my dad :)

well, it's Father's Day and I would like to tell the blog world what an amazing Dad I have. I said on facebook earlier, my dad is a man of few words, but a man who's actions have ALWAYS spoken louder than words. Now that I'm older, my dad actually tells me more advice, but when I was younger, he never had to say a word. Of course, he did, but more than anything, his actions have always, always shown the kind of man that he is. If my Dad were a mute ... everyone who knew him would still know these things about him:

He would give the shirt off his back to a stranger. He'll go out of his way to root for the underdog in any situation, be it sports, work, etc. He would not hurt a fly. He's sensitive, compassionate, loyal, and reserved. He's firm in his beliefs and doesn't waiver to please the crowd. He's the least argumentative person I know. He loves animals. He's calm and mild mannered. He's not afraid to cry. His family means more to him than anything else. He is proud of me. He loves The Lord. He is a man of integrity. He's my dad, and he's my hero.

I'll always be his little girl!

a musician's wife :)

i think most of you know, but i am married to a jack-of-all-trades kind of man :) i have a husband who beat michael phelps in swimming when he was 9 years old (and was ranked like 3rd in the US when he was that age, in swimming), started computer programming when he was 13, played Tennis, Track, Swimming, Football, Basketball, and threw discus in high school... haha.., played in a band in high school and WYFF news 4 did a story about him called "Music Mann" (he went to JL Mann high school) about his athleticism and musical ablilities, went to UNC to play Division I football for college, trasferred to Clemson, double majored in Computer Science and Math, paid his way through college playing music in bars, and now designs video games. There isnt much he CANT do. He's even become quite the handy man and gardener :) Also, he is amazing at guitar hero and all video games (had to throw that in there for him).

Anyway, out of all of his talents, I love the musician in him most, although his singing gets annoying when I'm trying to watch a show or talk on the phone and he's in the background singing "IN THE JUNGLE THE MIGHTY JUNGLE THE LION SLEEPS TONIIIIIIIIIIGHT" (in the high pitched voice, dont worry) he sings. ALL. the. time. He goes to the bathroom and after being in there for 10 minutes I hear "i'll get ovvvvvvver you.. i know i will... ill pretend my ships not siiiiiiiiiiinkinn!" playing the guitar on the commode, a class act. It's very endearing though.

Tonight I got home from dinner at Sarah's and watched some TV with Jordy. When she left, I came upstairs to get ready for bed and noticed the light in the guest room was on. We never go in there. I opened the door and here's what I saw...










































after i got over the dismay of seeing all that dirty equipment on my NEW WHITE quilt...i smiled and realized my little musician had set-up-shop in the guest room tonight to record some music. then he exclaimed "yeahh! i recorded some songs! i got out of my funk!" (he hasnt recorded much music lately). then proudly gave me his new creation, on a cd, and said "go yisten!" ("listen" for those of you who don't know that we turn all "L's" we say into "Y's")

i won't go on raving all day, but I am very proud to call him my husband! he's so talented .. and i love him! and want to share with you all this random little song he recorded on a whim tonight :)



happy tuesday :)

-B

thoughts

i've been posting a lot of "things" lately, but nothing about whats going on in our lives. not that anything major has happened, but i really like writing about things we've done this past week, etc., so i can look back on the memories in the future.

Some recent happenings:

