A Week in Review: Winery Tour

Oh, the first week back from a wonderful, long weekend. It’s tough. It’s exhausting. It kinda sorta blows, right?

Oh, and to add another layer to the fun, it is the first week of the New Year. This means you have to go back to work and be productive AND you have to hold yourself accountable to all your overly ambitious New Year’s resolutions. Here’s how I fared:

Bikram Yoga Classes Attended: 4

I’m not saying I’ll be able to keep this up all year, especially when Ray comes to visit, but I refuse to screw up this resolution on the first week. So much so that I overslept, missed my 6AM class, and then went to a class after work.

Times I Ate Out: 7.5

I know. Not good. BUT, if it helps my case, Ray was in town until Tuesday morning and that accounts for 3 of those meals. The .5 is because my boss paid for lunch for everyone so I couldn’t resist, even though it was fast food.

Blogs Written:

New Year's Eve 2011: A Theory and a Dip

Five Songs That are Kinda Good Again

Here's how the rest of the week went:

• As mentioned above, Ray left on Tuesday morning. Ray was supposed to leave on Monday afternoon, but because of a intercom malfunction everyone got bumped to another flight, which gave us another night together. 

• I have developed a new fiery love. Of peanut butter and apples. So freakin' good that I don't even care that I'm about 20 years late on this. 

• I only have about 60 pages left in The Hunger Games. It’s soo good I can’t stand it.

• The guys at the dealership informed me that I had a nail in not one, but two tires. Strangely enough, it’s not the tire that consistently looks low to me. Either way, I’m out some dinero.

• I spent Friday night at home, alone. I fell asleep on my couch watching Hulu at 9:30PM. It was glorious.

On Saturday, Eddie and I went on a winery tour. Unsurprisingly, it turned out to be an absurd, drunken time. Surprisingly, we met all kinds of women who gave us their business cards and asked us to get in touch with them for this, that, and the other.

And in accordance with another resolution of mine, I took tons of pictures, making good on another resolution. Here are some gems. If you look closely, you can see the intoxication level rising.

We were born this way.

P.S. Our winery tour included this impulse buy. Best. Impulse. Buy. Ever.

Five Songs That Are Kinda Good Again

The relationship that we have with Top 40 music is a never-ending cycle. It looks something like this:

- Top 40 finds a song for us.
- Top 40 plays it just enough for us so that we fall in love with the song.
- Top 40 sees our love as an invitation to play the song every 17 seconds.
- We begin to scream at our radio whenever we hear the first two notes of the song because it comes on every time we're in the car. Literally. Every. Time.
- Repeat with another song. And another. And another. Anddd another.

But, every once in a while, Top 40 radio is smart enough to know that they should stop playing the song, let us breathe for a while, and then they reintroduce it to us so we can love it again.

Guess what, guys? I have another list for you ...

Five Songs That Are Kinda Good Again

1. La Roux - Bulletproof 

Remember how catchy and techno-y this song was? Remember how we used to drive in our cars and belt out "This time baby, I'll beeeeee bullllllllletproof." Those days were fun. I miss those days. Come on Top 40. Please play THIS instead of LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem." 

2. Cee Lo Green - Forget You 

Such a good song. It kinda sounded like an old Motown-y hit, but it was a cool, new song, tailor-made for our generation. And, it gave us an excuse to sing expletives, which is always fun. When it came out, I couldn't get enough. But, eventually I got enough and had to switch to my iPod whenever Cee Lo started singing "I see you driving 'round town with that girl I love... And I'm like [bleep] you." But come on back, Cee Lo, I'm ready for you. But just this song. (I mean, let's not kid ourselves, that "Bright Lights, Bigger City" song was not good). 

3. Bruno Mars - Grenade 

I'm almost certain that if I could pick any male singer to sing to me, it'd be Bruno Mars. This is one of my favorite songs. It's a terrific ballad. It's so very intense. B. Mars not only offers to take a grenade for ya, but he says he'll throw his head on a blade for ya, AND jump in front of a train for ya. (Oh and he will take a bullet straight through his brain for ya). And I'll admit it -- I used to hold up my fake microphone and sing the climatic part of the song"... But darling I'd still catch a grenade for ya!" right there with Bruno. But then, Top 40 went and killed it and made me loathe every time I heard that first line. Top 40, I totally forgive you. Bring this song back and I'll bring my mic. 

