I'm Dreaming Of A ....

DSLR CAMERA! 

If you didn't sing the title of the post in a Christmas song, you are a grinch! 

Lately, I've been in a bit of a predicament.  The blog has been slacking, I have been stressing about it  and it's all because my lack of a DSLR camera.  I have been using my mom's a lot lately, but she "stole" it back from me and now I'm camera-less.  I mean I have my phone, but that doesn't do anything justice.  So right now, all I can dream about is this Canon t5 camera.  

I would be using this baby everyday if Santa brought it for me under the Christmas tree this year.  I would be able to start the 2015 year off on the right "blog"foot and capture so many more wonderful memories!

Ahh.... a girl can dream right y'all?!

Until then, or when I get mom's camera back, I guess I Will have to resort to iPhone photos!

KRCustomDesigns Spotlight

With the holidays coming up in a short 16 day, I wanted to let you all in on a secret little shop on Etsy that means so much to me - please let me introduce you to the fabulous KRCustomDesigns.  

One of my best friends from JMU and my big sister in Alpha Sigma Tau, Kendall, has recently launched her new Etsy shop and these pieces are classic, timeless, southern gifts. KRCustomDesigns has so many different great gifts like this beautiful monogrammed jewelry bowl.  It's perfect for a bedside table, bathroom, or by the sink when you are doing dishes! 

Another one of my favorite items in the shop is the monogrammed stickers for your car, computer, work desk, phone, etc! As Reese Witherspoon says "If it isn't moving, monogram it!". Any state, any colors, and size - you name it, they can do it! 

And who doesn't love a good acrylic tray?! Perfect for your room, a nursery, or a guest room! 

KRCustomDesigns is much more than just these photos shown above.  Among many talents, Kendall has an amazing vision for all things weddings.  Without her skills, creativity, and vision, my wedding would have looked like a big Pinterest fail.  She has done custom wedding decorations, signs, stationary, seating charts, and more.  You name it, Kendall and KRCustomDesigns can make it.  I had a friend at my wedding that saw everything she did and hired her for her wedding a few months later.  This custom table runner, custom "Leave some love" sign, and lots of input on the flower choices were all from the lovely brain of Kendall at KRCustomDesigns!

How cute is this custom "stache" sign made for another wedding that KRCustomDesigns made?!

And the most detailed cornhole boards I have ever seen look so beautiful finished.  All board are handmade, customized to your choosing! I've had my set for over 4 years now, and they are still in perfect condition! 

For more information on the custom wedding and cornhole products, please contact KRCustomDesigns via Etsy or Facebook.

You have to check out the Etsy show and the Facebook page to see all the other great products offered that I didn't mention! To purchase gifts for your loved ones (or yourself ;) ) this holiday season, please visit the Etsy Shop or "like" the Facebook page! 

#baseballwifelife Off Season is Never Off Season

Right when I get in a routine of having D.J. home, something else changes.  I feel like I have said that same sentence time and time again. When it's the off season, my "light switch" of living alone goes off.  I let D.J. lock the doors at night, I let him do most of the cooking, I let him take out the trash, etc..etc..etc.  You get the point.Any of my other baseball ladies feel like this?! 

This week the hubs had to go out to AZ for a follow up on this program he has been asked to be a part of.  It's a pilot program that we are very fortunate that he is a part of, but he has to do check points throughout the off season that pop up out of nowhere.  He left on Tuesday morning and came back last night and during the time he was gone, my light switch was still off.  I'm talking like clothes in the laundry still, dishes in the sink, OJ sitting on the table from the morning before.  Does that make me a bad wife?? I've just been crazy busy and when he's gone I get home later because I am doing a million things after work.  

Anyways..the point of this blog post is that I am so thankful that D.J. gets to be home with me during the off season.  He does so much for me that I don't even realize until he is not there to do it.  Simple things like making the bed, taking out the trash, blowing out the candles to bigger things like picking up the dog poop :).  I am so thankful for such an awesome hubby that I get to do life with.  

