Favorite Esty Shop- Graphic Anthology

Ah!  How wonderful it is when my worlds collide!

I was browsing on Pinterest for the 5th time today (wish I was joking...do they have AA for Pinterest?) and I found this really cute print from Etsy...which sums up my whole day pretty much:

Time for Coffee print 

How cute is this?  So then I naturally started browsing through the shop it came from...and as I suspected...other cute things!  Go check out Graphic Anthology for other cute stuff like this:

Always Say Please and Thank You print

Shut the Front Door print

Eat Dessert First print

makes me want to redecorate my kitchen!!

this cat is a jerk.

I am a cat lady.

whole-heartdly admit that.

but I can see why some people don't like them...they are usually sneaky looking...plotting...too quiet...

or sometimes they are jerks...like this cat:

Cat is a Jerk - watch more funny videos

or adorable like this cat pushing the cart:

Cat Pushes Cart - watch more funny videos

or health conscious like this cat on the treadmill:

Cats on a Treadmill - watch more funny videos

all these videos come from Funny or Die :)

shark attack!

no, not really...but I thought I'd share some photos today from when my brother, who I affectionately call "Brother" came to visit me back at the very end of July...we had a fun day...went to the aquarium, saw some crazy big sharks- which I realize are probably pretty small in comparison to sharks you'd see in the ocean, but to me, a shark is a shark...

 

yeah Aquarium!

 

Brother...and a shark's mouth...

 

a crazy octopus...did you know, that they are super smart?  the people at the aquarium will put their food in different jars with lids, to keep the octopus engaged...and they figure it out all the time!

 

no idea what this is...but I thought it looked pretty cool :)

 

on our way into the atrium with the birds!

 

we saw lots of birds...

 

I of course loved the purple fish

 

and one of the many sharks, very slowly lurking in the shark tank...

we got frozen yogurt, Brother got his fix of Baltimore seafood, and many episodes of Adventure Time were watched :)  good, quality brother-sister bonding time before he starts his big important job in just a few weeks!

always.sometimes.never.

the adorable Brie is hosting a fun link-up on her blog...always.  sometimes.  never.

so I had to join in :)


I'll call this my Summer edition...

always:  need to get to the beach at least once a summer...it's not as easy now that I'm not just an hour away like I was growing up and had a best friend with a beach house to go to :p  but I've managed to go twice this year so far!

sometimes:  get things checked off my to-do list...it always seems at the beginning of summer vacation that there is SO much time to get things done...except that I end up planning a lunch here, a coffee date there, a road trip that overlaps Friday and Monday...and wouldn't ya know...it's August!  I did get a few of my organizational projects started...maybe I'll finish them next summer...



never:  forget sunscreen!  I am a sunscreen Nazi- I will even ask strangers if they need it sometimes...you can never be too careful when it comes to your skin!!



want to make your own list?  link up here!

Friday Funny

if you know me, and my love of pickles, then you will know how much I love this!

Happy Friday!!

9012-Old Navy!

yup, guilty.

I was so excited when I saw Old Navy's new back-to-school campaign for their jeans!   While I am an Old Navy loyal shopper...I don't always find their ad campaigns very appealing...a lot of times they border on annoying...but this one...LOVE!

I wouldn't know how to choose either Kelly...I mean Jennie...





 I was definitely a 90210 fan back in Middle & High School...my friend Lynn and I would get together, eat mac&cheese and watch the show together...

it ended our Senior year...sort of symbolic in a way...the end of en era, and the beginning of another...

that happened with a few of my very favorite shows...

both Friends and Sex & the City ended not just the year I graduated from college in 2004...but they ended the same month...

talk about a shock to my system...all my favorite things ending at the same time. 


okay...maybe that is a bit dramatic.  but it's how I remember it ;)

5 wishes...inspired by Living in Yellow :)

yup, I've got another Blog crush...Erin from Living in Yellow is such a ball of energy!  I honestly don't remember how I stumbled upon her blog...but I have it bookmarked/in my google reader/something like that :)  and she makes me giggle and feel a lot more normal...I also enjoy wine, spend way too much time on the Internet, and if I had room in my house, I'd have clothes in 4 closets too ;)

so anyway, tonight she posted a blog about 5 wishes she has...and it inspired me to make my own list :)  so here goes nothing!


