How I wasted my evening

Our dog has really long hair.  She sheds like nobody's business, and she HATES getting baths.  For these reasons, I always take her to the grooming salon at Petsmart.  It's worth the $40 to have them take care of her. Plus, they use this "furminator" thing that really thins out her coat.

I really wanted to get her bath and nail trimming out of the way today, and my regular Petsmart was booked, so I scheduled her at one that I don't normally frequent.  Big mistake.  Her appointment was at 6, and they didn't have her finished until after 8.  I drove out of my way to get to this store, so I literally paced around the plaza for 2 hours and spent $45 at Target on who knows what. On top of that, they didn't finish drying her, and they didn't put bows behind her ears! THAT'S MY FAVORITE PART!  After a little sweet talking, they put the bows in and we were finally on our way.  I ignored the other stuff; 'cause as long as the bows are there, I = happy.

See, look how cute!  My husband thinks they're ridic.

Head out the window on the way home is a must.

Now, it's time to rest and plot how to get these bows off, so the cats don't mock her behind her back.

Dividing of the Chores

I'm not a fan of cleaning.  It really doesn't do anything for me. Sure, I clean because I like being in a clean house, but if I could hire a maid, I would.  Up until a few months ago, I was in school full time, while working full time.  K works odd hours, so that didn't leave much time for meticulous vacuuming and dusting every day.  I'm no longer planning a wedding, and grad school isn't taking up a ton of time, so I now constantly feel guilted into cleaning.  What else am I going to do, other than sit on my butt, eat, and watch Teen Mom?  (I'm so glad it's back on this week!).

There are certain things I do around the house, and there are certain things I refuse to do, and leave up to K.  We share certain things, like laundry, cat care and vacuuming.  Here's how we divide and conquer the rest of the chores.

Nice and clean.

I cook.  I am the only cook in our kitchen.  K has no interest in learning, and I have little interest in teaching.  I never ask, or expect him to cook.  However, he cleans up the dishes after dinner. 

I do all of the bills.  Not cleaning related, but a chore.  I'm in charge of our budget, and I manage our money and pay everything.  K hates worrying about the bills, and I'm fairly obsessive about handling the finances, so it works.

I clean the bathrooms.  Scrubbing the toilets, washing out the sinks, wiping down the floors and shower... you get the picture.

K takes out the garbage (although, I'll do it ONCE in awhile).

He is also in charge of mowing/maintaining the lawn.  I have no idea how to even begin doing this, so that's all on him.

My husband is the official bug killer.  HATE.  Don't even get me started on bugs.  If you follow me on Twitter, you'll see 90% of the time I'm complaining  about bugs, cleaning or school.  Yeah, I wouldn't follow me, either.  If anything, GOD FORBID, is moldy in our fridge, he handles that too.  I just can't.  Mold scares me.


So, that's how we get things done in our household.  How do you guys handle chores?

Goodbye, Saturdays.

If you couldn't guess, today was my first day of grad school.  Somehow, I made it through. I told you guys that I was going back to school to get my MBA.  Unfortunately for me, I thought it would be a breeze to take two 4 hour classes on Saturdays for 7 weeks.  UGH such a long day.   I'm not familiar with this campus, so I wasn't able to find anywhere to eat.  FAIL.  I get miserable when I'm hungry, and 8 hours of not eating made me pretty fun to be around.

I did, however, have a fun new toy to bring to class with me today!  Meet our brand new 'puter!  We had a laptop several years ago, but it was old and bit it.  This new HP laptop is pretty nice.  I really like it!  K would say he likes it too, but he hasn't had much of a chance to get his hands on it.

Getting a laptop solves a problem for us.   I'm pretty much always on the computer.  The issue is, our desktop PC is in our spare bedroom.  So, while I waste away hours of my free time on the computer, K sits downstairs and watches HGTV obsessively.  Now, with the laptop, we can hang out in the living room together while I use Facebook/Twitter do homework!  What a marriage win.

