Did you think I was talking about that 90's TV show? Barry Watson with his smoldering stare and the family with all those good values? Not so much.
I've got allll my bridesmaids!!! I finally got the courage to ask the last, but certainly not least, bridesmaid this weekend. Bridesmaid KM and I worked together during my first two years teaching. It was not a great place, and we certainly bonded over all the "terribleness" that we endured. Oddly enough, we became closer when I left that district for where I work now.
It took me so long to ask KM because she is a mommy and not just for one amazing little boy, but for three very wonderful little kiddos. Not to mention that she also got engaged a few months after Mr. ST and I. I kept vacillating back and forth and chickened out on several occasions. I just sucked it up and asked her when she was leaving our Memorial Day BBQ. She was soooo excited. There was lots of hugging. It made me super happy.
Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day Weekend!!! We are still recovering in the SandyToes household (you know it was a good weekend then).
So I told I would show you why the blogggggg-ity-blog has been on the "quiet" side lately. I'll try to keep to as many pictures as I can and as little text as possible. <3
My first attempt at quilting anything other than a solid square. Going well!!
Patriotic Wreath!
Red, White and Blue battered cupcakes...
Frosted top
Inside of the cupcakes. They were SOOO yummy.
My garden!!!
Those are just SOME of the things that have been going on in the SandyToes house. More posts to come this week....proooomise!!! <3
We were at a wedding in upstate NJ two weekends ago. Saturday - Monday. I had some free time Saturday after the rehearsal luncheon. The resort we stayed at included free gym access. WHAT A GYM. I went down Saturday night and did a Week 1 session. WOO HOO! The session went great and it was even EASIER!
Monday was a recovery day for me (Bay Breezes with vodka can be tough the next day). It also rained like crazy. My hip was a bit sore (heels/dancing/rain), but manageable.
Tuesday Mr. ST and I were puppy sitting the huskies. It also rained ALL DAY. Wet dog = stinky couch. I started to have more major pain in my hip. I also sat on a hard stool in one of the science classrooms at school and I heard my hip pop. Never good.
Wednesday - GYM.
I needed to get a workout in at least twice this week. Today was the first day I had time after work. I dragged my big old bag in, changed, warmed up and stretched. I got about a third of the way through the workout, but my hip was killing me so I reduced it to a walk.
Thursday 5/19 - Monday 5/23 - Since my hip was agonizingly painful, I took a few days off. Sheesh. By Monday afternoon it was feeling pretty decent. I didn't want to push it, so I gave myself one more day.
Tuesday - Went for a light walk to stretch out the hip. It was nice to get out between all the rain storms.
Wednesday 5/25 - I Went for a RUUUUN. I finished up Week 1. I think I'm safe enough to move on to Week 2 for Friday. It was smooth and easy. Bridesmaid NM and I then went to the beach. We combed the beach, found some sea glass and walked about 3 or so miles. Niiiiice. Hip feels good!!
Friday 5/27: First day of WEEK 2.
Week 2 Playlist, Genre; Hip Hop1. Kanye West – Gold Digger
2. Ludacris – Stand Up
3. Will Smith – Switch
4. Outkast – Bombs Over Bahgdad
5. Black Eyed Peas – Let’s Get Retarded
6. Puff Daddy, Lil’ Kim, & Notorious B.I.G. – All About The Benjamins
7. DMX – Party Up
8. Lil’ Jon & the Eastside Boyz – Get Low
Soooo excited. We'll see how the hippy holds up to this. <3
Hope everyone has a safe, fun and happy Memorial Day weekend! I'll see you guys on Monday with loooots of crafty projects. Be sure to thank any Military Service men and women you may see!
I know I'm mean. I'm not really sharing that, as much as I am bragging about how I spent the day laying on the beach in the sand giving myself a free exfoliation. I even went in the water up to my ankles. That's a big step for this early in the summer in the North Atlantic (water temperature was somewhere around 55ish degrees).
