Odds and Ends

Yall, heavens to betsy my tiredness just can't seem to go away...I think I am still worn out from this weekend's shenanigans and I need major time in bed to recover--life in the fast lane, right?
I simply cannot believe Halloween is next Monday...my days of tearing up the town with hot-to-trot costumes have come and gone my friends, but I'm OK with that...been there, done that, now it's time to move on. Instead, Jeff and I will be at home keeping our fingers crossed for hoards of trick-or-treaters!

This Friday, we're having our annual chili cook-off and Halloween costume contest at work--I can't wait. And of course, I am never one to not participate, so I am sporting the traditional "prego" costume this go around...complete with leggings of course.

However, I am not going to lie--if I was going to a party this year, I would totally rock the "Sophia Grace" ballerina costume and bust out my own version of Nicki Minaj rap songs {and if you have NO idea what I am talking about, get on YouTube now and watch this--too cute for words I tell you!}

Tonight, Candice and I are headed to Girl's Night Out at Melting Pot...I'm super excited because we rarely treat ourselves to this kind of dinner and we are certainly taking advantage--fondue, one of my favorites!

Did anyone watch RHOBH last night? Now I know Kim can be a bit of a looney tune and off her rocker, but that Brandy girl is just horrid...boys that pee in yards, saying she is going to kill someone, and then accusing Kim of being a crystal meth head? Sounds like no lady to me at all. Not to mention her outfit choices look like what I used to dress up for during Halloween ;)

That's all I've got for today friends...I'm working on my gender reveal post, a new sponsor and giveaway, and some other fun stuff that I'm hoping to get out by the end of the week--have a great day!

Oh What a Night

Happy Happy Monday friends! Did you all have a fabulous weekend? They never seem to last nearly long enough, do they? Ours was jam packed as usual, with a quick, but fun trip to Knoxville. Here's the jist:
Friday night, we rolled into town and headed straight to Bev's for pumpkin painting...take me back to kid land, and we had a BLAST!

The  before...

 and the after! Hello chevron AKA Charlie Brown

The boys headed out for late night fun and I know Jeff enjoyed a "real" night out with drinks and guy time--although I think someone was suffering a bit the next morning due to his 4AM bedtime (haha).

Saturday morning, we got up and got everything ready to head to our parking spot to setup the tailgate. The boys were so sweet to set up everything while Meg and I got to town on the food spread and then friends started parading in...a beautiful day spent with great friends with ideal football weather. Unfortunately, let's put it this way...the highlight of the game for me was my favorite game day dog and dippin dots as we lost to the GA Bulldogs--a sad day in the life of a Volunteer fan. Boo =(

Early tailgating

 Me and the hubs

 Rob, Meg, and Giant Christian (his attempt at trying to look tall)

 Jules and Jon...the next to be married!!
Cannot wait for their engagement party coming up in a few weeks

 and the other newlyweds...Jo and Rhett

 Ashley, Lauren, and Me

 Me and Cary--love him so!

 Doesn't get any better than this glorious sight!

 The infamous running through the "T"

 Hilarious--notice the 2nd down, and 56 yards? Yeah, it got even worse
for GA on that drive...4th and 57--that has to be a record

Sunday, we met up with Jeff's mom for coffee so we could catch-up and have some family time before we met up for brunch with Jay, Ashley, and Sheila to finalize our will documents...told you we're getting old, huh? However, SO necessary since we're expanding the family and felt good to get this all settled. Then it was home for us where we got to work... Jeff replacing lights, me doing laundry and cooking dinner, and then both of us working to get some more art on the walls...cannot wait to show it off to you!

Back to reality this morning, although I did get to hear a sweet little noise at my 17 week appointment this morning--the bambino's heartbeat going strong at 145 bpm! Only 8 more days until we find out the gender...countdown is on!

The Best and Worst...Halloween Candy

I know, you so don’t want to hear that the average person consumes a whopping 24 pounds of candy a year, right? Sad to say, but it’s the truth. I found this article, via Eat This, Not That, and just had to share…I know, the health nut in me is coming back!

{P.S. if you’re known to dig into the Halloween bowl multiple times, you may want to forego reading the rest—don’t say I didn’t warn you!!}

Fun Size Candy Bars
Worst: Butterfinger (100 calories, 4 grams fat)
Best: 3 Musketeers Fun Size (63 calories, 2 grams fat)

Classic Fruit Candy
Worst: Airheads—3 minis (140 calories, 1.5 grams fat)
Best: Dum Dum Pops—3 pops (77 calories, 0 grams fat)

Miniature Candy Bars
Worst: Twix—3 pieces (150 calories, 8 grams fat)
Best: Tootsie Roll—3 pieces (70 calories, 1.5 grams fat)

Chewy Candy
Worst: Brach’s Milk Maid Caramels—4 pieces (160 calories, 4.5 grams fat)
Best: Now and Later—4 pieces (53 calories, 0.5 grams fat)

Seasonally Themed Candy
Worst: Reese’s Pumpkin (170 calories, 10 grams fat)
Best: Candy Corn—11 pieces (70 calories, 0 grams fat)

What's sad is that some of my favorite little treats are on this list...goodbye Twix and Reese's--our renezvous are going to have to occur a lot less often. However, I promise NOT to be the lady who gives away apples and fruit snacks to the trick-or-treaters--a little splurge never hurt anybody ;)
So, what's your favorite go-to for Halloween candy?

