Who wears this stuff?

Y'all... This is bad! I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings with this post, and hopefully I don't... But the other day, I got my new Victoria's Secret catalog in the mail and was appalled at what I saw.  Normally, I love everything, clothing wise, in their catalog and online, but I would not wear anything that was in the newest magazine.  Thankfully, I quickly went online and saw that they still did have their normal super cute stuff on there, but I am baffled about who would wear this:

This isn't even half of it.  These were a few I could find on-line but the catalog is way worse! Am I just getting old and not keeping up with current trends? It just doesn't seem wearable to me... What do you think?

Coffee Table Turned Bench

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope y'all had a wonderful weekend.  My weekend started out with great intentions, as they all do, but I lost motivation half way through and now I'm left with about 4 unfinished projects.  There's always next weekend =)

I do, however, have one project I completed a few weeks ago that I want to share with y'all.  My beloved Den is going to turn into a play room/work out room.  I'm going to try to contain the baby's mess to one room so I can still have some semblance of an adult house.  Wishful thinking probably, but that's my plan.  Anyway... because I'm doing this, a lot of things around the house are being repurposed for other parts of the house.

I had this coffee table in the den that I picked up at Goodwill for $5 I believe and I painted it a dark chocolate brown.  Sorry, I don't have any before pics.

I then bought a big piece of foam and tipped the coffee table upside to line it up for cutting:

My mama helped me with this, so this is her doing all the demonstrating.  We took a big pair of scissors and used one side to cut around the shape of the table:

We then did the same thing with the fabric that we did with the foam.  Except with the fabric we left about a 4 inch border so that we could wrap it around the foam and attach it to the table:

When the fabric was all cut, we used a staple gun and stapled about every 2-3 inches to secure the fabric to the table:

And this is what the finished product looks like.  The fabric looks black and white, but it's more of a tan and dark brown.  I chose to put it at the end of my bed:

This was one of the easiest projects I have done, and now I don't have to get rid of it since I repurposed it!

I hope y'all have a great week!

My Highs and Lows of This Week

High:  Look at my new "Prada" purse.  I put Prada in "  " because I'm pretty sure it's not real.  The guy I got it from goes up north to get these designer purses from a guy who he says sells the ones that are extra.  It's probably either fake or stolen from the factory.  Regardless, I  paid for it, and it's mine! =) It's perfect for fall and OSU Cowboy season!! This isn't a very good picture, it was taken from my phone.

Low: I was at Wal-Mart the other day and bought a bunch of groceries.  In one sack were two Ribeye steaks and a package of salmon.  There was a problem at the checkout and they charged me $82.00 per steak instead of $8.20.. and of course they couldn't figure out how to correct it.  I had to stand there for like 20 minutes before they voided the whole thing and told me to re-check out at Customer Service.  This is really beside the point, but it emphasizes the point that I should know better than to shop at Wal-Mart.

Anyway... I vividly remember my steaks being in the sack in the buggy.  I went to the McDonald's inside WM to get a cup of water.  When I was in line with my buggy I even picked up the steaks to check the weight and make sure I got one big enough for E.  I literally turned my head to fill up my water... WITH MY HAND STILL ON THE BUGGY... and I turn back around and my sack of steaks and salmon was gone.. along with the guy sitting two tables away from where I was standing.  I was so pissed off!!! Who does that??? I just cried and cried and called my mom and she thought it was hilarious that I was so upset, but I felt totally violated!

High & Low together:  Last Friday E and I went to the doctor to hear little Baby Dawley's heartbeat.  The first nurse couldn't find it after trying for 5-10 minutes.  She kept saying how small the baby was and it was sometimes hard to find if it was "hiding".  She said we would just wait for the doctor to do it.  I was almost in tears at this point.  I know this is common, but it didn't make it any easier.  30 minutes later she comes back in and tells me that the doctor is in surgery and might not be back for a while and tried to make me come back next week! Umm... I don't think so!! I told her I would just wait.  She was probably silently cussing me, but I don't care.  So she sends another nurse in with a newer machine to check and she finds it within 30 seconds so I got to hear little Baby Dawley's heartbeat! It was 145 bpm and was the best sound ever!! Sounds like a boy heartbeat to me!  Whatever it is, this baby is already proving to be a handful...

