An Australian in Wal-Mart

It's midnight. You've got an Australian house-guest who is still on Australian time, and two Americans who are night owls. You want to do something. But everything is closed. What do you do? Well, the answer is simple! Go to Wal-Mart and entertain yourselves!

Sarah was in total awe of the hugeness that is Wal-Mart, and couldn't get over the fact that it's 24/7! She was pretty in love and still misses it...

Shopping and meeting a real life Mall Cop

Sarah and I constantly online shop together, and we had always dreamed of the day when we could actually browse a store and try things on together. And when that day finally came... The pocketbooks cried. But we rejoiced! So it was all worth it, right??



We live in a small town and I'll be the first to tell you our mall isn't the most impressive. But to Sarah, it was heaven!! After all, it has Forever 21 and Victoria's Secret! While she was here I think we went to Forever 21 4 times and to Victoria's Secret at least 3 times. I kid you not. Those stores loved us! It was shocking the amount we spent at VS alone...

The picture below is of just one of our many shopping trips. I wish we'd gotten a picture of all the bags we collected over the trip... The guest room was flooded with them!



While at our mall, Sarah discovered that there are indeed real life Mall Cops. She was so in awe that she asked for a picture. Here's the exchange that confused the Mall Cop that we lovingly named Nigel.

Sarah: Excuse me, I'm from Australia and we don't have Mall Cops with the little scooter thing there, would you mind terribly much if I took your picture?

Nigel: Umm.. *confused look* I guess not?

Sarah: *so excited* Thank you thank you! I can't wait to show all my friends back home. See we just saw the movie Mall Cop and we thought they were just made up!

Nigel: Wait. Now that you mention Mall Cop, you can't take the pic. That was a horrible movie!

Sarah: *super sad* Really??

Nigel: I guess you still can.

*Sarah takes the picture*

Nigel: *points to me and Ryan* So are you guys Australian too?

Us: No, we're from here.

Nigel: *confused* So how do you know each other?

Us: We met online.

Nigel: *more confused* like on myspace or something?

us: No, on Yahoo chat *smile*

Nigel: *even more confused* Okay... Uh... Have a nice visit. *rides off*


Yeah... we kinda have that effect on people...

The story of my Australian sis-in-law - whom I love oh so dearly

June 21st was a day that I'd been looking forward to for months! It marked the day that my best friend/sis-in-law was coming for her first ever US visit!! Just to clear things up... No, my guy isn't Australian. And no, Sarah and Ryan are not actual bro and sis. But let me tell you - these two are more brother and sister than many who actually share DNA. They met randomly in a Yahoo chat room almost 10 years ago, doing what they love -terrorizing noobs haha Neither one can pin point when they started calling each other bro and sis. It just was!



When Ryan and I started dating, I was tossed into a buddy chat to be introduced to Ryan's "Australian sister". Sarah and I instantly loved each other and she is hands down my best friend in the world!

Last fall Sarah decided she was ready for a break from her life in Aus and wanted to come check out the US. Best. News. Ever. We've all been counting down to June for so long! Getting to hug Sarah in person for the first time was awesome! It was amazing how natural it felt for all of us to be together. And of course I loved getting to hear that awesome Aussie accent!

Poor Sarah's luggage ended up in Nebraska... So she was stuck without any clothes except the ones she'd been wearing for over 24 hours on the plane. After getting her a nice hot meal (which was most welcome after just eating airline food) - we showed her the wonders of 24-hour Wal-Marts! She was able to get some clothes to tide her over until the next day when hers would finally make it to Springfield. Even though she was so tried, we all stayed up until the early morning talking non-stop!

The next day Sarah and I had hair appointments! Sarah's always been a huge fan of my stylist, so once June arrived, she told me to make her a hair appointment for as soon as she got here. She decided to be daring and ditch her dark hair for a new sexy blonde hue!



After getting all beautified, we decided to enjoy the nice weather by heading down to The Branson Landing, a fun outdoor shopping plaza that's right on the lake. Sarah and I are total shopaholics, so we were stoked to finally get to shop together! The three of us had a grand time strolling around, shopping, and most of all enjoying getting to be together in real life!



