Christmas

24 days till Christmas?

I have my list started:

Dear Santa,

Please send me the tools & creativity to....

Create a kitchen table centerpiece to resemble this..

Build a Christmas Tree like this...

And a assmemble a beautiful front yard that looks like this...

That's all! hehe

Honestly, there is no list for me this year. Actually, i haven't made a 'list' in years now, but this year i'm not asking for anything.. I don't even really want or need anyhing.

I'm just excited to decorate our place and spend time with my fiance and see my family.

That's all this girl wants this year!

Happy December =)

Frugal Friday

Happy Friday! And happy cold weather! 

 I have to admit i get excited when it starts getting cold. I love getting all bundled up and warm with scarves&boots. Winter here I come.

Last Friday I shared Learn Vest with all of you. I went on and on about how much i love that website and how i would recommend it to anyone! 

Now, when i talk about ' Frugal Friday's' i'm not always going to just give you a website to go to. I'm just starting off with the websites that i use on a regular basis to help you.

Then i will share some tips that have worked for me. 

Money makes the world go round!

I've become more involved with finances now then I ever have before. 

Maybe it's because I am officially out of college and on my own or maybe it's because i'm planning a wedding.. whichever one I had no choice but to take control and learn the facts. 

Without further ado, here is my second favorite FREE website for finances.

This website is extremely popular so I'm sure you've heard of it before. 

If you've heard of it and just never signed up, I suggest you do! 

Check out Mint.Com!

Click here for Mint.com

 It's not geared just for women like Learn Vest is.

The idea is to set up your bank accounts/loans/car payments etc so that you can track 

how and where you spend your moola. 

Mint will tell you when finance charges are posted, help you create a budget, and also give suggestions on how to save money on finance charges or save money on your checking accounts. There are ton more things on the site to learn about.

In my opinion, Mint & Learn Vest go hand in hand. 

I hope you find these sites very useful like I have. 

Comment below to share a finance tip with me! ;)

Happy Tuesday

I have found that when I am surfing the blog world, looking for old & new blogs to follow, I tend to truly enjoy the ones that I can gain ideas/recipes/tips/tricks etc. I have been reading a couple blogs for about 2 years now and I found myself continually going back to them because they keep me engaged. I like that I learn new things from them, and I love that! When I start to write my blog for the day, the first thing I think is what do I want to share with my friends.

Today, I would like to share with you something that was inspired by none other than our house! =)  

 
Now, let me clarify, my house is not continually dirty by any means.. but after being out of town for the weekend I came home to a house that felt lonely, dirty & just not clean.

I had no time to really clean, clean so I turned to my 30-minute cleaning checklist. I was able to get this done this morning before I left for work. It is easy to print up and stick on your fridge. I also like to do this after dinner each night before we go to bed. Saturdays are our full on mop & gloves cleaning but to hold us over until then I stick with this checklist.

 Or you can click here to go directly to the Cleaning Checklist.

 What are your tips for quick, under 30-mintue cleaning?

Frugal Friday

With wedding planning taking over my life (& my moola), I turned to the internet to find financial tips not only for planning the wedding but for daily life.  I’ve never been one to know the ins and outs of finances. I’ve always worked hard for my money, paid my bills and whatever was left over I SPENT! It was awesome, I would have an extra 50 bucks and go out and just spend spend spend.

When I started to calculate the wedding budget and how much our wedding was really going to cost, I had no idea in my mind how I was going to save this much money!! Like thousands of dollars that needed to come from my (and my fiancé’s) wallets!  Now, I know I can cut things down and shop around for the vendors that we can afford but even after shopping around, it’s still expensive!

I knew there had to be tips & tricks out there that could help us. I found this website that I truly just fell in love. I literally could not get my eyes off of the screen. I would start reading something that interested me and then find another thing and another thing and just never stopped. I still don’t think this website could get old!

Now, I know I’m not the only one in the blogging world who knows about this website. But, I’m hoping that some of you don’t know about it, and I can be the one that gets you hooked just like I got hooked!

I’ve been a member on it for quite some time now and it has helped me in ways I can’t even explain. It’s not geared just for future brides, it’s for ANY WOMAN out there; rich, poor, married, single, a mother, etc.!

