Britney Recap

Britney was AMAZING! Maria and I had so much fun. Maria said it was the best day of her life. LOL. I might have to agree with her. I really don't like concerts. There's only a few people I'd be interested in seeing and Britney is one them. So, Im thankful we were able to go.

Here we are before everything started
We enjoyed some skanky nachos before the concert.

The stage before the concert~ we arrived very early.

The Pussy Cat Dolls~ They were great.

The PCD have the best bodies

Before Britney performed there were various circus acts on stage,

followed by this video.

Nice Touch, Brit!

Here she comes!

Maria and I having fun in the suite

Happy Monday!

It is a very happy Monday for me because tonight is the Britney Spears concert. I read on another blog the Pussy Cat Dolls are opening for Brit. Love the Pussy Cat Dolls! A few years ago, I had the preacher at my church in my iTunes account. He’s really good and if I missed a Sunday I could catch his sermon on iTunes. Anyway, it cracked me up.... when I was scrolling through the “artist” section, it would say Pussy Cat Dolls and the next artist was Ronnie N, the preacher. Kinda funny to see them side by side in iTunes!

Here are my beautiful Britney tickets. They came in such a fancy folder! A few people asked how I got free tickets. I have a friend in Dallas and his father has suite tickets to every event at the Toyota Center in Houston. I was chatting with my BFF, Tiffany, about how bad I wanted to go. Tiffany asked our friend if there were any extra tickets (figuring his dad wouldn’t care much about seeing Brit) and within 2 days the tickets were Fed Ex-ed to my house and a free parking pass.

Tomorrow night 90210 is finally back. What’s with all the shows (Gossip Girl) taking long breaks during the season? Anyway, guess who’s coming back? Donna Martin! I’m not kidding, I own this t-shirt. I wore this t-shirt one day on my first mission trip to China. Nobody ask me what it meant. That night my roommate and I were getting ready for bed. I asked her, “Nancy, do you know what my shirt means?” She said, “I’ve wondered all day but just thought I was supposed to know so I didn’t ask.” Ha Ha. Maybe I’ll wear it tomorrow. :)

Last Thursday morning I got an urgent call from work. My co-worker was in Corpus Christi and he was very sick. He couldn't even leave his hotel room. Work needed me in Corpus as soon as possible. I was a little stressed, it's about 3.5 hours from Houston but I made it and I was able to finish his project. I found out what was wrong with my co-worker. Trust me, you don't want to know but he's doing much better.

Anyway, on the way home I decided to stop in San Antonio and visit my family. Friday night after dinner and a visit with my grandparents, my mom and I made Cherry Tassies. Yummm...

Cherry Tassies

1 1/4 cups butter, softened

2 1/4 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. vanilla

1 egg

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

48 red maraschino cherries with stems, drained

coarse sugar

Preheat oven to 350. In a large mixing bowl beat butter on medium to high for 30 seconds. Gradually beat in 1.5 cups of the powdered sugar, the baking powder, and salt. Beat in the vanilla and egg. Beat in as much of the flour as you can; stir in remaining flour.

Place remaining 3/4 powdered sugar in a shallow dish. Shape dough in 1-inch balls; roll in powdered sugar. Press each ball into the bottom and sides of a 1 3/4 inch muffin cup.

Place cherry, stem side up, in each cup. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until pastry is browned. Sprinkle with coarse sugar. Cool 5 minutes in pan. Carefully transfer to rack to cool completely.

Movie and Dinner

Wednesday night I saw Confession of a Shopaholic with Amy. I was disappointed. Did anyone else see it? What did you think? During the movie Amy was texting and I was checking my email; it was that bad. I received the email during the movie that I might get Britney tickets for Monday night. I did the happy dance; that was the best part of the movie.

After the movie and a quick stop at the candle shop, we had dinner at The Raven Grill. The weather was perfect so we decided to eat on the patio. After a while, I noticed a chicken walking around the patio. Yes, this is Texas but we were having dinner in the middle of the 4th largest city in the United States, not the sticks. I typically don't see farm animals (and thank goodness) strolling around restaurants. The waiter told us the chicken lived there along with another chicken friend. Kinda funny.

Don't forget to vote in my poll. Amy is trying to decide how to spell the name Chace or Chase. Which do you like best? So far, Chase is winning. Happy Friday!

Britney Spears=Love

OH. MY. GOSH. I can't believe it. I have free Britney Spears tickets for her Houston concert on Monday night. They're sky box seats and a free parking pass. I'm freaking out and I can't stop smiling. It pays to have friends in high places. :) Ha Ha. What ever will I wear?

Stationery Swap

I participated in the Stationery Swap hosted by Lou Lou in Lilly. My partner was Ms. Stacilyn from Shore Aesthetic. Monday the swap package arrived~always fun! I was so excited about the items Stacilyn sent me and I just read on her blog that she MADE everything! I'm so impressed. After reading Stacilynn's blog, I knew she was cute and classy. I had no idea she was so creative! Thank you so much, Stacilyn.