-Matt is almost done with P90X. He has done SO WELL with it and I'm so proud of him! He looks great!! He's lost 35lbs so far!
- I am done planning Bachelorette Weekend, we're going on Friday, I'm so excited!
- Annie is getting fatter, we need to take her to the vet, asap, and put her on diet food! she's still as cute as ever though :)
- Our house is as messy as it's ever been. I've not had a job since we've lived in it, and now that I do, I'm learning how to handle cleaning, cooking, working, etc. all at once :) what a multitasker im going to become!! (never as good as my mom though)
- I'm so ready to get off all these medicines. I go back to my doctor the last week of June and I am going to ask him if I have any other options. I don't want to get off of them and my condition come right back, but I just would rather be clean of everything!
- I haven't cooked a GOOD meal in a long time. I really need to get crackin'
- My brother & sister just finished their sophomore year in college. Crazy!!!
- I'm helping Dad sell his house right now... anyone looking to buy in Easley?? :)
- It's full blown wedding season!! We've been to a bunch and have a bunch to go, I love it!!!!
- I discovered Ben & Jerry's Cake Batter ice cream and I shouldn't have!
- I've gained 6 lbs since February. I know I got smaller than ever while I was sick and needed to gain a couple back, but not 6!! Gotta start working out again..bleh.
- I really really realllllllllllly miss Callie, my best friend in Australia, and wish she could move back :) orrr at least come visit!
- I have such a summer bug that I'd be happy to live in a shack at the beach forever. Ok, maybe not forever but we got a small taste (about 4 hrs) of the beach, last weekend in Wilmington, for Matt's cousin's wedding, and it was SO AWESOME. I love the beach. And it makes me sad bc my family doesn't really, they are more "lake people." And matt doesnt like the sun bc he burns easily. I could stay there all day with a cooler of sandwiches and michelob ultra, come in and take a nap, wake up and go eat crab legs at a rustic little beachfront restaurant, go home and play cards or do a puzzle, ahhhhh!! When I "grow up" I want to be a millionaire and have a beach house that we live at during the summers. In Pawley's Island or Isle of Palms or Destin. thanks.

that's all for now :) here's a picture from the wedding last weekend ... hope everyone has a great week!

-B

did you know?

i collect perfume. if you ever want to get me a present. get me perfume. i dont care if it smells good or not. as long as it's unique... bottle, scent, packaging, color. whatever. i want it. i rarely ever by it for myself, unless it is on the 19.99 shelf at tj maxx and i've been dying for it. here is a list of all the perfumes i have ... in no particular order, ill leave a little tidbit of info about each one.

"MY PLACE OR YOURS GINA" by Benefit


















"Her scent is an alluring affair of pink pepper and wild raspberry, resulting in a woody-oriental scent that is enticing and smoldering." I posted this in my favorite things beauty blog. I spray it on whenever I want to feel "sexy," not pretty. it's hot. :) jordan gave to me this past christmas!!


"MIRACLE" by Lancome


















Modern. Sophisticated. Light-filled. Serene. The zest of brilliant freesia, peppered with ginger. The splendor of magnolias, serenely balanced by warm, amber notes. My best pal, Emily, wore this in 10th grade and I was obsessed with it. For some reason, I always wear this perfume when I wear the color "pink." It's very girly, and pretty.


"AMAZING GRACE" by Philosophy















amazing grace is philosophy's best-selling spray fragrance for women. it was created to make a woman smell amazingly clean and beautifully feminine. amazing grace spray. My "everyday" spray. Couldn't get more compliments on smelling good!


"INNER GRACE" by Philosophy














philosophy's sophisticated, soft, delicate scent of inner grace was created to help calm your senses and serve as a mini-meditation. My "wedding day" perfume. enough said. so etheral!


"DIAMONDS" by Georgio Armani















The fragrance is categorized as a gourmand floral, featuring top notes of lychee and raspberry; middle notes of rose, freesia and lily of the valley, and a base of vetiver, cedar wood, patchouli and vanilla. This was on my Christmas list two years ago because I loved the bottle, I really like the scent though. I wear it most when I am wearing white. haha, i am a color coordinator i guess. Appropriately, i got it while shopping on our honeymoon :)


"VERY IRRESISTABLE" by Givenchy














A red carpet of rose petals illuminated by star anise and the sparkle of verbena and red berries. Elegant. Spontaneous. Irresistible. So, i can't find this anywhere, it got lost somewhere in the move, but i love this one. call me old fashioned, but i love anything with "rose."


