NPW Day 4: Sally Hansen Nail Polish Strips Sweet Tart-an

You know my obsession with these Sally Hansen Nail Polish strips...so I had to include one in NPW! I adore this pattern. Isn't it so cute? I love them!!!

Wedding Wednesday on NPW Day 3: Orly Cut the Cake!

Isn't this gorgeous? I love this polish. It’s so delicate and shimmery - this photo does NOT do it justice. The formula is pretty sheer though – this picture shows 4 coats. Yes, 4! I could have gotten away with 3 coats though; I just wanted to see how it’d look with 4 coats. Because of that, it was sort of a pain in the butt to let it dry. I am also the most impatient nail-polish-dryer on the planet, though. Drying it with this many coats definitely required the blow-dryer (on the cold setting).

I can’t wait to see what this polish looks like in the summer time – when I’m not white as a ghost!

NPW Day 2: Essie Wicked

I love this polish so much - I think it's very glam and trendy. It is actually a deep reddish color (it's easier to tell in the bottle than on your nails). If you are an expert nail polish-er, you could probably get away with two coats....which makes it look more of a reddish color. But I had to apply 3 coats because with two, I could still see brush strokes and I can't stand imperfections. LOL.

I used my favorite top coat, the one Jessie bought me, which is just an Ulta brand top coat. It's so glossy, I love it. But the Wicked polish is pretty glossy even on it's own!

LOVE!  

Nail Polish Week!!!! Day 1: Orly Lunar Eclipse

Soooo...I have recently become even more obsessed with nail polish and I probably have Jessie to thank (btw I love that picture of her at this link. LOL). :-) The more I read her and Courtney's blog, Polished Casual, the more I become obsessed! So I decided to have Nail Polish Week on my own blog. Yay. :-) My first favorite is actually (a duplicate of) one of Jessie's favorites too, Orly Lunar Eclipse. Isn't it so gorgeous, sparkly and glam?

I thought this polish was super easy to apply and it lasted forever. I did feel like it took a lot of top coat to keep it super glossy though. But I am obsessed with my polish being super glossy so I may have a slightly higher glossiness-bar than others. :-)

It's really funny but I have pretty much ALWAYS had nail polish on my nails 24/7. I've loved it since I was really young. When I was young my mom used to always tell my sister and I that we had "bad grooming" if we had chipped polish. So...that turned into me being obsessed with always having perfectly painted nails without chips for the rest of my life forever and ever until the end of time. She's right though...chipped polish does look really gross!

I even went through an acrylic nails phase in high school and college. I had them on for about 7 years. It's crazy to think about now. But I did love them at the time. I went back to my natural nails in 2003 and I've never gone back since. It was tough going for a while. It probably took about a year of intensive care and feeding of my nails to get them to return to normal. Now they are pretty darn nice, if I do say so myself. I can't say I do anything super special to keep them that way other than taking lots of vitamins (seriously it's like a 100% difference - they grow like weeds and never chip).

Yayyyy nail polish!

Weekend Yummy Something Better than Coffee for Your Mug! Chocolate Cake!

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar (or 3 tablespoons splenda)
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
1 tablespoon walnuts
1 small splash of vanilla extract
1 large microwave safe coffee mug (12 oz. or larger)

Pour the flour, sugar, and cocoa into a bowl. Sift them together with a fork. Mix in the remaining ingredients in the following order (mix well after each): egg, milk and oil, chocolate chips, walnuts, and vanilla extract.

Pour the combined mix into the mug. Place your mug in the microwave, and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug a little (this is okay). Allow it to cool for a few minutes, and tip out onto a plate.

I got this in an email from Robbie's grandpa (who is also his best man!). We made it on New Year's Eve and it was AWESOME!

Friday Funny :-DCoexist?

I love this!

Jessie & Chris's Engagement Story Video :-D

I'm not sure if I mentioned it yet, but my bff Jessie just got engaged a few months ago. I am honored to stand up in her wedding as her Maid of Honor! :-D She's getting married in September, so by then I'll be a Matron of Honor, but doesn't that sound so old? LOL. I might still have them call me Maid of Honor. LOL.

Jessie entered into a contest that required her to tell her engagement story. I think it's so cute. Click here to watch the video.

If you "like" the video, you will help her win $500 in stationary use for her wedding stuff. Bonus! :-D

I miss you, Jessie!

Wedding Wednesday :-DOur Wedding Venue on Facebook - Woot!

I got an email from Dawn at the Ann Arbor City Club (my super-awesome go-to event person at our wedding venue) saying that they now have a Facebook page. Click here to check it out!

I almost cried when I looked at the pictures that are on the page. They are so gorgeous. I love them. There are tons more photos on their Facebook page than there were on their regular website. They have tons of wedding photos and lots of pictures of the grounds during the summer/spring.

I am so excited...only 5 months to go!

The Only Person in My Family Who's Ever Been Early for Something!

An early surprise arrived yesterday morning....my nephew! :-D

Aidan Matthew Graber

5 pounds 12 ounces

18.5 inches long

Born January 23, 2012 at 10:24 am

Isn't he the sweetest, cutest, most precious baby boy you've ever seen!?

MissRepresentation - Very Important!

Shauna mentioned this on her blog and I had to share...such an important message for all of us! Women - unite and inspire!

Newest Miss Representation Trailer (2011 Sundance Film Festival Official Selection) from Miss Representation on Vimeo.