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So, goodbye lazy, uneventful, relaxing Saturdays.  I'll see you in 6 weeks!

A Burgh Wedding: We Crash a High School Graduation Party

The posed pictures at the altar were done (is it bad that I didn't really care about the posed church shots?) and we were off for a quick outdoor shoot with the bridal party.  Our ceremony started at 5:00, was over at 5:45, and cocktail hour started at 6:00 (Friday wedding).  So, we needed to go somewhere close and fast.  I came up with the genius idea to take pictures at a community park, next to an old apartment complex of mine.  Everyone jumped in the limo and away we went!

Of course, there was free champagne to drink in the limo. Mmmm... champagne.  Two of K's groomsmen really took it up a notch, however, and whipped out a bottle of Cristal.  Holy Eff.  I've never even SEEN a bottle of that stuff, let alone taste it!  It was good, but honestly, I can't really tell the difference in quality of alcohol.  I usually just drink whatever wine/champagne is on sale at the liquor store.  I know, I'm a class act all the way.

I've already shown you guys this picture, but here it is again.  K and I with the Cristal.

After a 10 minute ride, we were at the park.  The park that is usually empty and quiet.  Well not that night, because it was someone's high school graduation party!  People everywhere.  Oh well, we went for it anyway.  Everyone at the party loved it (we were told several times). We were a big, entertaining parade of fanciness and sweat.  Yeah, it was HOT out, 'member?  Despite the crowd, Tony did a good job of making the park look deserted.

Everyone was covered in mud and sweating their bits off by this point.  We told everyone to go back to the limo and have some beverages, while K and I had a one-on-one photo shoot.

Then pause for a few bridal portraits.  I really wanted to go sit in the air conditioning at this point.

One more shot by the limo (after a drunk family member of the graduate threw K a beer... score).

Now, the moment we had ALL been waiting for... time to party!  Stay tuned (as if you had a choice)!

Random Musings of an Impatient Online Shopper

You know what really grinds my gears?  When you order something on Half.com or Ebay, pay for the item, and then get an email almost a WEEK later that they just shipped the item today.

Maybe I'm demanding, but when I order something online, I expect for it to be shipped within 1-2 days.  I sell stuff alllll the time on both of those sites, and I'm very anal particular about shipping things out that day, or the following day.  So now, I'm not going to have my textbook in time for class, and there's an pre-class assignment due.  Annoyed.  This is what I get for trying to beat the $250 new textbook trap.  Booo textbooks.  Ok, rant over, I promise.

In other news, the Backstreet Boys are in town for a concert tonight.  Confession time:  I used to be OBSESSED with the BSB.  Posters/pictures-covering-an-ENTIRE-wall-in-my-room obsessed.  Scary, huh?  10 years ago, I totally would have been at this concert.  In case you don't believe me...

I blurred faces to protect the innocent.  I am in green, shamefully wearing a "Nick" T shirt, along with a little pin of his face. I seriously don't remember his last name right now, and I don't feel like Googling.  MOH C is next to me, rocking her AJ shirt.  This is 9th or 10th grade, people.  Obviously, I was very cool.

I found a whole slew of middle school/high school pictures at my parents house.  They are hysterical, because we all lack two important beauty products in our lives.  Kids today have it so easy.  More on that, coming soon!

About Today

I wore one of my favorite work outfits today.  Tan editor pants from Express, a soft, brown cardigan from NY&Co, and my new favorite pumps I got at the semi-annual sale at Nordstrom:

Star Ling 'Parker' pumps - so cute.

I ate pavement in these shoes tonight, in front of my office building.  At rush hour.  Man. Down.

When I embarrass myself, I laugh.  I couldn't stop laughing.  A dude on a bike was very concerned for me.  That was nice.  Everyone else just stared at the crazy, laughing, injured girl.

I now have a skinned knee, scuffed pants, and my shoes are in timeout (read: I threw them in my trunk).

It could have been worse; I could have skinned my face.