Now for the real important things:
Bride on a Budget is giving away a $100 gift certificate to Ann's Bridal Bargains. I went to the site and there are some A-Mazing deals and steals. Hop on over to Bride on a Budget to see how many entries you qualify for and enter away! You know how lucky I am - I'm trying to pass it on to you too!!!
A very good Blogging Bride-to-Be-Friend (<3 <3 <3 <3 ) of mine is also having a giveaway. Stop on over to Bride-onicles of a Soon to be Bride and enter her first giveaway. She made this incredible, handmade jewelry pouch to hold all your jewelry when you travel. I have entered! You should too!!!!
There were some great comments on BBQ dishes on this post. I'm still looking for more suggestions! Do you have a great dish for BBQs that always goes fast? Leave a comment here for me!
Hey hey! It's been a bit quiet over at this here blog. I've got good reasons. I'll be sharing what's kept me so busy later. Today's post is about sharing.
Bridesmaid KS lives in California. I miss her all the time. She works for PacSun and is living this fabulous life in sunny Cali. She's sorta-kinda famous now. She's on the PacSun website because she is an associate buyer for the women's department. You can see her here. I told you she is super gorgeous (she has no idea either). I loooove everything she picked. My favorite are the honeycomb cork wedge heels. <3. Annnd she is a rightful opponent in Words with Friends. She's been my best competition so far!
After all my excitement over KS and her aaaaah-mazingness, I got an email that made me super "SQUWWWEEEEEEE!"
Lauren Gerardi from BRIDES magazine sent me an email. She found my blog from another bridal blog. She asked me if I would be interested in care packages and writing reviews.
Here's the email: "I work at BRIDES in advertising and not sure if you’re interested or not but we have a program here where you can get some free fun stuff from BRIDES. We send out quarterly care packages (sample products, gift certificates, etc.) and just ask for product feedback. Some of the stuff is really cute."
So of course, I emailed her back, told her I was super-head-over-heels-excited and interested. I had to fill out a survey and I'd be set. The survey was easy peasy and asked some bridal and non-bridal related questions.
Because I loooove all of you Brides-to-Be out there I asked if I could share this wealth with you. Leave me your name and email and blog link in the comments if you want me to pass it along to Lauren.
And I've got a favor to ask. Mr. ST and I are having a Memorial Day BBQ this weekend. I'm fresh out of ideas for new foods to serve. There will be approximately 25-35 people here throughout the day.
Our Menu:
Burgers/hot dogs/sausages
Fresh Cut Veggies and dips
Chips, pretzels, etc.
pasta salad
potato salad
baked beans
Shrimp Ceviche
Ramen Cole Slaw
Rice Crispy Treats, Brownies and Cupcakes
I'm tired of the same old standards. I want something fresh and different. Help!!! What is your signature dish you take to BBQs? Could you leave the recipe below? You could also email me at sandytoesbride@gmail.com THANKS!!! You guys are the BEST!!! <3
Ok, so last we left off, Mr. ST and I had decided (and I do mean he has an opinion and did help make the final choice) on the pails with the flowers, shells and grasses.
His Godmother had come to see our house and see how the wedding planning was going. I showed her my "binder bible" and all the pictures I had collected of inspiration and the direction the wedding theme was going. She is a super crafty and thrifty lady so I was exstatic when she said she would go on the hunt for the pails at yard and garage sales and online.
Fast forward to last Thursday. She called to see if we had made any progress and if I had found any more pails. She was not having a ton of luck finding ones that were meeting my particular description/size need/color preference/price point. I know, I know...there were a ton of requirements. She then asked why I felt I HAD to have flowers if I wasn't really crazy about them.
Um.......I dunno. No one really asked me that before.
I thought about it and realized I was nervous that the tables would not look "full" and the room would look too large if there was not something substantial on the tables. His Godmother had done her homework. She started to give me websites she found with beach themed centerpieces, most without flowers.