Weekend Yummy: Turkey Meatloaf Cupckes + Mashed Potato Frosting

(Adapted from SkinnyTaste.com)

Meatloaf Cupcakes:
1.3 lb lean ground turkey
1 cup grated zucchini or squash (with all moisture squeezed out with paper towel)
2 tbsp onion, minced
1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
2 tsp Italian Seasoning
2 tsp garlic
1/4 cup ketchup
1 egg
1 tsp salt

Mashed Potatoes:
3-4 redskin potatoes
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp fat free Greek yogurt
2 tbsp fat free chicken broth
1 tbsp 2% milk
1/2 tbsp light butter
2 tsp thyme
Salt and pepper to taste

Mashed Potatoes:
Wash the potatoes and cut off any yucky parts. Dice them into quarters. Place the potatoes in a pot with enough water to cover them. Bring the water to a boil, then cover the pot and reduce the heat to low. Allow the potatoes to simmer for 15-20 minutes (or until they are tender). Drain and return the potatoes to the pot. Add the Greek yogurt and the remaining ingredients. Using a masher or mixer, mash the potatoes until they are smooth. Season them with salt and pepper (to taste).

Meatloaf Cupcakes:
Preheat your oven to 350° F.

Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. In a large bowl, mix together the turkey and the remaining ingredients. Spoon the meatloaf mixture into the muffin tin. Fill the cupcake liners to the top, and flatten them out with the back of your spoon.

Bake your muffins uncovered for 18-20 minutes or until they are cooked through. Remove them from the tins and place them onto a baking dish or plate. Spoon or pipe the mashed potatoes on top for your cupcake “frosting.”

This recipe makes about 11-12 cupcakes. If you have an open spot in your cupcake tin, make sure you fill it with water so everything cooks evenly. I recommend the foil cupcake liners because the meatloaf is pretty moist. The first time, I used the paper liners and the liners feel apart (it still cooked fine and everything though). Here are some pics!

All ready to go into the oven!

Mashing the potatoes!

Right out of the oven!

La ti da frosting my cupcakes...

The first time I made them I just spooned the mashed potatoes on top....

The second time I made them, I used my cake decorator gun!

Friday Funny :-DTumble Dry Low

Remove Promptly!

Book Discussion Bet Me

Five words for this book: I can’t take it anymore!!!!!!!

When I first cracked this book I had a bad feeling that it was going to annoy the sh*t out of me…and I was right. LOL.

The story is about Min Dobbs, a “not thin” actuary, and Cal Morrisey, a super hot, super successful business guy. Cal accepts a bet from a friend that he can get Min in the sack within a month. If he does, he wins $10k. The catch is that Min overhears the conversation, so she’s wise to the bet the entire time.

This book annoyed me to no end. I am so sick of books that totally focus on chubby or unattractive girls getting a hot guy. I am not saying that the actual fact of this happening is not a good thing – I’m all for people finding love, etc. in any way shape or form that is right for them. Yay love. Yay for couples of all shapes, colors, and sizes. I’m just sick of reading books about it – they’re all the same!!! I’m over it!

It annoyed the crap out of me that they kept saying over and over that Cal and Min would get “dizzy” around each other all the time. Seriously? Eat a sandwich or maybe have a glass of water…you obviously need food or are dehydrated if you get dizzy that often. Or maybe you have a problem with your inner ear.

It also annoyed the crap out of me that Cal and Min were so stupid and in denial about the fact that they liked each other. I get it; maybe this was supposed to create some suspense and sexual tension? All it did was annoy me. LOL.

I finally gave up on the book at the part when her cat, Elvis, was turning on the radio and CD player. Okay, I can see a cat accidentally turning something on by brushing up against it. But the cat was pushing the button over and over to turn up the volume. At that point, I removed all bookmarks, closed the book, and promptly placed it on my kitchen counter with the other books that were being returned to the library the next day.

The one thing I liked about this book was Min’s character. She was smart and funny and snarky. If there would have been more of that, I might have made it through it!

I tried so hard to get through this book because it’s the book for my book club this month, and you know it’s really hard for me to abandon a book once I’ve started it.  I need to know what happens at the end, and I just don’t like not finishing something I’ve started. But I finally just couldn’t take it anymore…and I needed an entire bottle of wine to go with the cheese!

Wedding Wednesday :-DFavor Label Redo

This might make you laugh but remember when I posted about the favor labels a while ago? I ordered them from Vistaprint because they had an oustanding deal - 250 for only $9, plus free shipping. I got them in the mail and I liked them...I thought I loved them...but then I decided I didn't actually love them. LOL. So I decided to do a redo and here is what I ended up with:

I love this because the photo is larger and it takes up the entire card from top to bottom, and the entire left side. If you look at my previous design, you'll see that it is only a portion of the card. On this version, the photo is larger.

I also chose a different font that is simliar to the font I'm using for the rest of the things I am printing. I designed a menu and a program (I will post them soon, I am printing these myself) and some other random things. It also more closely matches the font on the madlibs. I know...I am crazy and I really like things to match. Even things that people are going to throw out. So kill me. LOL. They will all be matching in my wedding scrapbook, though! LOL.

I also paid a little extra and got the glossy finish on the cards. I mulled this over for a while the first time I ordered them. I almost went with the glossy finish. But then I wanted to save a few bucks and went with the matte finish instead. It wasn't horrible, but the photo looks a million bazillion times better with the glossy finish. It was worth the extra $6.49. So my total cost for this order ended up being $15.49 instead of $9.

My OCD can run into money at times. LOL.