How was your day?  Hopefully your evening commute home was less painful than mine!

Things I Love: Hair Edition

I'm obsessed with beauty products.  It's a serious debilitating affliction.  Don't even get me STARTED on makeup; going over my favorite makeup products will take me awhile.  I do have time, however, to go over some of my favorite hair products/tools.

I'm definitely not one of those girls who always has awesome hair.  I'm terrible at styling it and making it look all perfect and whatnot.  HOWEVER, (before you hit the X on this post), I am really good at getting my naturally half wavy/half curly, frizzy hair to be straight and shiny.

Maybe this doesn't come off as a big accomplishment, but seriously guys, my hair's freakin' fried. Why?  Oh, hmm... let's take a trip down memory lane:

Please take a look at my various hair colors, ranging from au naturel (auburn-ish) in 2005, to blonde, to BLACK, to red, to blonde, to BLEACH, to red, to dark brown, to my current light brown.

My hair is fried.

But I can still get it straight and shiny.

I'm in the middle.  See?  Not too bad.

Thanks to the following:

1. Paul Mitchell's Super Skinny Serum

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Paul, I love you.  We buddies.  This is Paul Mitchell's Super Skinny Serum.  This stuff is AMAZING CLEAR GOLD.  Just a nickel sized amount for my thick hair will have my 'do looking sleek and shiny.  I just distribute it evenly through wet hair and blow dry.  So amazing.  AND it smells like kiwi.  Win.

2. Pureology Hydrate System (Shampoo and Conditioner)

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I just love Pureology products.  This is the best shampoo and conditioner I've ever used.  It really seems to work, making my hair soft and not-so-fried.  It also kinda tingles when you put it on, which really makes me feel like it works!  It's pretty expensive, but I really think you get what you pay for when it comes to shampoo and conditioner.  I've seen this brand sold at Target, though I'm really hesitant to buy any salon brand shampoos anywhere other than a salon or Ulta-type store.  My friend is a hairstylist, and my mom used to be one as well.  They both tell me salon shampoos sold at grocery stores/Wal-Mart/Target are watered down.  True?  Not true?  Who knows, but I usually get this stuff from Ulta when I have a coupon.                                    

Even more important than products though... I'm saving the best for last.  Behold, the answer to your frizzy hair needs:

3. The TurboIon Croc Wet to Dry Straightener

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This, my friends, is the Croc (no, not the shoe).  I am telling you, this is the WORLD'S BEST STRAIGHTENER.  BEST.  Get it?  I'm serious.   Chi, move over.  Honestly, the Chi can't even compete with this bad boy!  First of all, it gets SUPER hot (450 degrees) and has these really sleek, vented, ceramic plates.  It heats up in seconds, and it maintains heat really well.  It has a digital display, and oh, did I mention this particular model works on damp hair?  I'm not paid by this company I SWEAR,  I just love it so much I want everyone to know how great it works!  My friend from South Florida uses this and her thick hair is always pin straight.  If South Florida's awful humidity isn't testament enough, I don't know what is!  Oh, and it's apparently on sale for $70 on Amazon, which is awesome, considering mine was $85.

So anyway, those are my favorite hair products/accessories/tools/whatever in a nutshell.
Do you have any favorites you want to tell me about?  Please?  I need an excuse to try something new!

Everyone, Meet Bad Kitty.

Oh, you think he looks like a little angel, don't you?  This is Chewy, our first cat together as a couple, and I will refer to him as Bad Kitty in this blog, from now on.  Why, you ask?  Because he's bad.  He is also K's little precious baby, so please don't think he's unloved.  I love him too, but that doesn't change the fact that he has trouble running through his little cat veins.

Bad Kitty loves to piss off mommy.  Bad Kitty likes to open every cabinet in the house.  He also likes to open doors that are shut for a REASON, and get on top of our cabinets and taunt me with his glares.