1.  I wish I could say no.

I am notorious for piling WAY too much on my plate...because I like to be able to help everyone, do everything they need...but then I typically neglect the things I need to do.  I am a natural born procrastinator (or as I commonly like to say..."I work well under pressure" haha...) but the list of to-do's usually outweighs the actual time I have by at least 10 to 1.  Need to be okay with not pleasing all the people, all the time.

2.  I wish I was better at portion control

I have a love-hate relationship with food...I LOVE to eat.  Love, love, love it.  I have to admit, I've gotten much better in the last few months, but I still have a ways to go.  I am not the 18 year old who played sports 12 months a year that I used to be...so I'm still (12 years later) figuring out how to handle that transition.

plus...pizza is just too good...

3.  I wish I watched less TV

Yup, ever since I got my TiVo back in 2001, I have been watching WAYYY too much TV.  the convenience of taping and watching whenever I wanted just lead to an increase of TV consumption...and now I love so many shows...comedies, dramas, and a select few reality shows...and now that I've discovered the "Watch Instantly" feature on Netflix...the TV is pretty much always on...

of course if I'm cleaning, or just working on my computer, I like having the noise in the background of a show I have seen...hello TBS re-runs :)...

4.  I wish I had more time to work on my business

to make inventory...to plan out new ideas...to photograph and list on Etsy...to re-list sold items...and to network, make connections online and in person...to advertise...to work on wholesaling...

whew.  I'm tired just thinking about it!

5.  I wish I could stick to working out to lose these last few pesky pounds!

It's been 6 years since I had my emergency appendectomy...I officially can no longer use that as an excuse- which I did for WAY too long- it seems like every time I got into a good routine, I'd pull or strain something...or get sick, and I'd be back at square one.

now I'm working with an awesome trainer to work on my posture issues...and it has made a big difference already!  I'm also working on a food cleanse- tomorrow is day 6 of 10...and I lost 6 lbs this week!  I know it's probably mostly water weight...but it is motivation to keep eating healthy and get my butt in the gym!

thanks Erin for the inspiration!!

throwback thursday - 1st sale

my parents are cleaning out 25 years of papers and belongings from our family home in preparation to move away and sell (insert lots of tears here) but seeing how happy they are in South Carolina makes me feel a little better and the transition will hopefully be a little less painful when that day comes...

I know you're reading Mom :) see...I'll be okay when you guys move...eventually ;)

but anyway, in all of their cleaning, and telling me just how much work it's been...I was inspired to start cleaning out my own file cabinet...I had 7 years worth of paperwork in some of them...so it was about time to let go of credit card statements from cards I didn't even have any more...

it was pretty boring and time consuming...but my files are 6 trash bags lighter...and I found this!

it is the receipt from my first EVER sale of JerseyGirlDesign!  $10 for a necklace with wooden beads on a silver chain...I think I actually hugged the girl because I was so excited that someone wanted to buy something that I had made...and I never looked back :)

Happy Birthday Kait!!

another roommate bites the dust...Happy 30th Kait!!  so glad we had that random Accounting class together to discover we were both Jersey girls!  and not just Jersey...but 5 minutes apart at home :)

xoxo!  watch out for freak thunderstorms, missing flip flops and suspicious guys wearing shorts in the library in the winter ;)

magical, never ending food

okay, you have to admit, I totally reeled you in with that title, huh?  sounds a little like something out of Willy Wonka...the never ending gobstopper right?!  :)

well I have been using many many many scallions (green onions) in my cooking lately, and not that they are really that expensive, but I read somewhere (and...I honestly don't remember where...) that if you put the ends of a scallion in water, that they will regenerate, over and over again!

so of course, I had to try...and wouldn't you know...

