Happy Halloween Y'all!

 Happy Halloween everyone!!  

Below is a picture of our pumpkins this year. R made the "Candle" pumpkin, (always the comedian), The Hubs made the "Boo" pumpkin, and I made the polka dot pumpkin. I LOVE Halloween! I love handing out the candy to all of the kids that come to our door, and we get a TON! We bought two Costco sized candy bags, and I hope that's enough.  The Hubs takes the kids out in the rain to get their treats. He's such a trooper. I definitely get the better end of that deal! Ha! :) They go out in the cold, and rain in layered up costumes and coats. They come back home wet with frozen hands and faces, and smiling ear to ear. They are SO happy with their loot. I can't help but feel a little sad that they have never experienced a southern Halloween though. They wouldn't know what to do with themselves if they ever got to go out in the evening with just a costume. No rain, and no coats. It's fantastic, but they don't miss what they have never done.  This just reminds me that a happy holiday has nothing to do with geography. :)
Everyone have a safe and Happy Halloween!!

Rain Rain Go Away...

Well, It's official! It's now October 29th, and I am officially sick and tired of the rain. I had better batten down the mental hatches though, because there's still 8 months of this "liquid sunshine" (as our local news likes to call it) to go. I'll spare you the "liquid sunshine" conversation about why that little coined phrase annoys me so bad, but it's here to stay for a while none the less.  ;(

I think it's because Halloween is coming up this week. I always get into a little bit of a funk when a holiday is near. I start to miss my family a lot. When I see all of the fun Halloween party, trick or treating, and pumpkin patch pictures; It makes me wish I could be there to celebrate with them and have the cousins to play together. Let's be real though... If this is the thing that I am sad about today, Life is pretty good.  Okay, I'm done with the pity party now!  :)

I think the other thing that's contributing to my crabbiness is that I only got to run 1 day this week!! BOOOOO! Pathetic. I only have 3 potential running days a week right now.  I went up to Mt Tabor on Thursday and had a sorry show of running the hill. Saturday we had a soccer game, and that day was a soaker! The boys played in the mud, and it was super fun to watch. They were covered from head to toe! Then, Sunday morning I woke up to no rain. Yippee! I put my running clothes on, and went to Krispy Kreme with the family. What?? That just sounds hilarious. Don't you always do that?

Yummmmmm.....

 I had a pumpkin spice doughnut, (highly recommended!) with full intention to run when I got home, then the sky fell out and rained sheets for the rest of the day.  Don't get me wrong...  I will run in the rain.  This is Portland. If you don't run in the rain... you don't run. This is within reason though. :)
There is supposed to be a break in the rain this afternoon, so I will be out for a run after the husband gets home. Let's get some of those endorphins flowing again!   ~Betsy

Stomach Viruses and Sock Bun Curls...

Hi All!!

I have been gone for awhile due to a little stomach bug that wiped the whole family out over the weekend, but we have all quarantined ourselves to recover, and it feels good to be healthy again! Those 24 hour stomach bugs are the worst! Yikes!

Now, has anyone seen the posts and tutorials on online about how to get perfect "sock bun" curls? Well, I decided to try it! Here is the link that I used. :)  The idea is that you take one of your husband's old black dress work socks, cut the toe out and roll it up. Then you use the "tie" to roll up a bun. Sleep on it, and in the morning you have beautiful loose curls! I loved the idea, so I was really excited to give it a try. :)

Here is my sock bun the evening before! Beautiful!! This is going to be great! I can feel it! I can't wait to see my new curls!! I bet I will wake up looking like a Victoria's Secret model. Ha!!!

Side 1 in the morning.   WHAT?!?!  This doesn't look good! 

Side 2 in the morning..  Double WHAT the F!?!? 

Where did I go wrong, and what in the heck am I supposed to do with this mop of hair this morning?!?! I have to go do reading assessments in R's classroom in an hour!  

WAIT!! WHAHH?? Is that a giant "Cruella Deville" streak of gray in the back of my hair!???!! Crap!! I've got bigger problems than bad curls this morning. :(  I have never really dyed my hair, but I guess it's time to become one of the chemically dependent! What am I going to do with this mess of hair? Grrr...

This will just have to do for today. 

Has anyone ever tried this? Did it work?? Where did I go wrong??  Oh well, at least I still have a cute top bun. Someone pass me the wine and hair dye!!  :)   ~Betsy

Stepping Outside My Comfort Zone...

"The magic happens outside the comfort zone." 

This is one of my favorite quotes when it comes to working out. When it comes to decorating though, I almost never go outside my comfort zone.  I love color, but I am always afraid to commit to it. I generally like to add pops of color with pillows and other accessories, and committing to paint that is actually a color is totally out of the question. In fact; when we built our house 4 years ago... I picked an "accent" paint color for certain walls that is so close to the base paint color that you can't even tell there's a difference. True story. 

Yesterday I decided to step outside the comfort zone.  Being a Bzz Agent, they asked me to review the new Benjamin Moore Aura paint, and I was excited to give it a try! I knew that I was going to paint this "Blah" wall a bold color, because it has always bugged me. I love the painting that hangs on it, but it doesn't "pop" at all on the taupe background. :(  

When it comes to color, I have been eyeing a lot of orange lately. I don't know if it's because it's fall, or because it's been showing up everywhere in Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams (my favorite home decorating inspiration). None the less... I was going to commit to a color! It's a small wall, and a good baby step for me.