Bad Kitty loves to chew on everything, but only when I'm there to notice him doing so.  Bad Kitty thinks I am not allowed to rest, so if he finds me napping or sleeping, he claws my legs and bites my toes.  You can yell at Bad Kitty and tell him to stop all you want; he always comes back for more.

Bad Kitty gets his kicks from making me mad.  He spills his water dish on purpose, and any plant I bring into the house, he destroys.  There is not enough cayenne pepper in the world that could go on a plant to deter him from eating it.  Bad Kitty is immune to cayenne pepper and he laughs at your attempts to keep a plant living.

Did I mention he is the apple of my husband's eye?  Bad Kitty gets a greeting before I do (although BK sits at the door and waits for K, while I prefer to cook dinner or watch TV). Bad Kitty is my husband's baby, and he treats him like his child.  Bad Kitty is never bad for K.   EVER.  Anyone who even knows us a little bit, IRL, knows this is true.  By the way, all of these pictures are from my husband's phone.  I used to be the background on his phone.  Now Bad Kitty is.  Bad Kitty has been the background on his phone for about 3 years.

So, everyone, meet Bad Kitty.  He is one of our three pets.  We have two cats and a dog.  Bad Kitty is definitely the most poorly behaved one, but he is also the most entertaining.  Last year, he discovered snow.  I was trying to entice Sadie to plunge into the snow on our deck (she had a blast in our backyard 10 minutes prior).  If it wasn't for my quick grab, he would have sunk to the bottom of our deck.  I haven't received a thank you, yet.

A Burgh Wedding: We Officially Get Married

It was time!  K and I had been together for four and a half years, and we were finally going to become husband and wife!  My bridesmaids and I waited below the church for our cue to come up (after everyone had already been seated).  We had a church coordinator, who was there to help us with our cues and placement.  She was VERY serious about her job.  Do not mess with the little, elderly parish ladies who do wedding coordination.  One of my bridesmaids made the mistake of going upstairs to say hello to her family, and Mrs. WC was NOT having it.  She scolded her for being out in "public" as nobody "was supposed to see her yet!!" Hmm... I thought that rule was just for the bride, but what do I know?

Anyway, she told us when to come upstairs to line up, and we obeyed.  Everyone was getting a little nervous at this point.  I was amazingly calm all day, until I got to the top of the stairs, outside of the church doors.  I got a little emotional, tearing up and saying to MOH C, "I can't believe this is finally happening!  I'm about to get married!"  Well, that was a mistake.  MOH C lost all color in her face and had a mini panic attack.  (Sorry, C, it's part of the story)!  She had been holding back her nerves all day long, and my little moment of emotion kinda set her over the edge!  I spent the next few minutes calming her down and making her drink some water.  Honestly, her nervousness kept ME calm, because I went into "reassure mode."  She pulled herself together though, I met up with my dad, and the ceremony started.

Annnd I lost it again.

I guess I never considered what the walk down the aisle would actually be like.  As soon as I walked out in front of those doors with my dad, and 'Canon in D' started to play, my emotions were on overload.  I didn't know whether to laugh, cry or smile at everyone, so I did all of the above.  It makes for some very interesting pictures.

The ceremony was beautiful.  Our soloist, My one MOH's little sister, sang Ave Maria and Panis Angelicus.  When she started singing, I teared up all over again.  If I can get tech savvy enough, I'm gonna post a video clip of when she started singing at our ceremony, it will blow your mind.

The ceremony wasn't without problems, although it didn't matter to us one bit.  K and I had no idea where to go, or what to do, so the priest was constantly whispering cues at us.  Also, we forgot the flowers for Mary (whoops), so the priest had an altar server run back to the rectory and grab my toss bouquet to give to Mary.

This picture still makes me laugh.  What a fail on our part.

 See this picture?  Notice how K is missing?  Well, when this picture was snapped, he was busy doing a one-man receiving line.  I told him we should skip the receiving line, so that we could hurry and get pictures, and make it to the reception on time.  We were going to go to each table at the reception to say hello, so I figured it was double work to do both, right?  Well, he agreed, and that was the end of the story.

