Happy Easter!

Even though the day is almost over, let me take this moment to say HAPPY EASTER to you and yours!

My day was wonderful. We started out with a leisurely morning, making guacamole and taking our time getting ready before we headed over to my parents' for some of my dad's famous slow-grilled chicken. It's SO GOOD and such a staple of my childhood: just smelling it reminds me of summer. That, paired with my mom's pasta salad, my guacamole and my grandma's deviled eggs, made a perfect Easter lunch.

We had a great time with my parents (especially Shadow, who got enough scraps of chicken to last him a long time), and then pretty soon after, we headed over to Fiance's grandparents' house for (what else?) more food! Shadow got MORE scraps, too, so he has had a pretty great day. :o)

I hope your day was as filled with family and friends as mine was! :o)

Dystopian

It's a good era for dystopian novels... Hunger Games. Divergent. Matched. Delirium. I am also happy to admit that I've read them all... here are my reviews!

Hunger Games: FIVE STARS. I LOVE the Hunger Games. It's my favorite series right now. Can't wait for the next movie to come out!

Divergent: Three and a half stars. I really liked this book... at first. It went so fast and I started falling in love with Four. Then... the ending happened. Like, really fast. There was a big war-thing and it happened so quickly that I didn't get to really experience the losses, etc. It made me EH about getting the next one. I'm sure I'll read it... eventually.

Matched: Three stars. Pretty good, but more forgettable. I don't think about the characters after I stop reading them, like I normally do when I fall in love with the characters.

Delirium. FOUR STARS. I LOOOOVED the first book of this series... the last one was a big fat fail of a conclusion for me. Overall, a great story, well created and well laid out for the reader. But the ending! THE ENDING HAS TO WRAP EVERYTHING UP. Re: Hunger Games.

There you have it. My dystopian novel review.

Crush

I know I'm like the LAST person on Earth to get on board with this, but Fiance and I just finished the first season of The Walking Dead and I must say...

I love Shane (other than the whole "evil" thing).

Hear me out. I know he's crazy (SPOILER! He tried to kill Rick?! HIS BEST FRIEND?!), but I can't help but sympathize with him until that crazy point. He almost died trying to rescue Rick (who he thinks is dead). Then he risks his life trying to fill Rick's shoes by saving Lori and Carl. And then, reasonably, he falls in love with Lori. He risked everything for them and then she leaves without even acknowledging what they had. I just... feel so bad for him.

Also, he's SO HOT.











SO HOT.

That is all for tonight. Enjoy the photos.

Sunshines and Dark Clouds

It's Friday and I'm SO HAPPY. Here are the best parts and worst parts of the week!

Dark Clouds:

• I've been so sleepy... I need to work on having a consistent schedule.
• I'm STILL trying to figure out where to put all of my shower gifts. #firstworldproblems
• It's been windy and yucky this week... GO AWAY WIND!
• None of my picks for March Madness are doing well. Darn.

Sunshines:

• I'm off today!
• It's Friday!
• We have no big plans and I'm so excited about it! Just some Wingstop and NCAA basketball! :o)
• Fiance drove this week, which means $$$$$
• We are having lunch with my dad today! Love it!
• It's getting so nice and warm... almost 80 this week! BRING IT ON.

Happy weekend! 

TGIT

Today I feel a lot of TGIT... Thank Goodness it's Thursday! Tomorrow is my off Friday, so I'm really loving this night :o)

After a busy weekend (getting ready for the shower, dinner at Fiance's aunt's house for her birthday, then the shower, then fight night with Blairre and John, then breakfast with my mom, Jess and Kylie followed by lunch with the future MIL and her sisters...), I spent the past few evenings getting the house back in order. Everyone was SO generous, so we've been trying to ease the gifts (like the griddle, the new silverware, the wafflemaker, the wine glasses...) into our house. It's not that easy since we don't have that much space, but we are making it work :o)

Tonight, I came home, worked out, and then rushed over to my boss's historical society presentation. My other boss asked me to stop by and take photos of his presentation for our newsletter... mission accomplished! Then I spent too much money at Target (I was supposed to pop in and out for some salmon, but walked out with two more vases for the wedding, a meat thermometer, a mug for my coworker, salmon, strawberries, and some lean cuisines!).

