happy 2012!

"Oh give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; make known His deeds among the people."
Psalm 105:1

i've been thinking of what kind of post i wanted to start this year off with.. and i thought about complaining/ranting about what you're supposed to do when you just can't seem to please someone, i thought about posting a Christmas haul with all of my wonderful presents, and then of course, i thought about posting some of my new year's resolutions... maybe i'll get to those, but lately i've been feeling pretty thankful, so i figured i'd jot it down somewhere to share and remember for myself :)

firstly, i'm definitely thankful for this past holiday season, my awesome Christmas gifts, and the time i got to spend with my family :) ..thanksgiving was great, as always! good food and good family! dad and connie were able to visit and spend that friday with us! we went to "ruby tuesday's", which was the first time i had been to a sit down restaurant in almost a whole year! i was pretty excited about that, and then we even got dad and connie to play a few rounds of "just dance 3"! that's always a good time!! ha! Christmas was more than i could have wished for! i got everything i wanted and more! anthony was able to spend the weekend with us and play santa with brandi for chasity.. i think that was the best part of Christmas for me. seeing chasity so happy to have her daddy here, and so happy to get all kinds of gifts she had on her wishlist!

writing this out, i think of all of the little things i'm SO thankful for that kind of interlace like silent side notes to those words... i was thankful to be able to spend many hours on thanksgiving day with my family at my aunt's house. thankful to be able to go to a sit down restaurant with dad, connie, brandi and chas. thankful to be able to go to chasity's Christmas play at her school with jake. i was thankful to spend Christmas weekend seeing chasity so happy with anthony and brandi. i was thankful to be able to spend a little bit of new year's eve with lots of friends and family at the poker party, and then watch the ball drop with bailey jane :) haha..

all of these things i was able to accomplish with no severe anxiety or panic attacks.. i thank God everyday for that blessing. for a full day with no disaster. i spend so much time worrying about these elaborate irrational fears and tragedies, and then it's kind of crazy to me when things just go off without a hitch.. it's nice to make it through a day when nothing bad takes anything good away from me. and i've had a lot of those good days :) trust me, i don't take them for granted..

so essentially, i'm thankful for making it through 2011. it was a rough year for me. it started off pretty bad, got better, and got worse, but now it's over.. i'm thankful for the new year, and i'm thankful that it started off perfectly fine :) i'm thankful for my good health and that of my family. and super thankful for many many blessings that it might take me forever to write. mostly, i'm thankful for all of my answered prayers. it's truly amazing to see God blessing me, my family and my friends every day...

how i made my t-shirt fringe scarf! :)

i saw this tutorial on youtube and figured it was easy enough to try! super cute and only about 4$! i bought the same t-shirt she used, a fruit of the loom shirt with no side seams from wal-mart!

*she doesn't say to do so in the video, but i cut under the arms AND just above the seam at the bottom of the shirt!

hope you enjoyed! :)

Christmas wishlist!!

well, it's officially DECEMBER! this year seemed to go by slow, but now that it's december, i feel like it's flown by! i can remember each and every moment from this time last year and it feels like only days ago! anyway, december means Christmas! and that means a wishlist items post from me! :D

eeee!! i was so excited saving the pictures and links/websites for the following Christmas list! i adore each one of these items, and i know some of them are far fetched, but i just had to list them here to show some of the amazing products i'm in love with! :) so, without further adieu, my Christmas wishlist for 2011! yay!

also, i'm going to try my best to put these in "most wanted" order, obviously they're all most wanted, but i mean.. i know i can't get everything :) haha..


1. michael kors pave disc necklace in rose gold
..let me just breathe for a minute after looking at this breathtaking piece! GORGE! look how pretty!! i don't own any rose gold jewelry, and this is just a no brainer must have! :) especially for this price! let me tell you this is an EXACT dupe for the sydney evan pave disc necklace which retails at $3,015 ..okay, you pretty much HAVE to get the MK dupe for this at $55, right?! :)
- this beauty can be found here -


2. too faced matte eyeshadow collection
okay, i know, why do i need more makeup!? well.. i only have one "high end" palette of shadows, and they are all shimmer shadows, so i need some matte ones! i've heard many good things about too faced cosmetics, let alone this particular palette! i'm a neutral eye kinda girl, so this is perfect for my everyday looks! :) AND it's a $76 value for $36!
- available at sephora -