Oh, and did I mention she came baring gifts?! And I'll let you all in on an embarrassing secret. In the two and a half weeks Sarah was here... We ate all those goodies... And another care package her lovely mum sent us... It was really shocking...



I'll be posting daily until the story of Sarah's US trip has been told in full. Here are the posts you've got to look forward to!

Saturday: Shopping! and our encounter with a mall cop (not as bad as it sounds... haha)
Sunday: Midnight Madness - Introducing Sarah to 24/7 Wal-Marts
Monday: Parlor 88 - Night on the town part 1
Tuesday: Spending the day at the pool & OMG I finally won something!!
Wednesday: Barhopping craziness!
Thursday: 4th of July! Even Sarah felt patriotic :)
Friday: Photography outing! We tackle nature photography and urban photography. All in one day!
Saturday: Last night out & tear filled goodbyes :(
Sunday: I'll wrap things up with a note on differences between American and Australia living. And a little American/Australian dictionary!

Whew! Hope I can keep up with that! *fingers crossed* Oh... and that's just the first part of the summer! Now you girls know why I haven't been blogging!

I'm back!

Hello everyone,

I happily return to the world of blogging! How are all of you doing?? I had the best summer ever! It ended up being so busy that I decided to dedicate all my time to living and save the blogging for when things calmed down a bit. Now that my life has returned to it's normal somewhat boring self, I have the time to share the adventures of my summer with you :)

I have so many great stories and pictures! I can't wait for you all to see. I'm having a blast writing about my summer because it's like living the fun all over again!

I'm also looking forward to getting back in touch with all my blog friends!! Hopefully you awesome gals remember me :)

First summer post will be tomorrow and then I will try to keep a steady stream of posts coming to you all! Ahhh, nice to be back in the blog world again *wink*

What I've Been Up To

First of all, big welcome and thank you to all my new followers! Wow! I feel honored :)

Now then, I know I've been a little absent lately. But it's with good reason, I promise you! I've just been too tired and sore to type. You see, we're in the middle of giving our house a facelift.

This facelift includes:
Refinishing ceilings
Painting galore
New light fixtures
Total new bathroom (countertops, floors, sink, faucet, everyyything)
Refinishing the deck
New deck furniture and all outdoor goodies
New front yard landscaping

Then of course there's lots of fun extras like:
Refinishing awesome vintage furniture
Buying new decor (yayy!)

Tomorrow we're taking a break from the really hard stuff and just putting up a few light fixtures and then shopping for home decor! I'm so excited!! I'll be sure to post pictures of all my goodies!

A Game of Tag

I was so excited to see Brooke had tagged me! This is my first time being tagged here in blog world. I think this is a really fun one, because we learn so much about each other :) I learned that Brooke is amazingly awesome and loves mint chocolate chip from baskins!

What is your current obsession?
Three words for you:
Epic. Pet. Wars.





What is your current favorite memory?
Oh wow... So many amazing ones to pick from! How about this one from tonight...

Getting all sanzzied up and going out for a romantic dinner with Ryan. Then going to the park at twilight. Walking, talking and swinging on the swingset. What a great night!

Starbucks or Peet's?
As long as I can get a White Chocolate Raspberry latte, I'm good to go!


What's for dinner?
Pasta House! Love this place so much... I have so many amazing memories involving this place. They even catered our wedding :)

What would you eat for your last meal?
Vegetable dinner from O'Hana. It's pure heaven! I promise I'll take pics next time I go :)





What's the last thing you bought?
Lunch for me, my mom and sister! Girls afternoon out, ya know.


What are you listening to right now?
Ryan playing Plants vs. Zombies haha


What is your favorite ice-cream flavour?
Chunky Monkey! I love to sit down and eat the whole container!! Ahhh, the advantages of having the metabolism of a caffeinated squirrel...





What do you think of the person who tagged you?
I think Brooke is adorable, quirky and all around fabulous! I feel like we have loads in common and can always count on a smile from reading her blog :) I just wish she lived by me so we could be shopping buddies!!

