Monday, December 26, 2011
Christmas Craft
Thanks to Pinterest, I got the idea to make a wedding ornament for both of my sisters. I cut up their wedding invitations and curled each piece. I put them in the clear ball I found at Hobby Lobby and tied a ribbon. Simple as that, but they both loved it and I loved making it for them. It will remind them of their special day every Christmas!
Hope everyone had a great holiday!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
The Best Time of the Year
Christmas time is my favorite time of year. It has been a tradition for the last couple of years to all gather at Austin's parents house the weekend after Thanksgiving to decorate the Christmas tree and eat a delicious dinner. This year was a little different because we had 3 little boys "helping" us decorate. They LOVED all of the ornaments, which led to the bottom of the tree being completely covered and the top being a little bare. We tried to take a picture of all 3 of them, but it was a bit more of a challenge then we had hoped. :)
Here are my little buddies in their new pajamas!
Another reason I love this time of year is because it is my birthday month! I am a huge fan of birthdays and definitely talk about my birthday for a whole month (sorry to all of those that had to listen to me for so long!). My sweet sister and boyfriend surprised me with a Happy Hour the night before my birthday! All of my favorite people were there, which just made my birthday extra special.
On my actual birthday, I used my "Gift of Time" at school and left at 2:00. Austin came over and we tried to fish in the lake behind my new townhouse. We didn't catch anything, but it was fun to just hang out with him during the day! That night, we headed to my sisters for a fun family dinner which included steak, fingerling potatoes, green beans, and Caesar salad. It was delicious!
Finally, Austin and I traveled to Fort Worth on Friday night to eat at our favorite restaurant. Nona Tatta is the best Italian food I have ever had, besides in actual Italy. We met Will and Katie at The Usual (bar in FW) and ate a delicious meal. As an early Christmas gift, I surprised Austin with a night at the Omni in downtown FW. When we don't spend the night, we have to worry about leaving too late and this way we could enjoy the whole night and day. We headed to the hotel and Austin got us upgraded to a suite!! We had a HUGE room with the most amazing shower.... 5 spickets where water sprayed out! We slept in and headed to Old Neighborhood Grill, TCU bookstore, and drove by Austins old house! I LOVE Fort Worth!!
Great birthday! Cant wait for next year!
Here are my little buddies in their new pajamas!
Another reason I love this time of year is because it is my birthday month! I am a huge fan of birthdays and definitely talk about my birthday for a whole month (sorry to all of those that had to listen to me for so long!). My sweet sister and boyfriend surprised me with a Happy Hour the night before my birthday! All of my favorite people were there, which just made my birthday extra special.
On my actual birthday, I used my "Gift of Time" at school and left at 2:00. Austin came over and we tried to fish in the lake behind my new townhouse. We didn't catch anything, but it was fun to just hang out with him during the day! That night, we headed to my sisters for a fun family dinner which included steak, fingerling potatoes, green beans, and Caesar salad. It was delicious!
Finally, Austin and I traveled to Fort Worth on Friday night to eat at our favorite restaurant. Nona Tatta is the best Italian food I have ever had, besides in actual Italy. We met Will and Katie at The Usual (bar in FW) and ate a delicious meal. As an early Christmas gift, I surprised Austin with a night at the Omni in downtown FW. When we don't spend the night, we have to worry about leaving too late and this way we could enjoy the whole night and day. We headed to the hotel and Austin got us upgraded to a suite!! We had a HUGE room with the most amazing shower.... 5 spickets where water sprayed out! We slept in and headed to Old Neighborhood Grill, TCU bookstore, and drove by Austins old house! I LOVE Fort Worth!!
Great birthday! Cant wait for next year!
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Thanksgiving Pies and a Great Surprise
I love Thanksgiving! The food, the family, and especially the pie making. Austin and I have been in charge of making pies the last couple of years and this year we made 3...2 apple pies and 1 fudge pie. I took a couple of pictures while we cooked, but I forgot to take the pictures of the final product... Whoops!
And my surprise....
That Sunday, I wanted to give Austin a little treat! I decided he needed a little holiday cheer in his apartment, so I went shopping! To Target I went and purchased a tree, lights, ornaments, and holiday kitchen towels. The best part was I found a pickle ornament, which has been a Winans family tradition for years (apparently its a German tradition! ). He was very excited to come home from work and see this!
I love the holidays! Makes me happy!
Apple pies (too bad I didn't take final pictures... they looked so pretty)
Fudge Pie!
