Birthdays Past & Present!

It's My BIRTHDAY!!!!!

OK, so in celebration of this year's birthday, I'm going to take a look back at one of my favorite birthdays ever!

My 27th!

Spent in Austria (on our way to Croatia)...Mr. Marine had just returned from deployment and life was amazing!!!!

We rented a Vespa and sped around town, had near-death experiences, saw gorgeous scenery and laughed until we cried! 

Ate amazing food and drank even better wine! 

Sidenote: On my 29th, I can no longer wear that dress...not a good sign!

Ahhhh, drinking beer in the crisp Austrian air after climbing a bazillion stairs to get to the top of this mountain...errrr hill!

Now, for the hard to swallow 29th birthday we are heading to Kentucky for some bluegrass, some bourbon tasting, some shopping and a Sunday breakfast at The Downs!

Have a good weekend y'all!!!!!

Birthday Weekend O' Friends

I have been an awful blogger lately, and to be honest, I'm not sure it's going to get any better in the next few weeks! However, I wanted to at least show y'all what Mr. Marine did for me for my "Birthday Weekend with Friends."

Mr. Marine is a fabulous cook and we love to entertain, drink wine and enjoy good friendships. So for this particular celebration, we combined all the above! We had two couples over for a wine tasting experience...each couple brought a dish coupled with a complementing wine!

The Festive Fall Table

Mr. Marine's Famous Caesar Salad in a Parmesan Bowl

Mr. Marine's Duck with Soy Buerre Blanc and Wasabi Mashed Potatoes

Mr. Marine's Fried Georgia Peach Pound Cake with Carmel Bourbon Sauce and Candied Pecans

Note: I did not get pics of Maggie and Liz's dishes. They were the first 2 courses, and quite frankly I was too busy stuffing my face at that point!

After drinking too much wine, we headed to our neighborhood bar for some birthday drinks. 

Justin, head bartender, gave us some celebratory shots that tasted like milkshakes!

Outside the bar before we all headed home

Let's just say, none of us girls were feeling well the next day. Maggie and I of course had to be up early for a JL event. Not good. I had planned to take pictures of everyone that day, but I was so busy trying to hold my cookies down that the camera never made an appearance!

But by the evening, we were feeling better and we were heading off to a Blues hockey game! The Marines gave Mr. Marine some free tickets on the lower level so we were excited to go to our first professional hockey game as a couple!

Maggie and I outside the stadium! (This was such the weekend of Maggie and I)

So fun!

Sunday, I headed off to Market in Chicago to do some buying for the boutique....That post is for another day!

I know you are out there BCBG dress...I'm stalking you!

I have the attention span of a gnat. Actually, it might be less than that because those little gnats can be quite persistent in their quest to annoy me. 

Okay, I have the attention span of a 5 year old. No offense to those with kids of that age, but they drive me bonkers with their eternal need to change what occupies them every five minutes. Just color until the entire book is a gorgeous plethora of color. Why can't you play tag for 3 consecutive hours, or at least until your mommy and I are done having wine and chatting like you aren't there? I digress...

Back to my attention span (told you it was that of a child)... I am waiting for my Ball dress from Nordstrom. I have stalked this BCBG beauty along its route...Nordstrom, Springfield, Earth City...I know you are out on that truck and you better get here now!

The UPS man and I are great friends. After all, he brings me all my favorite things (unlike the mail man who brings me bills) so we are quite close. My lab even likes him, probably because he senses his momma's excitement every time this man dressed in brown comes around. However, Mr. UPS Man, with one turn of my attitude this vicious, slobbering, treat-desiring, trick expert Labrador retriever will attack. So it is in your best interest to bring me that dress immediately before he senses my irritation towards you...HURRY UP I TELL YOU!!!!!

Flashback Friday!

In honor of reunions, since once of my best friends just got her fiance back, I am going to post a pic from Mr. Marine's homecoming. Only those who have experienced it will know the true emotion captured in this photo... Tunnel vision, world stopped turning, and a feeling that my heart was going to leap from my chest! 

