Introducing.... I Nailed It!

This will be a weekly post for nail polish lovers like me to showcase their favorite polishes and newest creations!

To participate please email me at (11whiskey at gmail dot com), send me a photo of your favorite polish or fun creation, the brand and name of the polish, your blog ,and your name.  Once a week (hopefully on Thursdays) I'll post them up here for everyone to enjoy!

Also if someone who isn't technologically slow like me wants to make a little button for this weekly posting let me know :)!

I'll start off this week with my festive new years creation.





Base Coat: "Let Me Entertain You"- OPI's Burlesque Collection

 


Glitter: "Happy Birthday" Deborah Lippmann



Voila!

Close Up

Let me know what you all think about this idea :)

WWP and RHoNJ?????

So I love reality TV and pretty much everything on Bravo. I also love to support the military and military charities.  So when this popped up on my Facebook newsfeed on Wounded Warrior Project's page I was pumped!  Caroline Manzo from Real Housewives of New Jersey has partnered with them for a special giveaway. If you buy a special Wounded Warrior Project Pen, you automatically get entered to have lunch at The Brownstone. Most of theproceeds from this pen will of course go to the Wounded Warrior Project and the Manzo family will also donate $1 for every pen sold.

In 2009 Dan and I raised over $2,000 dollars for this organization in honor of our friend who was wounded in action, so this hold a special place in my heart and I'm glad to see that this family is putting their wealth and fame to good use!
Yes I totally already ordered mine.

Flashback: October 2010 Lake Geneva, Wisconsin

A few months ago we were thrilled to be able to attend the vow renewal for one of our friends.  Her husband is in the Army also, and they eloped before his deployment and had a wonderful ceremony on Valentine's Day (which was also their anniversary) for just the two of them.  They wanted to share this moment with family and friends when he returned, so on a lovely fall day there we were!

beautiful bride and groom

surper neat place cards!

apple sicder martini signature drink- the bride came up with the recipe herself!

delish cupcakes!


Prior to the wedding we had some time to walk around the town of Lake Geneva which is about 1.5 hours away from Chicago.  The town is super cute and very boutiquey.



we had a delish lunch here

never saw this before!

got all sorts of booze (that we had to smuggle in our luggage)



found this gem in a local shop. yes that hole is what you think its for



no we didnt buy this book i instead laughed hysterically and took pictures

Merry Christmas!!!

Guest Post

I am honered to be featured on the VA's blog today.  Head on over to The VAntage Point to check it out!

Philadelphia Race Weekend and Book Review

    About a month ago the hubs and I headed off to Philadelphia for the Philadelphia Half Marathon and the Rothman Institute 8k.  This year the spilt the races and held the 8k on Saturday and the Marathon/ Half Marathon on Sunday.  This was a nice change because I ran the 8k and then was able to cheer on the hubs as he finished his half marathon since I'm always done after him if we run the same race. I had one of the best races I've had in a long time and the hubs did well too!

yeah thats right don't let that person with uggles knee socks pass you

After my race on Saturday we explored Philly a bit with friends of ours who live in the area (and whose husband is also on the Marathon Team) and we really enjoyed it. We have been to Phily a few times and did not enjoy it, so their guidance really helped.  We went to the Reading Terminal Market where we got our foodie on.

Oprah's fave Mac and Cheese from Delilah's

enjoyed delish ice cream from America's oldest ice cream company at Bassett's

got a desert to go from Termini Bros Bakery- this puppy was filled with chocolate ganache yum!

    Finally we got to enjoy the Art of the American Soldier exhibit at the Constitution Center and it was AMAZING!!! We weren't allowed to take pictures of the exhibit but if you get the chance to make it out to Philly before the exhibit closes at the end of January I highly recommend it.  I hope its a traveling exhibit because I'd like to see it again.

After the hub's race on Sunday our friends took us to a cheesesteak place and it wasn't the traditional Pat or Geno's, in fact I thought this place was way better than both of those!



Tony Luke's nom nom nom






Book Review

    The hubs and I went separately to Philly, he actually get orders for these races and he had to be there 2 days longer than I was able to, so I flew there whereas he drove.  For some reason he decided to steal our iPad for his road trip and left me hanging for something to do at the airport and on the plane!

    Luckily I stopped by the airport bookstore and this book caught me eye.  The Good Soldiers by David Finkel was by far one of the best books I have read in my whole life.

    Fair Warning, this book is not for the faint of heart or stomach.  It describes in great detail the Iraq War and at times made me laugh, cry, and even want to puke.  One story that tugged at my heart was that a soldier's wife gave birth and only hours later her husband was killed in action.  In the back of the book there are photos of all of the unit's KIA and it also lists the unit's roster and indicates how many of them recieved Purple Hearts. It was intersting to take a moment when they mentioned a name, see this person's photo and

realize how real the story is. This isn't fiction, these people actually did not come home and their families will greive forever. It makes my heart hurt for them and at the same time makes me realize that I am so lucky to have my husband home.

    Some part of me likes to read books about war, particularly the Iraq War I guess because my husband has been there twice.  I know some stories from his time there but know that there is many things I don't know and I don't know that I will ever know. These books fulfill my curiosity and also give me knowledge of what is was like for him.