All of these ideas made me happy - happier than flowers ever had. And I love the idea of being able to add ambiance with the candle lighting. And I like all the texture of the other elements on the table. Plus, none of it will WILT by the end of the night! Woo Hoo! The COST to get these babies together was also significantly less than the flowers. Most could be done for around $500 total. For ALLLLL 20some odd tables we MAY end up having. Yeeeessssssssssssss.
Mr. ST. and I would need to have a big discussion to figure out where we stood with these new ideas.
One of the first things that Mr. ST and I did was meet with our florists. It was a no brain-er that we would be using a good friend of Mr. STs. Our total estimate for the flowers was $4000.00. Yes. FOUR THOUSAND DOLLARS. Now, I am aware it was an over estimate because that would be if we needed 25 tables because EVERY person invited would be attending. I get it. But still. It hurts to look at that number.
I'm not a "cut" flowers kind of person. I love to garden and I love to grow flowers. I CANNOT however bring myself to spend astronomical amounts of money on something that will wilt and die within HOURS. I was not hot to the idea of flowers for centerpieces, but could not think of something better. I fear that with non-floral arrangements there is a feeling of something lacking - some element missing or the table appears too big. I can never put my finger on it, but it always bugs me.
The flowers began to fail me when I began wavering on my bouquet style. I'll lament about that soon enough in it's own post. This weekend Mr. ST was in a wedding for good friends of ours. She has beautiful flower centerpieces of hydrangeas, sunflowers and greenery. They were wilting before the END OF THE DAY. The ceremony and reception were all in the same space. Long day, humidity, flowers are delicate...BUT THEY WERE WILTING. And expensive. Money was wilting on the tables....ARGH!!!!
Eventually we settled on combining these two pictures:
Take the pail from the bottom picture, with the grass and shells and add in the artichokes, sweet William, Japanese maple, gerbera, sea holly, hypericum.... all in those vibrant fall colors. I would surround the pail with a few votives in sea glass colors, throw in some candles and call it a day. But the price of these wonderful creations: $130 per table. That's with our steep discount too. Yikes.
Out shopping one day my mom and I came across smaller 7" pails, but they were a DOLLAR. So I swiped all 10 that the store had. I had cut off about 20 bucks each for 10 tables. Awesome. But not enough pails for the max 20 tables/centerpieces we may need. UGH. So I sent out an email and asked a few thrifty ladies to keep their eyes peeled for pails on the cheep.
Stay tuned for Flower Failure Part 2 later this week...
So we've already chatted about how much I am NOT in love with runnnnning. Well I've got to get started with my training program for the 5K in October that Bridesmaids TMG, CV, and I will be doing. But....
.
.
.
.
.
.
I've got an excuse every day for not going. The excuses aren't the real issue. What's at the bottom of bothering me: my nerves about my injured hip. I'm not quite sure what to expect most normal days, let alone if I am to start walking/jogging/running three times a week what will end up happening.
But it cannot stop me anymore. I am going to post allevery most Fridays about my attempts at following the workouts for the week. So here are the details:
Program: Kiss My Black Ass - Couch to 5K
*Notes on program: her music is great, she is suuuuuper encouraging, but she uses a program for her voice overs and it makes it sound like a helium sucking chipmunk. However, the downloads are free and the music is great. (did I say that already?). 5K - Altantic City, October 2011. Partners: Bridesmaids - TMG and CV. (there is NO way I could do this without them.<3) Training Route: Around my neighborhood on pavement (yikes) and possibly the gym.
Week One: 5 Minutes warm-up walk, with run/walk intervals.
Week 1 Playlist, Genre; Hip Hop
1. T.I. – Big Shit Poppin’
2. Flo-Rida – Low
3. Kanye West – Stronger
4. Diddy – Come To Me
5. Black Eyed Peas – The Boogie That Be
6. LL Cool J – Headsprung
7. Missy Elliott – Gossip Folks
Wednesday: My first "real" day of an exercise program.
I died. Almost literally too. I made it through to just about the last "run" section and I was wheezing (it sounds like I am sucking water through mesh into a balloon. No lie.).... BUT I made it. My time was not great. At all, but it was done.