Low:  I lost a diamond out of the corner of my ring! Thank God it's not the big one, just a little one on the side. This is a horrible, horrible picture, as it's taken from my BB, but see the black spot in the lower right corner... that's where the diamond is missing.  I took it to my jeweler to have it repaired but I won't have it back for 10 days! =(

High:  My co-worker's elderly father had a major heart surgery yesterday that they didn't think he would make it through, but he came out with flying colors!!!
**ALSO**
My cousin went into labor with twin girls at 26 weeks.  They did everything they could to stop the contractions, but the medicine they gave her made her have fluid on her lungs, which caused one of the babies heartrates to drop, so they had to take them via c-section.  One girl weighed 1.4 pounds and the other weighed 1.9 pounds, but both girls are breathing on their own and doing surprisingly well.  God is Amazing!!!

High:  These seriously make my day! I eat a few as a morning snack and a few as an afternoon snack.  They are healthy and so tasty! I spread a little bit of Smart Balance Peanut butter on them.

Low: Y'all... I don't know if I'm just being lazy or what... but my prenatal pilates DVD is hard work! I didn't work that hard before! I am still doing it.. but the whole time the only thing going through my head is "I'm pregnant! Why are they making me do this??"

I hope y'all have a great day!!

Your Questions Answered

I will try not to ramble, but I can't promise anything =)

I'm a NOLA Girl asked:

If you could choose to travel to one place you've never been, where would you go?  Hmm... good question... I think if I had to pick a place I have never been, I would still want somewhere somewhat beachy... I think I would pick the Emerald Coast in Italy.  Because I think it's pretty... and who wouldn't want to to to Italy.  Oh, and I like to drink good wine (not right now of course)

You mention that you live in a small town. What's your favorite part of small town living? I do live in  small town and for the most part I like it.  For one, My parents and E's parents still live there along with E's grandparents and it's important to us to be able to raise our family around other family members who will instill the same sense of right and wrong and how to treat people that they instilled in E and I.  Everyone knows each other in a small town, so random violence by strangers is rare or nonexistent. To be honest, I rarely lock my front door. Community involvement is another benefit, I love the parades on Main Street for Christmas, 4th of July, and Memorial Day.  I like watching my neighbors kids go from kindergardners to high schoolers. I think it's a bit charming.  

What's your go to recipe when you have company over? I wish I had something more "fancy" but usually we have Steak, baked potatoes, and Suddenly Salad.  I like the Ranch and Bacon Suddenly Salad and sometimes add pepperonis and black olives.  It's so yummy!  I serve Paula Deen's Not Yo' Mama's Banana Pudding for dessert.  I make my dinner table look pretty though =)

Rebekah  asked:

Will you work after you have the baby?  I do plan to return to work.  We are lucky enough that we don't have to take our child to a random daycare.  My mom doesn't work outside the home, E's mom will most likely switch to part-time, and his grandparents have asked if they could watch the baby a day or two a week.  So... baby Dawley will be with a family member the days that I work.  It will be the most versatile/loved baby =)

How is all the baby stuff going? Like how you're feeling, decorating, etc.? I feel great thank you! Baby Dawley has sadly developed an aversion to coffee.  This just started this week, which is weird because normally stuff like that should be going away by now.  I have found that if I drink it an hour or two after I wake up as opposed to drinking it right away, Baby Dawley is more agreeable.  Also, when I did get sick, it was the generic coffee... so it's possible that Baby Dawley doesn't like generic and prefers the high dollar stuff =)  Also, all I want is cereal.  ALL.THE.TIME.

As far as the decorating goes... I have moved the guest bedroom to the other side of the house to the former work out room, and our den has been turned into a den/workout room/future play room.  So now the baby's room will be right next to the Master bedroom. I do have ideas on what I want to do and will start after we find out the gender (4 weeks, yippee!).  For a boy, I like navy and cream colors.  Possible navy and cream wide stripes on the back wall, and keep the other walls cream... dark wood, and plush fabric.  We won't really do a "theme" but maybe have some kind of football on a shelf with other sports stuff.  I will probably make the bedding since I can't find anything I like.  For a girl, I will do cream, pale pale pink, and gold.  It will be very girly, antique, vintage looking.  Again, no theme.  We have hardwood flooring in that room, so I will need a huge rug.  I can't wait to start decorating!

