my boyz are comin to town {hot-dog!}

i just got off the phone with  lee and my nephew angelus. they will be in wednesday. i. am. SO. excited! i took this picture back in September when i was there for family our vacation and angeluses 8th birthday. the sun was setting and it was our last night on the beach with the fam. it turned out amazing. it's in a huge frame in my living room that i had blown up for christmas. 

oh how i love these two boys.

kitchen gadget gift exchange {new christmas gift tradtion}

every year since i can remember, me and my fellow girl cousins have given each other

gifts each year and exchanged them on christmas eve. 

carrie, alexa, melanie, and myself have always done this. 

so this year were changing things up. 

we are doing the kitchen gadget swap. all four of us have written down items 

that we need for our kitchens but just never seem to remember to buy.

the deal though is that we can only spend up to $5 dollars or less.

when buying presents for all of us and our extended families, presents can defiantly add up.
this way, this year, we are keeping things simple but yet practical. 

after all...don't we all think of some item we need in our kitchen but for some reason,
we just seem to forget to buy when were at the store?

as an example, my list goes:

 1. measuring cups { i lose them or the numbers fade
and i'm always needing the 1/3 or 1/4 cup}

 2. apple cutter {you know, the one that slices them evenly
down the center of the apple?}

 3. potato peeler {during the holidays,
you can never have to many!}

my cousin carrie sent her list and her's  are things like spatulas 

and cookie cutters and measuring spoons.

if you need a new tradition or a a new gift idea that's simple 

and inexpensive, i say try this. 

you can always jazz it up too.

want. need. wear. read. {new christmas gift tradition}

for the past year, i have been following this lovely woman and her beautiful family on her blog. her name is Danielle and her blog is dandee. you can see her sidebar button -----------> over there somewhere. not a day goes by that i don't check her blog. she is absolutely charming with her simple yet sophisticated style.

in her home every year for her children, for gift giving she goes by these 4 word rules. want. need. wear. read.

for my nephew, i fell in love with that idea. you can read her post about it here. I highly recommend it and her.

so this year, that is just what i have done for my nephew. under the tree from me and his granny are our gifts that go by each word rule. 

for the want, straight off from his list to Santa is this.

for the need, since he is moving back from the beach, he will need this

for the read, i chose this {this was my favorite to pick out, I'm all about giving him something to read}

and finally for the wear, he will be getting this {also his Christmas pj's}

all of these items i found onsale during the christmas holiday, so don't be fooled by the prices!

i'm so excited for my nephew to open these! i hope that as the holidays approaches, christmas traditions new and old are in full swing.

now excuse me, i need to go blow dry my hair before going to work! it's a lovely 15 degrees outside. BRRRR!

cookies, decorating, and messy kitchen...Oh My!

the night after thanksgiving, turkey & pie leftovers were still going fierce in my household. so, angelus and i decided to decorate some sugar cookies {well, i decided and i made him he followed. the kitchen was a mess and yes, there is even a chocolate pie leftover plate in the top corner of this first photo. oh well! oh and my camera lens had a smudge. such is real life, right?

anywho, my baby was going to be heading back to the beach the next day and i decided that since he wouldnt be back until a few days before christmas, we were going to just speed up holiday funs in one day!

i have decided that i can't stand the taste of my own homemade sugar cookies. i just can never get them right.
so whats a girl to but head to wal-mart and buy the toll house pre-cut christmas sugar cookie pack and frosting in a squirt can. WHALA! brilliant is what i say. i discovered the easiest trick to frosting is by taking ziplock bags and squirting some frosting into each bag with a few drops of different food coloring and let my nephew squeeze and mix each bag with his hands. then i just cut a small whole at the end of each ziplock bag and i had NO MESS of frosting in bowls to clean up. srsly. people, just spend the $3.48 of frosting in a squirt can and its saves a TON of mess all around.