I don't have children, but women who do swear you forget the pain when you hold your baby for the first time...Well, when Mr. Marine held me in his arms it made all the sleepless nights, all the tears, all the worry fade away (Don't worry, those emotions came back when he talked about deploying again less than 9 months later) But what I felt in this moment is something that still gives me butterflies...

As a "Welcome Home" gift I got my chef of a husband the ultimate "Mr. Marine gift." We went to a fabulous restaurant in Raleigh, sat at the Chef's Table (in the middle of the kitchen) and got served a special menu by the chef himself, complete with wine pairings. Of course, Mr. Marine was in heaven telling me all about what the people were doing in the kitchen, the stations, etc...Oh, and when he discovered that restaurant uses the same knives he has, his eyes lit up like a 5 year old on Christmas morning! Actually, he was probably thinking, "I told you our knife collection was the best...even if it does cost us the price of a small vehicle." 

 

(P.S. I am in love with this pic because I haven't been this skinny since that day! It is my motivation pic when I am not wanting to workout!)

Need Stain Removal Advice!

I just spilled coffee on my brand-spankin-new silk shirt.

I am pissed!

Please tell me how to get this out!

From now on, I will only drink from a straw when wearing nice clothes. I hate you coffee!

P.S. I can't do anything at the moment, so don't tell me to take it off and soak it...I'm at work and clients don't want to see what is under this shirt...trust me!

It's Like a Fraternity Formal...Except My Date Isn't Living in Filth and Eating Top Ramen!

I just ordered this beauty for the Marine Corps Ball...

Now, let's all collectively pray it both fits and looks good!

Another Glorious Weekend of College Football...Here We Come Tennessee

Another glorious weekend of college football is upon us! So, Mr. Marine and myself (along with our dog Riley) are heading to Knoxville, TN to see...

This adorable bundle of rolls...

Take on the obnoxious orange of this school...

Good News: We are going with a Marine buddy stationed out of San Diego, so it should be a very fun weekend! 

Bad News: The Dawgs are a bit inconsistent this year so it could be a victory or an embarrassment. 

Really Bad News: It is supposed to be raining THE WHOLE GAMEDAY!

Sex, Lies and High School Drama...

Am I officially old?

Let me start from the beginning...I am addicted to teenybopper TV. I loved Laguna Beach. I have never missed an episode of The Hills (but my girlfriend is Audrina's personal make-up artist...so I watch as much for that as anything). I watched 90210 growing up and was stoked to learn the new one was coming out, so now I am addicted to that. And even though it's not really teenybopper...I religiously DVR The City!

However, The Hills has been deleted from my DVR list. I watched the season premier but I was so turned off by Kristin and the drama that ensued that I turned it off. I cannot stand watching Heidi try and make Spencer "want" to have kids. She was just reported in Us Weekly as having said, she "needs a kid to mature Spencer." You both disgust me! I spent much of my life in LA going to school with child movie stars, celebrities' kids, trust fund babies, etc... and while many were snotty and felt rather entitled, many were the sweetest and most down to earth people I have ever known. So this show full of "wanna-be rich kids" is repulsive. But it never was before, so what gives?

This morning, before work, I was watching 90210. It is not nearly as good as the original, but things rarely are. But the fashions are fun to observe and in a sick way...I enjoy the show. However, today I caught myself thinking, "If I had high school or middle school kids, I would not let them watch this." I don't want my oneday kids to think sex in high school is ok, is normal or worse...is expected!

Now, my mom allowed me to watch 90210 and I didn't have sex in high school...heck, I didn't have sex until I was almost 21 and if I could take it back and wait I would because the guy was a total loser who dumped me 2 weeks later.

I am not naive in thinking I can shield my kid from all of the things that go on in the world. In fact, I think many kids that are protected end up worse than those who faced it and were equipped to handle it. But for the first time today, I saw this show from a mother's perspective and it was not what I had expected.

I know my 29th birthday is this month...is this a sign I am getting old?

Birth Control B!*@%

It's gonna get a little bit personal here ladies...but this is my blog so I'll do what I want!

I have been having a terrible time losing weight, so my GYN decided to try switching my birth control from Yasmin (which I was on for 3 years) to...

