Birthday Boy!

That's right folks....it's the love of my life's BIRTHDAY!!!

Yep!

He is now the ripe old age of twenty-eight. 

{Cradle robber, I already know.} 

Ha!!! Kidding.

But seriously, look at this face:

Ok, now stop looking...because I know you're lusting.

Seriously, stop.

Sorry, I'll stop posting sexy pictures of him that make it hard for you to stop looking.

Here:

Does that help??

Haha...yes, I married a cross-dressing maniac!

He also likes motorcycles.

And lets me do stuff like this to him:

{That's mascara, in case you were wondering!}

And....we're back to cross-dressing!

This man is the most incredible gift that God has ever chosen to grace my life with. You'll hear me {or read me} brag about him a lot on here. Mostly because he's awesome. Mostly because he's mine. Mostly because he's hot. {Stop lusting!!!} Mostly because he's the only one who can frustrate me the most, make me laugh hardest and demonstrate the kind of movie love that every girl dreams about. Mostly because he proves that dreams do come true. 

His sweet dimple cheeks bring joy to my heart everyday {I could just eat his cheeks!} and there's not a day that goes by where his face wouldn't be the one I want to wake up to {that's right, morning breath and all}! He calls me beautiful in all my mess and accepts every part of me {the good, the bad, and the really ugly}. I'm so grateful that the ring on my finger means that I'm his forever. 

Happy Birthday, babe!!

Here's to another year full of lots of laughs, little tears and much love!

I LOVE YOU!!!!!

Herb Festival

Our weekend looked a little like this:

It was warm and cloudy weather {my favorite combination} with lots of time to enjoy it!

Husband had Saturday off work, so after a Zumba and weight class {that's right, I'm superrr buff! Okay, not really. But it's fun to pretend!} we were off to the Jenks Herb Festival!

I truly am a hippie at heart {actually, I like the term "gypsy" better} so places like that make my soul come alive!  There was everything from live music, to herbs, antiques and wineries! Not to mention all the fresh fruit and vegetables! Absolutely lovely!  I'm totally on board with anything that is organic and natural, which is probably why I'm completely obsessed with doTerra essential oils! But I'll talk more about that later.

I do have a funny story that comes with a piece of advice. I was talking with one of the herb vendors because I really wanted to find an herb that would help aid in digestion. The problem with that was that I wasn't specific about the type of digestion "aid" I was needing {there really are two types: stop and go}. Anyway, I was so caught up in my gypsy alter-ego and new herb fanaticism {lavender and peppermint were about the only ones that I could pronounce}, that I ended up with the opposite type of "aid" that I needed. I didn't discover that until I was home and researching the herb that I had bought! Luckily, I read the description before I made myself a cup of tea and will be putting that herb on the shelf until its aid is needed. So my advice: google before you buy....or at least before you drink. Oh, and don't let your gyspy alter-ego take over your common sense. 

But I did find an awesome company who makes 100% natural lip balm, lotion bars, soap and diaper balm. They are totally awesome and I'm SOLD on their lip balm! Their name is MaggieB Naturals and they have such an awesome story! I have never had a lip balm keep so much moisture locked in! Usually, you have to reapply about every thirty minutes. Three hours after I put this brand on, I could still feel it on my lips. So refreshing!

Did I mention husband's birthday is coming up?? Yes! He is turning the ripe old age of twenty-eight! So this weekend was also spent as an early celebration! So of course that meant some time on the golf course. He LOVES that place! But not quite as much as I love his sweet face with the dimples on the side! :)

How was your weekend?!

Thursday=Blurgsday

I don't know about any of you out there, but by the time I reach Thursday, I'm beyond exhausted from the week!! I guess that happens to most people on Fridays, but Fridays to me are like the beginning of a three day long, much anticipated, adventure!!! I feel somewhat renewed....if I can just make it past Thursday! It's my hump day {in the Wednesday sense of the word}. 

But I do have a few thoughts, blurgs, if you will. No real meaning. Just thoughts.

I'm currently in search of my youngest doghter {Piper}'s drug dealer. I know she is secretly huffing crack. {Can you even huff crack?? Or do you sniff it? Or shoot it?} Why, you ask? Well let me tell you. 