Now, I'm relaxing and waiting for Fiance to get home so we can get this weekend started. Other than lunch with my dad tomorrow and laundry, we have no big plans. I'm loving it.

Bridal Shower

Yesterday, on Saturday, my sister/Maid of Honor and my lovely mama threw me a beautiful bridal shower. It was a beautiful albeit breezy day, and everyone had a great time. They served Hawaiian finger sandwiches,  plus an array of other sandwiches, baked brie, besito caliente (a spicy jam served over cream cheese), mimosas and sweet tea. For dessert, cake and chocolate covered strawberries! :o)

We started off with some food, and then went straight into shower games like "How Well do You Know the Bride", "He Said/She Said", and love-story themed Charades. Everyone had a great time and everyone was SO very generous with their gifts! I'll let the photos do the talking :o)











































Some of my goodies include plenty of wine and wineglasses (yay!), some pretty lingerie for my honeymoon, a beautiful hand-created recipe book, a silk robe, a waffle maker, griddles, electric skillets, new towels, new silverware, a gorgeous hair piece from my MIL, and a Kitchenaid mixer from my mom! I am a happy and blessed girl :o)

Sunshines and Dark Clouds

It's Friday! Here we go:

Dark Clouds:

• I ate something bad on Sunday and was so so so sick on Monday. Thankfully, I'm all better now!
• Fiance had a bad week at work so here's hoping it gets better from here out!
• I need to finish our invitations. I HATE THEM! Well, I love them, but I hate hand-addressing and trying to make them look cute. Blah.
• I keep losing my earrings... I don't know if the backs aren't tight enough, but they always fall out of my right ear. :o(

Sunshines:

• My bridal shower is tomorrow!
• My sister is here in town and helping me finish my dreaded invitations... she is much more creative than I am with crafts.
• We thought our vacuum was broken but it isn't! HOORAY!
• We bought a new microwave and it actually cooks our food. DOUBLE HOORAY!
• It's been a wonderful, full week of friends. We spent last Saturday afternoon with my good friend Blairre, her husband and their two kids at St. Claire, eating delicious food. Saturday afternoon/Sunday morning was spent with my sister. Tuesday was spent with my good friend Ellie (who just got married!). Tomorrow is my bridal shower. Life is good.
• Fiance got me into the Walking Dead and it is SO GOOD. I recommend it!

Have a great weekend! :o)

To Do

My current to-do list:

• Dress-up my wedding invitation envelopes
• Address my wedding invitation envelopes
• Buy cute stamps for my wedding invitation envelopes
• MAIL MY WEDDING INVITATIONS
• Get my nails done for the shower on Saturday!
• Start writing my next column
• Clean the house
• Wash sheets
• Finish the hostess gifts for the bridal shower on Saturday
• Find a skinny gold belt for my dress

Other than the wedding invitations (I hate invitations), the rest of it isn't so bad. Pray I get these stupid invitations in the mail by Saturday! :o)

The Best Parts

There are tons of bad things about being engaged. Well, not tons, but some. Like people getting offended when they aren't invited to your (very small, destination) wedding. Or people putting their own opinions above yours for YOUR wedding. Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. Planning the actual wedding *

*I realize a lot of women  LOVE this part. I don't. I thought I would love event planning but it is tedious and there are just.so.many.details to remember! That on top of my normal busy job(s) and I always feel like I could be doing something for the wedding. Sigh.

But there are so, so many great things about being engaged. One is coming up this weekend at my bridal shower! I'm so excited to wear white and play shower games and have all of the women I love around me. Fiance's mom is even flying in for it. We'll be missing a few of my favorite women (Dianna, my little, and Steph, a bridesmaid and my cousin who lives in Texas), but I'm so excited to spend the afternoon with the rest of my favorite girls.

Also, I keep forgetting that we will actually be getting gifts for our wedding/bridal shower... but fear not! I went and grabbed some adorable thank you notes to be prepared for the shower :o)

I'll let you know how it goes!

Pinterest Projects

I really want to start being more crafty. I'm really just lazy, is the issue, which means I don't pay enough attention to detail on crafts, which is the whole point lol. But I have a few ideas that I do want to try out... like these!

This Lemon Body Scrub



These Ink Stained Glasses



This Key Holder




I'll keep you updated... I want to try the body scrub as a favor for my sister's bridal shower sometime this year, so I need to test it before then! Wish me luck!