And my surprise....
That Sunday, I wanted to give Austin a little treat! I decided he needed a little holiday cheer in his apartment, so I went shopping! To Target I went and purchased a tree, lights, ornaments, and holiday kitchen towels. The best part was I found a pickle ornament, which has been a Winans family tradition for years (apparently its a German tradition! ). He was very excited to come home from work and see this!
I love the holidays! Makes me happy!
Sunday, November 13, 2011
I'm Back!!!
Hello blog world! It has been way too long! Life has gotten in the way and I have not found time to sit down and write. Today is the day! I will not bore you with all the details of my life since August 1st, but I will give a quick highlight.
Finally and most importantly, we went to The Ellen show! It was a blast! It was hard work screaming and dancing the whole time, but totally worth every minute of it! We felt so special to be able to have that opportunity!
So far, I have have changed grades (now I teach 3rd).... not my favorite year of teaching, but staying positive it will get better.
I have gone to my first Ole Miss football game since I graduated! Although we are not a great team this year, we had a blast visiting and going to The Grove. This time, Austin was able to come with me. We drove ALL the way to Memphis on Friday (I am not much for driving... Austins idea) and had a great night in Memphis. We were able to see Brooke and Daniels new house and Emily and Lukes new Memphis apartment. Saturday morning, we all got ready for The Grove and began our drive to Oxford. We had a blast catching up with friends, eating delicious Grove food, and even had fun in watching the Rebels play, until the 3rd quarter. We had a late dinner at Rib Cage and made our way back to Dallas on Sunday morning. We had a blast!!
Next stop... my amazing trip to L.A. to see Tracy and Kirby!
Lauren and I decided to make a trip to visit them in August! We finally booked our flights for October 29th and we headed out.
Our 1st stop was Santa Monica
Next stop.... Tracy and Lauren ran a half marathon, while I walked 1/2 of the half marathon cheering them on and looking for celebraties. I was so incredibly proud of them!
Third was our private, VIP tour of Warner Bros. studios given by Tracy herself. We were unable to take pictures on the Ellen set, but I was able to take pictures outside of the Friends studio and on the set of Gilmore Girls, Hart of Dixie, and Pretty Little Liars.
So that is basically the highlights of my life in a nutshell! I promise to be better about blogging!
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Inspiration
This summer, I have read more books than I think I have in my life. I know that is sad, but its better late than never. One of my favorites and the book I just finished last night is The Pioneer Woman.
Most of you recognize her as a chef and a great blogger. She just recently wrote this book based on her love story, which has given me new inspiration in my own life.
As I was reading, I kept on thinking, "Why don't I do this for Austin?" or "Why doesn't he do this for me?". Everything they did for each other was just so simple, but made the biggest difference in their relationship. They knew how to keep the spark in their relationship by completing simple acts, such as cooking dinner for each other, calling each other 5 minutes after they were apart just to say he missed her, or even taking charge...telling her he will be there at 5:00 to pick her up, no questions asked. Sounds silly, but reading this book has shown me that little acts of kindness and spontaneity can make the biggest difference in a relationship. Its easy to just get in to a habit that "works" for your schedule, instead of thinking "what can I do for the other person" or "how can I make tonight different than our typical nights"?
So, in my first act of change, I decided to make a surprise dinner for Austin. I told him I would be over at 6:00, without telling him what I would be doing. I went to Central Market and picked up all of the groceries and was at his door promptly at 6:00. The look on his face was priceless and I knew right there that it was going to be a perfect night! I told him I was making a change and sparking up our relationship....that I had been lazy. Of coarse, he said he had been lazy too, so we decided now was a better time than any to make the change!
I was so proud of my cooking (he said it was the best meal I had ever made) and boy was it delicious!! I made Pesto Chicken (thanks Central Market)
Fusilli Pasta with Spinach and Asiago Cheese.....amazing! (thanks to Giada)
Oven-Roasted Asparagus (Pioneer Woman)
And of coarse....Turtle Torture Ice Cream!!
The final product:
Definitely the best night of summer and I felt so great to be able to do something fun for Austin! I suggest everyone read the book....might be my favorite book so far!!
