Happy Halloween!!!!! 🙂

Hey guys!

How goes it?

I thought I would provide you guys with some necessary random updates on this fine Thursday.

Bosco had an appt. at the groomer this last weekend. Every time we are there, we notice the same dog hanging out behind the front desk. This last weekend, however, the dog was sitting on top of the desk and it looked so cute, I just had to take a picture.

Oh, and Bosco looked very cute as well. 🙂

Yesterday I went to get my wedding ring inspected and cleaned (I do this every 6 months), and I am glad I did because they found that the center stone was loose. My ring needed to be sent out to get fixed and should take about 2 weeks to come back.  I still have my wedding band, but my hands feel naked without it.  Pat will obviously just need to buy me another ring to fill the void for the next 2 weeks. 🙂

As you can see, I decided to get something a little different when I went to get my nails done last weekend.  What do you guys think?

When I looked online for ideas of something different to do with my nails, I found this picture and LOVE it.

It looks like it would be a lot of work though, and I don’t know if the girl that does my nails would be thrilled if I asked her to do it. 🙂

After I took my ring to get inspected, I decided to pop into Sephora since I was in the mall anyway.  I was able to limit myself to just one purchase and it was something I have wanted for a long time.

I smelled this as a sample in a magazine that I received and have wanted it ever since. I LOVE the smell of it. LOVE, I say.

Pat and I just booked a last minute trip to FL to see his parents.  We have not seen them in almost a year (they live in Florida) and they have been looking for us to come down for a while now. We are going to meet them in Fort Lauderdale and will be there for 4 nights right before Thanksgiving.

Well, I think that is about all I have for you lovely people today.

Have a great day!! 🙂

Hey guys!

So I need some advice on what to do with my hair. Lately I have not been that happy with my hair.  I LOVE it when I first get it done, but the brown fades SO fast and starts to turn brassy and almost red.

Just some background for you guys : My natural color is a light brown.  I started getting highlights when I was in high school. I started with subtle blonde highlights (that were hardly even noticeable!) and gradually went lighter and lighter until I was eventually platinum blonde.  I had platinum blonde hair all through college and for about 10 years after I graduated from college.

About 2 years ago, I felt I was in need of a change and decided to get it colored dark brown.  Everyone told me it would be so much easier to keep up with than the blonde, but that hasn’t been the case at all. I don’t know if it is just because my hair was blonde for so long that it just doesn’t want to hold the darker color? Over the last 2 years, I have been able to hold the brown a little better over time, but within 2 weeks or so, the brown turns very brassy (while the blonde holds perfectly and still looks like it was just colored even after 5 weeks!). My hairstylist said my hair obviously just has a mind of its own and wants to be super blonde. 🙂

I have liked having my hair colored dark brown with thick blonde highlights because I feel like I get the best of both worlds and don’t have to make a decision to be one color or the other, but being that the brown does not hold very well, I am torn if I want to stay with this style or make a change.

So this is where you guys come in .. Do you have any (much needed) advice for me?

Here are a few pictures of me as a blonde :

Here are some recent pictures of me with brown hair and blonde highlights :

One idea I had is to stay with the brown as a base, but add a lot more blonde highlights (and maybe it will not look as brassy?). I found this picture as an example:

Help me!!!  What color do you think suits me better?

Thank you in advance for any advice you may have! 🙂

Hey guys!

I have dreaded this day for the last month … my first dentist appointment in 10 years!   Yes, 10 years!! While my sister is a dental hygienist and has cleaned my teeth over the years, I had not seen a dentist in all those years. I am thrilled to report that I need absolutely no work done! The dentist said my teeth and gums are “pristine” and that he never sees that in people that have not been to the dentist in years. He said I take great care of my teeth and to keep doing what I’ve been doing. 🙂

FYI .. I already set up my next 6 month appointment and I will never go that long without going to the dentist again.

I am SO thrilled and relieved. 🙂

my love

simply delicious (I have no idea where those 2 that are missing went!)

Bosco ready for bed.

pumpkin coffee

Shih Tzu bath time

mmmm, butterscotch K-Cups

so clean and fluffy

one of about 10 stores that Pat and I went to on Saturday

LOVE this face so much

bored while the hubby was watching football, so I decided to bake

best root beer ever .. Sadly the only place that I ever see it sold is at a bagel store by my house. I make sure to get one every time I go. There is an older woman that works there and we have a conversation every single week about how great the root beer is and how hard it is to find. 🙂

pizza for lunch

COULD.NOT.AGREE.MORE!!!!

I LOVE this video!!

I saw this in the store yesterday and had to buy it (although I am going to TRY to wait to try them until the weekend .. we’ll see how that goes!).

There has been a lack of Bosco pictures on the blog lately and this is simply unacceptable.   Project take 10000000 pictures of Bosco in full effect immediately.

Almost every time I go to my mom’s house, I look through old pictures.  I found the one above of my sister (left) and I (right) when I was at my mom’s last weekend.  I LOVE looking at old pictures.

I am not very happy with the weather in NJ lately.  75 in the middle of October? No thank you! I am a Fall LOVER through and through and can’t wait for it to get cooler out! Thankfully it looks like Fall might finally arrive late this weekend.

Have a great day!! 🙂

Hey guys!

So when we last talked, I was about to get my nails done.

