Random Ramblings :)

First things first, ya'll rock my socks. Thank you for the sweet comments on my last post and pre-birthday wishes! My cousin is having her baby girl this week and I'm REALLY hoping she makes it to Friday... b/c um. July birthdays really are the best. Not like I'm biased. ;)

Soooo guess what tomorrow is! My birthday party! I dont think I've had a birthday "party" since I was like 10. Seriously... ha...I'm excited, but also nervous! I'm one of those a-type/people-pleaser types that likes to make sure everyone is having a good time and yada yada, soooo I'm really glad other people have taken the reins b/c I think I'd have a coronary. ;) It's not like massive or anything, but I invited a few different groups of friends, so I just hope everyone has fun. Or at least drinks enough to feel like they're having fun. Whatever. ;)

So, I have a Jackie story for you.. If you've been reading my blog awhile, you know I'm kinda the clumsiest person on earth.. or pretty darn close. Well, I was feeling good b/c I haven't fallen, tripped on anything, broken anything, etc, in a long time. Yesterday at lunch, I was attempting to slice a pizza.. like an entire pizza...at a decently nice pizza place... and in what seemed like slow motion, the pizza SAILED off the tray and into the middle of the restaurant (picture a pizza frisbee and you've got it)...before landing with a splat on the floor..during the lunch rush (so it was a packed house). *head hung in shame* Admittedly, it was kinda awesome b/c my friend tried to catch it in mid air...Anyhoo, they were super nice and said "it happens all the time" which we both knew wasn't true, but I appreciated it... Afterwards, my friend said "you should have taken a pic; this is blog worthy." haha...

Welp, guess I'll conclude my randomnes. Just wanted to pop in and say hi and thank you for the birthday wishes on my last post! :) TBD on the new blog name, but I think I'll change it soon and I have some ideas. ;)

Eric and I officially booked California late summer by the way! :) We're not staying as long as we wanted to originally b/c we started adding it up and went "uh oh..." haha.. But, we're starting in LA/Manhattan Beach (for the wedding!) for three days and then headed up to San Fran for 4 days. :) Pretty freaking excited!!!

And while I'm mentioning the fabulous party-planning-vacation-buddy-boyfriend of mine, lookie what we did last weekend! His family and I went to OKC to see him get his official CPA certificate! They did the ceremony in the capitol and it was puuuuuurdy cool. I'm just saying. :) So happy for him!

Oooh ANNND one more thing! (Sorry for the super randomness today). I just saw a bracelet swap advertised on Miss Chelsea's blog and totally signed up. How fun is that?! If you're interested, you should go sign up here before the deadline!

Happy Hump Day, friends!

Birthday Week!

Funny convo with Eric's brother:

Him: "Are you going to change your blog name when you turn 30 {this week}?"
Me: "Eventually... I can't come up with anything really...."
Him: "Did anything happen in the 30s...?"(to go along with the roaring twenties theme I've got right now)
Eric, me and his brother simultaneously: "The great depression."

*laughter ensued*

So.. I'm about to get a tinge self reflective on you. Sorry in advance.

But, it's kinda impossible not to. I mean.. 30 is a benchmark birthday, right?! And well, unless you have no ambition, you're going to kinda reflect a little.

• I don't own a home. 

• I'm not married. 

• I don't have kids. 

I find it awkwardly frustrating how many times random people have somehow pointed all of the above bullets out in conversation in the past year and a half or so, mostly in conjunction with my approaching bday. As if I didn't realize those things.. haha... *sigh* People are so weird.

But...

• I have a law degree and license
• I have a great job
• I have a great family
• I have the best friends a girl could ask for
• I have a fantastic boyfriend. :)
• (and I could go on and on)

So, sure... things like the "don't haves" can feel strange. Even though I'm perfectly happy with where I am...and I have the farthest thing from baby fever. *yikes!* But,...if you're on facebook, you're likely cyber stalking photos of college/high school friends' new houses, their kids, their grown up lives by just logging in to your feed. And in those few seconds, sometimes I think "Wait, we're the same age! Am I a grown up?" And then it hits.... "Holy sh*t, I am." And then your mind flashes to the 16 year old version of yourself when you pictured yourself having kids by the "old age" of 30 and living in the house from the movie Father of the Bride. Or wait.. maybe that last part was just me.

Anyway.... it's easy to be self critical at these benchmark birthdays I think, even if you shouldn't be.