4. B.o.B (ft. Hayley Williams and Eminem) - Airplanes 

Now for me, this song has almost everything I need to fall in love. It's hip-hop, but it has a soft melodic chorus. And it has Eminem. I love Eminem. A lot. And this is a song is one that I think everyone loved. So much so that I have distinct memories of some of my Facebook friends posting that memorable first line on their statuses: Can we pretend that airplanes in the night sky are like shooting stars? 

Soo deep. At any rate, recently it's been creeping back into my airwaves and I love it! Keep it comin'. 

5. Ke$ha - Tik Tok 

I just love Ke$ha. So much so that I'll take the time to stylize her name in my blog. She is a beast when it comes to writing catchy, absurd songs. 

Example of Catchy Absurdity: 

I'm talking about everybody getting crunk, crunk
Boys tryin' to touch my junk, junk
Gonna smack him if he getting too drunk, drunk

Gotta love that Ke$ha.


So, is there anyone I missed? Who would make YOUR list of songs that are kinda good again? 

New Year's Eve 2011: A Theory and a Dip

Can I just say that I’m a little bit pleased to be DONE with the holidays? When the holidays are done correctly, they are absolutely exhausting! I know we all have moments in life where you feel like there’s just not enough time. But, from mid-December to January 1, there seriously isn’t enough time. Between the cooking (eating), shopping, and partying (drinking), you really kind of need a vacation from your vacation.

But, I’d be lying if I said that this wasn’t one of the best holiday seasons I’ve had. It was great. I loved every single moment, even the 10-hour shopping sprees where I made a rule that I could not buy a single thing for myself.

Now, I have a theory on New Year’s Eve. Allow me to share. NYE is like your high school prom*. That is, it is never, ever as good of a night as you think it’s going to be. It can’t ever live up to the hype. And because it can never live up to the hype, you have no other option but to set your expectations low. Better yet, don’t set expectations. Just see what happens. Don’t overspend on an outfit, don’t update your Facebook with statements like “New Year’s Eve 2011: It’s gonna be the best night everrrr!” You’re setting yourself up for a loss if you do. Don't say I didn't warn you.

So this year, my friend Kathy mentioned that she was hanging out at this hole-in-the-wall bar. So, that’s what I went with. I figured that, no matter what plans we make, we’ll find a way to have fun. So, we grabbed a quick bite and then met up with Sarah to pregame before the party really got started.

It turned out to be a really good time, all things considered. The drinks were cheap, which was super nice. I was in good company, which was great. You know how in movies there are times where all the characters are badly (drunkenly) dancing with each other looking all carefree and fun-loving? I think that if there was a camera crew filming us that night, that’s what we looked like. There was a cover band playing “90s angry chick music” (think Alanis’ “You Oughta Know” and Meredith Brooks’ “Bitch”) and I love that stuff.

Here’s a pic from that night, taken before the drunkenness and the dancing:

I'm not a sequin girl by nature but I feel like NYE = sequins.

Now, everyone knows what you’re supposed to do on New Year’s Day, right? Eat black-eyed peas! It’s a rule. You must eat them on New Year’s Day to ensure good luck in the coming year. Well sooooomeone (Ray) doesn’t like black-eyed peas and swears they taste bitter. So, I did what any good girl would do. I got on Pinterest and found a recipe for black-eyed pea dip. It renders the peas (beans) virtually unrecognizable and is actually really good.

Here’s the recipe. I definitely recommend giving it a go even if it isn't January 1. The image above and the recipe are both courtesy of The Pioneer Woman.

All in all, I’d say that the New Year shaped up pretty nicely. Today, I’m back to the normal routine, including yoga, and couldn’t be happier.


* My theory on NYE also applies to movies like Anchorman and Avatar.