Spooky Time...

It's Halloween weekend my friends and all the goblins and ghouls are surely out to be dressed in their best. Sadly, Jeff and I aren't going to any parties this year so I didn't get to buy/make a fun costume...boo! We SO would've gone as some of our favorite GTL groupies... something like one of these influentials:

Too  many other things going on to make room for the festivities of a costume party, but I already made him promise me we'll come up with something fabulous next year! {he still doesn't understand just HOW much I love this holiday}...

If I can ever get back to feeling like myself--have I mentioned how OVER being sick I am, we have a fun little weekend planned:

• Dinner tonight at one of my fav places
• Carving our little monsters AKA pumpkins
• Visiting another local bridal shop for more MOB dress fun with Mom Saturday morning
• Baking some of this and making some of this for my family's "Fall Fest" party tomorrow
• Watching some of my favorite scary movies...Halloween, Friday the 13th, and The Shining
• And of course dressing up on Halloween night for our neighborhood trick-or-treaters!!

Hope you all have a terrific halloween weekend!! Can't wait to see all the fun party pics and recaps on Monday =)

Halloween Candy-Lovers Unite!

Yes, the weekend I have been dreading is finally here... not really, I LOVE me some Halloween fun, but the thought of having to keep a stockpile of candy at my house and attempt to save it for the trick-or-treaters Sunday night has me running scared.
See, the problem my friends, is that I don't have strong willpower when it comes to the sweets and seeing it sitting there in my cute pewter pumpkin halloween bowl will just make me take 1 or 10--whatever... this week's "health nut" post is dedicated to the healthy halloween candy {if that can really exist??} and is brought to you by the lovely people at Women's Health Magazine:

 Best Nutty Candy Bar: 100 Grand (190 cal)/Worst: Snickers (280 cal)

Best Crunchy Candy Bar: Take 5 (210 cal)/Worst: Butterfinger (270 cal)

Best Chocolate Candy Bar: Nestle Crunch (220 cal)/Worst: 3 Musketeers (260 cal)

Best Breakable Candy Bar: Kit Kat (210 cal)/Worst: (270 cal)

And for those of you looking for some new workout tunes, add these newbies to your iPod--they're on my fall playlist right now and perfect for high energy working out:

Just a Dream--Nelly

Crazytown--Jason Aldean

If It's Love--Train

Like a G6--Far East Movement

Little Lion Man--Mumford and Sons

DJ Got Us Falling in Love--Usher

Power--Kanye West

Your Love--Nicki Minaj

Cee Lo--Forget You

And no, workouts have seized to exist the latter part of this week because of my stupid inconvenient sickness, so needless to say I am missing my mileage at the gym until I get back to 100%--have I mentioned being sick stinks???  Taking it easy tonight and hoping to make it back tomorrow =)

Wild for Wednesday

As I have nothing too substantial to report this week for the wedding, I thought I would take a bit of time to focus on a few other things... random things I feel like mentioning and answering some questions from some fantastic readers!
1. Skinny Girl margaritas are the greatest concoction ever invented... this allows me to have my girly cocktails without jeopardizing my hours of dedicated time at the gym
2. Reader Question: What is your favorite nail color for fall?? Right now, I am donning Essie's Chinchilly gray-ish color and I love it--perfect shade for the fall transition, although I equally love OPI's Ski til We Drop and Chocolate Moose

3. A bunch of us are gathering together next Friday night to explore the Bell Witch Tour here in Nashville and I couldn't be happier... I LOVE everything about Halloween!!!

4. This weekend, Jeff and I are getting a couple's massage at the Georgia resort we're visiting and I couldn't be more thrilled--my muscles have been aching and a deep tissue massage is JUST what the doctor ordered

5. With discussions all over town about what stores could potentially be entering Music City, I can't help but wish Ikea and H&M would answer our prayers and open stores in my beloved hometown

6. Reader Question: What are some of your favorite sites/blogs for recipes? On my blog, I feature a number of YUMMY blogs, but I frequently rely on the likes of Our Best Bites, Recipe Girl, Paula Deen, and Kraft Foods.... which reminds me, next week I have some pretty fantabulous meals planned: Classic Italian Lasagna, Chicken Enchiladas, Homemade Pizzas, and Texas Style Chili are all on the menu... so lots of recipes sure to come your way ASAP!

7. Oh OK, a tad bit of wedding news: Yesterday, I received the envelopes for our STD's and am starting to address!!! I CANNOT WAIT to send them out next month... and I promise to post them here {I know, teaser, right??}--only 264 days to go!!