And I think to just 5 years ago when I thought I knew SO much... Buuuuuut I also remember feeling so lost. I was dating someone that was NOT right for me, studying for the bar exam for a job I really didn't like, and found myself questioning who my real friends were. I wasn't great at speaking my mind when I needed to and was just starting to learn what work/life balance really meant...

In just five years, all of those things have resolved themselves. Or rather... I resolved them, and learned a lot about myself along the way. :) And I'm not saying people in their 30s can't feel confused and lost and yada yada... but I think I get it when people say they'd never go back to their early 20s again b/c that stuff was stressful! LOL! Hell, forget stressful... I'm fairly sure I don't have the energy to keep up with my early-twenties self! 

I've learned what it's like to know yourself...and there's no easy way to explain that. I know what I want, what I need, and the difference between those two. I've learned when to keep my mouth shut (this took nearly 28.5 of my 30 years of life..haha..), and when to speak my mind.

A lot of soul searching took place in my 20s and I could go through all the things I've learned, am thankful for, etc, but there are too many to list. All in all, I'm grateful to be who I am...b/c I really like who I see when I look in the mirror. My mirror might be in my rental house I share with a roommate and our furry kids, but I'm okay with that. :) For the most part, I've made good choices so far. (About 100 flashes from some slightly inebriated college/law school days raced through my thoughts...haha). And I've surrounded myself with good people I'm very thankful to have in my life.

So with that, let my birthday week begin! Well.. okay okay..my birthday is actually next Sunday, soooo my week should technically be next week. But, that's dumb b/c who celebrates their birthday week on the week AFTER their birthday. No. I'm proclaiming this as my birthday week! Cupcakes for everyone! ;)

From the past week...

Yo yo! Where have I been? I dont really know. Somewhere without interwebs? Definitely not. But, my logging in just hasn't happened much in the past few days. First, I want to thank ya'll for the kudos on my hair! You make this girl in Tulsa feel really good. :)

Anyhoodle, some schtuff to get my bootie back in blogging gear from the past week:

Last Thurs was a friend, Beth's, birthday shindig at a local Mexican restuarant, El Guapo. 

All the girlies :)

A few of us chipped in and got her a necklace she'd loved at the recent Stella & Dot party we'd attended! :) I think she likes it!

Guess what else I did last week! Went to lunch with a blog friend, Katie, and had a great time officially meeting in person! Blogs connected us, mutual friends further connected us, and then we kept running into each other! As we joked, our friendship was destined- haha! :) I absolutely love the friends my blog has brought into my life-from right here in Tulsa to across the country and even across the ocean for a couple of ya'll! :)

Last weekend, Audra, a good college friend of mine, came to town! She's from here, but lives in Little Rock like some other fabulous friends, Kat and Stacia. :) My camera did really weird things to my eyes where I look like a cat with one different color eye. Eh, well.. at least I have on my trusty Forever21 fedora. Great brunch at Dilly Deli with a friend I haven't seen in way too long. Note the carafe of mimosas we quickly downed enjoyed.

Also last weekend, I went to a couples baby shower for Eric's friend's wife, Nadine! :) Well, they're my friends too.. but I'm just trying to give you some identifiers/context. Plus, Eric is allowed to have friends before he met me. I guess. ;) Please note that I was a little tipsy after the morning mimosas and therefore convinced myself that washing my hair was overrated and I should just keep rocking the fedora all day. *shaking head at self* Whatever. 

Ashley, Nadine, and me. :)

We played the "What the crap" game. I call it the diaper game. But, whatever. Same thing. Chocolate melted in diapers, passed around to sniff, taste, etc, and guess what kind of chocolate it is. Winner get a diaper with the real deal it in. I kid I kid. Sick. *shudder* Eric thought I made up the diaper game when I'd talked about it before. Oh no, my friend. Someone somewhere thought that making chocolate look like poo and forcing people to taste it in diapers was a good idea. I don't know whether that person is my hero or my nemesis, b/c I have to admit, it's kinda hilarious to watch people gingerly sniffing and taste testing diapers.

Sunday, my roomie was off work so we crashed her old apartment pool laid out at a nearby pool. We actually laid out with her friend that lives there, but still. We felt pretty covert. Good stuff. 

