What I Love About Sunday

I swear, these weekends go by way too fast. I forced myself to get outside yesterday. I convinced myself I have DVR for a reason, and the Olympics will have to wait while I get some quality time with the sun.
One thing I was really excited about was a new print I purchased (below) that I absolutely love. Available on Etsy, you can pretty much choose any song lyric by request. I just happen to like this print that was already made. It's printed on top of a particular page out of the dictionary page, this one starting with the definition of 'fate'. Adorable.
Finally, it wouldn't be a true summer in Buffalo without a Taffy's milkshake. Taffy's has been a local staple for 60 years, and in that time the have perfected the art of a milkshake. I'm not kidding when I say they have about 100 flavors to choose from; I went for Peanut Butter Cup Vanilla, which is really lame compared to the choices I had, but I'm a loyal Peanut Butter Cup fan.

disco biscuit nails to accompany the London fever this weekend

new print for the apartment

the best milkshake in town - at Taffy's

Friday Favorite

It's the start of the Olympics! I'm so excited this time around; see, last time the Olympics were taking place, I didn't care at all. Something happened between then and now. Maybe it's that I grew up, started watching the Today Show and cared about these all of these things adults are supposed to care about.
I'm especially excited for tonight, because my friend Matt Lauer (I realize he's a love him or hate him kind of guy, I choose to love) told me today that this is going to be one fantastic opening ceremony. The lead of the creative team is Danny Boyle, who directed Slumdog Millionaire. I'm sure we won't be disappointed.
There's nothing more I'd rather be doing on this rainy Friday then watching the opening ceremony, accompanied with wine and snacks.

The Dress That Got Away

Have you ever tried something on that you absolutely loved, and spent 15 minutes in the fitting room deciding when and where you would wear it? That's what happened to me this past weekend, and I ended up not buying the perfect summer dress.

It's as if the perfect dress came into my life; i loved this dress. there was adorable detailing on the collar. it had the cutest front pockets. hugged perfectly at the waist. loved the length. oh - and only $35. WHY would anyone let this dress slip out of their hands? I have no idea. All I know is that I cannot stop thinking about this dress, and have non-buyers remorse.

I needed to share this with you - hopefully this encourages you next time in the fitting room. If you absolutely love something - just buy it.

Don't put yourself through my situation.

I plan on making a trip back this weekend and am crossing my fingers that it will still be there.

What I Love About Sunday

I live in Buffalo, NY; which is about 25 minutes away from one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, Niagara Falls. I know, I know - not only is Buffalo an amazing city, but then we get the perk of that claim to fame? Call me crazy, but you should probably move here.

My friends and I decided to be complete tourists for one day, and purchase a 'discovery pass'. This pass lets you in to all of the awesome things Niagara Falls has to offer; Maid of the Mist (boat ride right in front of the falls), Cave of the Winds (put your ponchos on and walk right beside the falls), and an aquarium for the more non-adventurous.

What was intended to be a quick day trip ended up taking the entire day, getting home around 9:30pm. I guess when you're pretending to be a tourist you really have to be dedicated. It was so much fun, and if you're ever in the Buffalo area, I recommend it.

in front of the falls!

more ponchos & cave of the winds

poncho ready. in 89 degree weather.

seal doing his thing.

Friday Favorite

The past couple of days included traveling, sleeping and training. Tuesday and Wednesday I was in NYC for work; I love the city, and wish my time could have been spent shopping rather than working! I snapped a couple of pictures in the hour and a half that we had to walk around.
Thursday included lots and lots of sleep. Our flight was delayed Wednesday and we didn't get in until 2am; after a training seminar all day long, I was exhausted.
NYC is amazing, and each time I'm there I always end up wondering why I don't live there (then the financial dread comes along with the feeling and it quickly goes away).

adorable truffles at Godiva

Harry Winston - yes, please!

