Friday, January 31, 2014

Happy Hour Time

Well look who finally decided to show up…it’s so nice to see you again Friday! It is so hard to believe that New Year’s Eve was exactly one month ago today, I hope the New Year has been treating everyone well! I have to say that I am so glad that tomorrow is February, one month closer to spring and after all February is the month of all things pink and red! I am sure that everyone has a fun filled weekend planned with Super Bowl parties, seeing friends, and spending time with family! Wishing all a great weekend to be had! Cheers!

“Life is like the ocean. It can be calm or still, and rough or rigid, but in the end it is always beautiful.”

 ~ Unknown
Drink Special! 
Bloodhound
1 ½ ounce Gin
¾ ounce Vermouth
¾ ounce Sweet Vermouth
2 or 3 crushed strawberries
Ice cubes
Fresh strawberries for garnish
Shake with ice and strain into a chilled coupe Champagne glass. Garnish with fresh strawberry

Around Town!
Nashville, TN: 2014 Heart Gala at Schermerhorn Symphony Center, Saturday, February 1, 6:00pm
Memphis, TN: Wine Down at Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Friday, January 31, 6:00pm
Hilton Head Island, SC: Super Bowl at Big Jim’s, Sunday, February 2, 5:00pm
Lancaster, SC: Travis Tritt at USC Lancaster Bundy Auditorium, Friday, January 31, 7:30pm
Biloxi, MS: Vince Gill at Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, Friday, January 31, 8:00pm


Thursday, January 30, 2014

Super Bowl Party Inspiration

{Via}
To be perfectly honest this is one of those years where I’m indifferent about who wins the Super Bowl. I will probably pick the team I cheer for based who has on the better looking uniform that day; when you look good you play good, it is a proven fact! Even though I am not super into the Super Bowl this year it is always fun to have a reason to cheer for something, enjoy some good food, drinks, and some great company. Below are a Super Bowl treats that pretty much anyone will love! Click on the name of the item for the recipe. 

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

The Importance Of Gloves

{Via}
I never realized how important/what a necessity gloves are till I was driving to work yesterday morning. Of course I am always running behind my time so I didn’t have time to let the car warm up while I finished getting ready, so I walked outside in the fidget temperatures, got in my car turned the heat up as high as it would go {the car never did get very warm} and put my hands on the steering wheel to driving out of the driveway…let me tell you that steering wheel was so cold it was painful to hold onto! Needless to say I really wish I was wearing gloves yesterday morning! I have a pair of gloves somewhere that are actually pretty cute so I have come to the conclusion that I either need to find the ones I have or pickup a new pair, especially if the weather is going to continue to be this cold! Below are a few cute gloves I have come across. Click on the name of the gloves, located below the image, to be directed to the website.



Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Top 20 Songs Of 2013

Since the Grammys were on this past Sunday and it is the last week of January {crazy how fast time goes by} and everyone is still in New Year’s/New Year’s Resolution mode I thought it only appropriate to share the top 20 songs of 2013! I hope everyone has had a great first month to 2014 {sounds so much better than 2013} and are keeping up with those New Year’s Resolutions! For a little recap of the top songs from 2013 click here to get the playlist. Side note: I used Billboard top 100 of 2013 to come up with my Top 20 Songs of 2013 playlist which is available on Rdio

Monday, January 27, 2014

Youthful Classics

Some of my most favorite books I have read over the years have been children/young adult books. After all who can honestly say they haven’t read the Harry Potter books, The Hunger Games series, The Twilight saga, or have at least one Dr. Seuss sitting on a bookshelf in their adult years. I honestly cannot tell you how many times I have read Alice In Wonderland and The Little Prince and let’s face it, who doesn’t like the Eloise stories, she even has her own Instagram account! Like with anything else I didn’t appreciate the messages of some of these books until I was older. The first time I read The Little Prince I was in the fifth grade and I loved how it was written but all the metaphors and underlying messages the book contains were way over my eleven-year-old mindset. In all truthfulness if I wasn’t an education major in college I probably wouldn’t have gone back and read some of the books I did in elementary and middle school, but if you ever get the chance you should definitely take a trip down memory lane and read one of your favorite books from when you were younger; having an older perspective and mindset puts a whole new spin on things. Here are some of my favorite children’s books! 
The Annotated Alice by Lewis Carroll
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Richard Howard

