so. bored.

With my hair, that is. The last time I colored or highlighted it was in 2008!!! For those of you who've known me a long time, you know that there was a period in my life where I would have a new hair color every few months!

Needless to say, I'm lucky to still have hair! In 2008 I dyed my hair black and let it fade completely out. I am currently rocking my natural hair color, but I am getting a bit bored. I love my dark hair, but summer is just around the corner and I think it's time for a change. Years ago I swore to myself that I would have my natural brown hair on my wedding day, and I did! I kept that promise, but now the wedding is over and I'm anxious to change my hair color.

So, what do you think I should do?

Get a few highlights?

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Go all the way blonde?

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Flirt with red?

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My hubby thinks I should channel my alter ego, Liney Beth, and go all the way blonde. While I'd love to do that, I'm a bit hesitant. We'll be getting our professional wedding pictures back soon and I don't want to look like a completely different person. Any thoughts?

wordless wednesday

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Top Two Tuesday

This week: Top Two Random Things About Myself

1. I'm a terrible dancer, but I dance a lot at my house. And I don't mean graceful ballet dancing. Nope, I'm a crazy shoulder shaking, hair flying, weird jello knee thingy, shimmy across the floor, salsa, noodle dancer! Lol does this make sense? I hope so. Sometimes when I'm cooking dinner a dance party breaks out in the kitchen and my hubby joins me. (He's a crazy dancer, too.)

2. Keith and I watch American Pickers and Pawn Stars on the History Channel all the time. It doesn't matter if the shows are new or old, we watch 'em. Keith really likes these shows and I am secretly hooked. :o)

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me? a DIY-er?

Before Keith and I were engaged, I was not a do-it-yourself, crafty person. I never had the desire to paint anything or create something fantastic. Through the wedding planning process I discovered that I actually like to paint. I like taking a vision that I have and turning it into reality. Even though I seriously almost lost my sanity while wedding planning, I am very happy that the creativeness I gained from it has decided to stick around in my newly married life.

From the get go, I knew that once we were married I'd be moving into Keith's house. To be honest, I had mixed feelings about this. I always thought I would be involved in choosing the house I was going to live in with my husband. Since that wasn't the case, my next concern was this: How was I going to turn his house into our house. Keith also had a few roommates before we were married so it was really weird to think that they were living in and making messes in my future home.

I am happy to report that moving into Keith's our house has been absolutely great and doesn't feel weird at all. I truly love it! Even though I didn't get to pick the house with Keith, I am going to get to redecorate and paint rooms with him! :oD Woop woop! I am so pumped about this! We are going to paint the living room, our bedroom, the guest bathroom, and two of the extra bedrooms! WOW! This is going to be a major project.

KC and I were in Folly Beach (AKA, my absolute favorite place!) one day and I fell in love with a home there. The way it was painted, the flowers in front, and even the fence were perfect! I decided to be a stalker and take a picture.

Isn't it beautiful? Well, since we can't paint the outside of the house (I checked, it's a no) I am going to paint one of the extra bedrooms this color. The room will eventually be a guest room, but until then I will use it as a place to write, read, pray, and just relax. Here's a before shot of one side:
And here's what I've done to it so far:
Please do not make fun of my pathetic attempt to paint. :oP I'm hoping to finish painting it next weekend. My ultimate goal/dream is to have...

black and white photos hanging on the walls

a beautiful vanity (minus the pink chair)

a Victorian chaise

a chandelier print on the wall

and a lovely bookshelf.

Since this is sort of my room and project, I'd like to have one of these in there, too. Although I don't know how well it goes with my theme....he he.

Since we have a few rooms that need updated furniture, my little dream room may have to wait awhile before it becomes reality. :o) I'll keep you guys updated!

honeymoon recap: day 5

Day 5 began the same same way day 4 did - rainy, yucky. We decided that rain or shine, we were heading back to Disney! We woke up early and made our way to Hollywood Studios. You would think that since it was raining pretty badly that there wouldn't be too many people. Ha! Yeah, right. This is Disney World, people! Nobody cares about the rain! :o) Our first stop: Voyage of the Little Mermaid.

Next, we headed over to the Beauty and the Beast show. This was my favorite part of the day! I've been trying to get my hands on a Beauty and the Beast DVD for quite some time now, but since it's locked in the vault (thanks a lot, Disney) I'd have to spend like $40 bucks, and I just can't justify doing that. :o( Anywho, I really felt like I was watching the movie, in a summed up way! Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the show.