As I was reading, I kept on thinking, "Why don't I do this for Austin?" or "Why doesn't he do this for me?". Everything they did for each other was just so simple, but made the biggest difference in their relationship. They knew how to keep the spark in their relationship by completing simple acts, such as cooking dinner for each other, calling each other 5 minutes after they were apart just to say he missed her, or even taking charge...telling her he will be there at 5:00 to pick her up, no questions asked. Sounds silly, but reading this book has shown me that little acts of kindness and spontaneity can make the biggest difference in a relationship. Its easy to just get in to a habit that "works" for your schedule, instead of thinking "what can I do for the other person" or "how can I make tonight different than our typical nights"?
So, in my first act of change, I decided to make a surprise dinner for Austin. I told him I would be over at 6:00, without telling him what I would be doing. I went to Central Market and picked up all of the groceries and was at his door promptly at 6:00. The look on his face was priceless and I knew right there that it was going to be a perfect night! I told him I was making a change and sparking up our relationship....that I had been lazy. Of coarse, he said he had been lazy too, so we decided now was a better time than any to make the change!
I was so proud of my cooking (he said it was the best meal I had ever made) and boy was it delicious!! I made Pesto Chicken (thanks Central Market)
Definitely the best night of summer and I felt so great to be able to do something fun for Austin! I suggest everyone read the book....might be my favorite book so far!!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Rancho Mirando
This past weekend, Austin and I headed out to Wimberley, Texas for Winans family vacation. We had a big house in the hill country with amazing views! We swam in our own private pool, went to a vineyard, played games, and ate delicious food. I wished we could have stayed the whole week!
Our View!
Turkeys
Swim Time
Play time
Driftwood Winery
The picture no one wanted to take! :)
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
My 3 New Favorites
My new favorite snack:
I found them at Central Market...they are a healthy version of white cheddar popcorn and they are DELICIOUS!
New favorite book:
I haven't finished it yet, but I LOVE it! I almost don't want to finish reading it because I don't want it to end!
And my favorite nail polish:
It's called Smokin' Hot and I love it. It is currently on my toes and will most likely end up on my fingers soon! The color changes in different lights...a mixture of dark brown, gray and a dark purple.
New favorite book:
And my favorite nail polish:
It's called Smokin' Hot and I love it. It is currently on my toes and will most likely end up on my fingers soon! The color changes in different lights...a mixture of dark brown, gray and a dark purple.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Oh the Holidays
July has started off really well!
Right before the 1st of July, my best friends, Emily and Brooke, came to visit from Memphis! Because we are all teachers, we were able to have a 5 day visit, which never happens. We shopped, laid out, ate delicious food, and just caught up on life!
For the 4th of July, Austin and I headed to Kaboom town (3rd best fireworks show in the nation) with our great friends Chad and Katelyn. We had amazing brisket, made by Katelyn's grandpa, and many different salads. It was VERY hot, but we enjoyed every minute of it!
Next, I was off to the lake for some R&R in the middle of the week! Liz and I drove down to meet my sister at Horseshoe Bay and enjoyed a couple days in the sun! I could do that all the time!
Right before the 1st of July, my best friends, Emily and Brooke, came to visit from Memphis! Because we are all teachers, we were able to have a 5 day visit, which never happens. We shopped, laid out, ate delicious food, and just caught up on life!
For the 4th of July, Austin and I headed to Kaboom town (3rd best fireworks show in the nation) with our great friends Chad and Katelyn. We had amazing brisket, made by Katelyn's grandpa, and many different salads. It was VERY hot, but we enjoyed every minute of it!
Next, I was off to the lake for some R&R in the middle of the week! Liz and I drove down to meet my sister at Horseshoe Bay and enjoyed a couple days in the sun! I could do that all the time!
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Petite's Photo Books
I officially started a business on Thursday. I mentioned in an earlier post that I had been making photo books frequently and that this had become my hobby. Well.... I decided to make it more than a hobby! It is now a business. I have created a separate blog, Petite's Photo Books, which includes all of my information, examples of books I have created, prices, etc. I felt like I could save a lot of people time by creating their books for them and I get to do something I love!
I am very excited to see where this goes and if anyone is interested, please let me know! :)
I am very excited to see where this goes and if anyone is interested, please let me know! :)
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Dream Come True
I know I have already posted today, but I could not forget my "Dream Come True" this week.
It all started last Tuesday, when my friend Kristen asked me if I wanted to splurge to go to Game 4 of the Finals. Of coarse, I was considering it, but I wasn't sure I wanted to spend $220 on nosebleed tickets. We continued to debate for about 2 hours, when we finally decided this would never happen again and we were just going to do it! Ten minutes after she pushed submit, she got a phone call from her husband, saying he got 2 free tickets for us!!!! The tickets we just bought were NON REFUNDABLE so needless to say, we were not happy! Kristen called Stubhub back and they said we could put them back up on Stubhub to sell them, but we were hoping to sell them to someone we knew. Thanks to twitter and Mark, the word got out and finally my brother decided to splurge with a friend!