tierra's insider facts to the photos
 {a} tierra hates her counter tops and cabinet handles. like majorly! 
 {b} tierra's family are all coke a cola-aholics.
 {c} the ceramic turkey in the corners name is Georgie

need a little eye bling? {ring a ding ding!}

this week i discovered the wonder of fake eyelashes. so random, i know. but it's true. i took my christmas card pictures this week (thanks allison!) and the night before, i picked up a pack of these little babies. i. am. hooked.

in fact, i've been wearing them everyday since. need a little "eye pop"....don't be intimidated....be bold! 

an go forth. that is all. LOL! goodnight.

around here {3:28pm}

today at 3:28pm, my world looked like this. christmas tree shopping at my favorite christmas tree farm lot. 

they have the biggest, fullest trees and they home deliver just for me.

smelling everything equal pure christmas magic!

Do I have your Address? {Christmas Cards}

{no, these are not my cards}

It's my favorite mailbox time! Cards have already started to arrive and each day, its the first thing i do and that's head straight to the mailbox. And ladies...All i have to say is keep. it. comin!!!! I'm a christmas card nut and I adore getting such beautiful mail. So the question is, will you be getting one from me? Do I have your address? If you would like a card, just let me know!

around here {11:11pm}

oh there's noOooOo place like hommme for the holidays!!!! 

my dining room table. 11:11pm

did some major damage at the target dollar section. i think i cleaned them out in the red/sliver glitter ball area.

decorating the home commences tomorrow!

goodnight.

from my home to yours....{thanksgivng review}

whelp. another thanksgiving has come and gone. and of course this year was not without it's own "excitements" shall i say. first, i truly hope you all had a wonderful thanksgiving. my home was buzzing with family, cousins, and running children by 12:30 in the afternoon. 

highlights: 

1. tierra burns her arm pretty bad by pulling out the sweet potatoes casserole.

she calls it her "thanksgiving battle scar" LOL

2.  commotion began from outside of children running in to inform that we had a snake in the yard. apparently word got out that the turkey this year was going to be brilliant and the not-so-little thing decided to slither to my house! yikes....{and i live in the city!!!)

3. word also got out that tierra was expecting a guest to come with her to her fathers thanksgiving dinner a little later that day in the form of a guy and her whole family pinned her for details and stole her cell phone. 

a certain someones husband who shall remain anonymous texted the poor fellow and started asking questions.

needless to say, i wont be forgetting this thanksgiving!

I am Thankful {Aunt Carolyn}

 this woman deserves the world. the world. the moon and back again. i love her with everything that i am and would be nothing without her. my aunt carolyn. this year, as the days have been leading up to thanksgiving i thought about what i could share. what are my "thanksfuls" for this year. and truly, these last few days and nights, all my thoughts are completely wrapped up in how utterly blessed i am to have this woman as my aunt. she has provided me with so much love. has given me her time to every event in my life and has had to do without so many things because of me. every cheerleading practice and every game. every basketball game. every primary event. every young women mother daughter campout and activitiy....this beautiful soul has never failed me. when i wanted to go to new york when i was 15, she made it happen. when i wanted that prom dress. when i wanted to go to the movies. when i needed picking up late late at night when i would cry to come home from girls camp. when i wanted anything at all....this. woman. made. it. happen. 

dear heavenly father, thank you for giving her to me. i love her so. amen.

Happy Thanksgiving everyOne!

okay. i'm a royal watcher nerd. go figure!