Sunshines and Dark Clouds

FRIDAY! Let's get to it:

Dark Clouds:

• It's been windy and yucky out... pray it gets nicer and QUICK, because my bridal shower is next weekend :o)
• I've been busy ALL WEEK with a big project for my company CEO so I honestly leave work feeling a little dazed lol.
• I have not been eating well. Need to get back to it.

Sunshines:

• It's Friday!
• My bridal shower is next week!
• My sister comes home tomorrow! Can't wait to see her.
• The weather is warming up... LOVE WARM WEATHER! Come on, summer!
• My boss LOVED the big project I completed... whew!
• We went to a lovely wedding last week for my good friend Ellie, and now we are in the process of planning a couple's trip to Harry Potter World in Orlando. Our fiances are not as thrilled as we are.
• I rocked a spin class this week.

Have a good weekend!

Oh, and here's a picture of us from the wedding:

Fiance is so handsome.

Spin Class Review

Monday, my friend Vanessa texted me and asked me to go to a spin class with her. I was like, "absolutely not" lol! I've heard such horror stories about spin class (mainly that it was CRAZY HARD) that I got nervous about it. But she is upbeat and optimistic, so I decided to go.

I'm SO GLAD I did. That seat was not comfortable but it was suuuuch a good workout. I normally do Zumba, but I feel like I burned the same amount of calories in half the time, all the while listening to good tunes and being able to go at my own pace/resistance.

If you are considering it, I definitely recommend it. Spin: two thumbs up! And a good way to cross something off my 26 before 26 list!

26 By 26 Update

So a few months into my 26 before 26 and I can already cross a few things off!

Jenna's 26 Before 26

1. Do something big for my career In progress

2. Make homemade tortillas

3. Run two 10 minute miles in a row

4. Volunteer

5. Donate money to something

6. Try fancy champagne

7. Take a spin class SO TOUGH. But a really, really great workout with a good friend :o)

8. Get a spray tan (yikes) Scheduled to do so next Friday! Ahh!

9. Take two vacations this year

10. Save $5,000 for a house

11. Read five classic books

12. Complete five Pinterest projects

13. Clean out my closet and donate to Good Will

14. Buy an amazing black dress

15. Bake a multi-layer cake

16. Keep a more consistent schedule

17. Get my hair cut every 10 weeks

18. Get up to date with doctor checkups (teeth, eyes, annual, etc.)

19. Host a girls' night

20. Take Shadow to a new dog-friendly area

21. Wash my hair more than once a week (for real)

22. Print out photos for a photo wall

23. Drink less Diet Coke

24. Find the perfect daily perfume for me Thanks to my sister, who got me a perfume sampler for Christmas. My new fave perfume is Prada Candy... it smells warm and sweet. Perfect.

25. Buy a bigger bed

26. Buy myself a nice piece of jewelry New dangle pearl earrings!

So far so good! :o)

True Love

On the day we took our engagement photos, our photographers asked us to play a game called "I fell in love with you because...". It was a ploy to get us to be lovey with each other, and I'm sure they hear all kinds of mushy stuff during that time, like about their smile and their beautiful eyes, etc.

But Fiance and I had a whole different viewpoint on it.

"I fell in love with you because you sprint around the house when you get excited about something."

"I fell in love with you because you growl at me when you are playful."

"I fell in love with you because you love our dog so much."

"I fell in love with you because you like to surprise me."

"I fell in love with you because of how silly we can be together."

"I fell in love with you because you let me steal bites of your food."

"I fell in love with you because you always buy chocolate ice cream, even though you don't like it as much as I do."

"I fell in love with you because you share your heat with me every night."

"I fell in love with you because you love puns so much."

"I fell in love with you because you put your hands in my hair to kiss me."

Our reasons for love were so true and honest that even we couldn't help but laugh with delight and happiness. I had no idea he even noticed when I sprinted around the house, and he didn't realize how much I like it when he growls at me to wrestle or play with him, like a puppy. Our photographers wanted us to be lovey and mushy, but even though I love his eyes and his smile, the things I love about him are the small details that make him HIM. The little quirks and habits that are so uniquely FIANCE that I love them because they are part of him.

And to me, that is true love.