3. cortex 4-in-1 cermaic clipless curling iron
whew lawd has my curling iron had it! i use it daily and it's about 75 years old! haha! these 'clipless' curling irons, or "curling wands", are all the rage lately! basically, i just like the look they create more than the old fashioned curling irons.. this one comes with four different sized barrels for different sized curls and looks! which is awesome! this is a must have for me! :) hehe!
- online at beautychoice -


4. "designer de better" from the new OPI Muppets Collection: Holiday 2011
this is just a gorgeous color! i've seen it raved about all over the beauty blog/youtube community! it's just an original, i don't have anything like it and love the classic color! :)
- available at ulta -


5. a game of thrones 4-book boxed set (a song of fire and ice series)
really?! i'm embarrassed i don't already have this! as much as i love reading big books and as much as i LOVE the HBO show, it's a wonder i don't own it already! apparently, the boxed set is ridiculously cheap at barnes & noble around $20! enough said :D
- here at barnes & noble -


6. dolce and gabbana's 'light blue'
yum! i'm a perfume junkie, though i only have 2 bottles of fancy perfume! ha! i've never owned this one, but obviously i'd love to! mixing scents and smelling good is an every day thing for me, i think this one is perfect for my little collection! :)
- available at ulta and department stores -


7. laura mercier rose rendezvous face illumiator
this is probably one of the most beautiful pieces of makeup that exists.. it's stunning! great brand, great payoff, wears amazingly.. must own for any guru! in case you're not sure what a "face illuminator" is, it's basically a highlight.. you apply the shade with a brush on areas of your face you'd want highlighted, like the top of your cheekbones, right under your eyebrows, inner corner of your eye, down the nose and cupid's bow of your top lip.. highlighting gives your face a natural "glowy" or "dewy" look :) this is a splurge item for me at $42 bucks!
- here at sephora -


8. lancome beauty sensation beauty box in 'beautiful bronzes'
okay, this is just insane.. lancome = high end, department store makeup brand = expensive! this set is worth over $300 but is being sold with any lancome purchase for $57.50! usually gift sets come with little travel size products or samples, but these are all full sized items! 2 lip glosses, 2 lipsticks, kohl eyeliner, limited edition 2 brush set, mascara (which is a top rated mascara), 3 eye shadows and a full size makeup remover (which also happens to be a top rated product!).. if you know any makeup lovers, this is pretty much the perfect gift set for them, hands down! :D
- at macy's and other department stores -



okay.. too much? :) as you can tell, i'm a makeup junkie! i think i ask for these things as gifts because i have a hard time buying makeup myself.. i don't know why, it's just always clothes over makeup, i guess! :D i hope you enjoyed seeing/reading and i hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas full of items from their own wishlists!

little tidbits.. :)

i just found bailey jane's little pink sweater and put it on her to keep hers warm :) i forgot how precious she looks in it!!

i'm in serious need of a new storage set up for my makeup/beauty products, i'm collecting way too much makeup!

i don't get these commercials marketing tampons that look inconspicuous because apparently it's embarrassing to take a tampon to the bathroom... uh? it's not that big of a problem? i don't need to pay more to have my tampon in a pink WRAPPER...

i'm having the hardest time finding the new revlon lip butter displays! ugh!

i have to wait until february for 'the walking dead' to come back, and APRIL for 'game of thrones'... why can't reeeeeally good shows play year 'round? ..three times a week? surely that's not too much to ask! :)

JIF "natural" peanut butter is dericious!! and better for you! :D

i'll be back soon with a Christmas wishlist! :)

untitled...

i haven't done a post this month, and i'm not quite sure what to say, so i'll just share a picture of the prettiest orchid ever and a few songs on my "chill" playlist :)


'vienna' by billy joel - a good friend recommended this song to me and i immediately knew why :) it's just for me! i adore billy joel, and love love the lyrics of this song! "...vienna waits for you." would be a good tattoo ;)


'roslyn' by bon iver & st. vincent - i first heard this on one of the twilight movies, "new moon" i think.. i don't know why i like it, it's kind of odd, like the rest of the songs on that soundtrack, but i love it :)


'somewhere over the rainbow' by israel kamakawio'ole - ughhh, such a good version of this song! so happy and warm feeling!