How To Develop GOOD New Year's Resolutions

When it comes to resolving to do something during the New Year, it’s safe to say that the bulk of us fall into one of two categories:

A) You believe that New Year’s Resolutions are … nice. They are a formality that everyone does because it’s "what you do." You believe that resolutions hold very little water. They are something people hit full force for the first month (okay, three weeks) of the year and then they are forgotten once life starts getting in the way.

B) You believe that New Year’s Resolutions are great! You think it’s a fantastic opportunity to better yourself and your life. You really believe that when you look back at the end of the year, you’ll see yourself as someone that’s just a little bit better.

Can you guess which one I am? I’m in the latter category. I’m a pretty big resolution maker. I’ve been making them since I was a kid. In the past, I’ve resolved to be a better sister, daughter, girlfriend, and friend. I’ve also resolved to be more organized, less messy, and more in shape.

Do you see a problem with these resolutions?

They aren’t realistic! At all!! They are way too lofty, they lack specificity, and there is no way at the end of the year, I’ll ever be able to tell if I really accomplished anything. You should never, ever make resolutions like these.

I have the secret to developing good resolutions* and I wanted to share. As a pretty staunch optimist, I believe that resolutions are good. I think that the New Year is a great time to start fresh and tackle a new goal. And I think that, if done right, at the end of the year, you can look back and see a lot of personal growth.

So, the secret. It’s simple, really. Resolutions must be three things: observable, attainable, and specific. Otherwise, you’re bound to fail. Here’s the skinny:

Observable. Your resolution must be something you can SEE. If it’s something too grandiose, it’s not that you’ll never accomplish it (necessarily) but you’ll never KNOW if you accomplished it. Please, don’t make a resolution like this:

This year, I will manage my finances better.

I know it looks nice on paper (or on your Facebook wall) but it is soo not something that you can ever really say you’ve accomplished because you can’t observe it. Try this instead:

This year, I will keep $7000 in my savings account.

Now that’s something that, at the end of the year, you’ll be able to tell you accomplished.

Attainable. Resolutions need to be realistic. Here’s an example of an unattainable resolution:

This year, I will be a better daughter.

As someone that’s made this resolution in the past, I don’t even know what it means. An attainable version of that resolution would be something like this:

This year, I will visit my parents at least once a month. 

That’s totally attainable.

Specific. Finally, resolutions must be based on criteria. It must be clear what you are trying to accomplish. Here’s what a resolution looks like with NO criteria:

This year, I will do more yoga. 

How much more? One more class than last year? 100 more classes? Who knows? Here’s a resolution with criteria:

This year, I will go to yoga an average of four times a week (208 classes). 

Doesn’t get any more specific than that.

So there you go – a how-to guide for coming up with New Year’s Resolutions. If you’re interested in seeing my resolutions for the New Year, scroll to the top of this page and click “Resolutions.”




* My logic for developing resolutions stems from same logic involved in developing sound learning objectives, which I learned about in my Training and Development graduate class. The textbook is available here. Thanks, Dr. Beebe. 

DIY Project: Cork Board

Whew! This week has been both invigorating and exhausting. I love that it's been a priority of mine all week to post. I love that you guys are reading the posts. And I love reading the comments and the affirmations that people are going to take these ideas and run with them.

I'm rounding out this week with one more DIY that I can't really take credit for. This idea was the brainchild of a Sunday brunch and too many bottomless mimosas. But, it was really all Ray. Sure, I collected the corks but it was Ray that went to Hobby Lobby and got the rest of the materials. Super sweet, I know. I came home from work one day and Ray was on the floor making it.

Here's what you'll need:

- Corks. I know, so obvious. But you'll need a lot of them. I had a pretty hefty collection on my own, but I had also gotten a bag from a wine bar AND from the brunch place.
- A chalkboard. The one Ray used was approximately 2' X 3'.
- Craft glue. (Don't use Mod Podge here, use something that's good with fabrics and things like that).
- A knife. 


After that, you just kind of have at it. You obviously want to show the names of the wines. One of the things Ray did was cut some of them in half to vary things. If you're a red wine drinker, you'll like this because you can showcase the parts of the corks that are dyed red. Also, if you happen to fancy prosecco or champagne (for those brunches where you just can't leave the house), use those corks too. You can cut them short-ways and incorporate them.

