Shake it

Two Wednesdays a month I help teach Special Needs Belly Dancing. I am in no way, shape, or form certified to teach belly dancing. My mind tells my hips to roll one way and my chest to roll another and it comes out resembling a slight seizure. I love that the athletes that participate don't care how crazy their dance moves look. They put their all in to every move. They love that the scarf around their hips make jingling noises. They like feeling like they're part of a group. So, I will shake it until the cows come home if it makes them happy...

 The group getting into their drum solo lines...

My Sweet Jingly Belt... The belt I had 2 weeks ago didn't jingle and I was so bummed!!!

Wedding Crafts



Our wedding is 5 months away and all of the crafting I've put off for a year is starting to rear its ugly head. Unfortunately, my mom wasn't around for entertainment today so I had to do actual crafting.




Several months ago Mom, The Bearded Wonder (TBW), and I went to check out the Hobby Lobby.  If you don't have Hobby Lobby, it's like a Michael's or Joann's on crack... If you don't have a Michael's or a Joann's-- You're Amish-- it's the only explanation. We bought the little fishbowls for $.99 a piece and with a 50% off coupon we practically made money. I'm not having a runner to delineate where the aisle is. So I thought purchasing 20 fishbowls and putting votive in them would be a cute idea to make an "aisle".

After purchasing these little guys I left them in a bag and shoved them in the closet of the back bedroom of our house. I pulled them out a couple weeks ago and HATED them. I immediately ran to Pinterest to see if I could remedy the situation. Here's what I came up with....

Ugly fishbowls, a strip of lace, and white spray paint

 Close up

I wrapped the lace around the fishbowl

(Note the rubber glove... Unless you want white fingers...Invest)

 No judgements on the no make-up and pony-tail.

Check out my sweet "Fight Like a Girl" breast cancer awareness shirt!!

They didn't turn out too shabby!

Royce was being obnoxious helpful...

It was smart of me to get 20 fishbowls because 1 or 2 had to be put in the trash because the lace smudged.

Did you ever purchase something and then hate it when you went back to look at? Have a annoying  helper like Royce?

Yatzee!

Have you ever searched, and searched, and searched for the perfect outfit? With Memorial day fast approaching my mother decided she needed a new bathing suit. We had so much fun trying on tankinis, one pieces and everything in between. It brought my boring Monday from a 3 to a 7. Two and a half hours later we walked out of the mall successful. My mom wouldn't let me take any pictures of her in the different suits so I had to settle for this one.

Mom with her swag... Sorry it's blurry. We were trying to avoid being hit by a car.

As I stated above, my day was turning into a boring 3... My lunch was the most exciting part!

BBQ?...Yes, Please!

Summer Sundays seem to be synonymous with BBQs. Thank goodness my Uncle took note and decided to have everyone over to his house for a seafood BBQ bonanza. There were shrimp skewers, crab cakes, 2 GIANT grilled salmon fillets, scalloped potatoes, and pulled pork sandwiches.

I was too busy stuffing my face to take actual pictures of the food... So, I took these at the last minute remembering I need photos for today...

Trying to put my toes in the water... Yeah, I'm that lazy

Mom, enjoying the sun

G-Unit looking very serious...Maybe she's plotting her next move for Crazy Marbles

When I got home the pup and I cuddled... Don't tell The Bearded Wonder that Royce was on the bed!



Also! Did "What a Day" get a shout out via Instagram???? I'd like to think so but it was probably just a coincidence. One of my favorite bands, Parachute, posted this picture on their Instagram today... Let me know what you think...

What's your favorite BBQ food? Have you ever been in a food coma? Let me know!

Showers

*** WARNING: LOTS OF PICTURES***

My bridal shower was today!! It was a magical leopard print extravaganza. Every one brought a dish to share and brought the recipe so that I would have a TON of new ideas for my cooking repetoire. We also played a fantastic game of Pin the Beard on The Bearded Wonder, which was a major success...

Step-grandmother, Betty, and Stepmom, Dawn 

 Alexis

 My little sister, Jayda.

