friday's fabulousness: new years edition

well, 2011 is almost over. can you believe it? so much rad stuff has happened this year and so i thought i'd put together my top 5 of fab stuff from this year. and of course to make it like it really is new years eve i'll do it in countdown form, it's the coolest this chick is getting for NYE since i'll be at home watching boy meets world on dvd with my boys. and i can honestly say, there's nothing i'd rather be doing!

so here it is; 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!

bestie and her hubby are preggers. can't wait for that little girl to be here in may. i'm gonna love the shit crap outta her!

 T and schwab moved back to kentucky. thank the lord for this. i was missing my love and my twin in life. sad times for ash. but now they're back and the sun shines again!

 birthdays! dallas turned three and promptly got a bow tie so he can be fancy whenever he likes.

olivia turned 4 this year and lilly turned 2. they're not my kids, but by golly i love them and i'll celebrate birthdays with them for as long as they'll let me! i turned 25 this year also, but that's not all the important!

mom and greg's trip to ky for christmas. i think i was excited for this more than a normal person should be. and now that it's come and gone i'm a little sad but we'll see each other soon because...

T and i are getting married!

as if you didn't know, the engagement is my number one. seriously, how could this not be on the very top of my fab list of 2011? i've been given this amazing man that i'm going to spend the rest of my life with. best friends, love, respect, he takes care of the man stuff, i take care of the woman stuff, we have dalpal, dreams, hopes and no matter what happens we'll be doing it all together. wouldn't have it any other way. i love you T!

and now it's on to 2012.

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things i'm almost peeing in my pants about this next year:

the wedding

seeing all my fam in september

sherry's 30 birthday 

miami in april

the honeymoon

olivia turns five

our lease is up (finally!)

the birth of madison paige honadel

and so, so much more!

i hope you'll stay tuned and i hope you have a fabulous and safe new years eve. i'll be back tuesday ready to start the new year thankful for 2011 and hopeful for 2012. what about you?

just a heads up

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my birthday is officially one month away, yay! 

just letting you know in case, you know, you might forget. 

also, someone should inform T that this pic is absolutely going to need to happen in my own bedroom in exactly one month. pleaseandthankya.

wishes: the wedding

i can only hope my wedding is as cool as this.

yes folks, barbie and ken tied the knot. and don't even get me started on her dress or hair or their photographer. lucky bitch girl!

weekend recap

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christmas with T and dalpal. he did good. louisville. momma in town. wedding dress shopping. realizing i'm super awkward. lunch with bestie. shopping with mom. visiting with family. wii bowling tourney. christmas eve. T and schwab finally show up. more fam time. dinner at gm's house. presents. laughing all the way. another late night. merry christmas. baby jesus. santa. no snow. breakfast casserole in the crock pot (delish). more presents. mom and greg did good. christmas at dad's. more presents. dad and jillian did good. over the river and through the woods to grandmother's house we go. christmas with dad's fam. they all did good. lots of food and treats. christmas at my uncle and aunts. lots of wine. wedding talk. miss b, cute as can be. said goodbye to T and schwab. another late night chit chatting. wild eggs for breakfast. picked up my nook tablet. got the furry baby back from jail. back to lex. nap, nap, nap. snuggle time with T and dal.

merry christmas!

from my family to yours, merry christmas!

friday's fabulousness

welcome to the friday's fab: christmas edition! here's what i'm looking forward to this weekend...

1. time off. it's a short little christmas vacay but it's much needed and i'll take it and make the most of it. we'll be in louisville by the time you read this little post!

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2. fam time! so many people to see and places to be. i can't wait to visit, get my hands on some babies and eat all the wonderful food my fam cooks up!

3. wedding dress shopping! yes, it's the first trip to look at dresses. so glad my mom is in town and that my step-mom and bestie are coming along!

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4. waking up christmas morning with mom and josh and T. and at my grandparents. oh, and this has never happened before. in fact, now that i think about it, T and i have never been together on christmas day. we've always done it before or after. but this will be our first christmas waking up together and spending all day celebrating! too bad dal will be at the kennel but i'm still going to say best. christmas. ever.

5. and i'd be kidding myself if i said i'm not looking forward to ripping into some of these...

