Falling back on the radar

Over two months.

That is how long it has been since I sat down at the computer and wrote here. Sad, isn't it? It felt like every time that I sat down to write all I could think about was my job situation.

It wasn't good.

And while I think I could have moaned about it for a good 25+ posts, I didn't believe anyone would want to read past the first one. Truth be told, thinking about my situation day in and day out was exhausting. I just couldn't add to that by writing anything about it.

So.

On to better news.

I have a new job!

Phew. Bet y'all didn't see that coming.

My first day will be December 12th. And with that, I'll be a road warrior again. Will fill you in on those travels. Hopefully this will keep me out of Maine in February.

Smile

I also have been very fortunate in that I won two giveaways. Two! I know!

Back in October Abbie from A Glimpse of the Girl Next Door hosted a Stella & Dot giveaway. Lucky me - I won! Now, I've lusted after Stella and Dot jewelry for a while but haven't caved in and picked something out for me.

I was so so excited to pick out these earrings. Aren't they beautiful?

Thank you Abbie! I LOVE them!!

Then, as if October weren't about to wrap up with a bang I won Shasta Anne's Pink Clarisonic giveaway!

I was so over the moon and couldn't believe that I won! Thank you so much Shasta for hosting such a wonderful giveaway!!

Following close on the win of these giveaways I received the job offer. It happened so so quickly & honestly I wasn't expecting it.

I'm beyond thankful for the blessings I have. So many weights feel as if they've been lifted from my shoulders and I thank God for his love.

Long catch up, but much needed.

xoxo

Fabulous Friday!

***Swap Note***

Don't forget to sign up for Brown Eyed Girl & my Cookbook Swap!

*****************

Happy Friday Everyone! It's here - another edition of Fabulous Friday! A highlight of all things fabulous that I've stumbled across over the course of this week (in no particular order, of course!) or even fond memories I have stored in my brain.

Since I know you're all eagerly awaiting this, the winner of yesterday's first Christmas Giveaway is MCW of Saving the Best for Last...(fingers crossed!)!


MCW is amazing, if you haven't been by her blog yet. She lives in NYC (so jealous!), goes to wonderful places and is hilariously funny - check out her post from yesterday and you'll see what I mean.

I always get so excited when I generate the random number for these giveaways! I love love love giving gifts, especially when I think other people will enjoy them. I often will give the gift within two days of buying it - probably why my Christmas shopping will wait until December 22nd. I might make it until Christmas if I wait until then. (Tara - I'm just like you in that I can't keep secrets like this!).

I'm so sad that I can't give something away to all of you - that would make me seriously happy. But you still have a chance at two more giveaways, the next one coming up next Thursday.

I have to say, I'm in love with Banana Republic and the way they've made shopping a little easier with their gift guide by personality. Since I'm heading up to Maine the week of the 14th, I'm especially in love with their more cozy items. Especially this yummy:Cashmere? Check! Scarf? Check! Creamy color? Check!! Sign me up, please!!

This morning at 5am the alarm went off. Beyonce's Sweet Dreams began blaring (I really like that song & am going to have to download it for my workouts) & I sprang up in bed. Mr. Potts mumbled, "what time is it?". My response? "Early."

I got out of bed & got ready to go to the gym for a morning workout. Huge workout! I was so happy to be wearing one of my new tops - Under Armour has come out with a line of advanced tops (Under Armour UA Tech) that feel like cotton, but whisk the moisture (nice word for sweat, huh?) away from your body. Love them! They also have some that have sleeves as well.


Since winter is here (for some of us) & I'm dealing with wicked bad dry skin, I've been religiously using the Boots amazon forest brazil nut & vanilla body butter. I have a tub of it that I keep at my desk & use it after each time I wash my hands. This stuff is wonderful & smells amazing! You can find this at your local Target.
The other item that has made it's way back into my rotation? My Philosophy Hope in a Jar. I love love love this moisturizer. It is the only thing that keeps me from getting flaky in the winter. You can find this at Sephora if you want to try it & they'll give you a decent sized sample.
What have you found to be fabulous this week?

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you've got fun plans for the weekend.

Catching up & a Thank you!

*****Edited to Add*****
I need to add a special Thank you to Bridge over at Sunflowers and Dragonflies. I was late in doing this - so she gets a shout at the top! She hosted a giveaway & I WON!!! She sent me the cutest tote and it had a special surprise - Gummi Bears! I love gummi bears. Her husband is a recent college graduate and is a new 2nd LT in the Air Force - please go congratulate her & if you're a military spouse, welcome her to your family.

Thank you Bridge! I LOVE it!


I mentioned last Friday that I had been bad about sharing awards and tags. I went back through my comments and tried to find what I had missed. So here are two!

Kimmie over at Full Circle gave me the Queen of all Things Awesome.


This is what I am supposed to to since I have been tagged:

1. List 7 things that make me awe-summm.
2. Pass the award onto 7 bloggers that I love
3. Tag those bloggers to let them know they are now Queens too (and link back to the Queen who tagged you).

Amber at Life as We Know It tagged me in Tag You're It.