What was your favorite toy growing up?
I adored Littlest Pet Shop and the original Polly Pockets! I had sooo many of those things... 80's/90's had the best toys ever!

If you could go anywhere in the world
for the next hour, where would you go?
Parrot Cay in Turks & Caicos. A hour there will rejuvenate you for years! (But it apparently can't help you hold a camera straight. This was before I'd taken up photography...)

Which language do you want to learn?
Spanish! It was my dad's first language, but he never taught me. Now I wish I spoke it fluently...

What's your favorite quote (for now)?

Reason. Season. Lifetime.

Big thank you for Sarah to telling me this quote. It has made such a difference in my life! It tells you that some people are brought into your life for a reason, maybe to teach you something about yourself or to show you something about life. Some people are brought into your life for a season and even if them leaving your life hurts you, you know that it was meant to be. Lifetime is for amazing people like Sarah and Ryan, who I know without a doubt will be in my life for me whenever needed, no matter what happens.

What is your favorite colour?
ooo... Toughie! Maybe yellow? I'm pretty drawn to that lately.


What is your favorite piece
of clothing in your own wardrobe?
My new destroyed jeans! Luv 'em!

What is your dream job?
Professional photographer! I love taking pictures and capturing moments that you might otherwise miss. Nothing makes me happier than taking someones photo and having it show, not only their outer beauty, but their inner beauty and personality!

Or a stylist... I love clothes and love putting outfits together for people! I believe having clothes, hair, and accessories that expresses who you are is very important. I love doing this for all my friends and family, hopefully they don't mind too much... haha

What is your worst habit?
Probably over thinking things and worrying myself sick about things that don't really matter... Or not keeping up with housework... But I'm making a lot of progress in that department! I think I've hit my groove or something...

If you had £100 now, what would you spend it on?
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8!! Gotta love the low aperture, gotta love the low price. And of course, every photographer needs a "niffy fifty" in their bag :)





Do you admire any one's style?
I admire so many girls style everyday just walking down the street! lol But as far as celebs go - I wouldn't mind swapping clothes with Rachel Bilson, Keira Knightley or Vanessa Hudgens!


Describe your personal style?
Since the end of last year to this Spring, I've changed a lot as a person and made a lot of good and needed changes to my life. I'm kinda in the middle of a style change to reflect that. I want to my outside to reflect what I feel and who I am on the inside. So far I'm really liking all the changes :)

Right now I've got kind of an indie chic socal with a bit of 60's vintage thing going on. Maybe... I dunno how to define it! You tell me lol

What are you going to do after this?
Go watch tv and snuggle with Ryan! And I'm going to see UP!!!! (tomorrow... but still, I'm stoked!)

What are your favourite movies?
Here are my current top 5 movies.

1) Star Trek! Yes, I am a trekkie. At the end of the movie I sat there and almost cried because it was so amazing. Seeing my favorite characters portrayed so perfectly and those famous classic lines delivered anew *bliss*

2) The Dark Knight - It's awesome. 'Nuff said!

3) Casino Royale - The actors, the sets, the wardrobe. Amazing!

4) Pillow Talk - A 1959 gem that even Ryan (who doesn't like old movies) loves!

5) The Ice Age Series - I cannot wait for the new one! Scratte in the new one looks and acts, just like Twiggy.

What is your favourite fruit?
So many choices... I'll say a crisp white peach! Nothing beats that in the summer. Or watermellon... That's pretty epic as well.


What inspires you?
People who beat the odds
Big cities
People who are true to themselves regardless what other people think
Beautiful parks
The ocean
Genuine people who truly care
Zoos
Stary nights
A truly good movie

Your favorite book?
I love books! I have so many favorites... The one I'm reading right now is Eclipse from the Twilight Saga. That's my favorite of the four!


Do you collect something?
I have so many little collections... As a young girl I collected rocks! And marbles... and teddy bears... and vintage buttons... and anything I could get my little hands on! haha

Now I just have a mini-sized perfume collection.


What is your favorite smell?
My new Cherry Blossom perfume!! I usually buy pricey high-end perfumes - but this one is amazing!! It mixes perfectly with my body chemistry.