'long way home' by mofro - first heard this at the end of an episode of "deadliest catch", which is a fabulous show! always has good music! there wasn't a video for this song on youtube so i just made one myself :) love this band, love this kind of music, it's just nice!


'no one's gonna love you' by band of horses - i really like the musicality of this song! it's a bit awkward but it works, love it!


'if i could' by jack johnson - is there anything bad to say about jack johnson!? everything he writes, sings and performs is perfection! this song is so sweet and sad at the same time..


'holdin' on' by citizen cope - seriously!? one of my favorite songs by c.cope, without a doubt! this song is insane to me.. i love the slow sensuality of it! it's perfect :)



thanks for reading/listening :)

let me tell you something...

basically, august was a huge "transition month" for me.. i packed up and moved up here to tennessee at the beginning of the month and have pretty much been "settling in" since then! lol.. some things have been difficult, but overall, i consider this a much needed, positive change for the better :) it's nice being close to my three favorite "two and a half women" (ahhh, clever! :D), mama, brandi and chasity.. and the area i live in is just much much more refreshing than macon, georgia!

the past few weeks have been a little rough, but i'm finally feeling like things are coming together, and i'm looking forward to being okay again :) after running out of my SSRI and thinking i could tough it out until the next refill ended in a complete meltdown, i found a great general practitioner (which i haven't had since age 8), who "re-upped" my prescription for me and also recommended me to a therapist he seems to think pretty highly of, so that's exciting! it'll be nice to have a therapist again. whether you have mental health issues or not, i think having someone on the "outside" to talk to, someone in your life with a professional opinion, clear mind, solid experience with all types of people and complete lack of judgement is beneficial to anyone! it's refreshing to have that time every day/week/month where you can exhale and clear things up, get things out, and solve some problems. needless to say, i'm looking forward to some one on one therapy! lol :)

earlier in august, brandi and i started our little apartment overhaul! we're planning on painting all walls, doors and trim, and i think we made pretty good progress in a small amount of time! so far, the living room, hallway, "office", and my room all have fresh coats of paint on the walls, trim and baseboards. neutral is the way to go, and covering creamy beige trim with fresh stark white makes such a difference! pretty soon, we'll get back to work and start on brandi's room and chasity's room and then the kitchen! we'll be getting fancy "vintage white" cabinets and granite counter tops in the kitchen so i'm super excited about that! (quick side note: i just now realized i still had the tag left on my panties after i've been wearing them all day! wow, katie... also- that 5 for 25$ deal at victoria's secret is too legit; i just realized these were regularly $9.50! what the heck?!) OKAY! back on track... for my room, i went with my ideas from the previous post. i chose "hope chest" for my wall paint color, a dark grayish-brownish-taupe.. although i love the color, it wasn't what i thought it would be once my walls were covered in it! lol.. it's a bit of a "chameleo-color", sometimes it looks brownish gray, but most times it's kind of a seductive deep brownish purple color.. which i also like! it compliments my deep wood furniture and black and white accessories pretty well, if i do say so myself! :D

we're all pretty excited to get the entire apartment done, and i'm excited for brandi and chasity to have their rooms finished and feel as comfortable in them as i do in mine! :) i'll leave you with some pictures of our progress and a few from the experience in chattanooga so far!

the living room--
super cozy and comfy! makes for good tv/movie nights with brandi and chas! :) the color is totally washed out in the first photo because of the window, but you get the point.. neutral tan! lol



a few from my room--
finishing touches are done with the wall hangings and decor, although i didn't take the time to dress my "bed" up with the fancy coordinating comforter for this photo, lol.. and bailey is looking at me saying, "why are you doing this??" :)


nail painting station! woohoo! i still need to get a matching chair, i'm borrowing this one from the office. also, you can see bailey jane's crate/eating area aaand my new pink tennis shoes!! :D


no room of mine would ever ..ever be complete without a full length mirror and hair/makeup station! (and you notice i have yet to paint the doors in my room! ha!) there's a bailey jane in this picture, too!