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i hope you have a fabulous christmas weekend. take time to love those around you and be thankful that a child was born unto us this day many years ago so that we may have hope and eternal life. it's so easy to get caught up in all the hoopla of the holidays, i'm so bad about it but as long as you remember that, the santas and reindeer and mistletoe are a-ok! i'll pop back in sunday for a tiny post but see you again tuesday for a weekend recap!

update: ww

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i bet you thought i gave up! 

to be honest, i thought about it. and i did take a break in the summer. i tell you, it's hard living with a boy (a man, really.) who needs to eat way more than you and LOVES to workout. i've had to do a complete overhaul of our meals and we're just starting to get in a more routine cooking schedule that pleases us both.

but here's the latest info.

lost almost 40 lbs. 

training for a 5k: that might not sound like a big feat to some but for me it's huge. 

i mean, i can't remember the last time I ran for longer than five minutes straight. wait , actually i can. it was the beginning of my 8th grade year. i was trying out for volleyball and you had to be able to run a mile in 8 minutes or less. i worked hard all summer and after two tries i did it! i made the A team and became the setter. good times. if you asked me to bump, set, spike now,i'd think you were referring to baby bumps, setting the dinner table and asking if you can spike my drink. why yes, yes you can! also, i prefer gin, thankyouverymuch.

i digress. it's a work in progress. always will be, i suppose. making life changes is hard. plus I'm a quitter. and a whiner which makes exercising and dieting that much harder.but now I've got a wedding to look forward to and damn it, I will not be fat on that day! and T is not a quitter. so when he's up and at 'em in the wee hours of the morning for gym time, i feel a little guilty if i'm not tagging right along. i'm hating him for waking me up but i'm there just the same!

so for now, especially during the holidays, i'll just say that i'm trying. and isn't that all that matters?

whimsy bits: little bits

it's been a while since i've shown things i've made for the whimsy bits shop.

not only did i make these for the girls but i also sold a few from the shop!

lilly's with red ribbon

liv's with green ribbon

pretty easy to make and oh so cute! the girls love them and the turtlenecks work well for the winter. too bad they won't be able to wear them next year. i hate it when they have to get bigger and grow up!

my to do list

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technically i have 42 hours until i'm louisville bound for a few days of christmas family fun time. in those 42 hours i have more to do than i've had all year. ok, drama queen, it's not that much but it sure feels like it. i'll just indulge you in my list now...

• work. i have roughly 12 hours of work left for the week.
• workout. two spin classes at 45 minutes each. at 5:30 in the morning. did you read that? in. the. morning.
• dallas has a vet appointment for a shot tonight at 5:30.
• make homemade dog treats.
• sew 3 owl purses for the little girls in my life.
• make 3 dog bandanas for my furry friends.
• make one last scarf.
• clean the house.
• cook two dinners.
• have christmas with T and dalpal.
• laundry. and lots of it!
• pack mine and T's stuff.
• pack up dal's stuff for the kennel.
• pack up all gifts.
• pack up the car.
• make holly and jeremy's gift.
• blog.
• eat, shower, get dressed, spend time with fiance and dog, think, stay sane.
• oh, and sleep.

that's a mighty long list and i'm not really sure it'll all get done but i'm going to try. i just keep thinking i can sleep friday, i can sleep friday! sleep's overrated at my age anyway, right? i don't know. i mean, i'm not in college anymore!

christmas foodie goodies

this year i've been a bit of a procrastinator in the christmas department. it's as if i think it's still weeks away and here we are four days out. 4. days. out. are you reading that. i'm having a freak out inside my head right now! now that i've gotten myself in a handmade and baking dilemma, i'm still determined to come up with some sweet christmas goodies!

 wondering what's on my list?

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peppermint cookies with my latest obsession; candy cane kisses!

Source: flickr.com via Ashley on Pinterest

grinch cookies.

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santa brownies.

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crinkle cookies.

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and the worst for you but best thing you'll ever put in your mouth, oreo cookies cookie brownie. 

 so what are you baking this season?  care to share your recipies? or maybe you could just send me a batch? pleaseandthankya!

christmas playlist

here's what i've got playing on repeat these days...

 

 also i like to watch/listen to this too... 