Every night Piper has the same routine:

1. Stand in front of couch. Stare at couch cushion for approximately 2 minutes.
2. Nose dive into couch.
3. Walk around in circles, in the same spot - repeat five times.
4. Dig in couch.
5. Bark at couch for not being dirt that makes it easy to dig.
6. Roll back and forth.
7. End in this position:

***For best results, repeat daily.

See...I told you! Crack. Or maybe those questionable dog bones that grandma likes to give them? Either way, I love her sweet face!

Moving on.

I wish The Big Bang Theory was on every. single. hour. It is one of those shows that makes me and husband laugh so hard, our cold cereal gets soggy {because we're too busy laughing to think about eating}! And in case you're wondering, cold cereal is a very healthy {???} and viable option for dinner. One of my favorites, in fact! I had Honey Nut Shredded Wheat. :) Maybe cold cereal should be a staple for every Thursday?! I think I'm on to something!

Moving on.

These past couple weeks have been some of the most incredible in my whole "blogging" life {which is not a long one}! I have met so many fun ladies who totally inspire me and make me laugh! I'm so glad to have met you all...and I mean that with every ounce of my being! I'm completely smitten with the blogging community! :) Please keep introducing yourselves! I love reading along with you!

Moving on.

And lastly, I leave you with this bed time routine...straight from our house to yours! Night, night! 

Happy Friday!! 

I have some fun weekend plans....do you?!

The Fear Factor

Have I mentioned that I hate bugs??
I HATE bugs!!!!
And Oklahoma just happens to be home to all sorts of lovely and exotic insects.
The kind that belong in a rainforest somewhere in South America.
Oh, and when I say "lovely," I really mean gross!!!!
Bugs that look like this:

Okay, so you've got the idea, me+bugs=no.
Well, on my drive home from a run with my sweet little Piper, I couldn't help but notice a creature crawling on my windshield. Crawling on the inside of my windshield. {And let me inform you that from here on out, all facts about this creature are going to be slightly exaggerated. For questions regarding this exaggeration, refer back to Part 1 of this post.}  It was a glowing with red and black stripes across its back and wings pervading out of its side. Creepyyyyyy!!!
Every ounce of my being wanted to freak out...I mean arms waving, me screaming, swerving and probably killing everyone on the road! Not good. This was not helped by the fact that the bug kept crawling closer and closer to the driver's side. With my arms gripping the steering wheel, I had to mentally talk myself out of letting go and going insane! Now I realize this sounds ridiculous, but all I could think of when that bug was crawling around was how, at any moment, he could choose to use those red and black striped wings to fly on over to my face {or arms & legs}, land on them and give them a big ol' bite! Luckily, it was only a 7 1/2 minute drive home {yes, you better believe I was counting!} and Piper and I made it home safely without any incidences. When we pulled in to the garage, I was able to put the car in park and calmly sweep the bug out in a napkin.

Then it occurred to me....this bug is how so many circumstances in life can be. The bug represents a situation that we are fearful of. When we encounter that fear, in the moment we want to do everything possible to avoid it, even if it means harming ourself or others. We react in ways that have no logic behind them. And why? Because we're so focused on that little tiny bug, that little tiny fear, that we lose sight of how good everything else around us is and instead to choose to focus on a millimeter in the miles of the big picture. Does that make sense?? The more we focus on the fear, the larger it seems and drowns out everything {and everyone} good around it. We've got to learn to zoom out and be able to function, even when a fear of the unknown is present.

This really resonated with where I'm at right now. It's so easy to get caught up in the unknown of our future, for this current situation to feel so permanent. But really, in the grand scheme of things, this is only a small part of the bigger story. Where Matt and I are at right now, what we've been through and what we're going through are all going to benefit us in our future. They're making us stronger. {I can already hear my girl, Kelly, singing backup!} And we have one HUGE advantage in our lives.....we serve a God who is madly in love with us and wants nothing more than to pour out his blessings and goodness all over our lives. He can see the big picture and is weaving every part together to make something beautiful! So I have the choice to focus on the now, the temporary, the unpleasant or I can choose to lift up my eyes and focus on the God who is not going to let me fail or die unhappy. I think I'll stick with Option 2.

"Fear based decisions seem logical to solve a problem - but they only increase the problem & delay the inevitable consequences of unbelief."
Jimmy Evans

"For the LORD your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs."
Zephaniah 3:17 NLT

"I am leaving you with a gift - peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don't be troubled or afraid."
John 14:27 NLT

A Little Less Manic Monday

Just another manic Monday?

Nope, not over here!

