funniest pet contest!

My brother's dog Styles has been entered in a funniest pet photo contest! 

Don't you love it?! 

He's part pit, part mastiff and the sweetest thing you've ever met. 

If you are feeling generous and want to cast a few votes, go to this link. The contest is run by a local Rotary group nearby my hometown in NH, and all of the proceeds from the contest go to a local scholarship fund, of which I was a recipient back in the day! Seven votes is $5, and local college students would be so grateful to the support! 

If you vote, scroll down to CF18 Styles D***** to cast your vote! 

Styles and my brother would also appreciate it, and feel free to share this via twitter if you wish! My twitter name is @lexilooo, if you don't already follow me there!  

my week, currently

I've seen a few posts like this recently, and thought it might be fun to do. I've been in a bit of a blogging rut recently, it seems, so maybe something like this will help get me out of it?




Reading: The Soldier's Wife by Margaret Leroy. Apparently I'm wildly into World War II-era novels recently (oh what am I saying, I'm often reading them!). I recently finished The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult and His Majesty's Hope by Susan Elia MacNeal, and will review them both soon. Well, I'll review The Storyteller soon, but His Majesty's Hope a bit later this spring. It will be released in May, and I received an Advanced Readers Copy, and was asked to wait until closer to the release date to post my review. Needless to say, I loved both and can't wait to write about them!

Eating: Likely, a wheat bagel with chive cream cheese with my coffee. I wrote this post last night, but scheduled it to post for the morning, so I am assuming that is what I will be eating when it goes live  ;)

Listening: At time of writing? I have Kourtney and Kim Take Miami on in the background. Gosh this show is ridiculous, and I can't believe I watch it, but I do. Khloe is the best of the three, in my opinion, and most days, I can't decide who is worse, Kim or Kourt....usually Kim, I'd say. She's just awful awful awful. Awful.

Thinking:  How to really get organized this spring. I feel a bit out of it (maybe this blogging rut is spread into other parts of my life?), and I need to do some serious purging and cleaning. I think I might actually make a schedule. This house is a disaster. Also, thinking that I am excited about a sewing day with the DC Modern Quilt Guild this weekend! We meet monthly, and it's been several months since I've been able to attend a meeting, and I am looking forward to seeing the girls and some inspiration, and also, work on a baby quilt for my sweet friend Christine's new little baby Ada!

Smelling:  Not a lot at all. I have an awful, awful cold and can't smell a thing at the moment!

Wishing:  For a vacation. I spent most of last week in Las Vegas for a wedding, which was spectacular, and worthy of an entire post or two, but I can't be the only one who often needs a vacation from vacation! We took a red-eye back Saturday night, and I was miserable for the second half of it - my ears were going crazy during the descent, and hurt so, so much, and I spent most of Sunday in bed because I felt so awful! I've been a bit jet-lagged since. So, another vacation is in need, I think!

Laughing: At the fact that this "Private Investigator" took Kim K along on both a ride-along and to talk to "clients." Really? That is allowed?! Please.

Wearing: Yoga pants. I pretty much change into them as soon as I get home from work. Ahhh, cozies. Perfection.

Loving:  The previews for the new Tine Fey/Paul Rudd movie Admission. It looks really funny! The line "Mom?" "Who is it?" "Who else calls you Mom?" gets me every time! I want to see it!

Wanting: A pair of mint green jeans. I know, I know, I'm totally late to that party, but I've just decided that I can't live much longer without a pair.

Needing:  A new job. Like crazy. 'Nuff said.

Feeling: Like I really need to get back to going to yoga regularly. I was good for a while, and then got out of habit of going. This cycle repeats itself all the time, and I need to change this! Also, I want to try barre classes. I took a spin class a few months ago, but it really bothered my knee, but I've heard the barre classes can be good.

Clicking:  Too much pinterest, of course.

That's my week! What does yours look like?

would you eat these?

I saw these snack-sized bags at CVS last week. I almost bought all three, but didn't. I tend to like weird flavored chips, I will admit, but I'm not too sure about these!  

Have you tried any of them? Were they good? What is the weirdest chip flavor you've ever had? What did you think? 

this sort of afternoon

 

 

 

Perfection.

- Posted using BlogPress from iLexi

a dogs life

I saw this on facebook this morning, and don't know its source, but I thought it was too sweet not to share with you! If you know the source, feel free to let me know, so I can give proper credit!  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

WHY DOGS LIVE LESS THAN HUMAN ? 

ANSWER OF A 6 YEAR OLD 

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog’s owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn’t do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker ‘s family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker’s transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker’s Death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.

Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, ”I know why.”

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I’d never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try and live.