 My Mom

 Jessika

TO BEs: Sister-in-law, Chelsea, and Mother-in-law, Denise

Jessi

His sister won!!

Later that night my Maid of Honor and I decided to check an experience off of our bucketlist: Day Glo... For those of you who don't know what Day Glo is, allow me to explain. A bunch of people get together, wear white, and splash paint all over each other.

Once I got over the fact that I was covered in paint I actually enjoyed myself!!

Day Glo Warrior

Bucket List....Check!

Covered!!

After a very successful night of being coveredin paint we went home to take a much needed shower... It was quite the day for Showers...

Have you ever been to a Day Glo party? Have you ever crossed anything off of your bucket list? Tell me about it in the comments below

When you Give a Dog a Salt and Vinegar Chip

He will beg and beg for more... or is that when you give a mouse a cookie? This Friday was one of those days where nothing but junk food sounded good... The more junk food the better! I am beyond excited to have my bridal shower tomorrow (Have I mentioned it's leopard print themed?!). I don't know if I'm going to be able to sleep tonight. I'm filled with such anticipation. I've also kidnapped my sister for the night so we can do girl things. I'll spare you the details! TGIF EVERYONE!!!



Have you every had one of these days? Ever fed your dog a treat that you were sure he would had but ended up scarfing down like it was his last meal? Leave a comment :)

My health lunch... Hey, it's got strawberries!!!

 When I looked up from my spoon this was my view

 When I got home Royce and I shared a snack....

... and then he got greedy 

Splash Zone

As I've told you in my profile I am a major klutz. I've always been a klutz and when I was a kid I prayed I would grow out of it but, alas, I have yet to. Dropping, breaking, and spilling are my specialties. If a meteor struck the earth or I was bitten by a radio-active spider maybe I could use my powers of clumsiness for the greater good of mankind!! Ok, let me slow my roll...


Until the day that I actually receive my super powers and cape (doesn't everyone want a superhero cape?) my friends refuse to sit around me. They call it sitting in the "Splash Zone". Well, today, I've turned the powers against myself....

That, my friends, is RASPBERRY yogurt on my WHITE shirt.

After the spill I scrubbed, rinsed, and scrubbed again in the office breakroom sink until 3/4 of my shirt were wet. T.G.I.Th!! Thank goodness something "eventful" happened today or I would have had to have taken a picture of myself laying in bed, watching TV and fighting with the dog.

Trip to Mecca

Rain, rain, go away... Such a rainy, overcast day in the Sunshine State. After work, my mom and I went Target (aka Mecca) to fix my Bridal Registry. 18 additional items and 2 hours later we walked out with a sweet little stash.

So Gloomy!

Mecca

Found this DVD full of childhood memories for $5 

Shop 'til You Drop

More like "Shop 'til your Mom says, 'Only one dress'". My bridal shower is this weekend and my super helpful Maid of Honor (MOH), Allie, is hosting it. The theme is Leopard Print and Lace... SO EXCITED. Last night we went to H&M in our local mall and my mother bought me a leopard print maxie dress. She said it was part of my bridal shower gift... Thanks Woman!!

Someone has a Case of the Mondays

Not really but that was all I had. Second week at the new is job and it is still fantastic! I've been put in charge of the office outing. I've got some awesome ideas on my list... I had to do grown up things when I got home-- IE: Grocery shopping-- one of my least favorite chores. Actually all of them are my least favorite.

I discovered a new blog during my laziness, Little House in the Big D, it's about a newlywed couple who are in my age group and fix the crap out of their newly purchased home. If this didn't make me want to get up off the bed, stop eating cookies, and paint something I'm not sure anything could!

Royce's best attempt at trying to convince me he need some cookies... Probably, needed to check if they were poisonous.

Mother's Day

I probably win the award for Worst Daughter because I didn't take one picture of my mother on Mother's Day! I did, however, take a picture of our family's favorite game, Crazy Marbles. My Great Grandfather made this board and the game over half-century ago. It shows up to every family occassion and sucks people in like moths to a flame.