Lucky me, I didn't have to work today! :)

So here I sit on the front porch, drinking ice cold cherry coke.

Watching the clouds roll by. 

Oh wait, isn't that a song?!

Why yes it is! A song that just so happens to parallel my life right now, if only the cherry coke were a sweet tea! This sweet tea, to be exact!

Oh, how I LOVE sweet tea!! It's the epitome of Southern living and I've totally embraced it!

Anyway, if you are having a manic Monday, let me share a couple things with you that totally made me smile!

The first one is a post by Amira over at Shades of Gray. This is the funniest story and will NOT disappoint!

Second, is this lovely music video by a few bloggers who's sites I adore! One of them is Ashley over at Adventures of Newlyweds.

And if that didn't un-manic your Monday, I don't know what will!

Happy Monday!! :)

True Love or Insanity?

I died laughing when I saw this!

Mostly because this exact scenario happens every.single.night. at our house!

And I am the perpetrator.

The only difference is that ours would looks more like this:

It's every night, I tell you!

My husband doesn't understand why I can't just put my feet on the floor and pick it up.

And honestly, I don't understand it either.

The truth is, there is no logic.

I'm going to blame it on the age-old problem of monsters under the bed.

But all I know is that while I'm hanging off the bed, he's there holding my feet!

That's what they call, "true love".

Or insanity.

I'll take either one.

Tax Day

I could be qualified as quite possibly the worst procrastinator in.the.world!! Literally, on the day of our wedding, I had two boxes packed {don't mind all my stuff was supposed to be being moved to Oklahoma the next day!} so our whole wedding party spent the time in between ceremony and reception frantically throwing things in boxes so I would actually have a pillow to sleep on when I made that big ol' move down south!
But that's not what this post is about. This post is about tax day and the beauty of marrying someone who is completely your opposite {i.e. he doesn't procrastinate}! Our taxes have been done {thanks to my husband} for about a month and a half, so you can count us out of the frenzied palooza that goes down in America on this lovely day!
But if you're like me in any way and have procrastinated til the very last minute with your taxes....have no fear, Sonic is here!! {And I'm not talking about the hedgehog!} Sonic is doing half-priced drinks all day to help keep you caffeinated and on the frenzied-go while you finish counting, re-counting and counting again all those fun little numbers! Even those of us {and again, thank you husband} who didn't procrastinate can enjoy this! Any other tax day benefits we should know about?!

Happy Tax Day!!

Pops

Last weekend, the husband and I met up with two of our dearest friends for one last kung-pow before they welcome their little baby in to the world! 

We met Linsey and Justin during our time during in Lawton and we're convinced that God created these two gems specifically with us in mind! They're the type of friends that everyone deserves to have. And we're blessed to say we do!

So down the road we went.

Down the Route 66 road, to be exact!

Down to Pops on Route 66.

Pops is one of those little small town treasures that make a drive worth while! It's impossible to miss with a huge soda bottle out front, taller than the building and glowing with multiple LED lights! And that bottle is only a foretelling of what's to come! Pops contains nearly every soda that's ever been made, proudly displayed in their glass windows which surround the building. But it doesn't stop there....step inside, back in time, to a 1950s-esque diner with all things delicious and over 600 milk shake flavors! We ate and drank {soda, of course!} to our hearts content! And then after that, it was time to be adventurous! Not only does Pops display many of their hard-to-come-by sodas, but they also sell them! Matt and I filled up our cute little carrier with six soda flavors that we had never heard of before. {My favorite so far has been the Black Jack's Blood Red Cola!}

Matt and I have determined that wherever we're living, however boring a place it may seem, that we will do our best to take advantage of the time we have there to seek out whatever secret treasures it has to offer! We consider this our way of looking at the glass half-full and living life with no regrets!

Pops is one of those treasures. 

Next time, we plan on taking a blanket and taking advantage of the picnic-perfect fields surrounding the station! Absolutely lovely! :)

Be sure to mark your maps!

I've been thinking...