He said,”People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life — like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?” The Six-year-old continued,

”Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don’t have to stay as long.”

Live simply.

Love generously.

Care deeply.

Speak kindly.

Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:

When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.

Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.

Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy.

Take naps.

Stretch before rising.

Run, romp, and play daily.

Thrive on attention and let people touch you.

Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.

On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.

On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.

When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.

Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.

Be loyal.

Never pretend to be something you’re not.

If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.

When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.

ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY!

Please share

Sunday Social!

 

 

Since I have not blogged in weeks, I thought I'd post a little Sunday Social, to try to get me back into the swing of things!  

 

 

 

This Weeks Questions:

 

 

 

1. Biggest Middle school fashion mistake:

Oh gosh! I had these paisley stirrup pants in crazy colors, and I wore them with this giant oversized button-down shirt. Both were from Limited Too (remember that store!? does it still exist?) and I thought they were the coolest ever. Pretty sure they weren't.  I also cut bangs in 8th grade, and that was just a bad idea.

 

 

 

2. Who were your best friends in high school?

Renee, Susan, Claudia and Stephanie.

3. What was a typical weekend like for you in high school?

Let's see...I baby-sat a lot, and had a job at the local health club. I also volunteered at a local thrift shop with Renee. I went to football and hockey games sometimes, that sort of things, hung out with friends. The usual.

 

 

4. Did you have any boyfriends/girlfriends? Tell us about that.

Not really, no. I really didn't date in high school.

 

 

 

5. Did you have any secret codes with your friends? Spill your secrets!

In middle school, my friend Erika and I made up a few words, haha. In high school, nothing really. We passed notes in classes, and between classes, and had silly jokes, but nothing that sticks out to me now, all these years later  ;)

 

 

I don't want to post any photos, as I don't want to post without friends permission, and most of them don't know about my blog!

hey! that's pintastic! confetti dotted wine glasses!

Several weeks ago, my friend Elizabeth came over one Saturday afternoon for a craft project. I saw this on pinterest, pinned it, and sent her the link immediately, declaring that we must do it that very weekend. Quite possibly my fastest pin made ever  ;)

These are confetti dotted wine glasses!  Pinned from here, original link here.  

That Saturday morning, we met at a DC mall that has a Bed, Bath and Beyond. We found a coupon for the stemless wine glasses, and with that, two boxes of four each were $10! Wooo! Elizabeth had bought the paint the weekend prior, from Michaels. We used Q-tips to do the dotting, and did little color themes for each, and they were so much fun to make!

We took a break for snacks. Snacks make everything better. I've been really into olive plates lately....so, green olives, black olives, mozzarella and mini gherkins! Oh, and cheese and smoked sausage, of course. 

The finished product! 

We forgot to buy the spray to coat them, but I bought some the next day. 

As you may notice, some of the dots are a bit smeared, but that just adds character, right?

These were so much fun to make, and now I can say that I made them myself if someone is over and asks me where I got my wine glasses  :)

Also, I'm linking up with AP's Hey! That's Pintastic today, so go have a look at some of the other fun things people are creating today!

Any crafts for you lately?

I'm a Julep Maven!

Have you heard about Julep yet? It's a monthly service along the lines of Birchbox, but it is all nail polish! Upon joining, you take a quiz to determine which type of maven you are, and then each month, you get a box of nail polishes perfect for you! 

After taking the quiz, it was determined that I am Classic with a Twist, which describes me pretty well, I'd say. My intro box was wrapped so nicely! 

Two colors, a cuticle cream, and some fun little pots of nail sparkle, for fun nights out!

Then my January box arrived, and I received three more colors (on the right), a spectacular hand and cuticle stick, and some fun hair bands. 

On the left are two other polishes, I bought them to send to my sister. 

I haven't mailed them yet...hope she isn't reading this right now  ;) 

This color is called Jodie. 

They're all girls names...I'm just waiting for them to have one called Lexi  ;)

I love this hand creme, it is just fabulous. It has a wonderful light scent, and is not thick and sticky, like some hand cremes can be. I keep it next to my bed, as part of my nightly routine! 

If you're a nail polish fan, I suggest you consider joining Julep and becoming a maven! I just got an email saying that my February box has shipped, so I can't wait to see what they have in store for me this month! They do all sorts of specials, sales and such. Another friend who has been a maven for several months mentioned that sometimes they have little packages where you can buy a necklace and a polish together, something like that! So, so fun.  

So, join! You'll love it!

Are you a fan of painting your nails?

Madrona Road mini quilt!