When we walked out of the church, all of the attendants and I walked back up to the front of the church to meet for the posed pictures.  K, however, got caught at the back of the church by the door, and ended up greeting everyone as they left the church.  I felt SO BAD.  What a bad, antisocial wife!  If I had known that was going on, I would have joined him.  But, I didn't, and it turns out he didn't even know what a receiving line was; he just thought he was being nice.  Oh, husband.

That was the last fail of the evening; everything else went off without a hitch.  Well, except for when we crashed a high school graduation party to get pictures.  More on that next!

Wedding Tip: Send an Invite to the White House

Did you know if you send a wedding invite to the President and First Lady, you'll receive a little congratulatory note in return?  It's hand addressed by someone in the correspondence office, which impressed me most of all.  Hey, I know how tiring it can be to write out addresses.  Ugh.  Anyway, this little note is actually pretty exciting to receive!

The signatures are actually in ink; I'm assuming they use an autopen.  Even so, it makes the note feel pretty authentic.

Want one of your own?  Just send your wedding invitation to:

The President & Mrs. Obama
The White House
Greetings Office, Room 39
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20502

Already married?  Well, apparently you can send birth announcements to the white house, too.  They'll send you a very similar note, which makes for a great keepsake.  My mom did this for my brother, and I'm pretty sure they still have the note from the Clinton's.  Even if you're not planning on having kids for awhile (like us), it might be a fun gift for a niece/nephew/baby of a friend.

I've been everywhere....(at least on the East Coast. Except for Maine).

I LOVE to travel.  Not only do I love to see new places, try new foods and experience new things; I am a plan-a-holic.  Type A all the way.  Planning trips really satiates my inner control freak planner. I never went anywhere really adventurous for awhile, because I used to be completely terrified of flying (more on that later).  I'm over my fears, and now I actually really like to fly!  Road trips, however, still hold a special lil place in my heart.

There's not much better than packing up the car, making an awesome road trip mix, and setting out (with snacks, of course) to go somewhere fun and exciting.  Once K and I drove from Pittsburgh to Florida.  I wouldn't recommend trying to do that in one night like we did.  Fail.  It was worth the pictures though.

We were actually thoroughly annoyed with each other in this picture.  That's what happens when you drive all night to south Florida from Pittsburgh.   But look how pretty!

One of the most excellent road trips I ever went on involved Florida, though.  My friends from Florida and I once took a road trip from South Florida to Pittsburgh.  I flew one way to Florida, and we left from there.  We mapped out a really fun route, staying overnight in Jacksonville, having lunch on River Street in Savannah, Georgia, and staying overnight in Charlotte, NC.  Anyone from Charlotte out there?  I just love your city. 

Savannah, Georgia.

 The most recent road trip I went on was actually this past weekend.  My friend M and I went to Raleigh, NC to visit her sister. K was supposed to come, but couldn't get off work. M's boyfriend was supposed to come too, but he was stuck at work as well.  Boo weekend jobs.  I got to meet my movie crush, which helped ease my disappointment.

Edward Cullen and I.  Very excited.

I went to NC with the blessing of my husband under ONE condition:  I bring back some North Carolina BBQ.  Ummm... not a problem.

Little Richard's is so amazing. SO AMAZING.  Real Carolina barbecue with the "Lexington" sauce? (It's this  vinegar based sauce... I have no idea what's in it, but please serve me everything coated in this.  K thx). Yes, please.

All in all, this road trip was pretty successful.  I even saw a man walking down the street with a GIANT inflatable monkey.  I have a thing for inflatable monkeys, if you couldn't tell.

Win.

My next trip is going to be to Belgium this fall.  I obviously won't be driving there.  It's my first independent business trip, and I'm pretty excited.  This trip is one of my main reasons for starting this blog, and I can't wait to share my first European adventure with everyone!  Stay tuned...