Friday: Day 2 of Week 1
Not much better than Wednesday. I tried to decrease my time, but actually added three minutes. Not sure if it's because I have to cross a major road in our development of not...I'm going to say yes, it was the traffic's fault.
Are you trying to exercise more? Did you make fitness goals with your friends? It's the only thing keeping me motivated - knowing they are holding me accountable.
Thanks to everyone that entered my giveaway! GBR1980 from the bride-onicles blog has won and I have contacted her! She will have 48 hours to claim her prize. If I don't hear from her by then another winner will be drawn.
On a wedding note, I'm extremely glad that the Duke and Duchess have snuck away to a honeymoon. Good for them. I hope they are busy doing their "duty" and making adorable little babies to be heirs to the throne.
Mr. ST and I talk about our honeymoon like it's a mythical creature that we would like to see one day, but most likely never will....I know, a bit unenthusiastic, right? I'm hoping it will be in the budget, but it's more the time of year that will determine if we go at all. As of right now, my career in education and his career working at a university do not have the same "off" seasons. We are only able to go away the week after Christmas if neither of us wants to use up the very little vacation time we get through the year. So, it's still way up in the air. Maybe I'll have a different career by then...who knows?!?
On another totally unrelated note, if you are at all into couponing, you should check out Living Rich with Coupons. I went to Pathmark this weekend, got a 112.97 bill and spent only 55.62!!!!!! It was INSANE. I followed the tips and coupons that pop up on the site. Just a warning, it puts about 10-12 updates A DAY in your reader. It's a bit much, but SO worth it!!
For my last and final rant, I kept trying to get a free Swiffer from their facebook page, but within 18 minutes 12,500 were gone. The page would not load correctly, or if it did, it did not register all the way through. UGH!
Do you coupon? Hunt for deals? Sign up for EVERY free offer out there? :-)
Hey everyone!!! Just letting you know I'm extending your time to enter the giveaway until tomorrow )Tues. May 10) afternoon, 3 pm EST. It was such a hectic weekend I want to give people a chance to catch up - I know my reader was at 223 blogs to read today! Yikes!
So remember, if you want a chance to win, leave a comment on this post in order to be in the drawing!
I was a crazy busy crafter this week! Yesterday was Mother's Day and I knew I wanted to create some fabulous gifts to celebrate the wonderful "moms" in my life.
This rug is for AnutK - yes I spelled that Anut. She is Anut.
This rug is for my Granmother - the best green thumb around. Serisously, she will pinch a piece off a plant and then get it to grow.
This rug is for my Mom. She and my Dad are avid bikers and take trips to bike paths around the US. (I knnnnnnnow, I know, the bikes are a bit wonky looking. I was looking at a picture on my cell phone of their actual bikes...oops. Note to self, make picture larger next time. lol.)
Now, for the hand beaded, ruffled necklaces.
First up is Bubbles:
This is Anut's necklace.
My Grandmother doesn't wear costume-type jewelry, so I skipped her on this project.
Then my Mom's - orange and green. Her favorite colors.
And while I was at it....I made one for myself. I am an avid blue/teal clothes wearer so I naturally gravitated towards that color. The white really set the teal/aqua color off.
I love my picture taken. I've always been that way. I force, demand, plead with Mr. ST to take pictures all the time which is an extremely difficult process. I have finally gotten Mr. ST to cave in to getting engagement pictures done.
So what's the problemo you ask? Well...where (the location) do we take them?
1. Rowan University
Mr. ST and I met at college, Rowan University. While it is a nice campus, it's not picturesque. This is about the most beautiful spot on campus. That's Bunce Hall. I had a majority of my classes there. It's also where graduation takes place (not that I remember actually graduating...oops being at the bar till 4 am).
With that being the only real spot to take a nice picture, Mr. ST ruled it out. Plus, Mr. ST is not as fond of my Alma mater... (he's still taking classes towards his degree at another university - that's about all I can say towards that topic).