Over the weekend, I finished another sewing project! The DC Modern Quilt Guild is taking part in a project organized by the Modern Quilt Guild involving a new line of fabric called Madrona Road by a designer called Michael Miller. Each Modern Quilt Guild across the country (and world!) was sent little bundles of this fabric, and each person wanting to take part could make whatever they wanted, as long as they used just this fabric, and no other, other than adding solids if needed. No patterns by any other designer.


Of course I wanted to take part, but I didn't know what to make....I get intimidated at times like this, but pressure is good sometimes, right? So, I decided to make a bookshelf mini quilt, as found here. I've done this one before, and I just love it!  

My little bundle of fabrics:

The quilt top, finished: 

 

 

Finally, finished! It's small, but I love it.

 

 

So, it will hang on the wall in my sewing room, I think. 

 

 

It was definitely fun to take part in this challenge.

 

 

Thank you to Michael Miller for donating these fabrics to the Modern Quilt Guilds!

 

 

 



 

baby quilt finished!

Here is a baby quilt I finished recently, but never posted a photo of! I made this for my friend Mallorie's son Connor, who is such a doll. He'll be a year in April! 

This fabric is called Reunion by Sweetwater for Moda and I just love it! Of course, I am a slow quilter, so Connor finally received it in November, but better late than never, right? :)  I have photo of Mal, Connor and I with it, but I don't want to post that, as I don't think it is right to post photos of children without permission from their parents!

I have several other baby quilts to work on too....one for my friend Stephanie's little Grace, one for Christine's baby girl-to-be (due next month!), and one for Heidi's baby boy-to-be (due in March!). Also, Steve's sister Heather is expecting a boy next summer, so I need to figure out what to do for her too! Grace's quilt is in the works, Heidi's fabric is picked out, but that is it with these so far! I need to get moving....

I think I need to figure out how I can be a stay-at-home quilter  ;)

eeek! a Bellevue Newport giveaway!!!

 

 

Good morning Sunshine! I have a giveaway for you today!

 

 

Have you heard about Bellevue Newport yet? It's a fashion jewelry flashsale via facebook auctions! Monday and Wednesday evenings, beginning at 8pm, EST.

It's so much fun- they will post the picture, description, quantity and price of the item. To bid on the item, you comment on the picture with "SOLD" and your email address.

 

They send an invoice via paypal and payment is due within 24 hours.

Payment is done via paypal only. Shipping is ALWAYS free! 

 

 

These are a few of the goodies I've picked up, all under $20!

Glam earrings (they also come in green!).

Both bracelets, though two different times!

 



Starfish bangle (center) in turquoise with the bow bracelet, also in turquoise.

 

On the far right is a hair tie from Scarlet Threads new Wired {He}arts collection ;)

 

 

Serpeant bracelet!

 

My sister has this one too, so she and I are twinsies!

 

Sometimes there are even crazy sales!

 

 

How to buy:

Bellevue Newport was so kind to offer us a giveaway! These new monogram necklaces come in your choice of navy blue or hot pink, and also a choice of script or block.

 

 

Aren't they terrific?!

 

 

Here's how to enter:

 

 

 

 



a Rafflecopter giveaway

vodka l'orange?

Errr, just the best idea ever! Why didn't I ever think of this!?

Upside Down Orange:

1 large orange 1 small bottle vodka

Remove top stem part of the orange.

With a knife, gently poke insides of the orange to open up the pulps.

Open vodka bottle and insert into the hole.

Rest orange in a small bowl, vodka bottle side up.

Put in the chiller. Wait for 6-8 hours.

When orange has absorbed vodka, remove bottle.

Slice into wedges and enjoy.

Perfect for concerts/drive in movies/football games

Via pinterest, of course. I'm so creative these days, eh?  ;)



nail polish love. again.

In the past year or so, I've been really into nail polish and painting my nails. This must be from birchbox (are you a member? $10 a month and a box filled with beauty samples!) because they've sent several nail polishes over the months. So, in turn, I've been painting my nails, and keeping them painted most of the time! I do try to let my nails go natural for a day or two between colors...that seems like a good idea, right?

Well, thanks to MMS who let me know about a fabulous deal from Zoya, I am now adding a color called LEXI to my collection. It's my name, I had to have it! Look how pretty it is!

 Also! Right now, get THREE Zoya polishes for $10 shipped with code ZOYA2013!!!!


I ordered Lexi, of course, and two others that I won't mention yet, because they are for my sister, and she occasionally reads this  ;)


Also, I recently joined Julep, which is similar to birchbox, but just nail polish! I received my first shipment yesterday, so I will post about that later. 



Do you paint your nails much these days? What are your favorite colors?

hey! that's pin-tastic! garlic pull-apart bread.