miss jane got her first haircut at the new groomer! they did SUCH a good job, i really love that place and i think she does, too! despite the look she's giving me in this picture! haha!


i curled chasity's hair before school this morning.. she loves being a diva! ;) and also likes how much bailey sneezes after i spray her hair down with hairspray! ha!


brandi calls this the "cereal/snack management system", lmao! i was pretty excited, i've always wanted the plastic things to put my cereal in! haha!


the mail lady has been unaware of which apartment to deliver my packages to on account of no clear markings on our door, lol.. she is now well informed :) haha!!


all done!! if you're still here, thanks for reading this super long post! i like the picture updates! maybe i'll start doing that more often? byeeee! :D

movin' on up...

well... it's finally time for some good news! :) my sister and i got approved for an apartment in chatt town! it's actually a cozy little old house split into sectioned apartments... moving day is THIS saturday so i've got lots of packing and planning to finish up this week!! i'm super excited! planning new things for new spaces is enough to fill all of my shower thinking time and pillow talk time! haha! :) along with the packing, i've applied and been approved for financial aid, and have applied and been accepted to chatt state! so, if i can get transcripts/immunization records sent fast enough, i may be able to start fall semester at the end of the month! i'm thinking i may go towards a business degree and own my own business ..can't say i've ever been much for working for anyone else.. heh ;)

anyway! i've filled so much of my head with ideas for the new apartment, so i figure i'll share here to get it all out somewhere! your welcome! haha! :D

first! paint color! we're allowed to paint as long as we don't go crazy, so i'm definitely taking the opportunity to find my perfect color! i'm thinking a brownish-grayish-taupe... like this--


and for bedding, i'll have a "full" size futon for my room, so i think i'll just put a comforter over that and toss tons of pillows on it and call it a bed :) i think this aqua-teal color will be gorgeous with the wall color! i have two big black and white zebra throw pillows, a few black throw pillows and some other neutral ones i think will be adorable! this comforter set has already been ordered from target, so hopefully it'll be shipped up to tennessee before i arrive!


desk area.. if you know me, you know my obsession with all things nail polish! i paint my nails once or twice a week, and having a clean area with a bright lamp is a must for me! :) jake and i went to walmart and picked up this simple little "writing table" for under 40 bucks! i'm excited to stack a few books, add a lamp and cute picture frame and set this baby right in front of the double window in my new room!


and of course i couldn't leave out my sweet bailey jane :) she got some new doggie food bowls and a place mat from walmart to match our new style!! i'm also on the hunt for a purple collar and leash for her, but haven't found one i love enough yet, ha... anyway, i thought these bowls were almost as precious as she is!! :) and no, cute yorkie baby does not come with! lol


lastly, i finally ordered a jewelry box from amazon with the last of my birthday gift card from my sister! since i'll be mixing wood furniture with black accents in my room, i figured i might as well go all out eclectic and mix with black and white accents so it'll look purposely done instead of unfortunately mismatched, ha :) for under $20, i'm guessing this is a little on the smaller side, but i've been looking for a white jewelry box all over, and this is the best you can get unless you want to spend $200 on a jewelry armoire ..which isn't quite necessary for me yet! lol


so that's what's been going on so far... hopefully i'll be able to get the painting and setup done pretty quickly so i can post pictures or something! ...on that note, i guess i'll share another idea of mine... again if you know me, you know i'm pretty obsessed with the youtube "beauty community", if you don't know what that is, it's just a bunch of random girls all over the world who film all kinds of videos, tutorials, tips and tricks relating to beauty, hair, makeup and fashion.. a bunch of the girls film "vlog" videos for a second channel and include day to day activities that may be interesting, shopping trips, home projects, etc etc... since i'll be moving away from my boyfriend and very best friends, i thought maybe it would be fun to try to film day to day videos of what's going on in volunteer country! mainly so jake can watch and be updated and see my purty face every day :) haha!! ...but seriously... lol, anyway, if i ever do get that up and rolling, i'll share links on my blog, for sure! let me know if you'd be interested or have any other ideas of how to keep in touch..??

whew! that was a lot... thank youins for reading! ...gotta get that lingo down ;) hehe!!