"VIVA LA JUICY" by Juicy Couture


















Wild berries and Juicy mandarin. Honey suckle, Gardenia and Jasmine. Amber, caramel, vanilla, sandalwood and praline. Matt's favorite...and i guess all guys like it because my brother gave it to me for Christmas, and everytime I wear it I get compliments :)

"FLOWER" by Kenzo

















Flower is a contemporary fragrance for the modern, city woman who looks to nature for inspiration and renewal. A flower in the city. Wild hawthorne, bulgarian rose, parma violet, cassia, hedione, cyclosal, opoponax, white musk, vanilla. I love this because it is so different from anything you've ever smelled. So different in fact, that a lot of my friends say it smells like play-doh. but i love it :)



"Be Delicious" by DKNY


















cucumber, white muguet, violet, magnolia, apple, grapefruit, tuberose, woods, rose. I got this for christmas during college because i thought the bottle was cool. It's actually one of matt's favorites, but it's a little too "earthy" for me. I don't wear it that much. but it's pretty to look at.


"LIGHT BLUE" by Dolce & Gabbana














The fragrance opens on a fresh and gourmet note of sicily cedar, granny smith apple and bluebells. The middle note is a bouquet of jasmine, bamboo and white rose. The end note reveals hints of cedarwood, amber and musk. "the college craze!" everyone had it, i still love it in summer. fresh and light!

"STELLA" by Stella McCartney














The scent tries to capture the smell, beauty and fragility of a rose at full bloom. The rose essence creates a romantic scent mixed with a sexy base of amber. The subtle and elegant perfume comes in a vintage inspired amethyst crystal bottle. This is my go-to winter fragrance. It is so velvety, and bold! I LOVE Stella. It's the first perfume I cried over not being able to get right away... when I was 20. haha.

"ROCK 'N ROSE" by Valentino













possesses a blend of Bergamot, muget, blackcurrant, orange blossom, rose, gardenia, vanilla musk, heliotrope, orris, and sandalwood. Is is any surprise that I love this one? It's the only "expensive" perfume I've ever bought for myself. It was love at first sight, sniff, etc. I had to have it. It's "rose" and its a really pretty bottle. love it!


"L.A.M.B." by Gwen Stefani


















with notes like "sparkling green freshness" and "leafy water hyacinth" with additional notes of freesia, pear, violet leaves, jasmine, rose, lily of the valley, sweet pea, orange blossom, frangipani blossom, peach skin, heliotrope and musk. ok, i realize this one is a little, harsh. but i found it at tj maxx, in college, for $20 when it retailed for $75 and got it without smelling it. it smells AMAZING though. another one that was lost in the move, i need to find it!


BURBERRY BRIT by Burberry









Burberry perfume for women is a fresh and citrusy floriental scent with a timeless feminine aroma. Green apple, blackcurrant, marigold and bergamot over woods, musk and vanilla present a classic blend for everyday wear, inspired by the culture of London.ahhh, the first one with no ROSE! :) haha love this. my aunt gave to me for christmas, several years ago.


GHOST


















Rose Petal, Ambrette Seed, White Flowers, Jasmine, Sandalwood, Incense, Vanilla, Musk, Amber, Apricot . The grandaddy of them all. Anyone who has known me for a while knows of my love for Ghost. When I was 13, I went on a cruise around Europe with my grandparents and got this pefume somewhere in France. It is literally heaven in a bottle. So much so that I wouldn't tell you about it if I thought you'd be able to find it at your local perfumania or belks. In high school, I ran out of that bottle from France, and begged EVERY SINGLE one of my friends to get me another for my birthday. Literally, I probably had 15 girls searching online and high and low for one bottle, to no avail. Finally, at the beach junior year of college, I found a long lost bottle at an outlet in Destin, FL. I could hear the angels singing as the clouds parted above me, right as my credit card made the purchase!!! Sadly... only 6 DAYS before my wedding, I was brushing my teeth and knocked the bottle onto the tile floor in the bathroom and it shattered. OH THE PAIN!!!!!!!!!!! Luckily, the internet has expanded so much, that I can find it online now, and *hopefully* have a bottle heading my way from matt for my birthday this year :) ah-ma-zing.

some other favorites that I don't own but LOVE are: "Maybe Baby" by Benefit, "Daisy" by Marc Jacobs, "CLEAN," "Magnetism" by Escada, "Amor Amor," "Nina Ricci," "Rose The One" by Dolce & Gabbana,

as you can see, i have an extensive collection of perfumes! i love them all and any donations/gifts are welcome :) also any recommendations you have!! what do you wear?? i'd love to stop by the counter at Belk's and give it a whif!

-B