Friday Favorites

If you haven't noticed by now, I am obsessed with shopping for our future house. I am not sure what our house will be like, but I am shopping/planning for it anyways. Ha!
My ultimate favorite thing to shop for is pillows. I hate to admit it, but my pillow obsession would be classified as ultimate hoarder status. I feel like changing up pillows can change the entire vibe of a room; it is super easy & when we had our home I did it often.
Right now I am loving these pillows from Whitlock & Co..

Another shop that I like a lot is The Animal Print Shop. I originally found them on Instagram & have had visions of animal prints all through my head ever since. If we have a little boy someday, I am decking out his room with a ton of their prints of baby animals (I know.. talking about babies, again! I can't help it, I want one!). I also have an idea for our future livingroom & it involves this amazing print of this wild buffalo- it is to die for! Since I cannot afford the large version at a whopping $4,500, I was thinking I would get a smaller more affordable version. 

I think it would be great paired with a few more wild animal prints & turned into a gallery wall (my fav!). 

And of course what would a favorites post be like without some fun accessories. Threshold is seriously one of my favorite home goods brands, ever! I love the distressed wood look that they always have, especially this mirror. 

At our old house, I tried the whole bird feeder thing & I had no luck at all!! So maybe if I get these super cute hot air balloon feeders they would come & hang out. 

Other than having a lot of pillows, I also have so many votives & little planters, but you can never have enough. Right !? They are good to dress up shelves & countertops & these ones in particular are my super favorite right now. 

Votives & Planter

Well I hope you all have a fun weekend !! What are some of your favorite things you'll be shopping for?

Life Lately

Lately, I have come to realize that plans will never goes as you planned & finding a home to build on a budget in the most desirable areas is really freaking hard. 

Several months ago, my husband & I sold our town home. When we bought it we knew that we would only live there for a little while. We figured it would be best to sell before we started a family, so that is what we did. So needless to say, we have been trying to find an almost perfect home & neighborhood that we can build in. After months of searching & going back & forth with models, budgets, counties, etc.. we finally decided on a model & neighborhood. Sounds exciting, right!? 

Well as of four days ago, the builder we chose is no longer building in the neighborhood. And the new builder that took ownership of the lots available, is way out of our price point. 

To say we are disappointed would be an understatement. All of my plans & day dreamin' of our future home came to a crashing halt. 

We have a budget, as I am sure most couples do. And unfortunately, that budget of ours isn't going to get us that dream home that I've been pinning away on Pinterest (damn you Pinterest!). We need to find a home that suits our needs, keeps us within budget, is new (my must have!) & has room for when we start a family (what's a new home, if it isn't big enough to bring some babies home to?!). Sounds pretty simple, but it is not. Turns out that we are going to most likely move a lot further from where I would want to be, so we can get big home in our price range. I am glad that we have options in other areas, but a little lot nervous about moving out of my comfort zone. 

We have found a few neighborhoods & lots of models that are in our price range with one of our favorite builders. This weekend our search continues to find our future home. I've been praying that something good will come out of this disappointing & frustrating situation. And that we will find our future home & it will be available when we are ready in a few months. I know God has a plan for us & our future, so I am trying to stay positive that there is something out there for us. 

On a happy note, I picked up these beauties to cheer me up after our bad news & I have to say, they are quite gorgeous! 

**sorry to be debbie downer, but it is not always yummy foods, lovely decor, and wish-lists around here**

Meals on Monday

It has been a while since I did a Meatless Meal post & I decided that I was going to post some meals that I wanted to try with & without meat. I mean let's be real, as much as I love me some meatless Monday's, I married a southern meat lovin' man. With that being said, most meals are preferred to have meat. 

So if you missed my post here from last week, then you know that I just recently started weight watchers. For the most part it allows you to eat a variety of foods of your choosing, as long as they stay within your daily points allowance. For the past two weeks, we've been sticking to meals & snacks that we are comfortable with & know the points. So I have been searching for some new foods that can be incorporated into our daily/weekly meals.

Here are some things that seriously look so delicious!! Many of them have very few ingredients, which is a total plus in my book. Dinners for me have to be super fulfilling. By the time I get home from work I am starving!! For dinners, the majority of your points are going to be the meat portion. Most veggies are 0 points, so I try to get full on those the most. Plain ole veggie sides get boring after a while, so I was glad to find a new ones to add to our weekly menu. This week I plan on trying the Classic Coleslaw & the Spicy Roasted Chickpeas, so I will definitely let you know how they turn out.
If you're like me, then you crave a little something sweet after dinner time. I found these two yummy looking sweet snacks that are super low in points. I didn't pick up the ingredients this week, but plan on doing so next week. I am sure they will be delicious! 