Then, Sunday funday was over and the week started. Went to an awards dinner on Tuesday night with my team from work and other friends in the same industry. Opted to go to a fun 80s pub, The Max Retropub, afterward. Cheesy poses, video game playing, and a lot of fun ensued. :) 

This was our tube tv/Saved by the Bell pose (Seriously, Saved by the Bell is what's on the screen. Awesome).

The Max plays the Jessie caffeine pill episode on it's tvs a lot. I like that. *affirmative nod* Say it with me, friends "I'm so excited... I'm so... I'm so... scared." bahahahahahaha!

 Last night, Beth (from the above bday pics) and my roomie wanted to get together to "discuss my bday party." I was confused b/c well... (1) the party is a week away so what's there to discuss and (2) I don't know much about it since Eric and Timberly are party planners extrordinaire. Anyhoo, I got there and they'd developed that "let's get together" plan to give me my birthday present from them early! I didn't even expect or need any sort of gift at all, so I was immediately girly emotional about it all. I'm sure I annoyed the people around me with the "I can't believe you guys did this" becaaaaaaaaaaaaaaause.... somehow they tracked down the Banana Rep maxi dress I'd been LUSTING over! You see, I was trying to order it the night we had a big tornado scare here and well, Gracie dog and my lives were more important, so I missed their online sale on it. Upon getting online later, it was SOLD OUT. I'd really wanted to get it for my bday party and was a little bummed out.  

I don't know how they found it, but I was SO surprised and can't wait to wear it! They wanted to meet to give it to me early b/c they were stressing out every time I said I was going to have to find a dress to wear to my party and were afraid I'd get something else this weekend. My roomie kept saying "You shouldn't buy a dress for your birthday. I mean.. why spend money, ya know?" I'd just furrow my brows and shift my eyes like "Okay, weirdo." hahaha...

Living with another girl is bound to have its stressful moments sometimes, but I also know I am really blessed to have so many fabulous and thoughtful friends in my life, definitely including my roomie and Beth. And I love the dress, but it's not even about that ya know... Lately, I've really done an about-face about the great people I have in my life. And I am blessed to say there are many. Not a bad reflection as my 30th approaches, me thinks. :)

Anyway, sorry this was long and thanks for sticking with it til the end if ya did. Sending love from Tulsa!

Back to Blonde! (And some makeup reviews) :)

Happy Sunday! And Happy Father's Day to all the great dads out there. :) 

So, guess what guess what! I went lighter! Some people have noticed, while others haven't at all. :) Not like I care if people notice, but it's kinda significant in my mirror so it's just funny to me if people didn't notice...haha.. :) Anyhoo, we had to be careful not to break my hair going lighter, so my stylist blended tons of highlights in while keeping some of the the dark. I really like the result! Yesterday, a tiny bit of my hair really did break off after the shower/blowdry when I was brushing it. *cringe* I kinda sorta totally freaked out. It was totally fine though. Trying to deep condition and lay off the heat styling for a few days.... :) 

I took a photo Thurs morning before work (dark hair) and then Thurs evening after my hair appt! :) (Also note how much more awake I look in the evening photo...haha.. Jax=not a morning person).

And while I'm on hair/makeup/yada yada, I wanna mention new makeup I got! Here's the deal, I used to use Laura Mercier tinted moisturizer. And I loved it. I'd put a powder over it to minimize shine and give fuller coverage without being heavy. Anyhoo, I just noticed it never lasted all day...and it also wasn't great coverage. I know I know... you're not going to get great coverage with a tinted moisturizer, but it just wasn't really doing anything for me I guess. It's a great product, but I just think my makeup wants changed. *shrugs* So, off I went to Sephora.

Reasons I love Sephora= they have color consultants working there that know all the products they carry really well. I explained how I wanted a little more evening out and coverage, but hate the "heavy" makeup feel and didn't want anything "cakey." A consultant reommended Hourglass Illusion tinted moisturizer.

Via Sephora (reviews also listed here) 

Having never heard of the brand, I was skeptical. And it carried a hefty price tag ($50!! Bananas!). BUT, I was already paying $40something for Laura Mercier, so I was like "Well, might as well try it." So, we put it on and I was really impressed. Great coverage, but not heavy. Also, it's oil free, parabin free, sulfate free, etc. AND it has something in it called instalift or something and some other thing that basically tightens and reduces wrinkles. (yes, please). AND it has an SPF! In short, this little bottle packs a punch! (Imagine me mentally doing a karate move. b/c I just did in my head. Sorry for my lameness).  And it only takes one little pump to cover your whole face (unless you like more coverage) so it'll last awhile.