After this, we rode the Tower of Terror, the Star Wars ride, and a few others that I can't seem to remember. We only stayed at Hollywood Studios for a few hours. Even though a Disney World visit was over, I was glad to be heading back to our warm, comfy condo. Our next stop? Universal Studios!

the secret to a tender roast

Last weekend, Keith and I had our good friends Chad and Melissa over for dinner. At first I thought about cooking pork chops, but Keith and I always eat this (my hubby's favorite meal) and I was ready to try something new. I decided to cook a pot roast with potatoes, rice and gravy, and salad. I am use to cooking things like this, thanks to my lovely Louisiana roots, but this dinner was quite a challenge. Unless you cook a roast all day, the odds of it coming out tender are slim to none. However, my Aunt told me about this little secret to make a roast tender and very tasty.

Ingredients:
3 or 4 lb. Boneless Chuck Roast (Depending on the amount of people, you may need a bigger/smaller one)

1 - Tsp. Olive Oil

2 - Cans of Coke Zero

2 - Packets of Lipton Onion Soup Mix

1 - 8oz. Bag of frozen Chopped Onions

Tony Chachere's Seasoning

1 - Packet McCormick Pot Roast Seasoning

1 - 8qt. pot

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove roast from packaging. Rub McCormick Pot Roast Seasoning into your roast. Pictured below is what I used. The mix comes with a roast bag; do not use this bag.Add a teaspoon of olive oil to pot. Brown both sides of the roast on the stove top on medium heat. While cooking, season roast with Tony Chachere's. (Season to taste!)
Once roast is brown on both sides, add bag of chopped onions. Pour 2 cans of Coke Zero over roast. Add 2 packets of Lipton Onion Soup Mix. Stir contents together so that coke and soup are mixed. Make sure the roast is completely submerged in liquids.
Place lid on your pot and put into oven. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 6-7 hours.

If you would like to add potatoes (chopped), add them to the pot one hour before roast is finished cooking.

Keep an eye on the roast while it is cooking. It is normal for the liquids (gravy) to evaporate, but if you'd like more gravy, just add a little water while it is cooking. Make sure to have your rice cooking about 30 minutes before the roast is finished so that everything will be ready at the same time.

Ta daaaa! That is all! I know it sounds really gross...adding coke zero and onion soup mix together, but it really makes the roast tender and gives it a fabulous taste! I don't have any pictures from the dinner to show how the roast came out, but everyone liked it so I think it was a winner!

I may have gotten myself in a pickle though. The other day Keith told me, "You know bay, roast is my new favorite meal!" Lol, ah!

why wait?

Today I read an article on AOL news about a 12 year old named Zachary Bonner. The article was about Zach's "March Across America" project. You see, Zach is walking from Tampa, Florida to Los Angeles, California!!! His reason is simple: He wants to raise money and bring awareness to homeless kids in America.

Wait, it gets better.

At the age of six, Zach started a non-profit organization called the Little Red Wagon Foundation. He created this foundation so that he could help kids in distressed situations. He has received the U.S. President’s Volunteer Service Award and was voted the Most Inspiring Person by Beliefnet.com. Annnnd, they are making a movie about him. The guy that directed Rudy (Ruuudy, Ruuuudy!!!!) is directing Zach's. It'll be the same type of inspirational story, similar to Rudy's. How amazing is this kid??
So, as I read about Zach I thought to myself, "Wow, when I grow up I want to be just like him." As funny as it sounds, it's true. But the thing is, we don't have to wait to grow up to impact the world. Zach surely didn't wait. He began at the ripe old age of six. When I was his age I was playing with Barbie dolls and trying to wear my Mom's lipstick. Impacting the world doesn't mean that you have to start a non-profit. It just means that you can be the hands and feet of Jesus no matter how young/old you are.

Last summer, God planted Serenity Self Defense in my heart. I have many passions, but this one is very dear to me. This one gets me hyped up and makes me want to be Supergirl. And while I have a website up for Serenity, I don't have much else going on. I don't really know how to get the ball rolling. I know that I want to help women in the area by having no-cost training sessions on self-defense and street smarts, but how am I going to do this? I know that I want to raise money for Melanie Goodwin's Scholarship Fund, but how is that going to happen. (Melanie is what inspired Serenity to begin)

Reading Zach's story really made me reevaluate what I am going to do with Serenity. For now, I am seeking God's wisdom and trusting that he will lead the way. He didn't put this idea in my heart for it to go to waste. I know for sure that in April or May I want to have a meeting at my house to brainstorm ideas on what to do next. I'll have more details in the next few weeks if any of y'all are interested in getting involved.

