$2 a Month

So, I was thinking last week, while applying the best mascara ever, that it was a LONG time ago I purchased said mascara. And, I think I read somewhere, that you are supposed to replace your mascara every three months. So, I looked back on the Sephora past orders page and yea, my mascara was purchased in July 08. Whoops. Almost a year! But, at $24 a tube, I only spent like $2 a month on mascara. And the stuff is STILL good. But, it made me realize I needed to replace it and needed to place a Sephora order. And, I love ordering online because they give you a ton of free samples and such! So, here is what I ordered and the free samples I got.

Eye Shadow (used this once so far, this morning, it comes with directions on different ways to apply the shadows, so far, really like the colors and quality)

Mascara (best ever, been using for years)

Body Wash Set (have not used yet, but the scents are incredible in the bottle)

Body Wash (used once this morning and it smells aMAZing)

Samples of the following:

Bliss Best of Skintentions Daily Moisturizer

Ralph Lauren Romance Always Yours Eau de Parfum

dr. brandt blemishes no more® intensolution® - and blemishes no more® Oil-Free Hydrator

Nina Ricci Eau de Toilette

Philosophy Philosophy Hope in a Jar

Sean John I Am King Eau de Toilette (for Kurty)

Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gio Pour Homme Eau de Toilette (for Kurty)

Issey Miyake L'Eau d'Issey Eau de Toilette

Philosophy Unconditional Love - 0.13 oz Eau de Toilette (used this morning, smells really good and unique)

Juice Beauty Oil-Free Moisturizer Deluxe Sample--(used, kinda weird. Very thick for a facial moisturizer, but blended really well)

Anyway, so far, really pleased with the purchases. Will keep everyone posted! :).

Inner Circle

So, had an insanely busy day at work. Mondays are always crazy, but I felt like today just kinda flew by in a whirlwind, and I did not even have to go to court since Kurt and Stacey covered all the hearings. So many appointments this afternoon with like NO break between them.

After work, Jessica and I headed to a Lia Sophia jewelry party that an attorney friend of mine was having. I thought it would be a great way for her to meet some of the nice female attorneys in the area, outside of the courtroom. Anyway, there were about 6 attys there, as well as some other friends and family of the atty holding the party. I was glad she got to joke around and meet some people. I think it was a successful outing! Plus, I got some great deals on jewelry which should be delivered soon! :). I bought a new longer necklace (that has kinda been my latest *thing*, longer necklaces with my suits), a really pretty blue necklace, and a ring that is three blue stones and really cute.

Other than that, went home and went to bed, after making a quick dinner of leftovers. Looking forward to some time off for the 4th.

And, on to the secrets....

Weekends.......

Wow, it's been a while since I posted anything here, non-other blog related.

Have been pretty busy lately, with having family in town, work and board stuff. Plus, I am ADDICTED to The Hills from Netflix, and have been watching that on the computer instead of blogging. Damn Lauren Conrad and Heidi Montag. :). Sarah was right though, totally addicting!

Had a fun weekend. Dinner with everyone at my house at Dolce on Friday night.......Saturday, I had lunch with Hollie and Angela at PF Chang's in Dearborn. It was nice to sit and chat and vent and such. I had not seen Angela in forEVER and it had been longer than usual for Hollie too with both our schedules being crazy. Lunch was super yummy as well. Went home after that and basically chilled the rest of the afternoon. Kurt worked on putting the pool table together on Saturday, and went for ice cream for the first time this year. I love our little local ice cream joint, it's so cute. Sunday, went to a local billards place to buy stuff for the table. They had awesome deals on some used stuff, so we bought two cues, the pool balls, chalk, basic necessities to play. And then we played for the first time. Love having that down there now. Cannot wait until everything is finished in the basement. Then, Rebecca came over on her way home from Ohio to celebrate her bday.....Took her to dinner at Dolce, and we went shopping at Kohl's and Lowe's. I bought four new towels at Lowes and two new shirts (15% coupon). Yesterday, I also finally went online, with the use of a $50 coupon, and bought a new laptop travel bag (we actually do not even own one and improvise every trip with a bag we "make" into a laptop travel bag) and a new make-up travel vanity case thing since mine is like really old and starting to fall apart. Played bocce Sunday night too and the weather was absolutely perfect for it. Oh, here are pics of the two bags I am ordering and I really hope that they work for the purposes I ordered them for:

Nothing

Update.