I used Benjamin Moore Aura Paint eggshell sheen in "warmed cognac".  A gallon will run you around $68, and it's by far the best paint I have ever used. It's super thick, and the coverage is amazing! Skip the primer, and a little bit goes a long way! They say you should never need more than two coats of this paint. I used one coat. :)

Before

After

What do you think? It's a start! 

Friday Faves

The rain is returning this weekend for the next 5 days.  BOO HISS!!  On the positive side of things though... It's boot season!!  Have a great weekend!  ~Betsy

               

I got my favorite riding boots treated, and ready for another long and rainy winter! Now all I need is a horse!! The Vince Camuto's in the front are my loves this season.:)

I bought this huge box of Chex at Costco, so I have been experimenting with a few fall inspired Chex Mix recipes this week. So far they have been pretty yummy! Pumpkin pie spice, and Chex. Who Knew? 

Totally Addicted!! This is my new vice, and the grape flavor is where it's at. Don't waste your time with the pink lemonade flavor though. Yuck!

This is the book I am reading right now, and it's totally entertaining! It's a memoir of a young girl's incredibly far from ordinary childhood. :)

I Hate Fruit Flies!!!!

I wanted to share with you guys a little tip I found here on Pinterest, courtesy of Passionate Homemaking that you should just put in your pocket and carry with you through life... It's a fruit fly trap. Ha! I know, I know... It's not very exciting, but if you have ever gotten fruit flies in your house, you know they drive you bananas!!

I will preface by telling you that here in the wonderfully "green" City of Portland, we have to compost. Yes, HAVE to! It's not the law or anything, but they only pick your trash up every 2 weeks! They do; however, pick your recycling and compost bins up every week. If you didn't compost at all, your garbage would overflow with smelly food. NOT GOOD! Even though I truly don't like composting food, I hate smelly garbage even more. Besides... Check out the super stylish counter top compost container that they give you for free! Who wouldn't want this sitting out on your counter? Obviously, I'm kidding. I would love to throw that thing into a fire. ;)

Anyway, Having this thing out on the counter caused my kitchen to become a haven for fruit flies last week. I HATE FRUIT FLIES!!

Here's how it works...

-In a jar or drinking glass add 1 ripe piece or peel of banana, and a tiny amount of vinegar.
(The link says to use apple cider vinegar, but I used white vinegar. It worked great.)

-Take a piece of printer paper, and roll it into a funnel shape to fit into the jar or glass.

-Tape around the sides to hold the paper tightly against the jar, so they fruit flies can't escape by crawling up the sides. :)

-Set out on the counter, and walk away.

-When you return, there will be fruit flies in the jar. Stick the jar into the freezer for about 20 minutes. This will kill the fruit flies. Then remove the jar from the freezer and set it back out on the counter to catch more flies! You can repeat this with the same jar and fruit until the fruit flies are gone.
For me... I made 2 jars, and the fruit flies were gone by morning. GONE!

Good luck!!

Home Sweet Home...

I'm home! Woohoo!! It was a GREAT trip back home to visit my sister and her new baby! I am always a little home sick when I get back to Oregon, but it's so nice to be back with my little family again. :)

While I was in Georgia, I got to meet my new sweet little niece Stella. She is the cutest!! She is so fun and easy going. She doesn't cry unless she's hungry, and is happy and content all the time. My sister, and her husband are doing a great job with her! They took me all around their small town. We had great food, laughs, and hung out with the nicest people! It was super fun!

I also got to see all of my other siblings, and goof around with them for a day.  While the kids ran around my sister's beautiful property on the lake. Makes me think more about moving out of the city, and finding a little more space for the kiddos to run...

Pretty Girl

Goofing off... PS. I got back into my favorite jeans... Barely!!

This is my sister's back yard... cue jealousy now. 

Uncle Jon

Sisters

More nieces!!

See y'all later!

I'm heading home to Georgia to meet my new niece Stella June! I'll be back next week!

Just for laughs...

Here we go again...Pinterest is full of great ideas! I'm obsessed with it; however, it also has plenty of bad ideas on there as well. Here are a few things I found on Pinterest that are up for debate. 

Have a great day!!   ~Betsy

 I have been laughing at these for days! Sexy! ;)

And for all of you bacon lovers out there....

Of course! Everyone wants to smell like bacon.....  (Um....) down there. Disgusting! 

They're shorts, they're pants, they're Pollyanna bloomers, These have it all. :)

LOL!! I NEED THIS!!!  This one is actually a great idea. I would love to have this to pull out of my purse. 

Flattering.

So funny! I should sew these into The Hubs pants! Ha! 

Welcome to the year 2012....

Well.... Maybe 2010. Ha! I am a pretty cheap person, but have always been SUPER cheap when it comes to my cell phones. I have always just gotten the free phone from Verizon, and have never even had a smart phone at all! Gasp! I'm embarrassed to admit this. Well, I am a stay-at-home mom, so I haven't really needed a smart phone enough to make it worth the extra payment a month. I would rather spend that $50 a month on other things, not give it to Verizon!  Times they are changing though, and Verizon is offering less and less as far as data-free cell phones are concerned. Also, I have always wanted an I-Phone because of the apps, especially the Nike GPS app. Well, the day has finally come! Verizon released the I-Phone 4 for free, and mine will be here today. I may be the last person on the planet to get one, but I'm excited none the less! So, What are your favorite apps for your phone? I need some good apps to play with!

                 ~Betsy