Hot Pink and Navy~ Packaged So Cute

Personalized Note cards and Matching Envelopes

"Hello There" Note Cards and Matching Envelopes

So Cute!

Love these Baking Labels for Homemade Treats

In small print each label says, "Made for you by Jill."

What a cute idea!

Spring Package and A Poll

As most of my readers know, I sponsor a baby at New Day Foster Home in China, Gracie. I got to meet Gracie last fall when I visited New Day. While I was there I also fell in love with a 4 year old little girl, Olivia. I wrote about Olivia and her story in this post.

Occasionally, I send packages to Gracie and Olivia. I usually don’t post what I send to them prior to shipping. New Day usually sends photos of the girls opening their packages and I like to post those photos. I love how happy they look!

I’ve been putting together a spring package for Gracie and Olivia, including some treats for their friends. I just had to share one of the items I found for Olivia. She’s such a little girly-girl and loves dresses. I found this dress and a matching baby doll dress at TJ Maxx. After a long hard search, I found a Chinese baby doll to wear the dress. Do y’all know how hard it is find Asian baby dolls? Not easy and not right! I just thought it was so cute; I hope she likes it.

I haven't posted in a few days because I’ve been really busy working on the baby shower I’m hosting the first weekend of April. My friend, Amy, is having twin boys. She is almost sure she wants to name the boys Parker and Chase. The problem is Amy and her husband can’t decide which spelling of Chase to use… Chase or Chace. I’ve added a poll to the sidebar of my blog. She would love it if you could vote for the spelling you like best. Thanks!

Don't Drink and Shop

Y'all know how much I love handwritten cards and letters, right? When I arrived home from New Orleans tonight, I had a card from my sister in the mailbox. It was a thank you note for her birthday gift. I gave Jenn a gift card to our favorite store and a Preppy Travel Mug from Monogram Chick. I have a Preppy Travel Mug and when Jenn visited me in January we filled the mug with Pinot Grigio and headed to the mall. That can be a bad combination. Remember girls, don't drink and shop!

After our fun shopping trip, Jenn was in love with my mug so I purchased her one for her birthday. My favorite part of her thank you note was, "I love the mug and I will be putting Pinot Grigio in it." So funny!

I'm not a coffee drinker but I use my Preppy Travel Mug all the time. It's perfect for cold water, diet coke, or Pinot Grigio! :) Everyone should have one!

Mom, Me, and Jenn... a long time ago

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Tonight I'm in New Orleans. My hotel is not humid and it's wonderful. I wish I stayed in hotels this fabulous every week. After I checked in, they informed me the parking was $30 per night. Ouch... I don't pay that much for parking in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Actually, my company is paying for it but still...

Tonight I met up with an old co-worker. We had a great dinner at this crepe restaurant. We also had great conversation about the "old days." It was a fun night. I'm sooo tired and I have a really long day tomorrow, working and back to Houston. Good Night!

Waffles

I've been craving waffles for the last month. After church a few Sundays ago, I went to brunch with a friend. I was so excited... I was going to order one waffle. The waiter came by to take our order and informed me they didn't have waffles that day. :(

The next week I was working in Albuquerque. The hotel had hot waffles every morning. I try to avoid a really big, fattening breakfast. Every morning I could smell them... yum. I decided I would have a waffle at the end of the week as a treat. The morning I checked out of the hotel, I went to the restaurant and guess what, they were out!

Since I've had such bad luck ordering waffles, I decided to make them at home this weekend. My sister bought me a Hello Kitty waffle maker a couple of years ago. Not only do the waffles taste good, they're cute!

I don't have a special recipe, I use the recipe on the Bisquick box.

I add a little vanilla flavoring to the batter.

Sorry for the blurry photo

Cute


Cute with Powdered Sugar

Real Women Wear Pearls

Last week I ordered a custom painted sign from My Flip Flopz for my front door. I was so excited when I returned home today~ my sign was waiting for me! I just love how it turned out. You must check the My Flip Flopz Etsy Store.... super cute! The best part is you can custom order a sign with your own sayings. What a cute gift idea!

Odd~n~Ends

Humid Hotel~




Tonight I'm staying in a hotel in a city that was affected by Hurricane Rita in 2005 and possibly Hurricane Ike last fall. My hotel room is HUMID. I went down stairs and ask the lady at the front desk, "Did this hotel suffer from hurricane damage?" She looked at me like I was crazy but I know I'm not! I can walk in any hotel room and instantly tell if the room has had hurricane damage. Lovely, huh? It's just one of the benefits of living in hurricane territory. The lady at the front desk informed me the hotel has never had hurricane damage. I'm pretty sure I drove by this hotel after Rita and noticed a huge blue tarp on the roof. Oh well... it's just one night. Next week I'll be working in Katrina territory. I hope my hotel room isn't funky!