Weirdness

So odd. Another day, another weird occurrence.

Quote of the Week

Click here to read.

Pug in a Rug

Gretel and Vito had to go get shots tonight. Gretel needed rabies and one other, and Vito only needed one. They also got their nails clipped. They were SOOOO good. They crack me up at the vet, with how excited they get to play with and see people who stick needles in them and cut their nails (which they hate).

House is still going through some changes. Scott and Kory have been working in the basement on putting in the two bathrooms. Yea, no idea why we need two bathrooms down there, but there are hookups (kinda) so Kurt wants them in. I will like having a bathroom down there though, since that is where the gym is. Can't wait until everything is done.

Other than that, not much is going on right now! :). Work has been crazy busy, and I have been tired at night from that and the heat! Hope everyone else is having a grerat start of the week.

Opinions

It kinda amuses me that when I post an actual opinion on this website, I get the most comments. :). My normal "look at my cute dog' posts are truly ignored! :).

In all seriousness though, I wish everyone would be more open to/accepting of other's opinions. We are all different. Nobody needs to be saddended, appalled, whatever, about my personal opinion. One person who posted on here basically thinks I am the devil in disguise because I am not in despair over Kate and Jon's divorce. Why would I be, really? I don't personally know them, and I would rather direct my feelings towards something in my life that is actually about someone I know. Like jessica's Dad being sick. If someone else is saddened by it, that's their opinion and call. I am not going to talk down to them because of their opinion. Whatever. If that is something that makes you sad, fine. Hunting and killing animals makes me sad, and makes others thrilled because they love the thrill of the hunt and kill. Fine. Differing opinions.

We all process things in a different way. I have read my blog about Kate and Jon a bunch of times and I really fail to see how it equates to anyone's life BESIDES Kate and Jon. i think anyone reading into it AT ALL is overpersonalizing my opinion as it has nothing to do with anyone else besides the parties mentioned. I have issues with the way they were paid to display their kids to the world for money (which is why I dont encourage it and watch the show). I have issues with the fact that they allowed money, greed and fame to aid in the ruin of their marriage. I have issues with the fact that AFTER their marrrige started to go badly, they went on interviews and on TV to talk about it. Horrible for their kids to see or have to see some day.

I know nobody else in the world who has done this (the above). I have many friends who are divorced, and agree with me 100% on my opinion on this subject (Kate and Jon). So, I am totally confused. Any of my friends who have been through divorces, I have been nothing but "there" for them and supportive and I do feel for my friends. I don't feel for Kate and Jon, however, I do feel for their kids. I don't know Kate and Jon, and I don't have this button that presses on whenever I hear that anyone in the world anywhere is going through a divorce, that turns on my sad emotion. Kids are another story though, and I truly do feel horrible for their kids.

All divorce is not the same. Every marriage and breakup is different. Nobody should take my opinion of Kate and Jon as ANYTHING but my opinion on Kate and Jon.

If anyone took my opinion the wrong way, I apologize for not explaining better.

Night all.

Public Apology to Shannon

"I wish doctors would stop handing the drugs out like candy."

I said that in my last post, and it struck a nerve with a friend of mine.

Shannon, I would give up my fertility so you could have a baby. And I want doctors to do whatever they can to help you have a baby, because I know you, and Warren, will be amazing, super fun parents. Who respect their kids and always have their best interests at heart!

Love you!