So I've been thinking a lot lately {shocker, I know!}.  Luckily for me, the weather in my part of the world is cooperating quite nicely and providing a lot of rain; which, in my opinion, is the greatest thinking weather of all! The only downside to this weather is that tornadoes accompany it! {Eeeeek!!!!} So to keep my mind busy and my anxiety at bay, this blog {and maybe yours} will be visited  quite often in the next few days!
But like I said, I've been thinking.
Thinking about creativity.
I'm a firm believer that creativity is a gift that each one of us possess. Whether it's the ability to make an outfit out of a few scraps of fabric {not me}, play a song on the guitar {not me, again}, bake a loaf of bread from scratch {definitely not me}, take a picture {maybe me} or solve an HR problem at work, creativity is involved in every area of our lives! You name your job, and I'm sure I could name a few ways you have to use creativity on a daily basis. I think we're all artists in our own fashion.  And the cool thing about it is that God designed us that way!
So this is me being honest: I get so inspired by all of the different artists {writers, photographers, bloggers, fashionistas, DIYers, etc} out there, that sometimes it's so hard not to compare myself to them and then  start feeling inadequate because I'm somehow different. Does that make sense?! It's like I'm on this journey trying to discover my "style," or the thing that will set me apart from all others. However, when I'm constantly looking to others and trying to define myself based off of who they are, I am may never fully discover who I am, or more importantly, who God created me to be as his own, uniquely unique individual! The great thing about art and creating is that the more you do it, the more your style begins to shine through! So the more I write, the more I take pictures, the more I practice what comes naturally {and sometimes unnaturally}, the more I'll be able to look back through my journey and see the uniqueness that only I could bring to a project. My style. And the journey is not just about discovering what my style is, but equally as important is also discovering what it's not.
Really that's what I've been trying to focus on lately....what comes natural, what I enjoy and what I know beyond a doubt is not right for me! And the small changes that have been happening here on my little blog are part of that process! So
 if you're still reading this, thank you for bearing with me in all of my humanity! I'm hoping and knowing the end results are going to be lovely for the both of us!

xo,
Marcie

An Easter Outfit + DIY

Happy {Hoppy} Easter!!!! 

The Mister and I {and our two sweet girls} had a fabulous weekend! 

Not only did we do a Route 66 meet up with two of our favorite people, but Matt's family drove into town for a good ol' family holiday! Easter is such an exciting time of year and our church somehow incorporated a little number from "Grease" {yes, the movie!} into the message! Super creative and I'm pretty sure it's never {ever} been done before! That's probably why we love them! :)

And since one of the funnest part of Easter is getting a new outfit {which mine is not} I thought I would share mine {plus a little sumfin, sumfin at the end}!

Shirt: Similar, Belt: Here, Shoes: Here, Earrings: Similar, Lipstick: Mac Sheen Supreme - Happy Hibiscous

Now comes the DIY part!

Let's zoom in a little bit on the nails {more specifically, the ring finger}:

After a little experimenting today, I figured out how to get this fun, vintage, lacy look! 

Ready?! Here's what you'll need:

Lace

Mod Podge

Paint brush

Nail polish {I used Essie Turqoise and Caicos}

• Step One: Cut a piece of lace the size of your fingernail {or nails if you want to do more than one}. You want to make sure you use lace that doesn't have too much design so the color underneath shows thru!
• Step Two: Paint fingernails with two coats of nail polish. When the second coat is almost, but not completely dry {I let mine dry for about two to three minutes}, press on the piece of lace that you have cut out. 
• Step Three: Use a paint brush to cover lace with a thin layer of mod podge. Let dry.

Ta-da!! You're left with these fun puppies:

Wha'd ya think?!

Food Freak

I have a tendency {especially with food} to become overly obsessed with one thing and eat it {in abundance} over, and over, and over again until I can either a.) no longer stand the sight of it or b.) find something new to replace the obsession. 

My current craving? 

Oh, just this lovely burrito bowl from the oh-so-delicious Freebirds!

Toppled oh-so-high with jalepeños {yes, I like it hot!} and sprinkled with roasted tomatillo dressing!

Yum!!

Before this it was {and still kind of is} fruit smoothies.

At least they're healthy obsessions, right?!

But let's face it, we all have some weird food obsession. Or maybe that's what I tell myself so I can sleep at night. 

Tomorrow's Friday!!!! TGIF!!!

Any fun plans for this Easter weekend?

The Outfit Diaries

Much like the rest of the world, Oklahoma has been experiencing an unusually early and warm spring! It's the first day of April and already 90 degrees!! I'm definitely not complaining! Just hoping that our summer won't be as horribly hot as last year! This girl {or anyone for that matter} can't breath when it's 117 outside!!

This lovely spring has got me on a bright color craze! I'm usually a neutral girl, but I couldn't resist the summery colors in this top!