Eloise: The Ultimate Edition by Kay Thompson

Oh, The Places You’ll Go by Dr. Seuss


The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick {granted this book wasn’t around during my childhood but the illustrations are amazing}

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Trending: Running Shoes

Lately I have been seeing running shoes everywhere and being worn with everything and I kind of love it! I honestly considered not doing a post on this trend because I have a sister who will try to wear running/tennis shoes with every outfit and I am always trying to get her to wear “real clothes”. In her defense she is a tennis coach and hey, maybe she is onto something with the whole running shoe thing! I do have to admit, I really like how a pair of running shoes looks with jeans/leggings and a sweater; it is basically the perfect casual winter lazy day outfit. So of course with the help of my sister {the expert on athletic footwear – she literally has at least 30 pairs of athletic shoes} I was able to come up with three great shoes {above picture} that would be perfect to wear with a pair of jeans and a stylish sweater! 

Here’s where to shop for the above running shoes!
2.            New Balance
3.            Nike Free

Friday, January 24, 2014

Happy Hour Time

I can hardly believe it is Friday already and that next weekend we will be in the month of February; how crazy is that! Despite the chilliness and just down right cold weather I hope everyone has had a great week! Here’s to sending the last weekend of January out with a bang and continuing to stick to those New Years resolutions! Happy weekend!

“The trick is to enjoy life. Don’t wish away your days waiting for better ones ahead. The grand and the simple. They are equally wonderful.”

~ Marjorie Pay Hinckley
Drink Special! 
{Via}
David’s Hendrick’s Martini
3 ounces Hendrick’s gin
2 ½ teaspoons sake
Ice cubes
Thin cucumber slice for garnish
Shake the liquid ingredients with really fresh ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a thin cucumber slice.


Around Town!
Nashville, TN: Kathleen Madigan Presented by Nashville Symphony at Schermerhorn Symphony Center, Friday, January 24, 8:00pm
Seaside, FL: Seaside Farmers Market at Seaside Amphitheatre, Saturday, January 25, 9:00am
New Orleans, LA: Soul Night at Bayou Beer Garden, Friday, January 24, 8:30pm
Atlanta, GA: Atlanta Winter Beer Fest at The Masquerade, Saturday, January 25 – Sunday, January 26
Louisville, KY: Winter Jam at Freedom Hall, Friday, January 24, 7:00pm

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Valentines Printables

{Via}
I can hardly believe that January is almost over and that February is on it’s way in. I have to admit I am a little happy that January is almost over; although New Years and having a fresh start is always a great thing, January is not my favorite month of the year. As we all know with February comes Valentines! Who can resist a holiday that’s all about pink, red, sparkle, flowers, and candy! Below {and above} are a few fun Valentine’s Day printables! 

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Kate Spade Greatest Hits Sale

The most popular Kate Spade bags are on sale for today only! Stop by the Kate Spade website today to enjoy this one-day only Greatest Hits Sale! Besides it is a perfect night to stay in and do a little online shopping! Below are a few of my favorite bags that are included in the sale. Click on the name of the handbag to be directed to the website! 

Warm Socks, Warm Feet

There are very few things in life that will get me bent out of shape, but the few things that do are: being hungry makes me a little grumpy, a bad hair day {as shallow as that sounds}, and my feet being cold. I mean honestly, who would want to have cold feet. If you have read my blog for a while or have read the post, A Love Affair with Socks, you may have come to the conclusion that I am a little overly found of socks. With another unusually cold week currently underway {hopefully not another polar vortex!} I thought I would share some of my favorite sock picks with you. After all warm sock + warm feet generally equals a happy person! Click on the name of the sock, located below the image, for the website. 

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

The Earth Laughs In Flowers

{Via}



I love the Ralph Waldo Emerson quote: “The earth laughs in flowers”. Over the years this phrase has taken on several different meanings and has even been attributed to E.E. Cummings a few times. 

The full of the poem reads:
“Earth laughs in flowers, to see her boastful boys
Earth-proud, proud of the earth which is not theirs;
Who steer the plough but cannot steer their feet
Clear of the grave.”

Obviously the original message was not intended to be cheerful and happy but rather somewhat mocking of humanity’s arrogance at times. Taken out of context I love how the phrase “The earth laughs in flowers” brings such a beautiful and optimistic image to mind. During the cold winter months sometimes the image of flowers can cheer up even the darkest and coldest of days and remind us that warmer weather is just around the corner.