Who Cares

As a disclaimer, I have never watched their show and never will. But since I am a loyal US Weekly and People Magazine reader, I get the juice.......

Jon and Kate have "filed for divorce". Women around the world feel sorry for them?????

I'm sorry, but the only thoughts I had on this subject are the feelings I have towards their children. First, their parents put the children in the spotlight like they did and NOW, they are divorcing. It sounds like they put the kids' interests first all the time.......I get it. They made a lot of money on this. Their kids may have some money set aside for their future (if their Dad has not spent it all on girlfriends and harleys and their Mom has not spent it all on plastic surgery and only flying first class plane tickets).

If i had to read the minds of those kids though, I would put money on that the kids would rather have a balanced, noninvasive home life, with no paparazzi, and parents who were not always putting on a show for the cameras......vs all the money in the world.

Divorce sucks. I deal with it EVERY day at this office. But you know what? I feel sorrier for the Mom who comes in here, with no job, no money, and a husband who left her for another woman than I do for people who have a LOT of money and pretty much anything they request at their fingertips.

I think Kate and Jon could have tried a little bit harder. I think that when you choose to bring 8 freaking children into the world, you have the obligation to try some counselling or maybe QUIT your freaking TV show to work on your marriage.

On a side note, I would not be surprised if this were ALL for ratings, and they end up working things out and getting counseling. And that would kinda make me even more outraged.

Another thing that annoys me? That society almost exalts those with excessive amounts of kids, like it is some accomplishment. Seriously, fertility drugs=multiples a LOT of the time. It's not like Kate is some miracle worker. I wish doctors would stop handing the drugs out like candy.

Rant over.

A Lot In a Weekend

Wow, this weekend flew by, and I did a LOT in one weekend. Crazy. Can't believe it's late Sunday night already!

Saturday, had a massage at noon at a new place. Really cheap. $45 for an hour special. Anyway, it was OK. It was relaxing, but she was not "mean", like I like. She did not use a lot of pressure, which is necessary for me. But, it was relaxing, and she was nice, so I won't complain. :). Came home and chilled until my date with Rebecca and Jen. We were supposed to do dinner and a movie, but just did the movie. We saw The Proposal, which I thought was freaking hilarious and I loved it. So good. I always love Sandra Bullock though, and Ryan Reynolds was hilarious. The hit of the movie though was Betty White. She was great. There was this adorable puppy in the movie that I wanted to take home SO badly, but I am guessing it's owner won't let me.........Later that night, I found out "why" Rebecca did not want to do dinner! LOL. She won't ever admit it though. Ever. But, I know all of her dirty little secrets...........I have "connections". Saturday, Kurt painted the bocce court and made a score board for it, which is REALLY nice. Love it all. And Kory and Scott worked on the basement more, putting up more drywall and working on making more rooms down there, and the plumbing and such.

Sunday, got up and my Dad came over for Father's Day. We decided to surprise him and take him to the baseball game. We had not bought tickets and it was sold out, so we scalped tickets. Sat in section 116, which was OK--not horrible, but not my first choice. The game was awesome though. Tigs won, and we had a great time being in the sun and outside. Came home after that and played a Bocce tourney with kory. My Dad and I kicked ass. Poor Kory and Kurt, they cannot keep up with superior athletics. haha. Went to dinner at Ruby Tuesday after that. I found a brand new pool table on Craigslist, and got the deets, lowballed the guy, and the boys went to Inkster to pick it up. Yea, I sent them to the ghetto. Anything for a good deal.....Anyway, the pool table is here now, but needs to be set up. Yay for deals. We saved over a thousand dollars with my mad skillz. haha.

Anyway, off to bed. Hope everyone had a really nice Father's Day!

Purses, handbags, and more! Oh my!

Anyone like Kate Spade?

A friend of mine sent me a link to a Sample Sale, and you get 20% more off of the sale prices....

Anyway, click here if you want to look. There are some awesome deals.