Worcestershire Turkey Burger || Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps || Zucchini Pizza Bites 

Garlic-Lime Chicken || Salsa Chicken

Balsamic Brussels Sprouts || Roasted Cauliflower || Crispy Sweet Potatoes 

Classic Coleslaw || Spicy Roasted Chickpeas 

Lemon Dessert || Pudding Jello Fruit Fluff

Have any of you tried recipes similar to these before? Or have any good weight watchers recipes that are worthy of the points? 

All sources can be found here. 

Lovely & Oh-So-Pinteresting

If you're reading this, then I will take it that you almost survived a full work week. On Monday I wasn't feeling too great (possibly the post-holiday winter blues), so I stayed home from work & laid around & pinned my life away.

It truly blows my mind how creative people are out there on Pinterest. There are so many incredible homes that I have seen that give me such inspiration for our future home. And just to daydream about because lets be real, the majority of them I cannot & will not be able to afford. I am not exactly sure what type of home decorating style that I am drawn to the most, but I would say a mixture of Eclectic, Mid-Century Modern, Boho, and Traditional. So basically all the above. Ha! You see why I have no clue what my style would be because it is a bit all over the place.

Here are some things that I have been pinning lately & that I am really loving. My favorite thing about all of these is the mixing of unique colors & patterns. In our future home, my goal is to incorporate bold textures, colors and prints throughout; besides our bedroom. Our bedroom I like to keep a bit traditional with lights colors, paisley prints, and some gorgeous faux ivory fur throws & pillows.

What sense of decorating style are you most drawn to? If you want to follow along with my pinning addiction...here it is :) 

All sources here: Kitchen's Galore || Dining Spaces || Home Decor & More || Baby {unisex} Bedrooms

Weight Watcher Wrap-up- Week 1

"One should eat to live, not live to eat"

I thought long & hard about whether or not I would blog about my personal weight loss. I figured it was something that I would keep off the blog. Then I decided that I wanted to keep track of my journey. 

Throughout the years, I have let food sort of rule my life. I use it to make me happy. I crave it when I am bored. And I love it when I am sad. In a sick sort of way it is comforting for me. I have gained a lot of weight throughout the years. I have had my ups and downs, with never finding a happy medium. It has affected my life in a lot of negative ways. I feel like myself, until I look in the mirror and realize that person that I am looking at isn't really me. 

I decided just recently that I was going to make losing weight a priority. I want my 30's (that still sounds weird!!) to be better than my 20's. I want to be comfortable in my skin and to be able to do things without the fear of what people might think of me. And most of all, I want to be able to get pregnant. To be able to enjoy a healthy pregnancy & hopefully have a beautiful, healthy baby. 

With that being said, I decided that I was going to try weight watchers. I needed something that allowed me to eat a variety of foods, but with strict portion control. I already had all of the books, journals & calculators; and my mom & best friend are doing it with me too. I am going to do posts every two weeks with a recap of each week- the good, the bad and the super ugly. 

Week One

I set my goal of what I need to lose (I should be speed walking while typing this) & kept reminding my moody self everyday of why I need to stick with this. I'll be honest, week one was hard. Very quickly I realized that I had to give up a lot of the things that I was eating on a daily basis. One being my beloved chai tea latte- with it being 8 points it was just too many points for an everyday drink when I only get 26 points a day. I traded it in for watered down cigarette ashes iced coffee. Overall, I did good with points.. minus Sunday. The majority of the days this week I was super grouchy, but I did manage to exercise a bit. I am a little bummed that I didn't work out as much as I planned, but everything that I am doing is better than what I was doing. Right!?

Weight Loss

• Down 3lbs. 

Here are some of the things I ate this week... 

Breakfast (0-6 points)

• Iced coffee w/ sugar & vanilla soy milk 
• Fruit (cherries, blueberries & apples)
• Lactose-free yogurt 

Lunch (4-8 points)

• Salad with 1 slice of deli turkey
• Leftovers from night before  
• Smoothie 

Dinner (10-12 points)

• Chow Mein w/ rice 
• Salmon, roasted red potatoes & asparagus  
• Turkey loaf & greens beans
• Bunless burgers, fries, & cabbage
• Chicken breast, seasoned rice, & green beans

Snacks (0-4 points)

• Veggie chips 
• Carrots & Guacamole 
• Honey Chex cereal 
• Whole Fruit popsicle 
• Peppers & Hummus

I know this was a super exciting post for everyone :) I am hoping to have some pictures of the foods that I have been eating & some recipes, it'll give the post a bit more excitement I am sure (::insert sarcasm::). If you have any weight watchers tips or any yummy low-point foods, let me know!! 

Work It !

One of the thousand New Year's resolutions that I have for 2015 was to workout at least 4 to 5 days a week. And I am happy to say that I have been to the gym/exercised several times since the new year has begun. To be honest, I am sore all over & I feel like I may never be able to lift my arms above my head ever again! I also feel like a square peg in a round hole. Going to the gym tends to give me a bit of anxiety- probably a mixture of feeling self-conscious & not sure if I look as ridiculous as I feel. So on a positive note (another resolution), I am hoping with time it'll become part of my routine. That the weight will come off & I will feel better about myself. And that exercising will become an important part of my life that I love rather than dread. 