Also, is it hard to use a sewing machine? I've been in a crafty mood for a while and there are some projects I would love to try, but they require a sewing machine. I've never really sewn. Is there a brand you recommend if I do decide to go through with this? Ha!  Is it hard?? Yes and No.  I don't think it's hard but I'm used to using one.  Does your local fabric store offer a class? If so, I would probably recommend that you take one.  I have been using a sewing machine since I was probably 10 years old.  I would make clothes for my dolls, ha.  Before that I would hot glue them! I would also recommend that you get a cheap scrap piece of fabric and practice sewing straight lines, lining up your pattern, etc.  You can do it! I can't wait to see what you make! Check out THIS BLOG for tutorials.  She doesn't post anymore, but she left it up so people like you and me could use her tutorials!

As for the brand, I honestly don't even know what brand I have.  I bought like a $90 one from Wal-mart. But it works just fine for me.  I have sewed clothes, curtains, a shower curtain, pillows, etc with this machine and have had no problems.  I think maybe the brand is Brothers??  If you're a beginner, I would not recommend getting an expensive machine.  My sister has a serger (for clothes seams if you want it to look "professional") and a monogramming machine so I take the hard stuff to her =)

Brittany asked:

How did you meet the Mr.? E and I met in high school our freshman year over 10 years ago when I moved to our current town.  We had a "thing" for quite a while in high school, but it didn't work out then.  We remained friends and went our separate ways.  We didn't talk or see each other for about a year in college (because it always seemed to be awkward to be around each other, but not with each other).  Anyway... one night, I went over to his apartment with a mutual friend and the rest is history! We were engaged a year after that, married a year later, now after two years of "wedded bliss" little Baby Dawley is on the way!

What are your favorite places to travel? I love Playa Del Carmen, and New Orleans has a little piece of my heart

What was the biggest thing (good and bad) that surprised you about married life? Good Question! E and I didn't live together before we were married so it came with a lot of good and bad surprises!  I thought that after we got married the "romance" part would stop.  Since we obviously lived together after we were married it is very hard to keep a secret or plan a surprise, but he is "romantic" in other ways.  For example, he always has my coffee ready for me by the time I wake up, he always makes sure my car has gas in it so I don't have to get it, and I would say about 50% of the time he has supper ready when I get home without me asking him to do it (He gets home about an hour before I do).  These are things that he didn't do before because I wasn't there for coffee, or my car wasn't as accessible, etc.  For the bad surprises.. I would say that I never knew that I am completely intolerant of unnecessary noise, and that he is the King of unnecessary noise.  I swear that man loves the sound of his own voice.  Whether it's whistling, singing a ridiculous song he made up, or making some other kind of weird noise, it's constant!  The good outweighs the bad of course!

How is your pregnancy coming along? :)(Still so happy for you, btw!): Thanks girl! See Question #5 =)

Jess asked:

Are you having any weird cravings yet? My boyfriend will be graduating with his BA in nursing this December and he says that SOME pregnant women crave dirt!! Or rocks??? HELLO... hahaha, NO, I am not craving dirt, rocks, worms, or anything along those lines.  I have heard that a lot of women do crave dirt and it has to do with some kind of mineral deficiency.  I have craved Raisin Bran though, and I have never had that in my life so I don't even know what it tastes like! So I thought that was pretty weird... 

Amy asked:

Have you come up with any possible names for Baby Dawley yet???? Yes, I have a few names I like! For a boy, we like Greyson Tyler and for a girl we like Gracie Ann or Caroline Belle.  Any thoughts on anything of these???  I would love to hear opinions.

How tall are you?? I'm 5'4 (and a half) =)

What makeup foundation do you use?  I have used Mary Kay creme to powder foundation for a while.  I like Revlon creme to powder too.  I'm a creme to power girl!

What's your all time favorite movie?  Oh gosh, I don't know if I can pick just one! I really really love "The Notebook" and it's probably my favorite! I also love "Walk the Line" and "Sweet Home Alabama" too.

What's your all time favorite book? The Bible.  It's one I can read over and over again and never get sick of.  It always puts me in a really good mood too.  As for a novel-type book... I wish I could say a classic like "The Scarlet Letter" or "Treasure Island" or something like that... but honestly, they usually bore me.  I really like "Dear John" or anything by Nicholas Sparks.  I like books that make you feel like you're a character!

Randomness

Because that's how I roll:

1. It's effin hot here:  In case you can't see this, that is my car t-stat that says 107F.  About 20 minutes before I took it it said 109F. Ridiculous!