Oh, and of course, the one I got is above. Because, I totally "needed" a purse, after just buying that Cole Haan one a little while back. Oh well, I will use two, or save it. Nicole made me do it though. I swear.

Love

My nephew, Nick, at the beach with my Mom. This was Nick's first beach trip! :). He went on the swings, played in the sand, and walked on the boardwalk. Oh, and had a little taste of Dairy Queen. Lucky little guy.

Where the Days Go....

Boy, work is crazy busy. Phew.

I have no idea where the days go.

Anyway, Jessica and I went after work today to get mani/pedis at a place near the office that we got a coupon for. They did a really good job, no wait there, and it was really relaxing. The chairs were some of the best massage chairs I have ever sat in. It was nice to sit and talk to Jessica too. It was the first mani I have had in a while and my nails needed it. I stopped afterwards and bought Kurt some new suits at Macy's and Men's Warehouse. He really needed some new ones. Yay for getting that out of the way AND I had a coupon for a free tie at Men's Warehouse. Whoot.

Kory and Scott started working on finishing our Bocce Court today, and it is almost done. Yay! They also started working on some more electrical stuff in the basement and drywall will be soon. Glad that some of this stuff is getting done.

Below is a pic of my sunroom, another room I really like in my house. Bugsy loves this room, as it is the only room that the pugs really cannot get to. I love sitting in there with my laptop, watching TV or just looking outside at the birds.... The furniture in here I searched forEVER for. i knew what I wanted in my head, but never knew it existed until I found it at Elder Beerman.


Anyway, my exhausted self is off to bed. Night all!

New Stuff

The beads on the one I bought are shades of turquoise.....

Stuff above are purchases I made at NY and Co today.....They really did not have much that I was interested in, which is rare for me....Anyway, I bought the two shirts and four necklaces (one I could not find a pic of, but it is green).

Had a really nice Sunday. After NY and Co, stopped at Sam's Club to stock up on some staples. Rebecca was going to stop by, and when I got back to the house, Britton was there too, so with Scott in town, we had a full house! :). We decided to head to Pete's for dinner, and had a fun time. Rebecca and I sat outside for a while too and talked, and it was nice to just be outside and chill. Or not "chill", since it was hot out, but you get my drift.....:). We took a walk out to the pond too. It was a really relaxing day. Yay for that!

Work was tiring today. Kurt and I both had trials this morning (although his ended up settling and mine ended up getting adjourned), plus two other hearings and Jessica covered two hearings as well, with Stacey covering one other. It was a pretty crazy morning with court. Got back into the office and was overloaded with papaerwork the rest of the day.....Home now and waiting for Kory to deliver our pizza to everyone! :).

My T key keeps sticking.....

**taken in the yard/back porch today......Oscar loves us! :).

Kurt's brother Scott is in town, just got here today. Had a nice night out at a local hangout, Jerry's. I was introduced to pull-tab lotto tickets, which I had never seen before. They are kinda fun! :). Played some music on he jukebox, and Kurt played some keno. Nice, relaxing night.

Took some pics of the inside of my house today soon, as I realized I have not really taken any since we moved into the house over 6 years ago. I will post one every once in a while, as to not bore with a bunch of them, starting with one of my fav rooms in the house, the dining room. We rarely use this room, as we generally eat in the living room. The table is one of my fav pieces of furniture ever. It was bought at an auction from the estate of some famous dead golfer. China cabinet is from the same auction (not the dead guy's). There is another cabinet and a kewl table and mirror in the room that you cannot see in the pic. Two sets of french doors lead out of the room. Anyway, here's my dining room! :).

Tired......

Tired.......but watching the end of the Tigers game.

Saw Grease last night at the Fisher Theatre with my Aunt and guess who was in it as teen angel? Taylor Hicks. And yes, he was just as lame in the show as on American Idol. The show itself though, was really, really good. The girl who played Sandy had an incredible voice and I loved the girls who played all the Pink Ladies. Had dinner beforehand at a place called La Musique in the Hotel St Regis. Food and service were really good, and the ambience was really nice.