8. Reader Question: How did you begin blogging? How did you get people to read? Do you have any tips? First of all, when I began blogging back in April 2008, I never dreamed anyone would actually care to read what I had to say {without the exception of a few of my friends}. With that being said, I started blogging for ME... as a way to document my life and everything in it. The good, the bad, the ugly, and everything in between--I think we all get so caught up in our hectic lives that we take for granted just what all we get to experience and this was intended to be sort of a "digital scrapbook" with events, happenings, thoughts, etc. Fast forward 2.5 years, and my blog has changed direction a bit, as I now focus more on wedding planning, entertaining, decorating my home, keeping myself in shape, cooking, and all the fun happenings taking place {still I'm not quite sure why people read--haha!} but I want to make sure I always aim to please myself and hope to help others along the way, too. To make a long story short, write about what YOU love and if people want to read, they will... plus, I think it's fun to read blogs you find amusing/entertaining/uplifting/educational/etc. so you can step outside your life a bit, and see other people's journeys, too!

9. And just because, I think we all need a little mid-week quote inspiration:

Halloween.. Etsy Style

On the lookout for some fabulous {yet inexpensive} Halloween decor for the house?? Check out some of these adorable accent pieces for the ghouls and goblins in your home... perfect for entertaining and Halloween get-togethers to celebrate fall!

Trick or Treat Blocks

Boo Blocks

Jack O'Lantern Berry Wreath

Decorative Fall Pumpkin

And, just in case you decide to host a little haunted soiree of your very own, here are some adorable party accessories to cast a spell on all your guests:

Vintage Halloween Party Invitations

Happy Halloween Party Banner

I Dare You Cupcake Toppers

Trick of Treat Metal Tub

Printable Halloween Spirit Labels

Just the other night I brought out our fall/Halloween decor--I haven't had the chance to purchase much this year since we're focusing on other big ticket items {haha--story of my life!}, but I found some great little knick-knacks at Homegoods, Hobby Lobby, and other crafty places around town.. take a peek!

Close-up of the Mantle

I Love This Pumpkin for our Front Door!

{Holiday Recipe: Dirt Cake}

Today at work, we are celebrating the season with our annual chili cook-off and costume contest... I think a lot of us just want to dress up so that we can act a little bit child-like and find a way to get away with it around work collleagues. Because I have yet to perfect a chili recipe I can call my own, I decided to make something for dessert instead: don't be alarmed, and yes, I always prefer baking to cooking. =) Here is a recipe I found from Kelly's Recipes, which is perfect for big and little kids alike, and goes along with Halloween: DIRT CAKE!

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup butter, softened

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
2 (3.5 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding mix
3 1/2 cups milk
1 (12 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
32 ounces chocolate sandwich cookies with creme filling
DIRECTIONS
Chop cookies very fine in food processor; most of he white cream will disappear

Mix butter, cream cheese, and sugar in bowl

In a large bowl mix milk, pudding and whipped topping together

Combine pudding mixture and cream mixture together

Layer in flower pot or trifle bowl, starting with cookies then cream mixture

Repeat layers

Chill until ready to serve and enjoy!

All my ingredients-- mostly Kroger brand to save $$$

The finished product

The Top View- SO YUMMY!

{Franklin Pumpkinfest}

For my local Nashville readers, this weekend marks the 24th Annual Pumpkinfest in historic downtown Franklin, TN.  I love everything about this community--each season, they shut down the town square and have local merchants, restaurants, shops, and exciting events highlighted to get families in the habit of getting outside and taking advantage of their town.

My parents and I have developed a fascination with trying to attend as many of these 'fests as we can {bless my dad's heart} and it always turns out to be fun--this year even my boyfriend gets to join in the fun, lucky him-HA!

For 2009 activities, they are featuring cemetery tours, a carnival, and an outdoor movie. Even better, admission is free except for special tours and treats, including: "Halloween Party on the Avenue" from 6PM to 10PM, complete with live music from 2 local bands and wine and chili for only $5 per person. There is also a pumpkin painting for $2 {great for big kids like me}.

If you want additional info about the event, click here

I'll make sure to post pics from our adventures this weekend, too--weather permitting

{Spooktacular Howl-O-Ween}

The weekend is almost here, which means loads of super scary Halloween movies are sure to fill television screens everywhere, or so I hope as I am having a relaxing take on the holiday this year. Unlike some people I know, (and yes I am calling out my beloved Jeff who doesn't like scary movies so much) I love a good fright and I'm hoping I can talk him into viewing some of my all-time favorite thrillers this weekend.

Halloween- the original scary movie. Michael Myers, where are you?? This features scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis and has spawned more sequels than any other movie I can think of. That music still scares me to this day!

Scream-one of the best movie trilogies from renownded director Wes Craven... I can never turn this one down, especially with Drew Barrymore and Gail Weathers, the crazy news anchor

The Craft-talk about distrurbing. I was in high school when this came out and I have to admit I looked at my friends a little differently after this one...

The Silence of the Lambs: I'm obsessed with Anthony Hopkins, but you're sure to see him in a much different light once you see him in his portrayal of Hannibal Lecter=SCARY!

And just for the kids...The Addams Family- how can you not L-O-V-E this movie?? I know, it's not scary, but it's fun AND it features MC Hammer's music, too!

FYI: for those of you who felt sorry for me for not getting to dress up, no worries--we're having a big costume contest celebration/chili cookoff at my office tomorrow so I am getting to dress up afterall- pics to come!