Louis Vuitton - love this design

nap time w/ B

What I Love About Sunday

On Saturday, I hosted my first wine night with my friends. If there was a hidden camera in my house that day, you would have thought the Queen was coming to visit. I think I can probably go the entire week without cleaning, that's for sure. Sunday entailed a day of eating greasy, fried food (which always follows after you polish off bottles of wine with friends). It was magical to not care about what I was eating for one day - my body needed it, after all.
But before all of the cleaning and preparing started on Saturday, B (Brutus) had to go for a walk. It just so happens that in the last weekend of July, there is a Garden Walk in our neighborhood. Please picture: serious gardeners - gardening, watering their flowers and cutting their grass with such precision. Perfect for my dog, who insisted on stopping at each sprinkler for a drink of water (hey, when it's 9am and already 80 degrees, he does what he wants). I took the picture below to capture this moment. Seriously - he's like my child; I'm always grabbing my phone to take a picture of something he's doing.

Brutus grabbing a quick drink on our morning walk

there's just something so great about a diet pepsi & cheeseburger when you're hungover

Friday Favorite

drugstore beauty grabs; nothing is better than a new bronzer for $10
and a peach summer polish

proud that I actually made it to the gym on my own this week

Yogi Tea and the adorable quotes on each tea tag

Thursday Song

This is an extremely old (and some may say annoying) song; but it's just getting me pumped up and ready to kick Thursday's ass. I have a ton of things to do and have boot camp after work, and something is telling me I need some music motivation - on top of my Dunkin' Donuts iced coffee with a turbo shot of espresso (yes, it was that kind of morning).
Anyways, hope you appreciate it and it also makes you want to kick this day's ass as well. :)

Quinoa Mac & Cheese

Let me just start by saying that I thought nothing beat the Kraft's Macaroni & Cheese (spirals). When I was a kid, I would have been happy to eat that for breakfast, lunch and dinner (with a few Reese's Peanut Butter cups thrown in between meals).
Due to being 24 years old, and my guilty conscience of knowing meals like that are only acceptable once in a great while, I had to find an alternative. Enter: Quinoa Mac & Cheese.
What's great about this recipe is you can really add anything you'd like; peppers, tomatoes, salsa, etc. I chose to stick to the original mac & cheese and only added chives and garlic. Delish! It's also man approved, so don't be hesitant with this one!

clearly we loved it.

What I Love About Sunday

beer tent; and you even get a souvenier!

new blush i'm loving.

ready to glow! delicious, too.

Friday Favorite

You can take the girl out of the Southtowns, but you can't take the Southtowns out of the girl. Now that I live in the city, there are so many times I find myself driving back to town. It's usually for laundry - or dinner with friends, lunch with mom or dad, or for a little shopping trip. All of these things could very well be done in the city - I'm just not there yet. I'm still dabbing into my hometown and haven't completely detached myself yet.
And in the summer, it's quite difficult. Our town has a few drinking festivals carnivals, and I just can't give them up. You bump into (literally) everyone you've ever known (which sometimes isn't the greatest, depending), but it's always a great time. Oh, and after a few beverages, the fried dough smells even better. Imagine that.
Guess what I'm doing this weekend? The beer tent Carnival, of course!

It's Thursday?

It really feels like a Monday. I should have taken today off, like the rest of the smart ones in the office! My 4th of July was perfect, spent at the beach with drinks and friends. Meanwhile, in the middle of this heat wave we're having (which I love and refuse to complain about), my hair has usually been okay with humidity, and has always behaved. I'm not sure what has gotten into these tresses lately, but I'm starting to have some trouble.
I have a feeling I'll be using the product below all.week.long. Anyone else have hair-humidity issues?!

America's Birthday

is tomorrow - and I've already started celebrating. What are you doing for the holiday?

who doesn't love these?

china glaze ruby pumps - some glitz for the 4th!

What I Love About Sundays

I actually didn't love this about Sunday:

I was going to have a fun little posting about my trip to Sephora with the remains of a birthday gift card. Don't you love when that happens? When you didn't use the entire gift card, and months later, you think "hey! i still have some money left on that thing - and look at that - i need a new blush!"

Well - it didn't go as planned. I was under the impression that I had a whopping $15 left on this gift card. I joyfully walked into Sephora and asked the girl at the register if she could please check how much was left on said gift card (just to be sure). Turns out, $15 was way off. I had $4.01 - awesome. That means, instead of paying $10 for my beloved blush, I was going to have to pay around $20. Not prepared for that predicament. I was so crushed I ended up walking out of the store, convinced I will one day use that $4.01 - but not today.
Until then, I will continue to use my shattered blush (that still gets the job done). I just can't seem to give her up yet.