Catching up on Everything but "THAT"

"That" being...wedding talk. I am wedding'd OUT right now!!! I spent a large portion of yesterday doing wedding stuff and then went to the Dallas Bridal Show with my mom and two sisters today. So - I'm going to doing a little wedding detox before thinking about it again...at least for a day or two! ;)

So, in other news I'm also planning a baby shower (or 2). Mary's first baby shower is here in the DFW on Saturday. I'm super excited because I got one of the best presents she's going to get. Mary - I know you'll read this...and no, it's not on your registry, but I hope you love it (and I'm pretty sure you will!!). Still working out a few last details on her Houston shower at the end of August! I'm pretty excited about it and can't wait to see how it all comes together. It's nice to have a distraction from the wedding planning.

I think I'm going to start a new topic when I blog. It'll be the "new cool thing" of the week or month or whenever I find something cool. I REALLY need to come up with a catchier nickname for it, but for now we'll go with "Lisa's Latest Likes." I already mentioned instagram a week or so ago and the latest is Pinterest. Website: www.pinterest.com. You download the application to your bookmark tool bar and then when you're browsing the internet and see something you like, be it an arts and crafts project, a fun date night idea, a DIY project, wedding decoration ideas, etc. you can "pin it". It saves the picture to your page and you can follow others and browse the pictures they've pinned and then visit the websites if it strikes your interest. It's harder to explain then it is just to go look at the website, but I'm a little addicted now and it's a GREAT way to share ideas! There's also a phone app for it! What did we do before smart phones?

SYTYCD: Just have to say that I'm loving the direction it's headed. Melanie and Sasha are phenomenal and there's no doubt they'll be the top 2 girls with Tad and Marko most likely being the top 2 dudes. I'm about 98% positive Melanie is going to win though. She's incredible! Why is reality tv so addicting? We're also sucked into Master Chef right now too. Definitely entertaining, but I can't say that I'm quite as invested into who wins that one.

Exciting things coming up this week:

Brandon's best friend James is moving back to Dallas. So excited for him and pretty excited about seeing less super hero movies! ;)
Also - Brandon's bday is a little over a week away. I am SOOOOO ecstatic about what we're doing, but it's a secret, so you'll have to wait until after his bday to find out what it is!
Nothing much planned, meaning I can get back into my normal workout schedule! Pushing the AM workouts again and although an adjustment, I'm enjoying having the evenings back!

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

Hello Blogger World...

I've missed you so...however my precious little puppy decided to have a midnight snack...that snack was my $85 macbook charger. So...I was computer-less for a few days. That is NO fun!

So much to catch up on:

-Wedding Plans/Planning
-Baby Showers
-Birthdays
-Weddings
-Job Hunting
-Working Out/Running
-Football
....oh my!

Unfortunately I have an early morning wake up call awaiting, so I can't really get into it all now, but I'm off on Friday, so hopefully I'll be able to catch everyone up on all of our shenanigans.

Until then...

Lisa

I Scream, You Scream, We all Scream for Ice Cream!

Or yogurt in my case. Today was national ice cream day. Who knew?! I'm not a major sweet lover, but boy oh boy do I love me some ice cream, or frozen yogurt. You know those ideas you come across where you think "Why didn't I have that idea?!?" I think that every time I go into a do-it-yourself frozen yogurt shop. The ones where you pick your flavor and your own toppings and they charge you by weight! Oh man, I'd be rich right now! In honor of national ice cream day, we decided to splurge a little and go for some froyo at one of our favorite's: Tutti Frutti. It comes second to Yogurt Mountain in Little Rock! So delicious! I top mine like a 5 year old with sprinkles, gummy bears and nerds. B usually just puts some sort of chocolatey candy topping in his. Ew. ;) He already mixed his up before the picture, but he had reese's pieces today. It was the perfect ending to a pretty great day and weekend!