After trying a couple others on, I went with the Hourglass, still kinda like "Ouch, that was pricey. I hope I like this."B/c um.. let's face it. We've all bought stuff, then realized they must have some magic lighting in the store b/c you get home and hate it.

I'm rambling (shocker), so I'll cut to the chase. I.LOVE.THIS.

It looks fresh and dewy but NOT oily or wet. My skin glows! And..the best part, HOURS after I apply it, it still looks like I just put it on! I'll have to post a few photos at some point, but if you're looking for a similar product, I recommend. There are some videos on youtube featuring it if you're curious. Sephora is really great at giving samples, so if you don't wanna bite the $$ bullet but want to try it, just go ask if they'll give you a little sample and I bet they'll oblige. :) I've done that a lot with them.

And, I love me some Sephora Beauty Insider program b/c it means free stuff. I dig free stuff. With some of my points, I got a free Coralista Blush from Benefit. And I'm LOVING that too! You know I'm a proud user of NARS Org@sm as I've blogged about before, but I really like the pretty glow this gives! :)

So yeah, trip to Sephora=success! :) I had no intention of rambling this much. Just wanted to show ya'll my hair. Sheez. Oh well, whatevs. :)

P.S. Thanks so much for your patience as I re-follow lots of ya! I'm manually doing it b/c I couldn't figure out how to transfer the blogs over. And I also love all the comments with empathetic groans over blogger woes. We love our blogs, but man alive... blogger has been a beast lately, hasn't it?

Blogger- 0; Jax-1...

Well, maybe blogger has .5 instead of a 0. But, I'm still definitely winning. What am I talking about?

Okay, when I started blogging many moons ago, it was before google and blogger merged. (I know. I'm old). Anyway, I used to sign in with my hotmail addy. That addy doesnt even EXIST anymore. I tried to change it many, many, MANY times and blogger wasn't having any of it. I had my gmail addy linked to my profile, but could not actually sign in with my gmail address or make it the primary account address. So, every time I was in gmail, I could NOT also be logged in to blogger at the same time b/c it was saying the accounts weren't linked. So, to get into blogger, I'd log out of gmail and then log in to blogger with my old hotmail addy. Annoying right? Yeah. Also, I couldn't read blogs in google reader or anything.

This makes about as much sense to you as it did to me.

I read the help forums.

I tried to reach out to support.

I.did.everything. (At least I did everything I knew I could do).

And finally just gave up a year or so ago.

BUT!

With the help of a social media savvy co-worker, we started playing around... And I eventually was able to remove the hotmail addy from my profile. BUT, when I did that, that hotmail account lost all admin/author privileges. In other words, I also lost my profile linked to it and all the blogs I followed under it. So, yeah, that's annoying. But, everything else is intact. *Phew*

This is a rant to say... I am trying to transfer the blogs I was following (b/c I can still log in to that old blogger account, but it's just no longer linked to The Roaring Twenties), but if I can't, I'm going to have to go back and follow everyone again... I'm okay with doing that b/c having my blog linked to gmail is so.much.easier. in the long run. :)

So, it'll likely take me a few days to get my following list back up to speed. Just know that if I'm not popping over to say hello or you don't see me on your follower list, that's why!

This was a really confusing post. *cringe* haha...

Also, feel free to leave a comment if you're following and want me to follow back! I'm going to go through and re-create my following list, but don't wanna miss anyone!

Weekend Recap :)

A little late, but.. the weekend recap! I really think I should start blogging more stream of consciousness stuff b/c uh.. I've got some good sh*t lately people. haha.. I've been in a really sarcastic and easily annoyed mood off and on this week, so might make for good reading from time to time. At least I entertain myself... dunno if that says anything. haha...

Anyway, til then, here are some pics you'll have to suffer through. ;)

Eric and I went down to Tulsa Tough over the weekend. It brings in professional and amateur racers from all over the country and has become quite a big deal for T-town. Good times checking out the festivities for sure.

(racing through the city streets)

We like bike races.



People rushed to nearby restaurants/bars for cover when the rain..er... massive storm.. moved in.
 (PS.. See the tall building? That's where I work. Get excited. ;) ) 


Saturday early afternoon, I headed to celebrate Laura's bridal shower. :) Fun with the girls!! 

Bride to be!