Here's the final product:

You like? 

Now, Ray didn't count the number of corks before getting started but I had a ton to start off with and they were all used. And we didn't have enough to finish it off. But, what's cool is that it's a chalkboard underneath and that space can be used to write something cute and quippy. I've also started another collection and have the option to fill it in soon.  I'm not sure what I'll do. 

Welp, that's that. I've had a good time writing these and I hope you guys have fun reading them. Happy Holidays! 

DIY Project: Melted Crayon Art

So, the first thing I ever saw on Pinterest was melted crayon art. Melted. Crayon. Art. This is another one where I was like, "Who comes up with this stuff?!" Whoever they are, they are craft geniuses.

So, here's the primary list of what you'll need:

- Crayons. Lots of them. If you plan on having some of the same color, you'll obviously need to invest in multiple boxes, like we did for some of these creations.

- A canvas. 
- Hot glue gun. Some tutorials say just wait for the crayons to melt and they will stick by themselves. But, gluing them to your canvas first is the way to go, in my humble opinion.
- An oven. Yep. The thing in your kitchen.

Now, almost every tutorial on the web says use a hair dryer. But that seemed painfully tedious. (Not to mention we tried to see how long it would take to melt just one crayon and my hair dryer sparked and shut off.) So Sarah said, "What if we just put the canvas in the oven, and set it to broil?" Recipe for disaster? Nahhh... 

So that's exactly what we did. We covered my oven in foil, used a loaf pan to angle the canvas (so it'll drip in a certain direction), and waited for the magic to happen. Here's the magic starting:

Do you guys see that frightening red-hot heating element? Terrifying. 

Here are some finished products: 

Life is better in color. This is hanging in my living room / dining area right now. I can't get enough of it. 

Merry Christmas, Marissa. 

And Merry Christmas, Leigh. 

P.S. A big thanks to Sarah. She was really the one that thrusted her hands / arms in and out of my oven and I couldn't have done it without her. 

P.P.S. She was also the one that helped wave the smoke away from the smoke detectors that went off more times than I can count. 

DIY Project: Paint Sample Coasters

Happy Hump Day a.k.a. Christmas Eve-Eve-Eve-Eve!

In honor of Christmas Eve-Eve-Eve-Eve, here's yet another super easy, super fun DIY: Paint Sample Coasters!!

I made these for Britnee and Lindsay, and Sean. And myself. I made a set of EIGHT for myself. I have no idea why. I have never had eight people in my apartment. EVER. I have a problem.

Now at first glance this DIY seems kind of random, I know. I mean, who would think, "Let's go to Lowe's / Home Depot and grab some ceramic bathroom tiles. Then, let's hover around the paint section trying to look inconspicuous as we rifle through all the paint samples." Apparently tons of people. Step-by-step instructions were all over Pinterest.

Here's some pictures of what they look like. I will apologize in advance for the blurriness. I don't know what was going on last night. I expect more from my iPhone. Come on, Apple. Get with it.

I am obsessed with the fact that the top color is "Crab Bisque." 

Middle color = Country Club. 

The top color is "Hot Chocolate" and the bottom color is "Molasses." Hehehe. 

And here's the whole motley crew from my place.  

If you're trying to be thrifty, this is the DIY for you. Here's what you'll need:


- Ceramic bathroom tiles (10 cents / each)
- Mod Podge (about 6 bucks (but it'll last forever))
- Clear acrylic gloss coating (it's sold in the spray paint area of your craft store)
- Felt ($1 / four pieces)
- Paint samples (free as can be!)
- Scissors
- Hot glue gun

Now, I did not take any pictures of the process, but here's the step-by-step instructions I used.

A couple tips:

- Make sure to find ceramic tiles that do NOT have beveled or rounded edges. It will make life more difficult because the paint sample will be reluctant to lay on the tile flat. They should look like this:

No ... that's not a glass of wine. Nope. Not at all. 

- Use the felt to make a backing for the coasters. Just use your hot glue gun to affix the felt to the back of the tile.


I totally recommend this for your friends. They'll love them.