well i guess you can see that i haven't kept my promise about posting my fall/mantle decor. i sorry. like really sorry. honestly. i blame it on the fact that there is a certain young man in my life that has completely taken over my brain/thoughts/thinking and all things in between sanity. he just might make it on this blog. maybe. will see. that is if he doesn't drive me nuts first! in the mean time, i just couldn't let this news topic go with out my two cents and stamp of approval. like aka prince william phone called a few weeks ago to make sure i was in complete agreement on his decision and i have had to sit with this news for awhile! and as we all know tierra can hardly hold anything in....{gasp!!} so i of course said he must definitely marry kate. i think she is quite lovely and of all the photos i have seen of her on magazine covers and such over the years, when they made their announcement and she walked out looking like that, i thought she hit it dead on! she looked amazing. her hair was just perfect and oh would i kill for her legs! i have always thought kate was an amazing dresser and i loved how the dress made the ring pop! i have heard a few comments on tv and several on facebook who find this news story ridiculous and that the fact that he gave her his mothers ring a "hand me down" {like some sapphire diamond ring is a hand me down? what a joke!}well excuse me people but i for one like to hear something exciting to look forward too and not some celebrity stepping out as gay or a Lindsey lohan disaster 24/7! i know good and well that the world is full of hard things. hard and cruel and dangerous things taking place on this land and over seas....but what in the freakin world is wrong about talking about two people who have been dating for years and announce that they would like to take it one step further? and oh yeah...to the person who put on my facebook page that prince Williams mothers ring is "recycled and probably cursed" ....dont you even dare make a statement like that to me again because my own mother who passed away left me her ring that was given to her by my father. their marriage ended in a divorce and she is gone as well.....but the ring to this day is my most cherished and special piece of jewelry i own. i have ALWAYS planned on wearing it on my wedding day because it represents the love that my parents once had. my parents may not have had the best relationship either dearie but my mother still loved the time and the good memories that she shared with my father. Hence the reason i was born. I was completely and utterly offended that you would make a comment about something that is neither here nor there for the matter. all you did was make yourself look immature. i don't ever recall asking for your opinion on this or anything else. keep your cynical thoughts and opinions to yourself or write it on your own page.

so to william on giving her your mothers ring. GOOD FOR YOU! i will be watching and rooting with bells on. oh how i just love a good wedding!!!

fall craft {coffee filter wreath}

i had seen this idea on several blogs before and just fell in love with it. so with picking up the items above and just twisting a good 20 coffee filters in the center...cut off the ends of each twist and just start gluing the twists around the wreath. I went with brown filters because i wanted that lightly dark look for fall and then placed the final product in a really large wreath i purchased earlier this year from michaels. so simple! 

tomorrow will be my big reveal day of my mantel/fall decor....so stay tuned!

Fall Craft {simple tutorial}

  every year with every hoilday season, the crafting/create zone sweeps over and i must give in. this year, i wanted to do something different. something that was easy and let's face it, cheap. and i know that this super simple craft has been traveling around the blog sphere tons {where do you think i got the idea?} but i at least wanted to show what i did with it.apothecary jars are so inspiring and yet so simple. but also, for the most part not that cheap. I have a few but when i saw this dollar tree craft to make my own .....$2 bucks! i was on board.

I went to michaels and found some orange/dark brown sweet grass and some dry organic wood stings to start the bottom layers. next came three handfuls of nuts {stolen from my aunt's nut jar....DONT tell her!} and then of course free pine cones from my local park. who doesn't love free stuff right? well...TA-DA!!! i love it! i'll reveal later this week just where they went.

a walk with a dear friend...{tennessee fall}

through my hometown's central park really made my weekend. well, along with a few other moments with him but that's another story for another time. my good friend allison was oh so kind as to come with me to our local park and walk & chat (lecture me on my guy problem woes) as i gathered pine cones for a last minute fall craft. we walked, took pictures, allison told me to get with it and ask him on a date chatted and this is what we were looking at. tennessee will soon see a very dark, cold, almost bitter-chill-to-the-bone cold winter but autumn it seems is still hanging on. and i'm ever so thankful. what can i say but i love my hometown.

around here {2:59pm}

my bathroom, getting ready for tonight. 2:59pm. while listening to this (new song obsessed). 

have a lovely weekend.

oooh and so it goes.....