For the first time in my life, I got a jury notice in the mail! I have to fill out this form, and then they supposedly send you a notice on when you have to show up. I am hoping I get eliminated before this "show up" step because of my job listed on the form, but my guess is I will get eliminated once I show up and the attys on the cases ask me my occupation. They hate lawyers on juries, as lawyers tend to convince everyone of their opinion (and I know I would do that, LOL). We will see what happens with it. I imagine I will have to show, and they will send me home right away.

Bought these shoes today in green. Hoping they are comfy, but they have free returns so I will send them back if not. I have been wanting green heels and love this pair. I only like unique shoes and these are for sure different.

Off to bed......

Sunday at the Park

This morning, I thought it would be a really nice day to go to a Tigers game! So, i went online and bought tickets, and off we went. Had awesome seats (Section 129, which is behind home plate, but slightly toward third base) and sat by some fun people, who were actually fans of the opposing team. Anyway, the game was AWESOME. The score kept going back and forth, and ultimately, the Tigers won! Clete Thomas his a grand slam that pretty much sealed the Angels fate. Great game. One of the best during the season games I have been to. Unfortunately, because I thought it was going to be overcast and rainy, I did not bring sunscreen and my arms and chest are paying for it. Ugh. It's not too bad, but I wish I would have known it was going to be gorgeous and sunny all day. Damn weather channel lying to me. Regardless, we had an amazing time and it was nice to spend a Sunday afternoon outsde, watching baseball, with my husband.

I read this article today in the Free Press that I loved. Rick Steves was interviewed, and one quote by him really stood out to me, as follows:

Q: You travel to places the average person wouldn't go on his own, like Iran. Isn't hedonism or plain old relaxation a good enough reason to travel?

A: I have no problem with hedonism. But it's not fundamentally travel. A lot of people go to Mazatlan and lose an opportunity to go to Nicaragua. They go to Hawaii again when they could go to Morocco. My best experiences have been in places where people wouldn't want to go. I feel sorry for people who go to Orlando every year.

I'm not saying your cruise or vacation is wrong. I'm just saying it doesn't broaden your perspective. It is instructive for Americans to broaden their perspectives just now. We're only 4% of this planet. We don't want to be eclipsed by everyone else.

I loved this. I understand that some people want to take your standard American vacations, but with foreign airfare being cheaper than domestic airfare a lot of the time right now, I don't understand why Americans don't broaden their horizons. I learn soooo much through my travels and it really opens up my eyes to the fact that there is a world outside of America. I really wish I could have travelled more as a kid, as I may have appreciated my geography classes more. And the Orlando comment was funny to me because Kurt says stuff like that ALL the time. He literally HATES Florida.

Made a really yummy dinner tonight, thanks to the cookbook I borrowed from Rebecca. It was called a "Cheesy Mexicali Tuna Bake" and it was fab, and really easy to make. I would post the recipe link, but I could not find the link.

Anyway, hope everyone had as nice of a weekend as I did. :).

Shopping with Rebecca

**Pic above is of Misty and I at my bday party this year.....

Headed out this morning to Rebecca's house to hang out for the day. We first had lunch at Grumpy's, which is a little diner and Rebecca's local hangout. I had a tuna melt.......it was yummy. They grilled onions in it, which was good.

The day was gorgeous, so even though we wanted to shop, outdoor shopping would be ideal--so Rebecca suggested Partridge Creek, an outside shopping mall in a neighboring town. Off we went.........I ended up finding some great purchases. First, at Nordstrom's, I got a pair of heels on clearance by Circa Joan & David.