What are you most proud of?
I'm really proud that I've learned to stand up for myself and be true to myself. I don't let people push me around anymore!

What do you like most about yourself?

Probably my ability to be friends with anyone!

What is your go-to nail polish color?
Maybelline Express Finish in Racey Red. Goes with everything, and dries crazy fast! And it makes short nails look amazingly chic, which is good for this bass player.

1) Respond and rework. Answer the questions on your blog. Replace one question that you dislike with a question of your invention and add one more question of your own.

2) Tag eight folks

Brooke and I hang with the same blogging crowd, so I didn't tag any of the awesome gals she did. Not that it's a rule that you can't! I just did it this way to spread the love a bit more :) But I wanted to say why, so they didn't think they were unloved haha

I'm tagging these amazing chicks:

Sarah @ If my life were a blog post...
Maegan @ ...love Maegan
Violet @ The Quiet Life of Violet
Gigi @ love, milla jane
Anne @ Six Gun Annie
Dana @ My Simple RaNdOmNeSs!
Haley @ elizabeth haley
Lorianne @ One Minute at a Time

I wanna tag everyone! I hate picking... So if you read all the way through this - considered yourself officially tagged :) If you give it a try post a link in the comments. You know we all wanna see!

Where It All Came From

Oh gosh, I can't believe I forgot to include links, let alone the store the stuff came from! I feel like I failed blogging 101 haha Thank you all for your sweet comments and glad you guys like the stuff so much you wanna know where to find it :)

White Blouse - dELiA*s

Destroyed Jeans - dELiA*s

Shoes - Jessica Simpson Camila in Antique Natural Leather

Orange Floral Top - Forever 21

White Beater Tank - Forever 21 ($3.50 and loads of different colors!)

Shorts - dELiA*s

Koi T-shirt - Urban Outfitters

Grey T-shirt - Urban Outfitters

Wolverine T-shirt - Urban Outfitters

Giraffe T-shirt - Forever 21

Plaid Shirt - dELiA*s

Fab Satin Hair Bow Bobby Pin - Forever 21 ($1.50 for 2!)

Braided Print T-shirt - American Eagle (also in that outfit Seven jeans and Ann Taylor Loft espradrills)

Yellow Dress - Urban Outfitters (sold out in the yellow, sorry girls...)


Thank you all again for the sweet comments and all the new follows!! I'm so glad that you liked everything!!

What's In Those Bags?!

It's about time I made this post! I kept meaning to take pics of my new clothes, but first my batteries died, and then things got busy. So here they are! The photography is just horrible... I have bad bad bad lighting in my bathroom and hallway... *cringes*

This is one of my new favorite outfits!! The first night I wore this out, I got a compliment on the jeans, so I was happy :)

Better shot of the shoes! Any idea how hard it is to take a picture of your own shoe? It's hard, believe me!

eek, this one turned out way too warm! But the shirt is amazinggggg! Quick tip, if you want a great beater tank, go to Forever 21. They're only $3.50!! Crazy, right?

I've got a thing for Koi fish. And pale colors. So this shirt was made for me! Oh, and how awesome are these shorts?? I'd been wanting a pair like this really bad, and finally found them in my size. Score!



Trying out the tucked in style. I think I like it! And I love Urban Outfitters t-shirts...



Vintage. Japanese. Wolverine. Yeah, this shirt rocks.



Loveee this shirt - and my little cream hair bow :)

The camera strap and my hand blocked some of the detail... Stock photo saves the day!



Lovee this top!! So comfy but chic. I wore it out to dinner in Kansas City (the day I bought it haha)



Some of you might remember this from a post a while back! I'm so happy to have this dress!! I forgot to get a pic of it... So once again, stock picture saves the day!



Giraffe in heart shaped glasses. Coolness indeed.

I was out of body wash, so I popped in Bath & Body Works to see if anything caught my fancy. I lucked out and they were having a sale! Buy a perfume get a body wash free :) I decided on this fabulous Cherry Blossom scent. Mmmm, I love it!