You know you're from South Texas or Louisiana if you say the names Ike, Rita, and Katrina on a regular basis and you're not referring to a people.


Tagged~

I was tagged by The Preppy Principal .

Go to your pics on your computer
Choose the 6th folder and 6th picture in the folder
Tell who and what
Pick 6 people to do the same

Since my computer contracted a dirty virus in January and crashed, I don't have all my photos in folders. So, I went to my Kodak Gallery account and clicked on the 6th album from the top and the 6th photo. Here it is..

Danielle and Kate at the Los Angeles flea market in January. I'll tag anyone who would like to play along.




Sexy Award~

The little cutie, Julie, from Wearing Mascara gave me the Sexy Blogger Award. Seriously, I just love Julie. She's like my cyber little sis. Thanks, Julie!

This award is a little embarrassing. The rules are to list 5 sexy things about myself (or try to!) and pass it on to 5 sexy bloggers.

Hmmm... I'm uncomfortable.

1. My toes are painted a really cute color right now.
2. I can beat any guy in a sit-up contest. The last guy that challenged me got a hernia and had to have surgery. You know who you are!
3. I can make a mean shrimp etouffee.
4. I can't stop picking at my hair.
5. Do these sexy facts count???

Because this award is so funny and uncomfortable I'm going to pass it to...

Danielle, Andrea, Jessica, Amy S. (private blog), Midnight Macaroons, and jlc. Please don't be mad at me. :)

Kreative Award~

Jules from Chic and Pink gave me the Kreativ Blogger Award. Thanks, Jules!

The award rules: List 7 things that you love and then pass the award on to 7 bloggers that you love! Be sure to tag them and let them know that they have won. You can copy the picture of the award and paste it on your sideboard letting the whole world know...you are Kreativ!

I'm going to pass this award to everyone who turns off their word verification this week.

My "7 Loves" are... (not in order)

1. Medicated Chapstick. Today I purchased 4 new tubes... exciting!

2. Decorating. This afternoon I talked to my mom for 2 hours about decorating.

3. Diet Coke, especially the Route 44 Diet Coke from Sonic.

4. Church

5. Traveling, except humid hotel rooms

6. China

7. Dresses

My blog friend, Jill, recently told me about The Kreuer family. They are in the process of adopting their second daughter from China. The Kreuer's first daughter from China passed away; you can read their story here. The Kreuer's are hosting an auction to raise funds to bring their daughter home. Click here to enter. They are offering tons of great prizes, including a Canon Camera, valued at $799 and a blog makeover from The Design Girl

.

Eye Make-up Remover

I have blonde eyelashes and blonde eyebrows. I have to wear mascara and pencil in my eyebrows or I look really strange. :) I’m so picky about my eye make-up remover. Maybe it’s because it one of the few cleansing products the dermatologist lets me pick out. I have seborrheic dermatitis and need prescriptions for most facial cleansing products. My favorite eye make-up remover is Lancome! However, the Lancome eye make-up remover is a little expensive. So, I've been on the hunt.

A very good friend of mine sold Mary Kay. She sold me their eye make-up remover at cost. It works really well. Again, it’s cost a little more than I want to pay.

I recently discovered a new eye make-up remover that is more affordable and works really well. I love the Sonia Kashuk remover from Target and it’s only $9.99! It’s a little more than you might expect to pay for drug store eye make-up remover but it’s a lot cheaper than Lancome.

What brand of eye make-up remover do y'all use?

Weekend Update

I got so much accomplished this weekend and it feels good. Friday night I met with Maria to work on details for Amy’s baby shower scheduled for the first weekend in April. This isn’t going to be your typical baby shower because Amy isn’t your typical girl. I’m excited to plan something so different.

Saturday night we celebrated Amy’s birthday. We had dinner, Amy opened her presents, and we hung out on her sofa. I introduced Amy to Etsy. She is trying to find accessories for her nursery. She loved Etsy.

It was a warm weekend; spring has arrived. Unfortunately, spring won’t be in Houston for long. We have really looooooong summers. This weekend I was able to do some spring cleaning. I put away my electric blanket and floor heaters. I restocked my empty refrigerator with fruit, veggies, and diet coke. Have y’all tried the reusable grocery bags? My sister gave me these bags and I LOVE them. They hold more than the plastic bags and they’re easier to carry. I’ve been really bad about remembering to bring them into the store so I now keep them in the front seat of my car.

I'm not joking about the refrigerator being empty. Sad.

