Fun Fact Friday

I saw this cute post on Ciao Bella's blog and thought it would be so fun to fill in with my answers!

I kickstart my day with... I down a glass of water first thing to rehydrate, eat "overnight oats," then have a diet coke.  I know diet coke is terrible, but I NEED it in the mornings!

Other daily essentials... My cell phone! I feel incomplete without it.

Recent splurge... Well, it cost $150 to get that bobby pin out of my car!

Dreaming about... what mine and Brandon's Halloween costumes are going to turn out like. We are dressing up as “Barbie and Ken.”

Beauty indulgence... My hair! I’m in the chair every 6-8 weeks! Just got it done this afternoon!

Can't stop watching... Sex and the City 2. I bought it on Tuesday and have watched it six times since then. Mainly just to have on as background noise, but I haven’t see regular television since Monday!

Top shop... Saks, LOFT, J. Crew, Banana Republic, Piperlime, unique boutiques …I mean, I could go on and on.

Working out to... Basically all of the rap music on the charts. That and the Jock Jams CD, of course. I can’t work out if I don’t have music.

Signature scent... Coco Chanel Mademoiselle

You won't find me... Saying a cuss word.  EVER.  I hate it so much. I have plenty of words in my vocabulary to express my feelings without using profanity.

I heart... Brandon, my family and friends, white chocolate covered popcorn, and the fact that it’s Friday. 

Hope everyone has a great Friday night! Be safe!

xo.

M

Cinnamon: It's What's for Breakfast

I love cinnamon. 

I put it in all of my breakfast treats -oatmeal, cereal, milk, toast, yogurt, coffee, fruit, etc.

You should do the same, because it's so good for you!

Studies show that adding half of a teaspoon of cinnamon to your daily diet can lower LDL.

LDLs are Low-Density Lipoproteins, or as I've always been taught, the "Least-Desirable Lipoproteins."

Here are some other things that cinnamon will do for your body:

• Regulates blood sugar
• Has an anti-clotting affect on the blood
• A great source of manganese, fiber, iron, and calcium.
• Has the ability to stop the growth of bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites in the body
• Its scent boosts brain function
• Improves colon health
• Protects against heart disease
• Reduces proliferation of leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells
• It's proven to fight bad breath
• Home remedy to cure the common cold/respiratory problems
• Provides relief from menstrual cramping
• Reduces arthritis pain
• Effective for helping nausea, heart burn, indigestion, upset stomach, diarrhea (Yay, Pepto-Bismol! ..couldn't help but think of that song/commercial) 
• Natural food preserver
• Muscle and joint pain reliever

With all of these health benefits, why on Earth not add cinnamon to your diet?

I use McCormick's Cinnamon Grinder

By turning the lid, it grinds the flakes of cinnamon into teeny pieces.

 It gives my foods the freshest cinnamon flavor and aroma! 

xo

M

Things I'm loving!

Here are some great items that have caught my eye today!

Ann Taylor Leopard Flats

Ann Taylor has the most comfortable shoes!

These are adorable (& on sale!).

$100 (was $158) - Ann Taylor

Victoria's Secret Sequin Skirt

I'm in love with this skirt!

$80 - Victoria's Secret

...& while we're on the subject of sequins...

Alice + Olivia Sequined One-Shoulder Dress

 Oh, hello, New Year's Eve dress.

$295 - Neiman Marcus

Cole Haan Tantivy Hadley Messenger

$378 - Bloomingdales

Tory Burch 'Verona' Gathered Leather Shoulder Satchel

$450 - Nordstrom

Kate Spade Gold Coast Maryanne

$445 - Kate Spade

Clarisonic® Plus with Dr. Brandt, Peter Thomas Roth, Ole Henriksen and Perricone MD 

 G

 $225 - Sephora

Get this product this week to take advantage of Sephora's 20% discount! 

Faux Fur Stole

 Incorporate the faux-fur trend with the coats and sweaters that are already in your closet!

$50 - TOPSHOP

XO.

m

Go away, 80 degree-weather!

Remember my post about Old Navy's outerwear?

...and the yellow coat?

It's still so hot here, but I knew that I should snag this coat before it's no longer available!

I was worried because it's sold out online in my size.

I was near an Old Navy today and figured I'd stop in to see if one in my size was in stock.

There was one left!

This baby is now hanging sweetly in my closet.

Right where it belongs. 

...along with this unique poncho!

I'm loving ponchos this Fall, but South Carolina hasn't had cool enough weather for me to wear one yet!

Maybe a nice cool front will come through Charleston...& decide to stay.

I haven't tried any of the store's other clothing, but if it's anything like the quality of the outerwear, then Old Navy really stepped up its game this Fall.

...my two cents,

M

oh, just another blonde moment...

I can't believe I did this...

Let me set the scene for you.

Friday afternoon.

3:00.

I just arrived home, pulled into my parking spot, & was chatting away on my cell phone.

I took the keys out of the ignition & placed them in my lap.

Still chatting away.