All the girls on the balcony/patio :)

After Laura's shower, it was time to celebrate Ashley's son, Cooper's first birthday!


If only eating cake made me look this cute, too... haha!



The party was Dr. Seuss themed! How adorable, right?!



Landen is trying to help out and pull the wagon.. haha.. (kinda adorable!)

I finally got to meet little miss Leighton! Here she is with her mom, Kaitlin!

Sunday night, Eric and I headed for some much needed Mexican food and that was the weekend, friends!

I am counting the days til my birthday weekend when Eric and I are headed out of town. I'm kinda in that place where I need a little time away. :)

Tomorrow, I have a hair appt so if I go lighter again, I'll have to post a photo! Hope everyone is having a great week!

End of week randomness

Where my head's at...

1. I'm really glad SYTYCD is back. Now just waiting on Pretty Little Liars and I'll be happy! You watch SYTYCD? I kinda love the little short haired chick, Melanie (??) maybe. Yeah. I'm prolly gonna vote for her. I always vote for my fav...like 50 times in a row. Eric makes fun of me. Whatever.

2. Did I tell you we solidified (weird word, right?) my birthday plans?! YAY! To celebrate the big three-oh, we're having a little cocktail party with friends at a cool penthouse lounge thing (thanks to an awesome friend's help)! Eric and Timberly have taken the party planning reins and won't let me do anything. It's really sweet of them and I'm so excited to celebrate. :) Then, Eric and I are off to Kansas City for some of the weekend for some shopping, lounging, eating, and celebrating.

3. I finished the Hunger Games series. If you haven't read them, you should. They're fantastic! I'm really excited for the movies! I refused to look up any of the casting until I'd finished the books and I'm cool with who they chose. Although, it's weird that the main actors were born in the 90s. I'm old. Blerg.

4.  I tend to push the dress code at work on Fridays. Tell me I'm not the only one. I have a likely too-short-for-work summer dress laid out and plan to throw a cardigan over it. (pre-scheduling this post). If I wear flats with it, it doesnt look as hussy-like, right? Right. *affirmative nod*

5. I'm kinda loving maxi dresses this year. I was obsessed with one at Banana, but they sold out before I coud get it. :( Ooohwell. If you've seen any cute ones or have links to any fun stores/boutiques that might have em, please share! I could prolly check pinterest. I'm trying to get into it but am still kinda figuring it out as lame as that is.. haha.. I haven't spent a lot of time on it yet.

6. Soooo I think I might be heading back to the lighter hair for awhile. :) TBD, but I have an appointment next week and am thinking I might lighten up quite a bit. Not like SUPER blonde, but lighter. Why not, right? I mean, now I know I can easily go back to brown b/c I like it! That was half the battle before. I'd been dying my hair blonde for so long that I didn't even know what I LOOKED like as a brunette. <--Information you don't care about. Thanks for reading my randomness.  

Have a good weekend, friends!

Weekend Recap!

Hiya friends! Blogger has certainly been cantankerous lately, hasn't it? No matter b/c I've been completely and totally engrossed in the Hunger Games series reading a little in the evenings. And watching the Bachelorette. Before I move forward, what the HELL is she doing crying over Bentley? Good gravy! I get it; she didn't know. But for reals. Anyway, moving on... 

My weekend... It was busy, but good... and HOT. No no.. not in the sizzling-sexy sense. In the holy-crap-why-is-it-already-100-degrees sense. Anyhoodle, here's some schtuff from the weekend! ;)

Friday night, Eric and I attended our alma mater's annual wine event, Uncorked

Good stuff! The packed ballroom was filled with auction tables, different booths from area restaurants...and of course WINE! They could only pour just under 2 ounces though b/c well.. it was supposed to be a tasting. Totally loved it, but I may have smiled sweetly at one table worker and asked him to please give me a little more. Whatever, it had been a long week.

My personal favorite. Mind you, we're a pretty good little private school in the midwest and ranked nationally. No, no I'm not tooting my horn, but I'm just saying.. Our people can spell... er.. wait.. can they? We're the Golden Hurricane. Please check out this sign on one table. I think someone started the wine tasting a little early... haha...

Eric drank nothing but quality H20 all night at the wine festival. Why? 

Because he had to be at his bike race at 7am the next morning, raring to go!

His beer socks were up for the challenge of 75 miles...

The 50 and 75 mile riders getting ready to start!

