a little bit of this & that: 4/1/11

Saturday, April 30, 2011

What I'm Looking Forward to this Summer by Cait!

Well no.. not MY summer wedding ha. Although lately more than usual a ton of my friends have been getting married..and engaged..goodness! I can't keep track of all the love going around! That's okay..my turn will come..right?! ::Gulp::

Well the wonderful Michelle asked me to talk to you all about what I'm looking forward to MOST this summer. Of course I've blogged a million and one times, and tweeted, about this great vacation(s) that I'm taking. But I'd rather NOT bore you with that for the hundredth time (I know you're all super bummed ha).

One of the things I'm really looking forward to this summer is turning the BIG 25! Okay yes to some of you reading you're either thinking (ohmygosh when I was 25...) or (wow you're THAT OLD), yes, I realize that ha.

Hmm ... so what does this big girl want to do her half way to 50 big day...
well first..there's the invitations to be sent out..so here is yours to come to the BIG occasion!

Then we'd all sit around a big table like so..

drinking wonderful lemonade

opening gifts that you were so gracious to get me

woah, how did that get in there ;)

don't forget to go get something to eat!

and of course, there's my special cake

no birthday is complete without

my favorite Disney character

and after we'd sit and talk for hours

So there you have it bloggers :) You're all invited to my fabulous party on July 29th. (oh and of course Michelle will be there since we have the SAME birthday!) woohoo!

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Thanks Cait for the awesome guest post! Of course, I will be at your fabulous birthday celebration! Be sure to stop by Cait's blog, Fierce, Fit, and Fabulous and say hello!

Hope everyone has a great weekend! xo

Friday, April 29, 2011

Friday's Fancies with (av)!

Happy Friday, everyone! My name is {av}! On most days, you can find me posting on my blog, {long distance loving}. I'm sure many of you are as enthralled as I am in the Royal Wedding festivities--which is why I'm hosting a special Royal Wedding edition of my weekly link-up, Friday's Fancies!

Here is an outfit I would love to be wearing if I was among the honored few invited

to witness Kate and William on their big day :)

1) This bold royal blue Stella McCartney Sleeveless Dress keeps it interesting--without stealing the show in the way red or hot pink might ;) I also liked that the lapels of the dress could be pulled out over top of the gorgeous blazer below!
2) Let's be honest: if you're a royal wedding guest and you're a female, chances are you're going to have a headpiece of some sort for your wedding get-up. This Philip Treacy Beano Fascinator called my name immediately--it has a certain sass about it and I love it!
3) All my research pointed to wearing understated studs for the Westminster festivities, so these Mikimoto Floral Earrings provided some flair without going overboard.
4) I wanted to go all out and include this Tiffany & Co. Sapphire and Diamond Owl Brooch on my lapel. I'd feel royal just holding it, so sporting it would be that extra oomph in my book!
5) These Manolo Blahnik Something Blue Satin Pumps keep things a bit more conservative since they are closed-toe, but the bling on the toe helps spice things up ;)
6) When I spotted this Carven Silk-Bourette Jacket, I gravitated toward it from the get-go. It would hit at the perfect point on the hip without adding too much volume to the overall look. I liked the contrast between the ivory and the royal blue too!

I'm so honored that Michelle asked me to guest post for her here on a little bit of this & that! She has been a Friday's Fancies faithful for more than a month now--and I'm so happy to have her among an incredible group of fabulous and fashionable ladies who link up week after week! I'd love to have you as the next Friday's Fancies faithful--check out this post for more information on how to make that happen :)

Be sure to hop over to see the posts from the Friday's Fancies faithful across the world on {long distance loving}!

Thanks again for having me, Michelle!

Happy Friday, everyone!

xoxo {av}

Thursday, April 28, 2011

At the Beach with Belle in the City

Hey y'all this is Belle in the City and I'm super excited to be guest blogging for Michelle today while she is on a much needed break! :) I thought since summer is *oh so close* I would share with y'all a few of my favorite summertime things..

First, my top 3 beaches...

I grew up going to Emerald Isle and Wrightsville..they are like my second home! Isle of Palms is also amazing..I wish I could visit there more often!

Next, my go to beach attire...

Beach sunglasses, a cute bikini, rainbows and a big floppy hat...

I think I might have left something out though...I also always have one of these:

and last but not least my favorite things to do while at the beach.

Look closely..my fishing pole is hot pink ;) hey, if I'm gonna be out there fishing with all the macho guys I have to at least have something girly..right?

Have y'all visited/heard of any of my favorite beaches?..if not you should definitely go visit sometime! :)

Thanks to the lovely Michelle for letting me guest post for her today!

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Wednesday Overload!

Hello lovelies! There's lots going on the blog today! {Disclaimer: LONG POST with lots of pictures ahead!}
First things first, I must tell you that this will be my last post on the blog until Tuesday. :( But have no fear, I have five wonderful ladies filling in for me while I'm gone and I know that you are going to enjoy their posts! Now, you're probably wondering where I'm going. I am taking a small ROADTRIP to Massachusetts to see my lover fave, Jason Aldean, of course! I will really only be gone Friday-Sunday but I thought it would be nice to have a few of my favorite ladies guest blog and it will also give me a chance to catch up on everyone's blogs when I get back! I will miss all of you but will be happy to return Tuesday with the first installment of Tastes & Travels!