Before I reveal this website, I would love for you to let me know how it has worked for you if this is the first time trying it. The website that changed my life forever:

http://www.learnvest.com/

 I hope you enjoy your weekend!! <3

SUCCESS

Halloween was a SUCCESS ;) 

and November is here Already?? 
i can't believe it. I did break out the uggs, scarves and even the turtleneck.. 
all i was missing was some nice hot cocoa..

Here are a few pictures from our journey last nite..

(these are our friends kiddies.. not ours.. unforunately hehe i wish they were mine)

3 little pirates <3

sword fight hah

Trick or Treat <3 

They loved every second of it..

Happy Halloween

brrrr.... it is so cold out.. i have to admit i am ready to break out them

Uggs! =) although i love the beach & warm weather i have a slight love for scarves, uggs, 

and cute little ear warmers and what better day to break those all out other than HallOweeEN! 

Tonight we are joining our good friends and their 3 little kiddies to trick or treat around 

their neighborhood. I think this is the first time EVER that i have been trick or treating and not dressed up & getting candy for myself. It should be fun.

 Hubby & I at a Game

Hubby & his little Lexie <3

Ta Ta for now <3

Today's weather is my absolute favorite kind. i love when it's a tad chilly, but the sun is out so it warms you up a little but you have to wear pants and maybe a light jacket/cardi.. i just love it <3 


i'm really looking forward to this weekend well i look forward to every weekend ;) but you know what i mean. tonight me and hubby are doing dinner at p.f changs. i host there on the weekends to save up a little extra cash for the wedding so i get a nice generous discount when i go in with family =) yummm im super excited.  


i had a small lunch today so i'm drooling over crab wontons and it's only 430.. i have about 2 hours until i can eat dinner.. ahh The wedding is June 30, 2012. i love that date 6/30/12. isn't it pretty?? let's just say i can have this wedding tomorrow with all of the planning i've done already =) it makes me nervous that i have so much done arleady.. what if i change my mind about something eeek it makes me cringe. and then there are the nightmares i have at least twice a week! 


my worst nightmare so far has been the one where my dress is wrinkly and i did my hair myself.. haha i guess those are my biggest worries and that might be why i am waking up at 3 am and so happy that it was all just a dream.. eh im trying to relax with the wedding thinking/planning for a couple days to see if these 'dreams' go away =) 

woooahh has a lot changed since. Well for starters Don, is now my FIANCE =) =) yes yes his whole moving to NJ to follow me was all for a reason and at the time i had no idea what that reason was.. NOW here we are almost a year later, Back in SC back in our house and getting hitched. On June 30, 2012 to be exact. 


I already have my dress, the church picked out, the reception venue picked out, bridesmaids dresses bought, rings picked out.... (we're pretty on top of this) Now comes the fun part.. the decor part.. Luckily our venue is very well designed/decorated so we don't have to bring in a ton of over the top mish mash to make this place rock.. we just have to bring our dancing shoes and our friends/family and the party will be perfect. 

lately, ive been trying to create better work outfits. better meaning dressier.. i always wear flats.. when i wear heels i feel SOO important hah.. For a couple weeks i felt like my work wardrobe has gone under. literally i feel like i wear the same things over and over! 


Im DONE with that! i've been trying to freshen up my work wardrobe and not spend a ton of money or any money at all.. (being that im saving every PENNY for this wedding.. which is 38 weeks away) i can't wait any longerr!!

TGIF. 

Why Hello There....

My name is Lauren and i am proud to say that I am a true Jersey Girl. Born and raised i've been a resident since 1987. Over the past 3 years i lived in Myrtle Beach and earned my Bachelor's degree in Marketing. 


This past September i decided to move North again and startmy life in 'the real world'. It wasn't as easy as it seems. Besides leaving warm, sunny, and fun South Carolina, I left my boyfriend, our place, and my little pupyy Kali Girl. Little did I know my love would soon decide to follow me =) We now are living together in a small but very affordable apartment in my hometown. 


I landed my first full time job as well as working at PF Changs to earn some extra cash. Luckily, Don (my boyfriend) landed 2 jobs and will be attending school part-time come January.

I decided to build this blog to share anything along the lines of fashion, food, and fun. =)

Here's to a New Year and starting my first blog.

Me & Don July '10