i will bet you $1000 smackeroos THAT your day (yesterday) was not as thrilling (oh so thrilling) as mine.
trust me. no, like REALLY trust me! i thought about not posting this and had planned on posting either my birthday pictures or the biltmore trip i took the day after the birthday.....but isn't life just interesting how each day  takes on it's own....shall we say, sense of humor in a cruel cruel way??? you know...just to keep us on our toes, right? well, dear readers.....yesterday was that day for tierra. exhibit a: tierra leaves her glasses at a store an hour away from home. exhibit b: tierra locks her keys in the car three hours later after arriving late to work. exhibit c: (the kicker) tierras car breaks down smack dab in the middle of a three way stop at 2:20 AM (!!!) in a residential area and leaked transmission fluid  ALL THE WAY DOWN THE ROAD. exhibit d: tierra had the entire neighbor hood lit up like the fourth of july with police, ambulance, firetrucks, the tow truck,  ALL with their lights lighting up the neighbor hood like tierra's own personal block party except that she had NO attention of throwing it!!! {!!!!} exhibit e: it. was. freezing. exhibit f: she was in little flimsy ballet slippers standing on the side of the road for hours. exhibit g: the firemen had to pour & shovel 8 buckets of cat litter to soak up the oil before they would let the tow truck guy tow my car back to my house.

of course i will only mention that my car insurance road side assistance number took 45 minutes to even get through (I HATE COMPUTER/TELEPHONE answering machines} OR that they tried to argue that i had no towing insurance on my policy (which I do and I did) and had to keep me on hold for another 15 minutes to "re-look up" my policy (idiots!!!) before they would even authorize a towing. 


and to close...i did not get home and into my bed until 6ish in the morning. and oh yeah, the neighbors all came out to watch on their porches....Maybe next year I'll just send invites?

around Here {at 10:00pm}

at 10:00pm on the dot, i stood up from my spot and took a picture. 

my nook beside the couch and tv. you see, i lost my glasses... and so in order to see the tv and watch my shows tonight, i bundled my self up in my nook with my comforter, texted, worked on my thanksgiving menu grocery list, and stared at my fall craft that i "should" have been finishing. what does your house, your moment look like at 10:00 pm?

just a this and that {gifts}

this year, for my birthday, all i wanted was just a few new things. let's face it, i am a purse and coat kinda girl 

and when i became aware of the mormon bachelorette....well, let's just say it had tierra written all over it.  i had so much fun watching aubrey go through her dates with 22 guys from all over! and along the way with each date was this gorgeous beauty of a purse. i simply HAD to have it. it's called the "mia" bag by the big buddha collections and you can find it here! already i have had tons of compliments on it! so thank you aubrey from the Mormon bachelorette for your great style and taste in purses!

my closet is filled with coats of every color and every year, oldnavy brings out the very best and brightest pea coats and i die a thousands deaths swooning and itching just to get my hands on one of them. this year though, i had a very hard decision to make on which coat was "singing" to me the most. you see, i love color! i love having that one piece to make a huge fashion statement when you walk into the room and with a great pea-coat, it doesn't matter what you got going on underneath.....you can work it with just that one item. "the" coat. which one do you think i went with? stay tuned to find out! you can find them each here and here.

and finally, for years all i have ever really wanted on my bedroom walls is the movie poster to a film i can watch over and over. both new and old version! and finally, I tracked one down at a great price and it's on it's way and will soon reside on my bedroom walls. you can find your very own pride & prejudice movie poster here.

let them eat cake! {cookie cake that is}

i'm back! and i'm 25. i turned and celebrated my 25th year this past friday on november 5th 2010. my theme was "been alive since 85" ....so of course, the 80's! we had lasagna from scratch that my dear friend amber h. made with fresh tossed salad and breath tasty garlic bread. sealed with of course my annual birthday cookie cake. and then followed by a trip to the Biltmore mansion and Estate the next morning {more on that later}

i'm going to keep comments on for a while....it's so lovely to be back!

Ashlee's Wedding {May 2010)

As I have been editing beach photos, I realized i never posted anything from my trip to Utah back in May, let alone, my friend Ashlee's wedding. The whole reason for the trip! So, here they are that never made to the big screen known as my blog. I remember it was SO cold that morning and rainy. No one was prepared for how strong the wind was or how chilly it was going to be. My skirt was in constant battle trying to be whipped up ( I see london, i see france...LOL) and Ashlee's veil kept going somewhere else other then with the bride! All in all, it was a beautiful moment. My friend had waited so long for that special day and it was an honer to be there for her and her family whom i love so very much at the Salt Lake Temple. oh, an a side note: walking in heels for three hours around temple square in rain/cold/winded weather is. not. fun!

