I throw the large items into the magazine rack and throw the smaller items--keys, pens, headphones--into the tray.
Anyone else have amazing family members that would do anything for you?
1. (top picture). my mom's new year resolution was to lose 50 lbs. by the time we go on our big family Branson trip in June. so far she has lost 12 lbs on her indoor bike--it's only January 23rd...she started the 1st. keep it up momsy! i'm such a proud daughter!
2. (bottom left picture). last night while messing around on pinterest and looking at blogs, i came across Lovely Little Things blog and saw her wearing this outfit. i had seen it on pinterest before and seeing Jessica wear it, i realized i had all of the clothes for the look. win!
3. (bottom right picture). toby...enough said. i have two pillows on my bed and when he is not trying to sleep on the back of my pillow, he finds his way over to "the boyfriend pillow". you all know what that is, the pillow that does not get used unless your boyfriend is in town, and it's also the pillow that you cuddle up with when it's cold- hence, "the boyfriend pillow".
For those of you that don't know me...I LOVE Express! They have the best clothes and generally their clothes fit my awkwardly short body type, along with allowing me to fit into smaller sizes than at similar stores. (I think that is a great marketing technique if they do that on purpose...changing the "sizes" to make it appear that a normal size 4 could fit into a size 2 again. Genius!)
Anyway, so last night I went to Express with my friend, Lenae. I had one of those email coupons $25 off every $75 you spend. On top of that, my reward points had built up enough to allow me an extra $10 off my purchase. Holla!
Did I mention that their jeans were on sale, buy one get one half off?! Yeah...
So I get to Express and spend about an hour walking back and forth through the store. I finally decide on two pairs of jeans (one of which is featured above) and a pair of beige, pointed toe flats (featured above as well).
With the BOGO 50%, I had accumulated a total of $149.75 in merchandise prior to tax and my $10 reward and coupon. Well, apparently your merchandise has to equal $150 in order to get the extra $50 off coupon. Womp, womp...
$.25?! Really?! Let's get real for a second, I love Express but this was ridiculous.
The lady at the cash register entered in my $10 reward and said I needed to find $10.25 worth of merchandise (that CAN'T be sale merchandise).
Hint: There is nothing in Express worth less than $14.90. :/
So, I ended up with a pair of boxer briefs for my boyfriend, Chris, for Valentine's day...Not exactly what I had planned, but it worked.
To treat myself after that horrid ordeal (not really, just obnoxious), I went for sushi for lunch.
It made me feel a whole lot better when I received that mussel looking dish on the bottom left courtesy of the chef... I guess he liked my Express outfit. :)
One pair of boxer briefs and a courtesy mussel thing later, I ask myself...Was it worth it?
Why yes, yes it was!
xoxo Jaime
Disclaimer: I do NOT recommend ordering that mussel dish. Not exactly the best thing I've ever eaten.
1. Chris and I have our hotel booked for St. Louis for Valentine's day weekend. Yay! Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark.
2. God always knows exactly what I need to hear! "Search for all that I have prepared for you, anticipating abundant blessing and accepting difficulties as they come."
4. I won a necklace this week! I hardly ever win anything! I got to choose between the three colors below. It was from Evie J Boutique! You should go like them on facebook as well! They will be doing more giveaways and you could win! Check them out on facebook here.
5. The Vampire Diaries started back up this week. Therefore, my celebrity crush, Ian Somerhalder and I were reunited. ;) (still love you Chris).
Last night was my work's holiday party. We had to continually reschedule and push the date back because of everyone's schedule, but it was well worth it.
The Rivue at The Galt Housewas gorgeous! The room we were sitting in rotated so you could view the Ohio river and downtown Louisville.
Lenae was my date since Chris had left to go back to law school.
The food was exquisite!
We had bread with fancy butter.
A wedge salad with some great tasting buttermilk dressing.
And I had the best steak I've ever had, with some italian style fries.
Finally, they had the most amazing candy cart that came around after dinner and coffee for those coffee-holics like Lenae.
Basically, dinner was awesome! And the Rivue is a great place if you are planning a romantic night with the significant other.
One of my New Year's Resolutions/Goals was start and finish an new Beth Moore Bible study.
My mom and sister advised me to try out Esther: It's Tough Being A Woman.
I'm on day three and I LOVE it! She takes it very slowly throughout the book of Esther. It is an extremely in-depth study and she relates it to women in the present day.
Toby likes it too. He enjoys early morning devotionals with his mommy.
If you're looking for a new devotional/Bible study to start up this year, Esther: It's Tough Being a Woman, is highly recommended by me...and Toby. :)