2. Baseball Stadium.
Mr. ST is a DIE-HARD Yankees fan. I've grown up being a Phillies fan (my dad and brother actually work there too!!!) I don't dislike the Yankees, in fact, I like them almost as much as the Phillies. So I had stalked out a few engagement sessions on Weddingbee and saw one taken at the Giants Stadium.
I suggested this to Mr.ST who scowled. Seriously, he did (I tried my hardest not to laugh. I was waiting for his "politically" correct way to tell me not a chance in hell ...no). He then said it would never be allowed in Yankees Stadium. He said he won't set foot in Citizen's Bank Park. Whatevs. So this option was out.
3. The Beach/Lighthouse
We live about 10 minutes from the beach. No lie. I've been there about once a week since the beginning of April (it's still freezing, but I'm going!).
Anyways, I want our wedding pictures taken on the beach. So I'm not fond of the idea of the same setting for engagement pics. The beach is out. The lighthouse - same concept, so it's a no go too because why take engagement shots there when I can be there in a pretty white dresssssssssssss...???
4. Boardwalk.
I love the boardwalk. Mr. ST and I go regularly to the boardwalk to play in the arcade. We also frequent the bars (helloooo, we were Jersey Shore before it was on TV....Snooki getting punched in my favorite bar - priceless, but I digress.)
I've seen a bazillion shots done at the boardwalk and they are always so... sweet. I would love to, but I feel like that too similar to the wedding photos "look" that I want.
So my requirements for an engagement shoot location:
Not beachy
Somewhere in South Jersey
No "fee" for taking photos in said location
Easy, relaxed and location atmosphere should lend to naturally amazing pictures.
I don't think that's tooooo much to ask is it? :-)
NOW... FOR THE GIVEAWAY!!!
I have been busy crafting like crazy the last two weeks and wanted to share some of the things I've created with you! There are two items that I will be giving away to one lucky reader!
First: custom designed, hand painted new carpet coasters. Set of 4 coasters that I painted and binded to create some one-of-a-kind coasters.
Yummy iced tea - and that coaster is saving all the sweaty-ness from getting on my counter.
And for the second item:
A unique, hand beaded and sewn chunky necklace.
WARNING: Self-Photos below. Promise you won't laugh - Come-on PROMISE!!!
Woo-Hoo!! I know you are all dying for these fabulous one-of-a-kind goodies!!! So here' how to enter:
Be a follower of Sandy Toes Bride and leave a comment below saying so.
For an extra entry: leave a separate comment about a real place in South Jersey that adorable engagement shots can be taken...<3
Rules:
No comments after Monday, May 9, 2011 at 10:00 PM EST.
Include your email in the comment if your name does not link back to you. You can type it out sandytoesbride at gmail dot com.
Only one comment per person please. (Unless you enter the extra entry)
The random winner will be announced on Tuesday, May 10 and contacted via email.
Winner will have 48 hours to claim prize. If not claimed by then another winner will be chosen.
I've been very bust the last few weeks getting some last minute gifts together for Mr.ST's and my future niece - Gabby - who should be here by the end of June.
First up - the Diaper Sandcastle Cake. I used over a 150 size 3 diapers. I find they are the best size to get a good "roll" shape and it's a diaper size that most parents will use in abundance. I've been saving empty paper towel and toilet paper rolls to make the turrets of the castle. I cut out some light colored construction paper to make the "tops". I scoured dollar stores to get some sand toys to help decorate.
I eyed up plenty of tutus out in bloggy-world. I read over a bazillion tutorials and finally decided to just give it a shot. It was soooooo easy. I sat down and got it done in a half hour, well, more like 45 minutes because I was watching Big Bang Theory and could not stop laughing at Sheldon. Annnnyway, you should give it a try. I also made a detachable flower yo-yo out of the same material that was on the Puffy Quilt Blanket again with a button from Mr. ST Bachi in the center.