2. Here is an updated picture of my niece Layla.  Pretty sure she's the cutest baby ever!

3. I received an e-mail from the Baby Center dot com, What Really Happens During Labor and Delivery, After reading all this... I'm pretty sure I'm going to need therapy when it's over with!! Talk about stressed out!

4. Have y'all been to Texts From Last Night, It's freaking HILARIOUS!

5. I have so many craft projects to finish up and a lot of iris bulbs that need transplanted, but I am too lazy to do anything about either of them.  It's too hot to move.

7. I made it through the 1st Trimester without gaining any weight!! Yay for me!

8. I am LOVING my prenatal pilates DVD and hope I keep it up!

9. I spent all of Saturday evening in the ER at the hospital in Tulsa.  My sister was at a softball tournament in a town outside Tulsa and she got hit in the head by a ball and was unconscious for  8 minutes!!! Luckily, she escaped with only a bad concussion!

 I think that's all the randomness I have for today.  I hope y'all enjoy your Monday!

I am linking this to:

Pregnancy: Week 12

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 12 weeks (I was going to post a picture, but I was too lazy to get off the couch to take it)

Total Weight Gain/Loss: ZERO pounds, woo hoo! Knock on Wood though! I go for my 12 week appt today so we shall see what their scale says.  I'm going to wear my most lightweight clothes and shoes!

How Big is the Baby: The size of a lime

Gender: Not sure... what do y'all think??? I think it's a boy, but we will find out at my next appt if the baby is cooperating!

Maternity Clothes: Not just yet...I think I may need to go up a size in pants though, mine are getting tighter by the day, but maternity pants are still too big. My pre-preggers pants are still working just fine, but by the end of the day I feel like I need some comfy pants on for sure, ha!

Best Moment of the Week: Finally having enough energy to start working out again!

Stretch Marks: Negative, I'm sure it's only a matter of time though.

Movement: Nothing yet, but I wonder what it feels like...

Sleep: Sleeping fine, but sometimes I wake up 2-3 times to pee

What I miss: Being able to actually get hungry before having to eat! I have learned that if I can just eat before I feel hungry I won't feel sick at all, but if I feel hungry that usually turns into feeling super sickly. And Red wine.

What I am looking forward to: Finding out what gender the baby is at the end of next month...only 4 More weeks! **hopefully**

Symptoms: Honestly, I have really had no symptoms at all other than fatigue.  I have not been sick, I haven't gained weight, or had any of the other "side-effects" that come with pregnancy.  If I didn't see the little baby in there already I wouldn't believe it myself!

Food Cravings: Diet Coke! Pre-pregnancy, I only had like.. one diet coke a month, and now I want one every day.  I have developed an aversion to coffee, so I substitute it with a small diet coke.  I still get 100+ ounces of water though.  And I had a weird craving for Raisin Bran the other day.  I have never had Raisin Bran in my life so I don't even know what it tastes like.. but I wanted some for sure

Belly Button: Inny

Signs of Labor: Negative

Pre-Baby Gear

Okay all you moms (and non-moms who are knowledgeable on pregnancy) out there.... Help me out here! I feel like I don't have all the pre-baby stuff that I need.  Maybe I'm just being crazy or maybe it's my inner shopaholic... but whatever the reason may be I feel like I need to buy more stuff!

Here's what I have so far:

Bella B's Honey Tummy Butter to prevent stretch marks.  I am terrified of getting stretch marks, call me vain, I don't care, but they haunt my dreams so I want to do everything I can do to prevent them! I have been using this and so far it has been fine, but I'm only 12 weeks along.  I'm sure most people don't have them at 12 weeks but maybe I'm confused?? Anyway.. Does anyone have any better solutions or suggestions for me? I am open to any and all suggestions.

 10 minute solutions: Prenatal Pilates.  Yes, it's only 10 minutes per segment, don't judge.  It's better than doing nothing and who knows... maybe one day I'll be in the mood for two sessions =)

The infamous Bella Band.  I got mine at Target and it's called the BeBand, but I think it's the same thing.  I have mine in black for when the rubber banded button on my jeans just won't work anymore.

So what am I missing? Surely I don't have everything I need for this pre-baby time right?

Also... Don't forget to ask your questions in the comment section of my ASK ME ANYTHING post where I answer your most burning questions =) 

For lack of better blogging...