The rules to this are:

1. Mention the person that tagged you.
2. List six unimportant things that make you happy.

I'm taking the two lists I was supposed to make & combining them into one with 7 items.

Ready?

1. I remember people's birthdays and send them cards. Sometimes cute little gifts too - usually from HandPicked.
2. I love to eat. Now, I don't know if that is particularly awesome or unimportant. But, my list - I get to pick. I love food. Thai food, sushi, Eastern NC BBQ, Veggies, Meats, Tapas (if you're ever in Charlotte, go here), pizza, pasta, breakfast....there's not much that I don't like.
3. As much as I love to eat, this one should not be a surprise - I love to cook. And I'm pretty good. And Mr. Potts not only likes what I cook, but has started requesting certain dishes.
4. I'm nice. Truly, genuinely nice. I think that is both awesome as well as something that makes me happy.
   
5. I can sleep anywhere. Put me in a car - I'm out. Put me on a plane - I'm out. Give me a bed - I'm napping. On a couch on a rainy day - out. I've even contemplated whether I could get away with crawling under my desk & napping. I think I'd be found out though.
6. I like singing. I never said I was any good.
7. 80's music (think Tiffany, NKOTB, Hair Metal) is sorely missed in my household. Mr. Potts & I both have a ton of this (not Tiffany or NKOTB for him) on our iPod's.

And happiness comes in the form of my niece & nephew. I'll share a picture tomorrow of my niece with Hayden this past weekend.

I'm sharing this with anyone who has not yet played & would like to.

Tell me, what makes you awesome or what makes you happy?

Giveaway Winners!

That's right - I said WINNERS. Plural!

Winner 1 - Kimmie of Full Circle. If you haven't been to her blog, please make sure to stop by and congratulate her. She showcases cupcakes...many other things too, but I love love love the cupcakes that come ever Sunday! I visit her blog every day and sometimes twice a day to look at cupcakes. I justify the cupcake stalking by telling myself that it is better to look at them than to eat them. Right?

Kimmie, if you'll send me an email with your mailing address, I'll get the Philosophy set and chasing harry winston sent off to you.


Winner 2 - Brittany Ann of Living in the Moment. Brittany is such an inspiring person. She shares work out tips and is such a genuine person who just cares.

Brittany, if you'll send me an email with your mailing information, I'll get your copy of chasing harry winston in the mail to you!


Thank you all for your entries. I appreciate it. I would highly recommend chasing harry winston for a weekend of lounging or if you're like me & tend to read while you lounge by the pool or at the beach.

Also, for those who have been searching for Shasta, she's back & I must say, may be better than ever! Go share some love with her and let her know you're happy she's back. I'm THRILLED!

A little bit of Randomness

I won! I was reading through my comments last night with Mr. Potts & I yelped & told him "I won!!" He looked at me a bit blankly and asked what I won. "A giveaway, silly!!"
I was so excited, so I immediately took him over to Julie's page Wearing Mascara. Julie, he thought your page looked great. If you haven't been over to see Julie's new design, make sure you do. And if you're not a follower, you're definitely missing out!

*****

Many of you know of my quest to become more healthy, lose weight and continue to improve my body. Well, I'm happy to report that I have lost 7 pounds. I expect much more to come off, but I know that is time - as well as an awareness of the fact that I have no self-control with food. I sometimes will find myself eating and am not hungry nor do I know how those damn Oreos got into my hand! (that would be the snack machine on the 1st floor)

So with this in mind, we're leaving for Kentucky and the Derby tomorrow. I'd really like a hat like this. We'll be driving up there - he'll be driving & I'll be working on my laptop with the wireless card.

For lunch, I mapped out where we'll stop. Yep, I found the Chick-fil-A in Tennessee which will be a half-way spot and the place where we will eat lunch.

You read it right. I mapped the chick-fil-a. All so I could eat their Chargrilled Chicken Sandwich. Yep, it's that good. Or I'm just that big of a dork.******

Emily over at From the Land of Cotton asked her readers recently (are you a reader of her's? If not, you should go check her out!) what they do for their hair in the humidity (all you Southern girls know that once its here, its here to stay!). Humidity does a real number on my hair. I can get it bone straight, but the minute I walk out the door, it starts to grow as if it had a mind of it's own. It sprouts curls on my forehead. I look like I've got a halo - which if it were Halloween I could try to say it's my angel halo. It kinks up in funky places. When we leave the lake in the summer, I'm a hot mess of hair.

I read in one of my magazines - I get so many of them - that there are several things you should NOT do with the coming weather change.

• You should not try bangs (been there, done that, have the BAD pictures). You can never be truly sure of what your hair will do when you lose that much length.
• You shouldn't go uber short unless you've done so in the past. Again, with the weather, you can never tell how your hair my rebel (sounds like a 13 year old girl).

Those are just a few of the things that I remember. One thing that stood out, was a recommendation to have your hair straightened for the summer. So I looked & bionic hair straightening is what Nicole Kidman uses to get her hair bone straight. If it would make my life easier (not to mention me less sweatier after I blow dry my hair), I may do it!


So I'm thinking of doing it for the summer. Anyone have any thoughts, feedback?