The one player you have to watch out for is G-Unit. She is the most cut throat player of them all. I call her the Albanian. She'll send you home, take your spot, and get her marbles home without even batting an eye.

The Albanian at work ... I got my mother's hands in the picture...Does that count???

Rejected by the Mouse

Have you ever had one of those days where it didn't turn out exactly the way you'd planned it but it ended up being awesome?? That was my Saturday. Earlier in the week Allie called me and told her boss had given her 2 free tickets to Disney. Automatically assuming she'd invite me I said "Of course, I'll come!" Saturday morning we woke up early and drove all the down to Disney to discover that the tickets had already been used!!!!

Looking like deer caught in headlights we asked the worker at the turn-style to swipe them again. Still no good. We ended up walking over to Guest Relations where we heard these terribly embarrassing words, "These tickets were used October of 2010". We hung our heads and did the walk of shame back to our car. Deciding we wouldn't let that get us down we called a few of our friends and asked them to meet us at Wekiva Island. The day got better the minute I set up my beach chair on the dock.

 On our way to Wekiva Island

Royce and Josh formed a serious bromance that day

Sun kisses + Royce kisses = Good Day

How far is tongue is out of his mouth is conversely related to how happy he is

Royce resting in the shade after trying to drown me... Check out the video below

Arriba!

One Friday a month Altamonte Special Needs Recreation does a Night Bird Dance. It's a themed dance where the participators dress up as the theme and party all night (Well, not all night. Until 9pm but still it's a party!!). This month was Fiesta Friday. I was so busy dancing and having a good time that I didn't get a chance to take any pictures. Here is a video of the Valentine's Day dance where Shawn, one of my cheerleaders, and I got down with our bad selves.

Don't you wish you had moves like us??

Grab Your Partner and Dosey Doe

If you've ever lived or visited the South Eastern United States then I'm sure you've heard country music. Thursday nights at our local country establishment, Cowboys (believe it or not), is ladies night. That means free cover! My old roommate, Allie, and I try to go on the regular. Before we went out I had to take Royce for a walk. Does anyone know how to tire out a Mountain Cur Hound/Pit Mix????

A Gentle Leader and a weighed down dog backpack sure helps

After Royce was all tuckered out it was time to get our line dancing on.

CELEBRITY SIGHTING: The Marlboro Man made an appearance at Cowboys

Shake it Like a Belly Dancer

Back in December I started coaching Special Needs cheerleading. I completely fell in love with the Special Needs community after volunteering for Disney's Special Olympics (see that post HERE). Our team name is the Sparklers and we totally dominate the Special Needs cheerleading world. Back in March we drove to Jacksonville, FL to compete against 5 other Special Needs teams in a cheer competition. The Sparklers DOMINATED!! The Sparklers Elite team took home first place and the Sparklers Extreme team took home second.

CONGRATULATIONS COACHES! Job well done!

The Sparklers Extreme and Elite teams.

Now that I've gone off on a tangent, today I will be trying out a new sport that Altamonte Springs Special Needs Recreation has to offer-- Belly Dancing! I didn't get a chance to take any pictures this week. I was too busy trying to get my hips not to lie. (Shakira reference! Score!)... I will try to get some next week.  

Hot Hubby Alert!!

We're going to go back in time a couple weeks. Our wedding photographer, Brian Sumner, has decided that he wants to get into the competitive world of magazine photography. To expand his portfolio he asked Keagan, aka: Hot Hubby, aka: The Bearded Wonder, if he would pose for him in a shoot. Below are the wonderful, fantastic, photos that Brian took.

He's had that Florida State Seminoles hat for close to 7 years. It's a tattered torn mess... It might disappear one day... Just sayin'

I'm so blessed because he really does know how to work on cars... Saves us MEGA cash in the fixing department.

I call this one "King of Junk"

I had to put this one in here because it's 2 of my favorite men! Royce and The Bearded Wonder (TBW)

 

In all seriousness, Brian Sumner is one of the best up and coming photographers. Whether it's a wedding, engagement, or messy-ass garage shoot his photos are flawless!!