dollars & sense

“Be the change you want to see in the world.”

- Mahatma Gandhi

{pics without text}

Love is in the Air

Ladies and Gentlemen {boys &girls?},

Not since the days of saving up my allowance to purchase the Game Boy have I experienced such excitement over a techy gadget.The IPhone 4 has driven me straight to Crazy Town. I can't keep my hands OFF of it! At first I was unsure due to the lack of buttons, going from the Blackberry buttons to the glass screen felt kinda weird.

Rest assured dear readers, a weekend of: downloading app's, listening to Pandora radio, catching up with the Kardashians, playing Angry Birds, taking pictures of my pups with the ability to post them on twitter immediately, checking facebook and my email all with the "click of a button" was quite the first date.

I fell so quickly in love with it that it was about ALL I did for the majority of the weekend. Only after exploring the in's and out's of this miraculous "game boy" did it's ability to make a simple phone call come to mind! Yes, yes- it does that too...When I forced myself to relax my thumbs, I watched Nine, walked & washed the pups, napped and visited with my parents. What a gloriously lazy weekend!

From this:

To this:

lovers listen to this cute song!

Please friends and family,

I am dying to use the Facetime option on my phone.

It is time for an upgrade folks! Oh, and IPhone...wanna get hitched?

keep smilin'

I came home to find the cutest little surprise in my mailbox.

A handmade card!

Moms always know when to send a pick-me-up :)

Happy weekend, dreamers.

I plan on doing a whole lot of this:

And remember you can change the world with a smile!

mystic pizza

What do you need to make a mystic pizza??

You need Diane, Daci, Lauren, and a focused Linz!

{Roll out the dough, mix the sour cream and dijon mustard together}

{Cut the leeks and tomatos, say hi to Daci, and cook leeks over stove}

{Add leeks and tomatos to the dough}

{Put it in the oven and play with Titus for 25 minutes}

{Remove from oven and add the goat cheese. Voilà- you're ready to dine with Julia! It's Mystic Pizza time!}

J'adore Pretty Things

1. J'adore the first autumn breeze, which actually whipped across my face this morning as I stepped out for work. It literally painted a smile on my face. I am thrilled over the change of seasons. Bring it on fall! I am ready for ya.

2. With school buses and school zones back in place, I am reminiscent of my younger years. I find myself daydreaming of freshly pressed uniforms, new shoes, and school supplies. Oh, how I loved shopping for school supplies! In fact, when I was at Office Max last week looking for business card paper (not something I used to purchase) I left with 3 notebooks and a folder. I have no idea what I am going to do with them yet, but they were too cute to pass up. See?!

"Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanna buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address. On the other hand, this not knowing has its charms." - Meg Ryan in You’ve Got Mail.

{picture via tulips and flight suits}

3. My favorite movie was, is, and will remain You’ve Got Mail. It is perfect for viewing right now because it starts in the fall in New York. When Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks are in a film together it is the “perfect storm”. Although the AOL instant messaging is a bit archaic now, years later, it continues to be overwhelmingly adorable. The soundtrack is pretty grand as well.

4. The music by Zee Avi has been particularly inspiring this week. Check out her music here:

5. A few excellent illustration finds:

6. I started reading History of Love by Nicole Krauss. I keep it in my bag that I carry to work, and I read it while I wait for the shuttle in the evenings. I have found the perfect bench, shaded and breezy, to pick up where I left off the previous day. J'adore this book and it certainly is a pleasant way to pass the time.

7. Temple St. Clair jewelry has designed a collection for Target. The pieces are very unique and delicate looking. I am excited to see them in the store!

8. I have had a “small” obsession with everything 1950s lately. On Sunday I watched The Glenn Miller Story with my parents and I've been on cloud nine ever since. I love everything from the fashion to the furniture. And let’s be honest- Jimmy Stewart can do no wrong. It’s a must see.

9. The anticipation am I feeling for my IPhone 4 delivery sort of resembles Christmas morning. Anyone have suggestions for iPhone apps?

10. Lastly, j’adore that Elin Nordegren and Tiger Woods divorce is final.

sour apple cupcake?

So, I'm confused.

It was my friend Lauren's birthday on Sunday and we celebrated at work today. I knew that I wanted to get her cupcakes instead of the traditional cake because I know she adores them. I thought I would give the new Cupcake Gallery a shot! I needed a dozen cupcakes for Laur and coworkers so I drove to Cupcake Gallery yesterday and got there at 7pm. Granted, it was late-r than most people probably partake in a cupcake, but they only had four. 4. Now, one would think that if they are open from 7am-8pm it shouldn’t be a problem to get a dozen cupcakes at 7. I mean, why even stay open if you only have 4 cupcakes left, right!? When I ask the lady if I could order a dozen cupcakes for the next morning (today) at 8am, she looks at me like I’m crazy. They only serve coffee from 7-10am, if I want the cupcakes at 8 then I have to pay a rush fee. (At $ 2.25 a pop, I am not eager to have anything else tacked on to the cost). This place made it impossible to get the one product they sell. What is this business model?!