Since I have been on this Loestrin (all of 1.5 weeks) I have become an awful wife. I'm argumentative. I'm loving one minute and a standoffish beotch the next. I thought it might just be an adjustment period to a new pill but I called the doc today. 

I informed the nurse that I am "a horrible person since I began taking this pill." 

I'd rather be a bit plump than have the constant urge to punch Mr. Marine in the face. I knew it was bad when I told my mom today that I'd rather go home or rent a hotel room than be around him right now. Poor guy didn't do a damn thing to me!

Has a switch in birth control ever made any of you ladies become an angry mongrel? 

Fabulous Fall Weekend Recap!

I don't know about y'all but I am tuckered out ofter this weekend. 

Friday: Mr. Marine and I hosted the lovely Liz from Gangl*icious and her hubby for dinner! As usual, Mr. Marine cooked a fabulous meal of tenderloin with a Guinness sauce, mash potatoes, portobello and asparagus! Yum Yum! They brought infamous Walter who gave Riley a run for his money! They are so going to be doggie BFFs. After ganging up on our non-Texas husbands, we decided to just plan a trip together and make them see Texas through our eyes. I look at Texas real estate (even though I know the Marines have stuck me here) so it was nice to hear how Liz looks at jobs in Texas and then points out to her husband how great a job he could have in TX! We are so sneaky :) 

On a final note...I woke up with a raging headache, went downstairs Sat morning and realized we had enjoyed 11 beers, one bottle of vodka and 2 bottles of wine! But it was so much fun!

Saturday: I got up (with a massive headache) and headed off to go get pampered. I met Maggie from It Is Everlasting for a pedi and it was fabulous! I think I mentioned before, but she is also in my Junior League new member class so I will be seeing her again Tuesday! We both laughed because Mr. Marine gave me a hug before I left "in case he didn't see me again." He was convinced she was a he and he was going to kidnap me. Obviously, he wasn't too concerned since he sent me off on my way alone :)

Sunday: A fabulous fall day at the ballpark! My boss and her husband invited Mr. Marine and I to attend the final regular season game for the Cardinals. Well, Mr. Marine refused to miss his softball game so I had to take a stand-in date! We had a blast and my "date" caught a foul ball! Good thing he was a stand-in or he would have been obligated to give me that ball :)

[Oh Albert...you are one of a kind...except when you are beating my Astros]

[Oh, did I forget to mention we had first row seats...where I could also spy/drool over the guys in the dugout?]

[My boss and I have too much fun together..and this guy was just full of fashion pizzaz]

[These were our seats, right along the first base line...I touched the dirt but secretly wanted to touch the players...heehee]

Hope y'all have a fantastic week!

Fabulous Fall Weekend Ahead!

TGIF!

Weekend happenings that I am SO excited about:

1. Tonight, Mr. Marine and I are hosting a dinner for a fellow blogger and her husband. I knew I had to meet Gangl*icious when I read her "about me" section of her blog. When I read the words, "Texas girl trying to love St. Louis" I about fell out of my chair and screamed with joy at the same time! We had drinks a few weeks ago and now her and the hubs are coming over for dinner tonight.

2. Tomorrow, I am meeting up with another blogger from this area. It is Everlasting and I are going to get pedicures together on Saturday! We have been trying to get together forever and it never happens so we have a date to get our toes painted tomorrow...yay! Oh, did I mention she and I are in the same Junior League new member class? Double yay!

3. College Football: Need I say more? Ok, I will... Georgia plays LSU (Goooooooooooo Dawgs!) for one of the day games. Miami plays Oklahoma (Goooooooo 'Canes). I don't really care for Miami but I despise OU!

4. Sunday: Going to the final regular season Cardinals baseball game. My boss and her husband invited Mr. Marine and I but he refuses to miss a softball game for this league he is in. Stupid team always loses but that's another story! So, I am going with another Mr. Marine. Switching players is ok as long as they're on the same team, right? I joke, I joke!

5. Misc: Painting and cleaning...Ugh! Way to ruin a good weekend!