I always have to have something to do with my hands while I'm on the phone.

This is where the problem starts.

Hello, bobby pin:

Well, let's just say that this bobby pin ended up in the car ignition.

Not so good.

& no, it wouldn't come out.

As I was chatting away & sitting in the driver's seat still, I was playing with the bobby pin & without thinking, stuck it in the ignition. I never thought it would get stuck! 

Little did I know, there is a clamp in the ignition that attaches to whatever is stuck in there.

I can't believe I did this, but since I did, I figured I may as well share it will all of you for a good laugh!

The locksmith is going to have to fix this, because after Brandon and I tried to remove it, the bobby pin is not budging!

Oh, the things I get myself into!

xo

M

...I'm still in vacation mode!

Hello all!

It has been five days since I've done a post because I've been on vacation!

Brandon, my brother (Mark), his girlfriend (Katelyn), and I have been on a cruise to the Bahamas.

We had two glorious days at sea, a day at Freeport, and a day in Nassau.

The ship left from Charleston, so we only had to drive a few miles to the port. (That was so nice!)

As our voyage began, Brandon gave me this beautiful David Yurman bracelet!

He's such a wonderful boyfriend!

In Freeport, we shopped & relaxed on the beach.  

Really, we were saving up our energy for the next day in Nassau, which was spent at the Atlantis Resort!

We swam with dolphins, snorkeled, rode awesome slides, ate Bahamian food, 

& got a lot of sun!

Here are more pictures from our cruise:

This is a picture of a picture, so the quality is bad, but I still like it!

This is my brother, Mark!

This is Brandon on the "Leap of Faith" He screamed like a little girl loved it!

I need to find a rewind button asap!

I'll chat with you all tomorrow.

This little gal needs a nap!

xo.

MMS

Hasta La Vista, Baby

Y'all won't be reading any posts from me until Wednesday, the 20th! 

I'm going on a little trip 

...don't worry, you'll see pictures when I get back.

xo.

M

Happy Humpday!

What a wonderful day it has been!
I got to do some of my favorite things and taste some of my favorite treats!

Brandon had the day off of work, so we walked around Towne Centre in Mount Pleasant.

We really enjoyed being out in the beautiful weather.

We also enjoyed these tasty cups of goodness

(We forgave them for writing Brendon instead of Brandon)

I got a Toffee Mocha Latte with non-fat milk & no whip.

I hated getting something hot because it was over 80 degrees outside, but I tend to slurp down the iced-lattes too fast.

Boy, was it delicious!

Then, after a fun Target trip, I used every drop of my willpower to not eat a whole bag of these

Hershey's Pumpkin Spice Kisses

Tell me that y'all have tried these.

Imagine pumpkin pie, cinnamon, nutmeg, sweetness, and creaminess all in one little "silverbell" (as my family has always called the traditional chocolate kisses).

Hurry and try them soon because once Autumn ends, these kisses will no longer be sold!

(Wonder who I can write a letter to in order to make these not a limited-time product?)

Later, Brandon and I met up with my grandparents and my mom, who were in Mount Pleasant for a doctor's appointment.

My grandparents Memie and Poppop left to make the drive home before dark.

Brandon left to meet up with his buddies for "man night."

So that left Mom and me ...with a lot of shopping left to do!

We shopped around at many stores in Mount Pleasant & worked up quite the appetite.

Since it was getting late & we wanted to make it back to my place in time to watch America's Next Top Model, we ran through the Zaxby's drive-through.

Introducing... one of my favorite things in the whole world:

I get my "House Zalad" with grilled chicken, easy on the cheese, with light vinaigrette dressing.

Let me tell you that I am not a big salad eater.

I crave french fries, sandwiches, sweets, and basically anything bad for you.

...but these salads have the best flavor in the world.

The combination of the dressing & the chicken seasoning is so yummy.

I think I could eat this salad every day and not get tired of it.

 *****

One more thing before I go.

I purchased New Balance's HRT Fit Heart Rate Monitor/Watch yesterday.

It's the Susan G. Komen edition, so part of the proceeds benefit breast cancer research.

I've been wanting a digital watch to wear while running outside.

I've also been wanting a heart rate monitor, so this is perfect because it incorporates the two.

The most appealing aspect of this watch, aside from it being pink and the Komen edition, is that it is a chest-strap free heart rate monitor. 

Introducing... one of my many blonde moments:

I used it at the gym yesterday but couldn't get it to detect my heart rate. 

I'm surprised I didn't fall off of the treadmill because I was fooling with it during my run.

Later last night, I told Brandon that I needed to take it back because the heart rate feature was defective.

Being the smart boyf that he is, he pulled out the trusty directions.

Little did I know that you have to put your fingers on the stainless steel bevel around the watch face and hold them there for three seconds in order to get a heart rate reading. 

I thought it would detect my heart rate just by being strapped to my wrist, no fingers involved!

Lesson learned = READ THE DIRECTIONS! 

Hope you are all having a great week!

We've made it through Wednesday, so it's all downhill from here!

xo.

Meg