The game was incredible!!!!! We got to go for free, got free Finals t-shirts (which I could not wash until after game 6), noise makers, and souveniers cups! I was in Heaven! It was a very important game to win, so it was very nerve-racking, but we pulled it out in the end! The AAC was the loudest I have ever heard and everyone was on cloud 9! I left knowing I could officially die happy! :)
Game 5 and 6 were watched in Austin's apartment, wearing my same outfit from game 4 and with my same noise maker and cup. I knew they were all good luck! We both had our specific spots and our specific traditions. It never failed, by 4th quarter, Austin and I were screaming.... I was jumping on the couch and Austin running around in front of the TV! I was glad to know that all of my Memphis friends were cheering on my team as well! Low and behold, we won game 6 and it was amazing!!!! We completely deserved it and it was a dream come true! The parade and celebratory ceremony was today and you could tell they were so thrilled! Dirk sang We Are the Champions on the AAC balcony, while Marion did the dougie on the stage. I am so proud of my team, so I had to give them shout out!
MAVS FAN FOR LIFE!
It all started last Tuesday, when my friend Kristen asked me if I wanted to splurge to go to Game 4 of the Finals. Of coarse, I was considering it, but I wasn't sure I wanted to spend $220 on nosebleed tickets. We continued to debate for about 2 hours, when we finally decided this would never happen again and we were just going to do it! Ten minutes after she pushed submit, she got a phone call from her husband, saying he got 2 free tickets for us!!!! The tickets we just bought were NON REFUNDABLE so needless to say, we were not happy! Kristen called Stubhub back and they said we could put them back up on Stubhub to sell them, but we were hoping to sell them to someone we knew. Thanks to twitter and Mark, the word got out and finally my brother decided to splurge with a friend!
The game was incredible!!!!! We got to go for free, got free Finals t-shirts (which I could not wash until after game 6), noise makers, and souveniers cups! I was in Heaven! It was a very important game to win, so it was very nerve-racking, but we pulled it out in the end! The AAC was the loudest I have ever heard and everyone was on cloud 9! I left knowing I could officially die happy! :)
Game 5 and 6 were watched in Austin's apartment, wearing my same outfit from game 4 and with my same noise maker and cup. I knew they were all good luck! We both had our specific spots and our specific traditions. It never failed, by 4th quarter, Austin and I were screaming.... I was jumping on the couch and Austin running around in front of the TV! I was glad to know that all of my Memphis friends were cheering on my team as well! Low and behold, we won game 6 and it was amazing!!!! We completely deserved it and it was a dream come true! The parade and celebratory ceremony was today and you could tell they were so thrilled! Dirk sang We Are the Champions on the AAC balcony, while Marion did the dougie on the stage. I am so proud of my team, so I had to give them shout out!
MAVS FAN FOR LIFE!
Jack and Ginger
I officially have a new favorite brand of dresses...Jack and Ginger.
As I was planning my wardrobe for the summer weddings, I realized that I do not have any dresses to wear, seeing as though I wore bridemaids dresses last summer. So the fun, yet affordable dress hunt began!
I started at Nordstrom, my favorite store in Dallas. I searched and searched through the dress department, even had a personal Nordstrom shopper pull dresses for me and still nothing. I was getting frustrated until she brought me my final dress, this Jack and Ginger dress and I fell in love! Not only did it fit perfectly (aka I did not have to get it hemmed), but it was a REALLY affordable price. I will now be searching for more dresses by Jack and Ginger!
As I was planning my wardrobe for the summer weddings, I realized that I do not have any dresses to wear, seeing as though I wore bridemaids dresses last summer. So the fun, yet affordable dress hunt began!
I started at Nordstrom, my favorite store in Dallas. I searched and searched through the dress department, even had a personal Nordstrom shopper pull dresses for me and still nothing. I was getting frustrated until she brought me my final dress, this Jack and Ginger dress and I fell in love! Not only did it fit perfectly (aka I did not have to get it hemmed), but it was a REALLY affordable price. I will now be searching for more dresses by Jack and Ginger!
My new dress for the weekend wedding in Missouri!
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
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