I can't believe I'm writing 2 posts in 1 day, but I have a feeling it may turn into a pretty busy week and so I figured I'd finish getting everything out that I didn't have time to write this morning. 

First order of business: Harry Potter! We said a final and bittersweet farewell! :( I cried...like 3 times. There wasn't much emphasis on the sadder parts of the story, but I just knew that each scene was a step closer to the end. I really enjoyed it though and thought it was very well done. We decided to go see it in IMAX 3-D. Welllllll...apparently people were still waiting in line 2 hours early even on this Sunday afternoon so we were stuck in the front row. By the end I had a head, neck and back ache. And even with the constant chatter of our theater neighbors, it still managed to be fun. *On Soap Box* Can I just say that I have no tolerance for rude movie-goers?!? Oh man, not much irks me more then chatters, bag rustlers and phone users during a movie. *Off Soap Box*

As promised...some pictures from last night's girls night! We really did have a lot of fun watching and even participating a bit. Karaoke is never a dull time! Neither is any time spent with Shannon, Alina and Kelsey. Heather probably thinks my friends are nuts, but they kinda are! It's why we get along so famously! :) 

Heather and Me!

Was playing with my photo editor...

No telling...

Shannon and Me

Alina, Heather and Me

We need to get out more often! ;)

Wedding Planning Update: Mom and I are going to the Dallas Bridal Fair the last weekend in July. I'm pretty excited about getting some ideas and checking out some vendors. We have a deposit on our venue, but haven't signed the contract yet. Dare we peek at some other venues while we're there? Hmmm...maybe. ;) I love our place for the reception, but it really wasn't meant for ceremonies. We definitely want a one-stop shop though with all of the out-of-towners, so we'll just have to see what happens. Colors are picked, centerpieces picked and I got my shoes for the big day. OMG - I am in love with them. :) I'll be telling all the details about the bridal party soon too, so stay tuned! 

That's all for now! Sweet dreams and I hope you all have a fantastic week! :) 

Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries

Another week has come and gone....time seems to be flying by lately and it seems like there is ALWAYS so much to do!

I'm not going to lie; it's been a bit of a stressful week! Brandon and I have been talking about making a move to Northwest Arkansas. Without getting into all the details of it, we've talked quite a bit about it and it seems as if it could be a good move for us. There are tons of jobs in the area, but turns out,  out-of-state hiring isn't ideal for most employers. It's been an interesting experience so far, but we're just scratching the surface of it. Still doing some research, checking out places we could live, etc, so we'll see what happens. Between that, work, pups, trying to maintain a social life, planning a baby shower and planning a wedding, I'm not too proud to say it's kind of kicking my butt right now. But, it's a part of life and I'm excited to see where it all leads.

Yes, I did mention a baby shower in the mix. My best friend Mary has a bun in the oven! Come October I'll be self-acclaimed, honorary Aunt Lisa to Andrew Keith Stagner, aka Andy! I hate living so far from her for this whole experience and I can't wait to see her at the shower in August! My sister and I made the invitations and they look fantastic! I'll have to post pictures of them after the event...Mary doesn't know where the shower is yet, so can't spoil the surprise! ;) It's been a nice distraction from wedding planning though and I'm really excited to see it all come together! Don't get any ideas, but baby stuff is so much fun to look at!

It's been a week of friends and family too. On Tuesday night I got to go to dinner with my friend Amanda and her son Landon (my Godson). It's incredible how fast he is growing up and he somehow manages to get cuter and cuter every time! I can't believe he'll be 1 soon! It was great catching up and I got to see Amanda's new cassia. OMG! Hello gorgeous house!!

My cousin is in town this weekend. We hung out with my mom and sisters on Friday night and then stayed up until 4am catching up. Just like when we were kids. Saturday we took our "neighborhood grandma" and met up with my mom's friend and her mother and went to play bingo! My mom invited us to go, so we figured, why not? Out of the 6 of us, we didn't win a penny! Got close a bunch, but no luck. It was a lot of fun though! Some of those people mean serious business! I had no idea how advanced bingo has become - they now have electronic computer tabs that more or less play for you. You only have to hit one button every time a number is called....I figure sooner or later they'll have an app you can download at the bingo hall and you can just play on your phone!