So that my friends, sums up my shopping! I hadn't been able to go shopping for a while, but since Ryan got a fabulous promotion I was given free reign. It was quite funny though. Since I had only window shopped for a while, it took me a bit to get out of that mindset. Ryan had to practically force me to buy things at first! But once I get started... Uh oh!

"Weekend" Getaway part 2

Day two began with us heading over to Zona Rosa - yet another outdoor shopping/dining district! They had some of my favorite stores like Forever 21, DSW, and dELiA*s. The weather was perfect for strolling around in the sun. I sadly didn't get as many pictures as the day before because I was plum worn out from all the activities from the day before...





I've got to give a little kudos to Ryan here - The guy was amazing! I shopped allllll day long. Looked at every single item in Forever 21 (and you know just how many items they have!) and tried on at least 30 shoes of a similar style at DSW, and the never complained once!! How amazing is that?? He gave great opinions and even helped me find some great pieces I'd missed. He's the best! What can I say :)



He was rewarded with an amazing lunch and drinks at Bravo Cucina Italiana! It was a great resturant and now I'm wishing they had one in Springfield. It's a nice mix of fine and casual dining and has amazing fresh-made food with great presentation.

We both got the Mezza Ravioli Insalata - which makes a great lunch because it's half an order of their cheese ravioli (housemade ricotta & parmesan ravioli striped with basil-pine nut pesto and cream tomato sauces over alfredo) and a side salad. And as a nice refresher from the simmery hot day, we both got mojitos :)



Later in the day we meandered on over to One Nineteen, which is the KC metro areas latest slice of shopping heaven. It has a very upscale boutique feel about it, which I loved. I pretty much died and went to heaven while in Crate & Barrel and West Elm... I prolly could have dropped 10k easily haha

They also had the cutest little frozen yogurt bar Mochi-yo. We of course couldn't resist and had to get some! Yummy stuff...



So that concludes our adventures of the week. We later headed home and enjoyed Sonic cranberry slushies and tatter tots for dinner midway on the trip home. Perfect end to a perfect trip!

Tomorrow I will finally post pics of my haul. Keep an eye out - there's some cute stuff!

"Weekend" Getaway part 1

This week Ryan and I took a little "weekend" trip up to Kansas City for some shopping, eating out, and just having fun relaxing. I say "weekend" because this trip was in the middle of the week. All the shopping districts we were wanting to go to were outdoors, so we waited for the perfect weather. Wow, what a great decision that was! Nothing beats shopping til your hearts content on a beautiful summer day :)

We first headed over to Country Club Plaza, which is just amazing!




It was designed in 1922 and has beautiful Spanish architecture.


They have over 150 stores and dozens of restaurants. It's a great place for both window shopping, and actual shopping. Having a wide range of stores from Tiffany & Co. to American Eagle. They also had the most adorable specialty food shop, I was ready to buy the place out!



They also have oodles of fountains and fun statues like these penguins :) This is for you Sarah!





And of course since this was a trip for shopping... We picked up a few things :)



I was going to include pics of all my haul in this post, but my camera battery died! So you'll have to wait... But keep an eye out, cause I got some rad stuff!



We stayed at the most adorable hotel & spa ever. It's actually a historic hotel that has completed a total renovation into the chic and green Q Hotel + Spa. It might not be the biggest most luxurious hotel I've stayed at, but it as a million amenities and I felt right at home! Best part... Free made to order omelets!






For dinner we went to Uno Chicago Grill. We'd recently seen it on the Food Network, and wanted to see if it lived up to the hype. WOW, did it ever!!



We of course, had to order their deep dish pizza. After much debating, we ordered the Four Cheese - mozzarella, cheddar, romano and feta with basil pesto and plum tomatoes (my favorites all in one pizza!) I still dream about the flaky delish crust...



After dinner we headed back to the parking garage, when I had the brilliant idea to head up to the top story and get some night shots. I've never really done night photography, so I was excited to mess around a little.


I was extremely proud of this skyline style shot. I had to use a crazy long shutter speed (2 seconds!) - and I have no tripod, so that was me bracing against a thin rail atop a very very high parking garage!



And that pretty much concludes the first day of our trip :) Check back Monday for part 2!