I try to do my major household shopping twice a year. You know the things we must have… Charmin toilet paper, detergent, fabric softener, cleaning products, paper towels, etc… This weekend I restocked everything and I’m hoping it will last until the fall. I also had to purchase a new power strip for my desk. This is what happened to the power strip I’ve been using. I noticed it a few weeks ago; I'm not sure how it happened but it can’t be good. I also booked my travel for next week and caught up on expense reports. Ahh... it feels good. Hope y'all had a good weekend.

I'm So Pathetic!

I sorta, kinda feel sad when the season ends on my favorite TV shows. This week we saw the last Bachelor, The Girls Next Door, and Top Chef (last week). I’m pathetic, I know. What will I ever do with this free time… read, workout? Ummm… boring.

However, I am excited about the new season of Celebrity Apprentice. No, it’s not as juicy as The Bachelor but it’s great! I’ve always loved this show… the business aspect and the drama. Last season my company was featured on The Celebrity Apprentice and will be again this season. I think the executives at my company forgot to call me to help with the judging process. It's okay, I'll forgive.

Although there are mixed reviews about him, I really like The Donald. He reminds me so much of my dad (in a business kind of way). If you’re reading this and you know my dad, you know exactly what I mean. Also, I love Ivanka! I think she’s great… classy, smart, independent, and strong. We should be friends, call me Ivanka.

I shouldn't admit this but I'm also excited about the new season of Keeping Up with the Kardashians and Greek on ABC Family (March 30th). What are your new favorite shows?

A New Blog, A Request, and An Award

New Blog~

Check out one of my new favorite blogs, New Day Foster Home. New Day is the Special Needs Foster Home I volunteered at last fall. I promise you'll love this blog and the wonderful things New Day is doing everyday to make the lives of orphans better. Don't forget to add their button to your blog.

A Request~

Many months ago my blog friend, Petunia in Paradise, requested that we disable the word verification in the comments section of our blogs. I didn't even know that my word verification was on and quickly disabled it. Since then I haven't had any problems with spam (knock on wood).

I'm asking the same thing today. Will you please disable your word verification? I love getting comments and try to leave as many comments as I can but the word verification can be annoying, especially when it doesn't work. Lately, I've had problems leaving many bloggers comments becasue the letters don't appear in the verification box. When this happens I've tried to refresh, enter the wrong letters so the right letters will appear, etc... Sometimes the tricks work and sometimes they don't. Pretty Please!

An Award~

My friend Andrea gave me The Cute's Award! Thanks, Andrea. If you don't know Andrea, check out her blog. She always has great recipes, craft ideas, and she's really funny. I'm going to pass the award to everyone who disables their word verification. :)

Jason on the Jimmy Kimmel Show

I agree with everyone… Jason was a total jerk on Monday night. Poor Melissa and how humiliating for her! Does anyone think Molly and Jason will actually get married and live happily ever after?

Last night I couldn’t fall asleep (another week in a hotel). As I was tossing and turning in bed, I watched the Jimmy Kimmel Show. Jason was a guest on the JK Show and tried to explain his hideous actions. Last night was my first time to watch the JK Show. I must tell you, it was hilarious! JK completely busted on Jason.

My favorite JK quotes…

“Do you have the numbers of the other contestants in case you change your mind again?”

“Is there any chance you will dump him (his son, Ty) and replace him with a blonde child?”

So funny! Check out Jimmy’s reaction when Jason tells JK he believes him and Melissa will be friends someday. Huh???

P*ttery Barn "Smelly" Rug

In 2003 I purchased a 5x8 wool rug from P*ttery Barn. On the same day, I purchased a coffee table, side table, console table, a throw, and pillows. I loved my new living room! However, on occasion I would notice a slight burnt rubber smell in my living room. I had no idea where the smell was coming from. I narrowed the smell down to a certain area of the room; it was the area where most of the new furniture was located.

One day I had enough! I was determined to find the source of the burnt rubber smell. I got on the floor and sniffed the rug; there it was on my cute P*ttery Barn rug. Since I only noticed the smell on occasion (maybe once a month or so) and I loved the rug, I decided to deal with it.



In 2005 I moved to the apartment I’m living in now. The new apartment has wood floors and it can get really hot in the summer, especially when I’m traveling and turn off the AC. Anyway, the burnt rubber smell has emerged stronger than ever! It’s really bad and I’m going to have to do something about it.

I’ve Googled “P*ttery Barn Rug Burnt Rubber Smell” and tons of websites appear. Apparently, I’m not the only person with this problem. I’ve thought about contacting PB but I purchased the rug six years ago, it’s used, and I don’t have the receipt.

I’m frustrated because the rug wasn’t cheap. Any ideas? Has anyone else experienced something similar with a wool rug?

I have spent too much time on the internet trying to determine a way to fix the problem. One thing I’ve learned is if you purchase a wool rug from PB smell the back of the rug before you buy it. I’m not joking, y’all. If it smells slightly burnt, don’t buy it. The problem doesn’t get better; it gets worse!