Day 1

Day 6 (and I added two more!)

so it definitely works!  if you find yourself using lots of scallions...this trick is worth a try!

recipe box - stuffed peppers

another new recipe success!  I have to say, that since I've made the decision to once and for all get healthy, eat healthy, and exercise...eating has turned into more of a chore then something I enjoy- which has never been true for me!  I LOVE eating...I LOVE food...hence the need to eat healthy...

I honestly could eat pizza every day...lots of carbs and cheese...and caffeine make me a happy girl :)  my three C's I guess you could say :)  but then I'd also need a forklift to get me off the couch and out of my house...so I am adopting the ever popular mantra of "everything in moderation"...I know that is not a new theory, but I know more then ever that if you tell me I can't eat something, that it is going to make me want to eat it more then ever...I am not a cold turkey dieter...I need to eat a little of the bad stuff with a lot of the good stuff...

and isn't it nice when the good stuff tastes awesome?

enter stuffed peppers...a recipe that my bestie Bonnie sent to me...and it was what we ate for dinner tonight :)


here are the ingredients that i used:

4 red bell peppers sliced in half, with the centers cleaned out
about a pound of ground beef or ground turkey
1 yellow onion, chopped
garlic- I used the stuff that comes in a jar, since that was what I had in the house- about 2 tablespoons
salt & pepper (to taste)
tomato sauce- I didn't measure, but maybe 1 cup, plus some to add on top
shredded Cheddar and Monterrey Jack cheese


* as you can see...I didn't really measure anything...so feel free to alter how you see fit :) *

in a skillet, heat up a little olive oil and heat the onions and garlic for a few minutes

add in the ground beef/turkey and cook until browned- salt and pepper to taste

 
cut the peppers in half, and spread out on a baking sheet
(I always line with foil- makes for an easy (read: lazy) clean up!)

mix the tomato sauce and cheese into the mixture in the skillet

spoon the mixture into the peppers

bake at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes
add cheese to the top of each pepper and bake for 2 additional minutes

then EAT and ENJOY!

I made a nice simple salad of cucumbers and red onion to go with it :)


and besides adding the cheese on top (depending on the kind of cheese), the whole meal is gluten free! 

oh grammar...

this just made the teacher in me giggle...because grammar- proper grammar that is- is usually not present at school...

letterpress card by Sapling Press

hope this made you smile too :)

photo Saturday

photo stolen from Mr Walker :)

you know you had a good time when you sleep till almost 2 in the afternoon the day after...OAR at Merriweather Post Pavilion with some of my softball buddies...took me back 12 years to those days at Virginia Tech, at the Library...which sorry Mom & Dad...that was a bar :p

those were definitely the nights I will never forget!

Friday Funny

yup, this one made me laugh :)

Happy Friday!!

on the road again...

this summer has been the summer of the road trip...which has been tons of fun, but also means it has flown by in such a blur!

the latest installment of road trip summer...back to North Carolina, this time to Raleigh to see Mike and Christina...and their new house...and the growing baby bump!  (who they, and now we, lovingly call Pedro :)  

even with the almost 7 hour ride from VA to NC with Amanda and Bob...the trip was a blast- I don't remember the last time I laughed so much, so hard, or so continuously :)  it really reminds me of why we are still the great friends that we are...with all the time that passes...we get together and it's as if we just saw each other yesterday :)

shopping...a trip to the beach...sitting out on the porch at night drinking wine by the fire pit...good times :)

Monday Inspiration

I really liked this saying...I think so many people expect things to just happen easily, falling into place, and honestly...I always was told that 'nothing worth having comes easily'...and I believe it!  sometimes you have to work for things people!  that just makes it all the more worth it when you achieve our goals :)

Photo Saturday

Ocean front dining in North Carolina :)

Friday Funny

it's so true...there is really only one right way to eat a Kit Kat...break it into pieces, eat the sides and then the middle...duh.

Happy Friday!!