Gabby will such a lil munchkin over the summer so there most likely will not be a bathing suit to wear. Sooo, she'll need some fabulous little dresses to sport this summer instead. I used the Cricut to cut out the anchor and backed with with fusible web. I ironed it on the onesie and then stitched around it. I cut out the skirt layer and ruffled it on the machine then attached to the onesie. The sleeve ruffles I had to stitch on by hand because the little arm holes are just too tiny to fit on my machine. It was soooo easy and sweet and made me very excited for summer. PLUS - I have almost two yards of material left with the red and blue stripe!!
You're wondering why all the ahhhh over 42. It's my favorite number. Tie with 13. The combo of 13-42 or 42 -13 OR for real faves 10 - 42 or 10 - 13 is just ME.
Hence our wedding date of 10/13...duh. No brainer for Mr. ST and I to choose that date.
Annnnyways, I've been waiting to do a giveaway on my bloggy blog until I had 42 followers. Soooo, I went on today to write a post about running into a glass door (I'm drafting it now. You'll pee yourself. Promise.) and I saw I have 42 followers! So YAY!!!
I'll figure out something super amazing and fabulous that I have crafted together for the giveaway later this week. Keep checking back to see what day I post it :-)
Now the story. You click this video and listen. It's the perfect soundtrack for this story.
MoH NM and her husband, GM KM live about a mile from our house. We see them about three- four times a week. We have dinner together at least once a week and MoH NM and I walk her two huskies most days.
So she sent me a text and asked if we wanted to come to dinner on Friday. Sure. Sounds great, see you at 6:30. Nothing "special" about that. We ate a delicious BBQ chicken dinner and after went outside to enjoy a fire pit. Still, nothing out the ordinary or strange.
I was rehashing all the details from the royal wedding over and over and was showing NM the picture of the second dress the Duchess had put on. I was obviously tired (I'd been up since 4:30 am ) and it was getting a bit chilly so I put the hood up on my sweatshirt.
GM KM was in and out of the house and kept forgetting to shut the glass door into the house from the sun room. NM asked him to close it for the millionth time. It was getting late and I needed to come home to finish up some last minute details for a baby shower the next day. So I got up, folded the blanket I had on and cleaned up the bag of marshmallows (fire pits and smores are a MUST).
We were all joking and talking about NM's pregnancy and that they will have two twin, red-headed girls that look just like their father. I went up the deck, and opened the screen door to the sun room, walked through the dark sun room and while I was thinking, 'KM you are going to be in trouble because you left the slider open', I WALKED RIGHT INTO THE SLIDING GLASS DOOR at full speed.
I bounced off and fell to the floor. I knocked my glasses off and they flew across the room. Everything was a little blurry from the tears immediately in my eyes. Everyone was laughing. They thought I was being funny and did it on purpose. When I didn't get up (partly because I felt like I was swimming/partly because I knocked myself senseless) Mr. ST came to see if I was OK. I was laughing and crying. I couldn't believe I just walked into a door. The two huskies came to lick the tears off my face. Within minutes I had a softball size lump right on my hairline. My knee was also puffing up and I had skinned it...on glass. I also broke my toenail on my big toe.
NM is a nurse, so she gave me a concussion test - I didn't pass. I had an immediate headache and didn't feel good. The lump on my head was getting worse, despite the ice on it. Mr. ST took me home and tortured me to keep me up. You can see from the picture below that I also skinned my scalp on a solid glass door. It's red on either side of my part. It's a fuzzy picture.
This is from last night. It's scabbing now and is itches and throbs and I still have a slight headache.
So that was my Friday night.
Why this song? Mr. ST tells me I am special (there is no one else out there like me is his rationale). When I told my mom what I did, she began singing, "You're so special, oh so special" to me. It fits. I am special.
Then I had Mr. ST's sister, CG (my other MoH) baby shower on Saturday. I was not a happy camper and I was in so much pain, on top of being exhausted. It was not my finest hour.
Have you ever done anything special? Pleaseeeee tell I'm not really as special as all my family and friends think....please?!?!?!