When the World Stopped Turning

I was home schooled that year from High school for early private music/voice lessons 4 times a week during the day.
At 9 something in the morning, I was curled up in front of the television watching Live with Regis & Kelly when the screen went to the early coverage. Not knowing what was going on, all of a sudden, i remember seeing exactly this shot. the second plane hitting the first tower that was already hit. My family and i watched almost all day for anything that could tell us what was happening. Where was the president? Would there be more? And where? That night, as President Bush spoke to the American people, i was so proud to be an American. And the many days that followed, flags flew everywhere. Radio stations played patriotic songs. TV channels went on hold for moments of silence. I prayed daily for those families in New York and Washington. The previous year, I had been to New York to preform at the statue of Liberty with my honers chorus and had taken pictures of those high high towers from the island. I just want to note that I shall never forget. That I love this land. This American soil. And though there are those that say this world is full of so much evil (which I agree) I still say that there is still so much good. And for that, those lost would want us to remember and to still say let freedom ring.

Because there is still so much good worth fighting for. I am proud to be an American. Again, I shall never forget....

174

that would be exactly one hundred and seventy four pictures i have on my camera, plus about 6 videos that i have to go through, crop, touch up, and zap out any pimple that you'll never know was there in my pictures! isnt modern day thingys great? well, with that, I. AM. HOME. and summer IS. OVER. how sad is that? i think this week at the beach, i truly enjoyed summer the most. now, i know nobody really likes to read just ol' boring post with no pictures but i sorry. i have laundery i've been doing all day. sand to dejunk from places i have no clue how it got there and swollen feet that came out of the blue to come down! and i'm diiiiiieeeeing to see my friends. maybe tomorrow? later this week? well, will see. and it won't be the hundred and seventy four :)
while on this trip i discovered a few things i would like to share. uh-hum...clearing my throat. flexing my fingers...okay, ready to type. 1. my ipod is the best invention in the history of the world!!!!!!!!! my aunts, though, i love them...DROVE ME INSANE while in the car. Hence...my ipod became my best friend. 2. an old man with a tan darker then mine in a speedo is a def. fashion NO NO. end of story (i have a picture!!!!) 3. the beach or by a pool with a book, sun out and hot and wearing a bathing suit is tierra's ultimate happy place. end of story. 4. never in my life have i felt more confident in a bathing suit and walking around the resort without stressing over covering up. 5. wal-mart people are stupid. end of story. 6. i wore just about every color in the rainbow and didnt even realize i packed or owned that much color. 7. strawberry Italian ice on the beach in 105 degrees HITS. THE. SPOT. and finally 8. i recieved the MOST HILARIOUS comment i have ever been given EVER!!!!...."your one fine piece of the swirl" was said to me by some bubba in the hottub one night LOL (story on that one to come later)

summer. i'm going to miss you. i'm going to miss the color of the sky and how blue blue it gets around 1:30 in the afternoon. I'm going to miss Popsicles and mint ice-cream hitting your tong when you think you just can't take the heat one more second. I'm going to miss that gush of wind that picks up the back of your hair and restores you through the next minute. I'm going to miss that feeling of taking a cool shower and then sitting on the front porch in night heat and feeling so so clean and refreshed. but, as they say, all good things must come to an end. and with that, this post needs to end.

you were born today

dear angelus,
today, i turned around and now your 8. eight years old is such an important number. if i was to share my favorite thing about you to the world, i would share how very kind you are. it truly amazes me how sincere you are to your grandmothers and watch out for them if their going down steps or hold the door for them or fuss at them if they say the don't feel good and you ask them to lay down and rest or if they took their medicine. i love you with all my heart. let's see...eight things to note.

1. you are VERY tall. and it's really funny how i make you hold my hand when were at the mall or crossing the street and your only 3 inches from my full height.

2. you fuss if some one changes the channel on the radio or takes out your cd because your in the back seat singing away.