Mom and Adida

Beth and her mom,  Florence

These people seriously had like 12 machines between the 4 of them, but hey, they won 3 or 4 times!

What can I say? I'm easily impressed...

After our adventures in bingo, we went out for dinner and some karaoke with the gals. Pictures will come soon!

On a random side note, my new favorite app is Instagram! Follow me: larosso06! I'm pretty sure everyone knows about it by now, but if you don't get it! A picture I took today with my phone inspired the title of today's post! :)

Life is just a bowl of cherries! :)

Our watch dog!

This doesn't happen often...had to snap a pick!

Time to get this day going! Can't wait to see Harry Potter this afternoon...the end is going to be so bittersweet!!!! (Go ahead with the nerd jokes...I can handle it! ;) )

Let the Games Begin

For the next 10 months this will more or less be my wedding blog! There is so much that goes into planning a wedding and it's all very exciting! And by exciting I mean stressful...in a good(ish) way. 

I grew up in a family of women. It's an experience! Not only do I only have sisters, but I have 2...making us 3. Ever heard of 3's a crowd? Yeah - well, true story! I love both of my sisters more than anything in this world, but the 3 of us together always gets interesting and then when you throw mom in the mix...well, let's just say I'm pretty sure there's a very special place in heaven for my Daddy! I'm also pretty sure that he's ecstatic about adding a male member to the family! When us girls get into our "talks" (aka bickering) those two just hang back and watch/tune us out. It's a beautiful dynamic! :) 

So - according to one sister (the one who hasn't been around for any of the planning thus far), I'm a bridezilla. According to the other (who has been around a little more) I'm an easy going bride-to-be. No idea what mom thinks! We did however pick a venue in one weekend and a photographer in one day. That's not too bad, right? ;) 

Our date is May 26th. It's the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. We wanted to have the long weekend in order to allow all of our out-of-state guests to possibly make a bit of a vacation out of the event. Now - I have NEVER wanted a summer wedding. A fall wedding was always my dream. Well, the more I get into this planning, date, setting, arranging, etc. I've adopted the mindset of "it's not about the day, it's about the lifetime." Just meaning that - yes, this is the day that every girl dreams of for their entire life, but really this is about the bigger picture. This is about me finding the person I want to spend the rest of my life with and while I do want some things exactly as I imagined them to be, I've also learned to be flexible with a lot as well. Summer works best for our teacher friends, our traveling family members and our parents. May is a bit of a scary month in TX though - then again...ANY month in Dallas could hold ANY type of weather conditions, so it may be 100+, raining, 50-, snowing, or a pleasant 85 and sunny on our wedding day. It is what it is. 

The part that I'm most excited about so far is our photographer!! Rebecca took photography classes in high school and her teacher now has a studio/business in addition to her teaching job. She is INCREDIBLE! Every time she posts new pictures on her blog or her Facebook page, I tend to tear up at the beauty of them! She just has an eye for beauty and capturing the moment. Plus she does a lot of fun stuff too and not to toot our own horns, but B and I are pretty FUN (not to mention hilarious) people and I think Sharon will do an amazing job capturing our personalities, our crazy families and of course our good looks! ;) Check her out: Ellman Photography We're planning to do our engagements in October once the weather cools down and we can enjoy a day outside. We'll be sending save-the-dates shortly there after. 

I've been debating on a wedding website. I know it takes a bit of time to put together and there are SO many options out there. Any suggestions for a good personal wedding website?? I think it will be helpful to have something where all of our family members can get all the info they need on accommodations, things to do in the area, etc. 