So I walked out.

I called Buttercups Cupcakes this morning at 7:20am- they answered. Said they don’t open until 10am- but they will have them boxed and ready for me to pick up right at 10 when they open. She kindly listed the flavors they were baking for the day. Done. Order placed. When I arrived at this ADORABLE location at the Villaggio, the dozen cupcakes were just as I requested. Preciously packaged and looking delicious. The cute cupcake girl opened it up and pointed to each cupcake providing a description. Ladies and gentleman, this is how you run a business.

The birthday celebration for Lauren was lovely. She deserves to be doted on. After enjoying our yeero's from Yeero-Yeero, we surprised her with the box of cupcakes. OH NO! Some of the adorable cupcakes had melted :( After all that-right!? However, it didn't change our enjoyment of them. A few flavors we nibbled on include: Chocolate Mint, Chocolate Chunk, Wedding Cake, Red Velvet and Peanut Butter.

I can assure you, I am never going back to Cupcake Gallery. That experience left me with a sour apple cupcake taste in my mouth. I can't wait for the new Buttercups Cupcakes to open at the Shoppes at Bellemead in October!

 

Happy Birthday, Lauren!

it's monday, y'all...

...but I want to talk about the weekend! Over the weekend both of my sisters and brother-in-law came to visit. Ohhhh- it was so much fun. I am sure my sisters thought I was acting crazy (to be honest I did blame it on the sugar rush I got from Another Broken Egg, where I had french toast with bananas foster on top for breakfast with the Tisons on Sunday morning-oh and don't forget the whipped cream) BUT I am pretty sure I was just giddy from having everyone home. I like to think of myself as free spirit that goes where the wind takes me, like a gypsy woman, but when I am honest with myself I realize my heart sings when I am home spending time with my family.

After spending more time picking out what we were going to wear for our family pictures than it actually took us to take the darn things, we all had dinner together. The Edwards and the Chumleys joined us. It was a combined celebration for Mrs. Cynthia and Ryan's birthday, Lauren & David's baby news, Leslie's last semester of school, Roxanne and Matthew's anniversary, and everyone being happy and healthy and together!

Because of all the happiness in the air, Dad joked that we were about to get a phone call that announced we had won a million dollars and a trip around the world. We are still waiting for the phone to ring about that one, though the weekend did seem surreal, sort of like Leave it to Beaver.

{Hand made scarf by Mother of Pearls, Diane Hudson, especially for Mrs. Cynthia}

{Did you know that Bergeron Pecans are in Kleinpeter ice cream sold at Brookshires?}

{Leslie presented a slide show of her trip to Alaska- with the map and all!}

Love you family!

Act Now

Thought I'd share a few snapshots from the Back to School event hosted by Volunteers for Youth Justice. I had a lot of fun sneaking a few photos of the kiddos :) Over 300 parents and children were in attendance. Great job,VYJ!

 

 

{I was striking a quite the pose, ehh? It's a good thing I am usually behind the camera!}

Oh and then this happened:

Thank you, Roxanne and Matthew, for putting up with my family/ME during our little shoot this weekend. Y'all were awesome and I can't wait to see the rest of the pictures!

crewcuts

Today I am taking photos for an event called ACT NOW:Stamp Out Truancy. The event is sponsored by the Volunteers for Youth Justice. {where the bf, Tison, works}I will be shooting with a simple white background to make the kids the only subject in the photo. I haven't taken photos of kids in quite some time...well, since I worked for Pat, but I am hoping they will turn out like my photo shoot inspiration. 

After this, my family and I are going to be taking the ever dreaded "Christmas card photo." Can you imagine- 4 girls trying to all like the same photo of themselves!! It is near impossible! {poor poor Dad...}Our dear friend Roxanne will be doing the honors. When I told everyone it was hard enough to get us all in town at the same time, so we were taking the picture today, my sis, Lauren, said, "You're turning into Mom!"

What are you up to today?

-xo-

Pub craaaawl...

My friend Richard started this and it has taken off like wild fire here in the port city. It's about time we had some cool happenings 'round these parts! Last night was no exception to the rule- we had a blazing good time.(even if we didn't win the raffle for 100 buck-a-roos!)

Here's some pictures to prove it:

{Artspace}

{ps- my friends are really fun!}

{Robinson Film Center-Abby Singer's Bistro} *that looks like a beer, but actually it's a t-shirt!!

{University Club}

{Overtime Sports Bar & Sand Bar}

On the walk down Texas Street back to the car- I got a little camera happy, but downtown is just so pretty at night!!

Happy weekend everyone!!!!
{My sisters are coming in town this weekend
and I am beaming with excitement!}

I Am A Girl - The Girls With Glasses Theme Song from The Girls With Glasses on Vimeo.