Next, we stopped at Bath & Body Works, where like everything was on sale. I ended up with 4 body sprays and a perfume for under $17. Did not buy anything else at Partridge, but I loved it there. Dogs were being walked everywhere and a lot of the stores allowed dogs inside. Really nice area. We headed next to DSW, where I found a really cute pair of pink heels. Rebecca deemed them "non-Lori like", but, i think they will look really cute with my suits. They are by Nina Shoes. The link for the shoes are similar to the ones I got, but the ones i got are not satiny, they are kinda a different texture and less 'fancy'.

Off to Kohl's next, where i bought two cute shirts, one for work and one t-shirt.

we had dinner next with Lauren at Monterrey Cantina, since I had a gift cert to use. All three of us ate for free, basically, and they left the tip since I had the gift cert. It was a nice dinner, and nice to see lauren too. She is moving to Chicago soon, so that may be the last time I see her for a really long time.

Rebecca gave me my bday gift and I love it! It is a Billy Joel cd set, and I listened to some of it on the way home. One of them is a live CD from Carnegie Hall, and it is amazing. I love Billy. Thanks again, Rebecca, I love my gift! And you totally should not have gotten me anything, but thanks so much! :).

Stopped at Astoria after dinner too and bought Kurt some chocolate mousse, and a piecec of tiramisu....Astoria is the greatest bakery ever.......

Home for the night now, and feeling sorry for kurty, whose allergies are RAGING. They are the worst I have ever seen them. Ugh.

Hope everyone is having a nice weekend!

Dinner Out

had an awesome night out with friends, Cliff and Lisa. Lisa has been in school for the past two years and we have literally, only seen them for dinner, once. Which is crazy, since we usually see them at least once a month for whatever. Anyway, she passed her boards and has a position in the surgery department at U of M as a PA. Yay for her. Anyway, we went out tonight to PF Chang's, and followed that up with dessert at Bravo. Everything was awesome. I had an awesome time, and before we knew it, like over 4 hours had passed. Got to see their new BMW, which is very nice. It is a BMW, smaller SUV, and I had never seen one like it before. A really kewl blue color, and I am excited for them because of the new car too! Yay!

PS Pic above is from my surprise bday dinner at Crave. We enjoy taking pics in the restroom. haha.

Nothingness

it's been a while, and I am not really feeling motivated to post for some reason. however, i do not want to get so far behind that i forget everything that has (or hasn't) been going on....

Loved my weekend. I wanted to have a kinda "nothing" weekend, as my three day workweek was INTENSE with stressful court hearings, and I did not want any times I needed to be anywhere or do anything.

Saturday, I had a pedicure, which was MUCH needed. I had it at my fav spa near my house, as they were having 20% off all services on Saturday. I normally do not get pedis there, because they are more pricey than the walk in places, but I like the girls there so I just said screw it, and went. My toes now look fabulous. Did some laundry, went grocery shopping, and just kinda was lazy other than that.

Sunday, I did even less. Did some laundry, made some cookies, did some dishes and light cleaning, worked out, but other than that, was lazy. Took a walk with the pugs in the yard, which was nice, and sat outside for a little bit to listen to the birds and just be in the sunshine......

Last night, I got to have dinner with Charlene, which was awesome. I headed after work to Canton, where she is staying at a hotel for work. Picked her up, and headed to Max and Erma's for dinner. Dinner was great, and just sitting and talking to Charlene was awesome. We have a lot in common (except that she wants 7 kids and I don't know, haha), and it's nice to just relax with someone who kinda gets where you are coming from. And she is an awesome date, as she paid for me! :). I don't even remember the last person, besides Kurt, that paid for me for a meal. I generally fight this tooth and nail and don't like it, but since she gets to submit the bill to work, I felt slightly better about it. :). Thanks again, Char.......

Tonight, I was in a cooking kinda mood, so I made grilled marinated tuna, cheesy hashed brown potatoes, and a homemade cheesecake. The cheesecake is still chilling, but the rest of the meal was super yummy. I have never made cheesecake before, so I guess we will see how it tastes when Kurt tries it sometime tomorrow. :). It looks good though.

Off to bed........