PS- I promise I'm not as lazy as I sound...but when the in season switch is off, I sometimes forget I have to do things by myself :).

Christmas Family Photos

When we were at D.J's parents for Thanksgiving,  my sister-in-law took some photos for us to use for our Christmas card.  I love the way they turned out and cannot wait to show y'all the final product when we get them in the mail from Shutterfly! We went with the red/black look with all the fall leaves.  I think these colors look perfect together and I can't wait to see how it looks in the card. A special shoutout to Amy for these awesome pictures of our little family!

Can't wait for y'all to see the final product!!

Thanksgiving Weekend 2014

We are so lucky to live close to both D.J. and my families that we were able to celebrate Thanksgiving with both of them.  Since the traffic getting out of the Hampton Roads area is always a pain, we figured that we would celebrate Thanksgiving day at my house and drive up Thursday night to D.J's parents and have Thanksgiving with them on Friday. 

Wednesday was nice - we had half day at work and I got some things done that I had been meaning to do.  Bobby, Julie, Mom, and I went to the exchange on base to scout out all the Black Friday/Saturday/Sunday deals before it got crazy busy.  When D.J. got finished with work, we went to see The Hunger Games and then topped off the night with a few beers at O'Connors with friends! I haven't been home on Wednesday night of Thanksgiving weekend in I don't know how long, so it was nice to see friends that were home for the holiday that I haven't seen in a while. 

Thursday morning we woke up around 10:00 and went over to my parents to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.  After the parade, we started our annual family game of Monopoly.  It is always so fun to play with my dad and watch him do all his wheelin' and deelin' on all the trades and hotel construction! I would say that over 75% of the time, dad ends up winning. 

After we played Monoploy, we had a delicious dinner made by my mom.  This was the first time ever she has had Thanksgiving dinner at her own house.  Typically, we would go to my aunts our up to our family camp house in PA, but this year we decided to stay home.  Her food was delicious and it was great to have everyone in our family in one place.  We followed up the turkey with a yummy chocolate pie that my sister made and a typical apple pie! I will give y'all the recipie for the chocolate pie when my sister gets home from college in a few weeks.

D.J. and I hit the road to his parents house around 5pm and hit no traffic on the way up, which was so nice! We arrived and his sister Amy and her family were still there and we got to see Myla and Bryce before they went home for bed.  We decided to do Thanksgiving dinner with them on Friday since it wad D.J.'s birthday.

Friday we ate, watched TV, and enjoyed each other's company.  It was nice to see our niece and nephews.  They are all growing up so fast! We played another game of Monopoly and ate another Thanksgiving dinner and re-watched the parade :). After all that, D.J. opened his presents and blew out his birthday candles!

Saturday the boys went golfing and the girls went shopping! I got a nice three mile run in before we drove to Fredericksburg and man, was I sore! I wasn't expecting so many hills!! But I am doing an 8k this weekend, so I needed to prepare! Not sure how prepared I am going to be, but it will be something checked off my bucket list - my longest race yet! I got a few Christmas items for the kids and family members.  We went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse and hit up Funland after for a few games to work of those rolls! 

Sunday we hit the road around noon and surprisingly, didn't hit terrible traffic.  It was a little bad on I-95, as I expected, but on I-64, it was awesome!! Such a great way to end an awesome long weekend! I cannot WAIT for Christmas now! Time to start wrapping presents! In the meantime take a look at how cute these wittle babies are!

Happy Birthday, DJ!

Happy Birthday to the guy that's the tall to my short...

To the guy that makes my heart full...

To the guy that makes me laugh harder than I ever have...

To the guy that I know will be the most amazing daddy in the whole wide world...

And to the guy I get to spend every birthday with for the rest of his life, my sweet hubs DJ!

Happy Birthday DJ! Cant wait to eat strawberry shortcake later with you and the family!