As you know, I am very often posting about things I've seen on pinterest, and today I decided to link up with AP's Hey! That's Pin-tastic! I thought this might be fun! I love reading AP's blog, though I don't seem to comment there as often as I should!  If you don't read her blog, you should - her boys are just the cutest. For real. 

One night last week (New Years Eve, in fact), Steve and I roasted a chicken for dinner- one of my favorite meals. He had to work during the day, but I was off, and spent some time on pinterest, natch. I found this recipe for garlic pull-apart bread, and it sounded like the perfect thing to go along with the chicken! 

It wasn't a terribly difficult recipe, though I'd make a few tweaks, I think. Here's the original:

Ingredients:

1 can of refrigerated Grands biscuits (not the flaky layers)
1/2 stick of butter
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp Italian Seasoning 

Instructions:

1-  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Throw the cold stick of butter in a bundt pan and let it melt in the preheating oven.

2- While the butter melts, cut the Grands biscuits into quarters. In a bowl, toss the biscuit pieces, garlic, Italian Seasoning, and Parmesan cheese together.

3- Once the butter is melted, add the biscuit mixture, sprinkling with any cheese and garlic that gets let behind in the bowl.

4- Bake at 350 degrees for 20- 22 minutes until golden brown. Turn out on a dish and enjoy!

My notes:

I might use less than a full stick of butter next time. It was a lot. 

I didn't use the Italian seasoning either. Steve isn't hugely wild about it. 

Since I had a chicken in the oven, I couldn't melt the butter in the pan while preheating, so I melted it in the microwave. After the butter was melted, I used pre-minced garlic, as I realized I didn't have any full cloves in the house. For shame! Also, I was quite low on parmesan cheese....clearly I did not think this through carefully before I decided to make it! 

So I added the minced garlic and the parmesan cheese to the small bowl of melted butter and as I cut up the biscuits (and I DID use the flaky kind, despite the recipe saying not to!), and I'd "marinate" them in the mix for a few seconds before putting them into the pan. 

Most of the butter mix was soaked up to an extent, but the little bit that I had leftover, I poured over it afterwards. What I didn't realize, was that while baking, it would sink! So, when they came out, the bottom layer was somewhat sopping in butter, while the top layer was just about perfect! So, less butter would be ideal for the next time, I think. 

Before baking photo:

After baking photo: 

Overall, this was a great recipe, and so easy. You could also try other spices too, to switch things up. Maybe rosemary and thyme? I do love rosemary! Another cheese would be fun too. Maybe add some olives and feta, for a Greek take on this? 

How might you change this up?

the best gift

I must confess. I've been a bit out of sorts this Christmas season. At first, I blamed my sister's wedding...since that was Thanksgiving weekend, I never really had a chance to relax before it was suddenly December and I had to be ready for the holidays and all that come with it, but that really wasn't fair of me. I knew her wedding date all year, and of course the date of Christmas doesn't change...so I had plenty of time to prepare. I just didn't.

 

 

So, by saying I've been a bit overwhelmed this month would be an understatement. 

 

 

 

We were in Iowa this year with Steve's family, meaning this was the first year that I wasn't with mine. More on that later.

 

 

 

After my sister's wedding (which I never blogged about, did I?), I had an extra day at home in NH, to relax. There is an antique shop downtown that I love, and try to pop into each time I am home. Steve and I went in Sunday afternoon. I spotted these, and my heart stopped-

 

Chiko and Elena.

 

 



 

My grandmother has a set of these prints on her wall, and has had them forever. She and my grandfather received them as a wedding gift more than 60 years ago. Apparently in the 40's, these were very fashionable, and the "in" thing to have. She has always loved them. In their house, they hung at the bottom of the staircase, and as a little girl, my mother would sit on the bottom of the stairs and talk to them.

 

 

A few years ago, my mother found a set at an antique shop and bought them for herself, and my aunt has a set as well. When I saw them, I think they were marked $12 each. I took this photo, but never bought them. A few days later, I saw the photo again, and wished that I had bought them. I tweeted and instagrammed about them too, and people said to call the store and see if they were still there. I emailed my mother and asked her to stop by and grab them for me. She replied saying that she went to look, but they were gone. Sadface.

 

 

 

This afternoon, after spending the day in yoga pants watching a Law and Order: SVU marathon (Steve and I got back at 2am last night!), we opened a few gifts that my parents sent to us. In doing so, I found this-

 

 

 

Chiko and Elena!

Yes, the very ones. As it turned out, my mother went down to that antique shop the very next day to get them for me, and I couldn't be happier about it.

Now I just need to find the perfect place for them to live in the house!

What was your best gift this year?


Hope you had a most happy Christmas and New Years!