And they're off! 

A few hours, 30 degrees warmer (yikes!), and 75 miles later, here comes Eric, and our friends, Carrie and Chris, toward the finish line! It was so hot; I couldn't even imagine how they must have felt. I guess people were puking along the ride (TMI-sorry) and hitting the medic tent early... But, Eric and team made it!

So proud of my boyfriend!

Saturday night was Ashley's shower! I know I've blogged about her fabulousness before, but Ashley is getting married in Manhattan Beach this summer! (Her wedding is the one I blogged about heading up the coast afterward). :) She's from T town and we met in college :)

All the Tulsa girls holding the the cute banner Sarah made :)

I should've worn taller heels. Ashley and I are the same height but this pic definitely doesn't look like it! haha! :)

We went up to the Mayo's rooftop bar after the shower for some cocktails and fabulous views. :)

We also may have channeled our college days and made a few random prank calls to people we know. Yes, we're really mature. ;) But seriously, it was the funniest thing I've done/seen in awhile. Grace (on the phone) is pretty much the master at fake accents/random reactions, etc.. I won't even tell you her routine b/c it's not as funny in print...haha.. Anyway, this photo cracks me up, even though they'll likely kill me for posting. :) Fabulous night with some great girl friends. Already looking forward to the wedding! 

Some pics of the shower decor, etc...

Sarah and I opted for an asian/sushi inspired shower theme b/c Ashley loves sushi at our fav place every time she visits. :) So, with some fabulous help and brainstorming from our other friends, the sushi-inspired theme came to life! Check out the cupcakes modeled after sushi rolls that Ashley made! Awesome, right? They tasted even better than they look!

Lots of food and more desserts behind me out of photo viewing. :) And cute lanterns hung in various places. Also stuck with the theme for beverages- Kung Foo Girl Riesling and Asahi. :)

Sarah made these cute little signs for some little take-away chopsticks with a cute saying about Ashley and her fiance calling them the perfect pair. :) Awww... :)

And I have to brag for a moment b/c Ashley got us the best hostess gifts ever! For reals. Check out this awesome compact trio from Nars! It has it's own cute little zipper pouch and everything! For those of you who've never used Nars but are looking for a good bronzer and/or blush, go immediately to Sephora. I fell in love with the blush after reading rave reviews in many many magazines saying how it works for pretty much every skin tone. And.it.does. And the bronzer kicks butt, too. The blush is called... well... I really don't want anyone to find my blog by googling this...haha.. It's called Org@sm and the bronzer is Laguna. Phew. Laguna caused me much less pause in typing than the blush title. haha.. Anyway, this also has an awesome little highlighting powder in the middle that I'm totally loving now too! Very sweet and thoughtful of Ashley. I'm already putting it to good use.

Per usual, that was a rant.. but if you're still reading, that was my weekend! I hope you had a fabulous one, friends! And I hope you're beating the heat wherever you are!

Are you having blogger comment issues, too?

So, it seems like commenting + Blogger are not getting along on some blogs for me. Thankfully, I know I'm not alone b/c Morgan and I have been having the same issues and tweeting back and forth about it. It seems like I can comment on some blogs, but not others. What the heck?!

After some frustration and annoyance, I googled around about it a little and found this helpful blog entry about what's causing it on some blogs and not others and how to fix it for your blog. :) I changed my settings so I don't even know if mine was having problems, but I hope it's not having them anymore.

From the blogs I read, it seems like the blog I linked above is quite right in diagnosing the issue. Blogs with comment ability right on the main page (aka no pop up comment box) aren't working. It just keeps asking you to log in over and over. Blogs where the comment box pops out in a separate little screen ARE working. It's an easy fix in settings>comments. :)

Crossing fingers this works! Hope this also helps some of ya'll having issues, too! Have a good Monday!

Summer Stuff Giveaway Winner!

Remember when I said I'd post the blog giveaway winner on Friday? No? Yeah, me neither.  (Sorry). 

I just did the drawing on random.org and the winner is....

Married with a Pup! 

Congratulations!!! I'll be contacting you to get your mailing info! YAY! 