These Are A Few Of My Favorite Things: Stocking Stuffers

So happy to be linking up with Elise and the girls again for this awesome holiday season link-up! Stockings are one of my favorite things to fill during the holidays.  Growing up our stockings were always filled with such fun things.  Everyone thought it was funny that we would get bathroom toiletries, gum, and things like that, but I really enjoyed it because I always needed those things!

Starbucks Card - should be in everyone's stocking. Perfect to crave your peppermint mocha craving!
Younique 3D Mascara - Never tested this out yet, but I have seen the results and I think this is something that I need to try.  My friend Corrin is selling them and for anyone with small or thin eyelashes, you have to try this out! It's amazing how much of a difference this mascara makes on the eyes!
Kendra Scott Elle Earrings - These earrings have been floating around blogs and Pinterest for a while now and I think they need to float right into my stockings.  The classic gold and pale pink makes for a perfect outfit topper.
Lush Bath Bombs - If you haven't tried these yet, you are seriously missing out.  They are so relaxing and make baths so much fun.  They are very affordable and I would highly recommend getting a few!
OPI Nail Polish - I have fallen off the nail polish banwagon lately, but I think that's because I have too many and need to purge some of the runny ones.  I love a good OPI nail polish in my stocking.  Especially any of the new colors that I don't have yet!
EOS Lip Balm - My new obsession.  Late to the game on this one, but these babies are perfect and feel so smooth on my lips! Stocking up in the stocking this year!
Sweaty Bands - After trying on a few different headband types, I found that the Sweaty Band is the best for my head shape and I love that they are super cute.  Perfect for working out and just wearing in general when my hair needs a little extra TLC!
Sharpie Pens - I am a pen nerd and love a go
Ferrero Rocher - I never buy these other than Christmas time and they are such the perfect thing to throw in a stocking.  Buy a bag and throw a few in everyone's stocking and the Ferrero Rocher crave is fixed!

The hubs gave me an awesome Christmas list this year and here are a few of the items on his list that could potentially be stocking stuffers.

iPhone Running Arm Band - Always a good thing to have especially if we are working out.  I have to find the kind that can fit the phone with the case on it too, which I think is going to be the hard part.

Andes Candy - DJ told me that Christmas is not complete without Andes in his stocking and I think we still have some left over from last Christmas.  But I will continue to fill his stocking with them regardless!

Pocket Knife - Every man should have a pocket knife and I think this is a great stocking stuffer.  They are so handy and allow easy access to things that need cut or fixed on the spot.

Brooks Brothers Tie -  So classy and I love the maroon and baby blue on this specific one.  All guys could use a new tie here and there! 

Poopourri Trap-a-crap - Our friend on DJ's baseball team had this with him during baseball season and as gross as it is, it really does work well! Spray a few times on the toilet bowl water, do the deed, and the smell is gone! It's AWESOME!

Movie Tickets - and popcorn of course! These would be easy enough to stick in the stocking and call it a day.  We always love going to the movies and it would be nice to only pay for a drink!

Fishing Lures - Great for DJ to have while he is home in the off season and going fishing on the lake behind my parents house! Maybe one day he will catch something if I get him the right lure!! :)

Dog brush - Stryker needs a new brush. The one he uses right now I think hurts him so a new one is necessary!

Harness - We have a hard time on the leash with Stryker so hopefully with this harness, he won't pull as much. He's such a great dog, but the I me thing we need help with is walking and running on the leash. 

Tennis balls - Every dogs dream right?! I swear nothing makes our dog happier than the sight of a tennis ball. I can't wait till he sees these in there and goes nutzo. 

Dog bone - I'm not talking bones in a box. This dog is getting the biggest, best bone there is out there! For his first birthday we got him a huge bone and he was obsessed. Gonna be great to see him chew on this one!

Can't wait to see what y'all say and get some more ideas!!