Today... I am reverting to the oldie but goody ( I sound old) "ASK ME ANYTHING"! I have a blogger's block today and can't think of anything better.  I noticed that I have a lot of new followers lately ( I <3 y'all) that may not know much about me, and old faithful followers (I <3 y'all too)  that may be wondering something about me... So whatever you want to know about me: The sky's the limit ...work, family, plans for baby, fashion, crafty-ness (is that a word??), etc, etc, etc... I am an open book! Leave your questions in the comments section and I will answer them in a post next week!

Have a great day lovelies!

If I was an actress....

Here are the characters I would love to play:

Allie Hamilton from The Notebook: I have always, always, always loved fashion from that time period and just the way that people acted.  Like they didn't have a care in the world...  Also, I have always wanted to reinact the scene where they are at that one party listening to the jazz band and Lon proposes on-stage! So stinkin cute! I wasn't rooting for Lon... but I still liked him and felt really bad for him.  And he is super hot... Just sayin'...

And who wouldn't want to reinact this scene??? **blushes**

Betty Draper from Mad Men. Again... who doesn't love Betty Draper fashion?? I do! And her hair always seems to be perfect and in place, I'm jealous!

I am linking this to:

Levi Johnston.. this is just a trainwreck

Y'all.... Levi Johnston is out of control! I have tried to avoid writing about him because I don't think he needs his name thrown out there any more than it already is.  But... today.. I saw something that just made my jaw hit the floor:

Levi Johnston to Run for Mayor of Wasilla, Alaska

Lord, help those people have more sense than to vote this child into office!  If you don't want to read the whole story (and I don't blame you) here is an excerpt:

Levi Johnston has teamed with a production company to shop a reality series called "Loving Levi: The Road to the Mayor's Office," which will—just as the title implies—chronicle his life as he runs for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska.

Or since the mayor's job won't be up for grabs until 2012, as his new campaign manager points out, maybe he'll make a run for city council in the meantime.

Best idea ever, right?

"The more I think about it and look into it, I think there's a possibility we can make it happen," Johnston told Variety, admitting that he wasn't exactly keen on the idea when producers Scott Stone and David Weintraub of Stone and Co. approached him with it.

But now, "it's something that I want to do." 

I really hope that nobody watches this crap! First.. there was the whole leaving his "fiance" and child to go to Hollywood to make a fool of himself, then... he slams the Palin family in the press and says all kinds of horrible things about their parenting habits.  LIKE HE'S AN EXPERT OR SOMETHING?!?!? Then... He and Bristol reunite and her family finds out when the newest US Magazine came out!!! 

W.T.F?

Just google "Levi Johnston Transgressions" and the list goes on and on.  He is the new Spencer Pratt... which is a whole 'nother post!  

Regardless of how you feel about Sarah Palin, you have to have a little sympathy for her that her daughter first of all chose to be with someone as idiodic as Levi Johnston, and second... that she chose to broadcast their "engagement" (which was revoked less than a week later) on the cover of magazine.  Because let me tell you... I wouldn't have been able to keep my big mouth shut about that one if I was Sarah!

Vent. Over.

Any thoughts?

I'm dreaming of a white....Kitchen?

My daydreams are filled of visions of white.  White kitchens to be exact.  My current kitchen cabinets are a "cherry-ish" color, which is such a huge improvement from when we moved in.  When we moved in they were "orangy-oak" and that was my first ever project with stain.  It turned out pretty good but that was over two and a half years ago and well... I'm ready for a change.  We had a painter come over and give us a quote of $900 to paint all of our kitchen cabinets, but it seems kind of high to me.  I know it's a lot of work, but I could do a lot of shopping with $900 dollars, know what I mean?!? I want to add bead board or crown molding to the cabinet ends, install glass cabinet doors on one section for display only, add decorative things (sorry... I don't know what they're called) to the end of the cabinet where it meets the counter top, buy barstools, and possible install new countertops.  I could probably do all that for the price of someone to paint our cabinets.

E is totally against this idea.  He is not a DIY guy for large projects like this and would rather pay someone thousands in labor to do it for him.  Every project that I have forced him into has turned out really great, so I don't know what he's whining about! Actually, that's a lie.  I know exactly why he is trying to veto this... it's because my imagination gets bigger and bigger with each project! It's really all my fault.

Have any of you painted your cabinets before? Anybody have any tips or tricks to make this easier? If you did it yourself, would you do it again??

In the meantime, here is some eye candy for you.. or for me =)