 

update: liv & lilly

so here's what we've been up to in december. the before christmas edition, if you will!

 some lounging. they love to lay on top of me. it's a game. let's see if we can literally smash ash to death!

this is lilly's go to position to watch tv now. so cute and so grown up. slow down girl!

 little reindeers just doing some christmas shopping! lilly wasn't ready.

lilly was so exhausted one afternoon that she fell asleep during therapy. you might not think this is hard to do but 1. this machine is so loud and 2. it shakes her so hard. i was shocked she stayed asleep the entire 20 minutes.

lilly had her 2nd birthday party on december 3rd. it was pirate themed so i made these shirts for the girls.

they loved them and have wore them several times since then!

 speaking of the birthday party...here are some pics from the big day.

birthday cake and singing. it was so funny when we all stopped singing lilly kept singing happy birthday, happy birthday to me. girl is hilarious!

opening presents.

big sissy had to help of course! she has more experience in this department :)

so many goodies. it was a great party and t and i really enjoyed getting to celebrate such a great little girl. we sure do love her!

last but not least, meet gangsta lilly. she insisted on wearing her hood all day. i may or may not have taught her to say "i'm a gangsta.". it's just how we roll.

update: dallas

the latest on our child...

his new toy (back in october!) terry the turkey. 

 terry's beak is now missing as are his eyes. poor terry.

cuddle bug.

i'm sad this pic is so bad but it was really dark in the living room and this is as good as i could get it.

isn't he the cutest sleeper in the whole world. oh, and just in case you were wondering, yes he takes up one entire section (11 ft.) of our sectional. humungo.

i told y'all i'd get that puffer vest on him. and he loves it. can't you tell by the smile on his face?!?!

weekend recap

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sew. sew. sew. craft. craft. craft. bake. bake. bake. shop. shop. shop. wrap. wrap. wrap. 

little sleep. little to eat. little trav time. little dal time. little me time. christmas presents done.

friday's fabulousness

well it's friday again. thank goodness. this weekend we don't have too much going on and that's helpful since i'm running behind on my christmas shopping and gift making. i've still got 3 cousins to take care of, my dad, brother and T. yikes! oh and liv and lilly. dang it. i need a set of my own elves. what do you say santa? 

 so anyway, here's my fab of the week... 

 1. making my second quilt this weekend. another baby(ish) quilt. it's a christmas present, so no pics but i got the idea from this...

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2. dallas is going to see santa saturday. terrifying for him. hilarious for T and i. sorry dal. 

 3. have you had these...

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ah.maze.ing. i can't eat enough of them. love at first taste. go get some now.  

4. had an amazing dinner with the other sorority advisors last night. love chit-chatting with those women. also, bev gave us amazing rose candles (the rose is an AOII symbol and bev and her fam raise bees and make all kinds of goodies from the wax and honey!!!). so sweet and perfect for my house. i love still having a role in a chapter that molded me and gave me my very best friends in the whole world! 

 5. wanna see something funny?

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i love the big bang theory. sheldon is my fav. what's going on in your world that's fabulous this friday?

you better watch out.

Source: flickr.com via Ashley on Pinterest

and you know what that means, presents. and lots of them ;) but only if you've been nice. which olivia informed me a couple of days ago that i have been in fact nice this year. T on the other hand better watch out because she says he's been naughty. guess santa might have to take back the things he's bought?

i thought i would put together a list of things that i've got on my christmas list. you don't want to see the actual list. just ask mom. 51 items? really ash. get over yourself.

in my defense, it's my amazon wish list and i add and delete stuff all year long. but sending that list out is much easier than writing one out.

so here are my top ten awesome, amazing, spectacular, delightful, lovely (to me at least) christmas wish list items...

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to heck with the iPad. give me the nook tablet!

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yes please! longchamp, you are delish and you can hold the mess i have to take with me everywhere.

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a crafter's dream.

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these would be amazing but any shoes this holiday will do!

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OPI nailpolish + the muppets = the perfect party on my nails ever.

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perfect rug for our dinning room.

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for all the photos on my phone.

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with my new monogram of course.

Source: google.com via Jessica on Pinterest

i need seasons 5-7. clearly 1-4 already belong to me, duh.

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for my living room wall.

and this is just the beginning my friends. because i've also asked for new running shoes, scarves, mittens, more purses, a vacuum, make-up, cooking light magazine subscription, iTunes gift cards, money and lots more.

also, let's just talk about how my previous post was all about the real reason for the season and i truly believe in that. i know christmas isn't about receiving but about giving and i intend to do a lot of giving this year! but everyone has to admit it's just a little bit fun coming up with a list of things you'd love to have!