under the tuscan sun

When I was a kid, one of my favorite movies was The Chipmunk Adventure. You know...the one where Alvin, Simon, and Theodore race the female chipmunks (can't seem to remember their names) around the world?! Remember? Well, if you don't here's a little refresher:

Hopefully, this clip rings a bell and brings up great memories. If it doesn't, then I highly suggest watching this wonderfully silly movie. :o) Okay, so back to the point. I was thinking about this movie today and how they race around the world in hot air balloons. I have always wanted to ride in one, but how great would it be to ride one in Tuscany!?? I know it's a bit far fetched, but I found this website that has daily balloon rides in the Tuscany/Pisa area!!(http://www.ballooningintuscany.com/) How amazing would this be?

I know it's random, but hey I can dream, can't I? Depending on how things go, Keith and I may end up in Europe next summer. (**wink,wink MB**)

honeymoon recap: day 3 & 4

Day 3 of our honeymoon pretty much consisted of doing nothing. We were so exhausted from Magic Kingdom that we decided to just lay around all day. We talked a bunch, ate a ton of Oreos, and watched a whole lot of HGTV. (Home and Garden TV....AMAZING!) I only took two pictures on this day.

The first is of KC hogging the remote...

Annnnd here's my response to that. Not. Happy. ;o)

Day 4 was a yucky, rainy day. That night we drove to Tampa for the Yankees/Braves spring training game. I had really been looking forward to seeing my Yanks play...especially since we had tickets 3 rows behind the dugout!!!

Here's the sign that I made in the truck on the way to the game. The poor thing never even saw the field.

Because of THIS! We were literally driving in tornado warning weather!

Here's our "this is crazy, let's try to stay positive" thumbs up faces.

We made it to the game on time...and then came the rain delay. Not a surprise.

While we waited, we ate yummy hot dogs...

Sat on the gross floor... (Hey! At least we weren't getting wet!)

And then we went back to the condo. After a 45 minute rain delay, the game was canceled. (At least we got a refund!) I never even saw the Yankees!!!! For those of you who know me, you know that I am a devoted Yankee fan. Win or lose, this southern girl roots for the Yanks. As disappointed as I was, I know that eventually I will get to see my team play. Hmmm...I guess this means KC and I are headed to NYC this fall!!! :o)

the plane, boss! the plane!

One of my favorite things about living in the Charleston area is the opportunity I have to see military planes flying. I usually see about one a day, but if I'm lucky I see more than I can handle. Working near the airport is another plus, as I get to monitor the construction of Boeing's new site. I have an odd fascination with aviation, the Air Force, WWII, and WASP. (I actually joined the AF after high school. No, seriously I did.) And while I hate the alarming amount of obnoxious drivers here, I adore the sky. I have many crazy goals, and one of them is to learn how to fly and become a licensed pilot. I don't know if it'll ever happen, but until then I'm content watching these big, beautiful planes from the ground below.

honeymoon recap: day 1 & 2

After the wedding Keith and I made our way to Savannah, Georgia. We spent the night at the beautiful Avia hotel and had the best experience! The staff was so friendly and even gave us a complimentary upgrade. I'm hoping the next time we're in Savannah that we can be tourists for a bit. From what I could tell, Savannah seemed like a lovely town.

The next morning we began our journey and would eventually end up in Orlando, Florida. We arrived around 5ish and decided to take it easy on our first night in Florida. We ordered in, watched TV, and called it a night pretty early.

Day 2 began nice and early. I have to be honest...I woke up freaking out. I was about to go to Disney World! I had never been and was extremely excited to meet Ariel. (I am a hardcore Little Mermaid fan, he he.)

After parking, riding the tram to the monorail, and riding the monorail to Magic Kingdom we wasted no time at all making our first purchase.

Next, we went to Space Mountain and then the Tea Cups.

We turned a little too fast and my hubby ended up with a headache.
Here we are waiting in line to meet Ariel. There was a 60 minute wait, but we didn't care. Our new Ukrainian friend took this picture for us.
Annnnnd here it is! Me with Ariel! Lol I promise I am not obsessed or anything, it's just she's practically my childhood hero.
How handsome is my sweetie?!?!
Us in the Haunted Mansion...talk about creepy!
Mickey and Minnie checking out our wedding rings. We had so much fun meeting these two!

We were only at Magic Kingdom for one day but oh my goodness I had a blast. I probably could live there forever if Keith would agree to it. :o) I'll be putting tons more pictures on Facebook, so if you'd like to see more please check my page in a few days. :o) Keith and I had a fantastic time and I can't wait to go back!