So I thought what better way to love working out then to have some awesome workout gear. Just recently, I picked up some really comfortable workout pants from Walmart (yes, Walmart!). They were inexpensive & I surprisingly really like them. I also really like the quality & comfort of workout pants from A&E & Victoria's Secret. Both stores have a wide variety for all body types. 

All Sources

When Target was having their sales, I picked several flowy, breathable tanks. They are very similar to the ones above from Gap. For me, other than comfortable pants that don't ride up your ass every five minutes, having a good fitting sneaker is also super important. For me cardio is my forced best friend right now, so I need a good pair & these Nike's are both amazing & fit so well! 

The past few days have been semi-easy to get to the gym because I have been on vacation from work. So my plan is to go to the gym straight after work during the week, so I need want a cute bag to lug around all my crap to & from. These Vera Bradley ones are so colorful & spacey. I definitely have my eye on the two prints above. 

Other than some awesome workout gear, I am really needing a playlist to get keep me going while I am exercising. So what are you go to jams for when you work out? 

Let me know below... 

Friday Favorites

I cannot get over all of the amazing housing decor that is out in stores right now. It truly is times like this that I wish I had a money tree in the backyard (in a safe, secured, invisible box that noone but myself could touch or see). I feel like the more I put myself on a budget, the more I want to spend. And the closer we get to building a house, the more I want to shop. Currently, we're saving for a large down payment, so we can build a new home. So that doesn't leave much leftover to have fun with. 

I have so many ideas for our future home that it makes me so excited & giddy inside. I have basically purchased everything for our bedroom, which you can see here. There are only a few more things that I need to buy but I have plenty of time. 

Currently, I have been on the prowl for decorations for our living room. I am obsessed with pillows, especially fur ones. For Christmas, I got six of these pillows & I cannot wait to use them. I plan on using a few in our bedroom, so I am looking for a few more for the couch. I found these two from Anthro that I am in love with. I am keeping my eye out for them to go on sale & keeping my fingers crossed that they don't sell out in the meantime. I am also loving this gorgeous throw- isn't it amazing?!

Anthropologie

We haven't made a definite decision on which model home that we want to build yet, but we do know that our new home will have a glass shower unlike our old home. So that means no more shower curtains in our master bedroom; therefore I have to have some cute, colorful/patterned towels & bath mats to dress it up a little. Also these stools from Serena & Lily, that I have been wanting so badly for the longest time & I definitely have to have them for our new home. They would be a perfect fit in any bathroom & a perfect little spot to place your towels. 

Serena & Lily || Anthropologie

There are a few little knick knacks that I am loving that are super fun! Before we sold our home, I had a large variety of plants that were flourishing. I definitely have a green thumb, so this cute tree stump planter sparked my interest. 

If you all have been following my blog, then you know I am loving gallery walls. I thought these wooden/painted letters would look great on one of them. I plan on having several like we did before (my husband is thrilled!). And these coasters are gorgeous, who the heck wouldn't want to have them!?

As you can see I have found lots of things that I am dying to shop for, so I think I will finally spend my Christmas money on some of these goodies :) 

Hope you all have a good weekend. 

Resolutions & Goals for 2015

This year has truly flown by faster than any other year before. And I will be honest, a lot of the resolutions that I planned for 2014 didn't really happen. Every year, I always have the best intentions on changing things in my life & do this & doing that; but life takes the reins.

This year I want to start fresh. Away from negativity, being impatient, always wishing my life away & putting things off until the next day/week/month/year. I want to find the positive in things, learn to be patient, be at peace with the pace of my life & enjoy the moment without constantly stressing & wondering, and I want to have goals & actually accomplish them & not put off until forever. 

Here are some of my resolutions and goals for the new year...

1. Find the positive in things, even when they downright suck! 

2. Make time for friendships and rekindle old ones. 

3. Workout at the gym at least four to five times a week.

4. Buy & build a new house. 

5. Have more date nights with my husband. 

6. Go on a relaxing vacation. 

7. Lose weight & keep it off. 

8. Try not to let the small stuff stress me out.

9. Drink more water & less soda. 

10. I would say get pregnant, but this one is up to God!

11. Send more snail mail.
12. Blog regularly with some new creative posts.

You're probably thinking, damn this bitch is crazy!! I know it seems like a lot but I figure if I have a lot of them there is a better chance that I will follow through with roughly half of them. I truly have a feeling that this year is going to be a amazing year for my family & friends. I am praying that this year brings good health, wealth, a new house & hopefully, God willing, a little baby Raulerson. 

Happy New Year to all of you :)