3. corn dogs and mashed potatoes are your favorite meal

4. army men, building blocks, and legos are your favorite things to play with.

5. your dad is your best friend and you guys do everything together

6. you can't stand for any of us to say "i love you" in public because it embarrass you LOL
and i love to torcher you with saying things like "angelus, do you need any new underwear?"...really loudly in stores.

7. you have this adorableness of a small mole right above your upper lip that i just heart

8. and finally, you LOVE to break dance!!! many a video do we all have on cell phones, cameras etc of you and your break dancing skills for future embarrassment!

Happy Birthday to my little stud whose not so little anymore! And to celebrate, I'm sharing an honorary song obsessed from Angelus. This is his current favorite..."turn the radio up, nobody talk to me because this song is on" obsession.

to the beach & song obessed "mine" {taylor Swift}

it's 4:54 am. AM! and for some reason, i just cant sleep. i'm leaving in less then 3 hours for one final summer vacation but yet a very important one. my nephew (did you know he's lucky enough to live at the beach?) will be turning 8 years old this friday. and for that, i wouldnt miss it for all the tea in china....it's a good thing i don't drink tea (!!) LOL. so, my suitcase is just about packed and my toes are painted a lovely shade of hot pink. my ipod is charged with freshly new purchased driving (tuning out my aunts) songs and my beach bag is filled with books to escape too. this friday, I have a scheduled post that will be popping up while i'm gone but let me draw your attention to the music video below. did you know i heart taylor swift? like, i can sing every song off both her albums sorta way :) well, her latest song "mine" was just released and i immediately bought it off of itunes. i thought, cute, catchy...but not one of my faves. HOWEVER, when i saw her music video that goes with it last night....i fell in love! i'm freakin obsessed with how cute it is (minus a few cheesy cheesy looks now and then) srsly. I adore it! please watch it. like, all the way. it makes me wish it was some sappy chic flick i could watch play out over and over. go a head, click it.

Taylor Swift - Mine from Stephen Murray on Vimeo.

craft idea {birthday tin}

this weekend, my days are going to be mixed with going to work- (it's my shift to work at the hospital this weekend) eek! and getting last minute birthday presents for my nephew together before we leave next week. last year, one of the cute things i started was putting together a birthday tin. i was inspired by my friend ann on how every year she makes her children a birthday tin. filled with just little last minute goodies. isn't that the sweetest, easiest thing? well, i thought so and with that, i went straight to the nearest dollar tree and went to my cabinets to find a can of something that i didnt need and then SHABAM...the birthday tin was presented when he came home from school last year on his birthday. he loved it and i course must make this a tradition. this year, i want to make it a little better. of course i'll update with pictures soon but i thought i would share the idea! happy weekend and if you happen to be reading the final book in the hunger games...don't tell me anything! i still havent read it yet :(

Peeta. Peeta. Peeta!

dear edward, i still love ya. like a lot. but, srsly. it's all about peeta these days!
peeta. peeta. peeta. i just can't stop saying that. honestly. mockingjay, i haven't read you yet (because i know i won't be able to MOVE from my spot) and i have things to do. but peeta, you are ever always on my mind and when we hit the beach next week together.....it is on!

let's talk old navy

fall is in the air. it's coming and i just can't wait! when i get back from the beach, fall decor will be going up (squee) but today, today i am content with posting some items that my good friends at old navy are offering. cardigans are my MOST favorite item to wear during the fall. for summer it's sun dresses but for fall, it's the never ending round of cardiagans! and when i saw these, well they sang to me!

i hate jean shopping. let me repeat, i ABHOR jean shopping. i'm short with a little to much junk in the trunk and almost ANY kind of jean is going to be extremely baggy in the leg. hence, the miracle of the skinny jean. amen. thank you. the end!






i found the perfect button down for my nephew's 8th birthday shots on the beach. these colors will look amazing with the ocean. now, i just have to come up with a decent bribe to get him to do yet another round of "i hate this day and i hate photos" session from him while i snap my heart out.


oh jeepers, the time has come for me to go to work....