So the gloves have been thrown and the games have begun. I have no doubt that the next 10 months are going to fly by and I can't wait to experience (and hopefully enjoy) all that is to come in planning one day. Whew - why am I not doing a destination wedding again?!?!?! ;) 

So for all of you who have been begging for pictures....

Self picture after he popped the question. :) He's not a fan of self-pics. haha

Just a cute pic of the kids for fun...they look like alien dogs with their glowing eyes!

This picture makes my hand look weird, but you get the idea...

At first I didn't like the scroll work underneath...I LOVE IT now!

Brandon tried to sneak a pic of me getting ready for work. I just thought it was funny that it was blurry but the bling still sticks out! haha ;)

Have a great weekend everyone! :) 

From Flashy to Flushy...

Annnnnnnnnd the roller-coaster ride continues...

Fourth of July weekend. I can't tell you how excited I was about the 3 day weekend. Work for both B and I has been a bit of a beating lately and therefore a huge understatement to say we were ecstatic and oh so ready for the extra day off. The weekend started off on a high note with a movie date night and anticipation for the bar-b-q's, pool time, friends and family and relaxation to come the rest of the weekend. We had our normal Saturday of errands and chores and then the big shocker came on Saturday night when Brandon popped the question. YAY!!!!! Yes, yes...we're getting married!

It was simple and sweet and perfect! We were both shaking and were so excited to finally tell our friends and all of our family. I say finally because we've been keeping a little secret...him more successfully then myself. We've actually been planning a wedding for a little over a month now. I've been too excited so I'm sure a few of you already had a clue of what was to come, but now the secret is out. Brandon spoke to my parents a few months ago and asked for their blessing and we began talking about making the next step and with that came talk of when we'd want to get married and with that the talk of how all of both of our families are out of state. With that being the case we wanted a holiday weekend that allowed for the travelers to have a little extra time from work and what-not, so we decided on Memorial day weekend 2012 and have had our venue booked for about a month now. So - the anxiety was killing me of when he'd actually get the ring and make things official. I was shocked and was not expecting it that night at all! It took a little while to set in and after calling our parents and letting our friends know I began to tear up with the reality of it all! It was late and we hadn't really eaten all day, so we decided we'd go grab a late dinner (something I usually veto).  When we got home we walked the kiddos and I mentioned that m y tummy was hurting a little....

Friends, family, random readers...this is where we go from flashy to flushy. You want these moments in your life to be glamourous and to be able to tell the fairytale story. Well, B and I don't swing that way. We like to keep things interesting and humorous. And what's more humorous then getting proposed to and being hit with a severe (I'm so not exaggerating) case of food poisoning. I wanted to spend the next day getting a mani and pedi to go with the bling so I could show off to all my friends and family at the bbq's and firework shows. Noooooope. TMI alert: I spent the time between 1am and approximately 6pm the next evening, what do they say, calling Ralph on the big white phone? You get what I mean. I was violently ill. Finally woke B up around 4am and he was truly there for me. I don't get sick much and especially in such an unglamorous way and I was so happy the ring was already on my finger, otherwise he may have never done it after seeing me such a mess! He really was great though and I know more than ever just how much he loves me!

I called into work sick today as after not eating for over 48 hours I don't have any energy at all and I still feel kinda "ew". So, at 4 am this morning I heard B um..."calling Ralph". :( My poor boy. So today we both spent miserable, at home feeling a little more like zombies than humans.

We did manage to make it to my parents house for a bit to let the dogs run around and get worn out and we were also able to catch a glimpse of fireworks from our front yard. It's the small things in life and all in all, I'd say that it was still an amazing weekend and probably one of the most memorable. So many big things happening now. I'll be sure to blog more with pictures and plans, but for now I think we're going to sit on our separate couches, sip on some pedialite and ginger ale and watch some more movies until we're up and running again. Wish us luck!

Hope that you all had a safe, wonderful and stomach virus-free holiday weekend!