We're ready!

There's no need to say anymore. Y'all know that I ♥ him and have been a dedicated fan for 4+ years.

PICTURES from the last few concerts!

Now for What I Ate Wednesday with my blogging bestie, Jenn from Peas and Crayons.

Click the button to join in :)

Last week, we celebrated my sister's birthday at Don Ricardo's, our favorite Mexican Restaurant.

We had dessert and birthday cake too, of course! I made our favorite cake, a CHOCOLATE CHIP BUNDT CAKE! It is seriously the best cake I've ever eaten! You can find the recipe here.

Yesterday, I made one of Jenn's recipes! I saw a recipe on her blog called Fiesta Quinoa. I have never tried quinoa and thought this was a great recipe for me to try. I followed Jenn's recipe and served it the same way she did with guacamole (my fave). Let me tell you ... it was delicious! I loved it! It was really good and I'm glad I tried it. (You can find Jenn's recipe here)

I also did some baking yesterday. It was my last day of Spring Break so I thought I would make some goodies to bring to school. These recipes are courtesy of my baking friend, Danielle. You can find her awesome blog, Hugs and Cookies xoxo here.

Do you like to bake? What is your favorite thing to make?

I'm also joining Olivia at For Me for Wish I Was Here Wednesday.

I know that there is a lot of hype surrounding the Royal Wedding but I can't help wishing that I was in London celebrating with the royal family. Who wants to crash the wedding with me? ;)

If you made it to the end of this crazy long post, you truly are a bloggy friend. :)

That's it for me. Hope you'll visit my blog and enjoy the guest posts while I'm gone.

I'll miss you all! See you soon! xo

Meet Michelle!

Hello lovelies! I'm so excited to have the opportunity to introduce y'all to Michelle, my other blogging partner in our new series, Tastes and Travels. Michelle and I not only share our names but lots in common. Her blog is one of my daily reads and I'm so glad that the blogging world introduced us :)

Meet Michelle from The Vintage Apple

What are 5 words that characterize your personality?

Outgoing, Genuine, Caring, Random, Joyful

What is your favorite place that you've visited?

I have been all over the world, but my absolute favorite place I've visited is Washington, DC. My fiance and I went there in January and it was so beautiful! The air was clean and very crisp, the people were very genuine, and it was just such an awesome experience seeing all of the monuments and the White House.

What is one place that you can't wait to visit?

I have always wanted to travel to "The Land Down Under" and I hope to in the very near future!

What is your favorite cuisine?

That is like asking me which shade of purple I love more!!! If I had to choose, I would have to say I love Mexican food. There is never a time where I will pass up home-made tortillas, warm ooey gooey queso, table made guacamole, and refried beans and rice. Mmmm....I want some. Now!

Why did you start blogging?

I started blogging because I felt like I needed some place to store all of my randomness! Not only that, but I had been following several people's blogs for about a year and I wanted to give it a shot. My best friend was talking about starting one and I loved the idea so much I decided to try it out too! Two and a half months later---I'm officially hooked. I have "met" several wonderful women who I can honestly call my friends and I'm meeting new people each and every day. I love it. I'll never look back!!

Hope you learned a little bit more about Michelle ... be sure to visit her blog and say "hi"! I'm so excited to be starting a new series with two lovely ladies.

Hope you will join us as we travel the world! xo

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Tons o' Stuff Tuesday!

Hello lovelies! I'm joining CMae from Live What You Love for Tail Wagging Tuesday!

This week's topic is your pet's sleeping spot.
Brandi has a big dog bed that she sleeps on when I go to work or go out. When I am home, she is usually snuggled up on my bed. As you can see, I take a lot of pictures of her while she is sleeping. She just seems so sweet and peaceful.

Brandi likes to think that she is a human and lays her head on my pillows.

She will also sleep on the couch or on me! :)
The picture to the right shows how Brandi typically likes to lay. She likes to be on her back with her legs spread open. Not the most appropriate looking picture to share so I cropped it a little so you get the idea. I read that dogs enjoy laying that way and do so because they feel comfortable with you.

Where does your pet sleep? Does he/she sleep in a certain position or spot?Head on over to CMae's link up to share it with us :)
I'm also linking up with Neely at A Complete Waste of Makeup. A few days ago, Neely shared a bunch of old school pictures on her blog. She asked fellow bloggers to share theirs too. So without further ado, photos from my childhood!(I also blogged about my childhood here)

My 3rd birthday! Don't you just love the sailboat wrapping paper and my plastic costume jewelry?! Oh yeah and how about attitude I'm rockin' in the picture on the left! {haha}

My very first friend, John, who is still one of my best friends today! We've been friends almost 25 years!

I'm the girl in the middle with the purple and white. This was my communion party. I love to dance! Who remembers the song, Hands Up?

It's fun sharing old school pictures! I'm definitely going to scan some more onto my computer!

Sorry for this long post, but I have one more thing before I go. I won a giveaway at the lovely Lauren's blog, Peace, Love, and All Things Creative and just received it in the mail, so of course I have to share it with you! Lauren is super talented! She made me this beautiful cross! Isn't it pretty?! I love it! Thank you so much, Lauren!!