When I got home from getting my nails done, we had lunch at home and then headed to the movies to see Gone Girl. We got to the movies and much to our disappointment, the movie was sold out .. as well as the next 3 showings of it!  We decided to drive to another movie theater and were thankfully able to see the movie (although not in nice, stadium recliner seats like the previous theater had!).  We both really liked the movie and I was glad we were still able to see it yesterday.

After the movie, we had dinner at a restaurant near our house. Pat had steak and mashed potatoes and I had shrimp and pasta in a cream sauce.  I may have also had some Creme Brulee for dessert.  I LOVE Creme Brulee and if a restaurant has it on their menu, I almost always feel the need to order it.

The rest of Saturday night was spent hanging out with Bosco on the couch and watching TV.

Sunday morning started out much like Saturday: a walk with Bosco and then bagels and coffee.

After breakfast, I baked some chicken breasts for dinner for next week.  Pat’s friend that lives over an hr. away from us happened to be in the area so him and his wife stopped by our house for a while. We sat around talking and catching up for a bit and then went out to a restaurant by our house to get some pizzas for lunch.

When we were done with lunch, we went home to get Bosco and then headed up to my mom’s house. We dropped Bosco off with my mom while Pat and I went with my sister to her new apartment. Her car was FILLED with stuff to take there.

Here are a few pictures from her new place:

After we unpacked the car load of stuff, we went back to my mom’s house for dinner. We had homemade raviolis from an Italian store near my mom’s house, penne with vodka sauce that my sister made, bread, and mocha cupcakes (also made by my sister).  I forgot to take ANY pictures of our dinner. You will just have to trust me that it was all delicious.

We hung out for a while after dinner and then headed home.

Pat and Bosco are currently hanging out on the couch while I write this post and as soon as I am done, it is time for Revenge.

Have a great night! 🙂

Hey guys!

Happy Saturday!

Last night we had a pretty laid back night. Friday night is pretty much always pizza night in the Cullen household. We had a 1/2 pepperoni (Pat) and 1/2 sausage (me) pizza. Bosco enjoyed several bites of pizza crust (one of his favorite things ever!). He is actually very funny when it comes to pizza night .. as soon as he sees the pizza box, he gets super excited and runs into the dining room until he gets his first (of many) bites of crust.

After dinner we hung out on the couch for a bit and then I was in the mood to bake something.

I bought this peanut butter bar mix the other day and thought about making them, but then decided on cake batter blondies instead.

I think I baked them a bit too long because they were supposed to be gooey in the middle but turned out more of a cake texture.

They were still delicious, but next time (and there WILL be a next time!), I will bake them a few minutes less.

I saw this video last night and thought it was hilarious.  How many of you can relate?  I know I certainly can! haha

This morning Bosco and I went for a walk (in the wind and rain… ughhh!) before breakfast and coffee.

Pat and I have been going to a new bagel place by our house that has the BEST bagels. Their bagels are super chewy, which is just how I like them. Pat got a sausage, egg, and cheddar sandwich and I got a super cinnamon bagel with butter.

delicious super cinnamon bagel

I am about to go get my nails done shortly. Later today, there is only one thing on the agenda .. going to the movies to finally see Gone Girl! I can’t wait to see it!

In other exciting news, my baby sister is moving into her first apartment on November 1st!!!! (OK, she is 28, but she is still MY baby sister!)  She has been looking at places for the last few weeks and called me last Friday to tell me she found a place that she LOVED. Several days later, my sister and her friend that she is going to live with went back to sign a lease.  She is so excited and has sent me several pictures and videos of her place. Although she doesn’t actually move in until November, the owners of the house she is going to rent already gave her a key so she can start to move some of her stuff in over the next 2 weeks. She is going to take me there to see it in person tomorrow.

Here is a little sneak peak of her soon to be kitchen (where I will be sure to let her cook / bake me lots and lots of delicious food!):

Pretty nice, right?? 🙂  Oh, and did I mention that the house is VERY close to a Maggiano’s?? That fact alone would have sold me!

After we go to see her new place, we are all going to have dinner together at my mom’s house. My mom is going to make lasagna and I asked my sister to make penne with vodka sauce.

What are you up to this weekend?

Hey guys!

Happy Thursday! 🙂

Last night I decided to roast some spaghetti squash for dinner.

(I also had some potatoes that I bought last week that needed to be roasted so I threw those in with the squash.)  I usually just put some pepper on my spaghetti squash, but I decided to get crazy last night and rubbed olive oil all over it and then seasoned it with garlic salt and pepper. When it was done, I put some low fat ricotta cheese on top and let it melt all over the squash.  It was DELICIOUS and I have lots left for the next few days.

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I bought some Pumpkin Latte & Toasted Marshmallow Triple Moisture Body Cream from Bath & Body Works.

I am IN LOVE with this cream! I LOVE the scent and it leaves my hands super soft. I think I have used it every single day and I fall more and more in love with it every time I use it.

Has anyone seen the new show How to Get Away with Murder?

I watched the first episode and really liked it. I still need to catch up on last week though since I fell asleep (10 PM start time is a bit too late for girlfriend over here!!).

How many of you went to see Gone Girl last weekend?

I really wanted to see it last weekend but never made it there .. this coming weekend I will make it happen!

I am guilty of this for sure!

Time to get ready for that little thing called work.  Have a great day!! 🙂

PS- Later tonight I would like to make a trip to Trader Joe’s since I have not been there in what feels like forever.  Tell me your favorite things to buy from Trader Joe’s!