Thanks to everyone for entering! Ya'll rock! I loved reading about all your fav summer things! From popsicles to bikinis to summer bbqs and sandals, I loved them all! And SO agree! As the temp rises, I have no problem telling myself how much I LONGED for this when there were 20 inches of snow on the ground..haha.. No matter how hot it gets, I feel like I've just sprung from some cold-induced coma and am now fully awake! :) 

I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend! I have lots of pics of mine so prepare yourselves.. hah... I went to a wine festival for my alma mater, Eric's bike race (woohoo!) and co-hosted a sushi-themed bridal shower! For now, I'm off to Eric's to grill some burgers tonight! Dear Summertime- thanks for being here. Love-Jax. :)

Memorial Day Weekend Recap!

Hi peeps! Thanks so much to all of you who have already entered my giveaway! And thanks to those of you who got a chance to vote for Maria! :) Don't forget giveaway expires tonight!

How was your Memorial Day weekend?! Mine was pretty low key...and therefore fabulous. I feel like I'm blogging a lot lately like "Here are a zillion some pics from this baby shower/wedding shower/bachelorette party/wedding/birthday party....and a whole buncha details you prolly don't care about but I like to capture for memory..." sooooo I'm happy to report you will not have to suffer through read about any of that for last weekend...haha! ;)

Saturday- My friend and I met up to shop a little, explored a few local boutiques, etc. Annnnd I found the cutest gold charm! Okay, sooo I love initials. Not on everything b/c that's weird. And when I saw a little gold charm at a boutique with a pretty little "J" on it, I had to have it! I REALLY had to have it when I realized it was $7!

The corresponding chains at the boutique were much more expensive, soooo I paired it with a cheapo gold chain from Target (seriously $5.99) and there you have it! YAY!

Sunday, Eric and I headed out to his parents' house for some grilling and pool time. :) And uh.. if you knew how good his mom's 7 layer dip is, you'd be banging on the back gate to get in. Seriously. Anyway, we stuffed ourselves, enjoyed some tasty margaritas, chatted and hit the pool for a bit. Eric stole all the noodles, stuck them in the raft holes, and made a raft-fort-thing..Something tells me he was an interesting kid... haha. ;)

Sunday night, we rented Wolverine since neither of us had seen it. I kinda dig the xmen movies. Like a lot. And since one is coming out (THIS WEEKEND!), I had to get in the xmen mood. ;) (and Hugh Jackman movies aren't exactly hard on the eyes.... Just keepin it real here.. haha).

Monday was left for any errand running I chose to completely avoid the earlier part of the weekend, sooo whatevs. :) And that was the weekend! A good one filled with good weather, relaxation, pool time, and friends.

So, one thing I picked up this weekend was the first Hunger Games book, thanks to many of your recommendations! Let me just say this really quickly.. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! I loved this book. I say "loved" in the past tense b/c um.. I finished it in a day. I'm currently 150 pages into the second book.

I read SO much during law school. Deep stuff, analytical stuff, boring stuff, meaningless detail-heavy stuff, blah blah blah.. that now I just like a good story. Period. I know within the first chapter if I'm going to like the book... Or wait.. I should say I know whether I'm going to spend time reading the rest of it or tossing it on the shelf of "never finishing this"... haha.. I like a book that doesnt talk down to the reader or over-explain obvious things... that has great imagery and often fantasy-type plot lines. Especially if the main character is a girl. In other words.. Hunger Games= 5 stars. Thanks for the rec, friends! Already excited for the movie!

Why is it that sometimes 4 day work weeks seem like they're just as long as 5 day work weeks? *shrugs*

Oooh and one more thing..  this coming weekend, Eric is riding in the Tour de Cure to benefit the American Diabetes Assn! It's a 75 mile ride in over 90 degree heat. Blerg. He's crazy. BUT, it's kinda fun b/c he's decided to take a photo of himself (and post to fbook/twitter) at the mile markers corresponding to the donations he gets. Sooo basically 60 bucks= 60 mile marker...and a very sweaty, tired Eric. haha.. Anyway, it's kinda a fun, quirky way to raise the funds needed for the race, so if the ADA is close to any of ya'll's hearts, feel free to support the cause and make my boyfriend post somewhat embarassing photos...which I find incredibly enjoyable...(especially b/c I call his biking outfit a "unitard" despite that being the completely incorrect term and probably making him mad...haha). Regardless, I'll post them all here after the race is over for fun. :) (And I joke around, but I really am quite proud of him. Good cause and kinda the equivalent of a marathon on a bike. yikes!)

Hope ya'll are having a great week! I'll post my giveaway winner as soon as I can tomorrow and be in touch with the winner! :)