    After reading the book I recognized some names and began to wonder from where, I then remembered that I read a blog of a soldier and this book is about his unit.  He does not bog much anymore but I think it is nice to read in conjunction with the book. You can find it here.

Let me know if any of you read or have read this book and what you think!

Don't forget to facebook me on the side bar!

Secret Santa Thank You!

My Secret Santa package arrived yesterday from the Milspouse Secret Santa at Wife of a Sailor.
My Secret Santa was the Mrs. over at The Diary of a Mrs.  In the swap I received a delicious smelling apple pie candle, some hand sanitizer, Lindt chocolates, and a blanket to keep me warm!

Thanks so much and Merry Christmas!

Flashback: San Francisco July 2010

The hubs and I traveled to San Francisco in July for the San Francisco Marathon/ Half Marathon with the National Guard Marathon Team.  There were a few cool things about this race, a. you could pick if you wanted to run the 1st or 2nd half of the marathon, b. if you ran the whole or 1st half of the race you got to run over the Golden Gate bridge and back!  What was not cool were the hills (read mountains and I'm from a hilly city) and me injuring my knee at mile 10 :/. I hobbled to the finish and still did better than my worst time ha. 
We also enjoyed the regular tourist attractions such as Fisherman's Wharf, Chinatown, and the Ferry Building Marketplace, and the Aquarium was excellent. Dan also decided it was a good idea to mountain goat it up to Coit Tower the day before the race, this may not phase freaks of nature like him, but for regular old slow people like me, I was definitely feeling it the next day ha.

Got to meet Dane and he gave a great speech!

The Aquarium was sweet and if I was a fish this would be me.

They had a tank where they encouraged you to touch baby sharks and sting rays!

We enjoyed some oysters and crab here, where I proceed to hit the poor man sitting next to us with a piece of flying crab shell. This place has been featured on Food Network's "Best Thing I Ate"

The beginning of our mountain goat adventure

Coit Tower

Alcatraz in the distance

Chinatown Band

The last not so great thing about this race was that the half marathon medal was like the newborn baby of the marathon medal...come on guys! At least make it half the size!

Overall we had a great time and there was ton's of stuff to do just not enough time. Next time I'd like to take a trip to see Alcatraz (it was sold out for the weekend) and take a ferry to Catalina Island. I know I'll be back in a few years if not sooner. My friend and I are planning to run the San Francisco Nike Women's Marathon for our 30th birthdays..helllooo Tiffany's finisher medal!

P.S Please check out my side bar and add my facebook page :)

Had to Share

I saw this over the weekend at my husband's Christmas party at his armory.
I am still giggling.
Cant figure out how to save it as picture- sorry!

Friday Fill-In

1. What do you see your life like in 10 years? Hopefully its less busy! But we will probably have a little one running around and I'd like to see myself settled into a career I enjoy.
2. What do you like most about your job? The vacation days
3. What are three things you do every day, no matter what day it is? I hope on blogger to at least read the blogs I follow, text and facebook ha
4. What would you do with an extra five hours in your day today?  Ugh bake more cookies for the units xmas party ha
5. What is your favorite Christmas (or whichever holiday  you celebrate) cookie recipe (please share!)? Oh these are sooooooo good. 

Something More.....

As some of you know, my husband and I do a bit of running. Once a year we try to raise money for charity in conjunction with one of our races. This has been happening for the last few years, in 2008 Dan was able to raise over $1500 dollars for the St, Jude Children's Research Hospital, in 2009 we were able to raise over $2000 dollars for the Wounded Warrior Project, and this year we are hoping to raise even more than that for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation!
We will be running the Houston Marathon/ Half Marathon in memory of our friend Katie who lost her battle to the disease this year.  Please check out the story here.  You can also check out the stories from our past runs on that site.

If you would like to donate please do so here.

You support is very much appreciated!
Dan and I are both looking to set personal records at this race while our friend cheers us on from heaven.

Friday Fill-Ins

Whoops I missed the previous weeks so here's a twofer:

Last Week's

1. If you had to be shipwrecked on a deserted island, but all your human needs – such as food and water – were taken care of, what two items would you want to have with you? My husband and my pups :)
2. If you were a salad, what kind of dressing would you have? That delish ginger dressing you get at asian restaurants because its not something
3. If you had to live on a ranch, what kind of animals would you raise/own? Angora Bunnies! for no reason other than they are adorable and soft
4. If your life was was portrayed as a movie, who would you choose to play you and your significant other? some people think I look like Helen Hunt ( I dont think  I do lol) but I like Blake Lively and I'd pick Alexander Skaarsgard to play the hubs because hes gorgeous just like him :P
5. What was the last thing you put a stamp on (envelope, duh, but what was in the envelope)? I sent "The Good Soldiers" to friends of ours. ( I am totally going to write a review of this book shortly it was fannntastic)

This Week's

1. If you were given $1,000 right now, how would you spend it? ahhh mortgage payment
   
2. If you had to choose a movie title (a real one that already exists) for your life story, what would it be? I honestly have no clue!
3. If you were a teacher, what subject would you like to teach? History, Accounting or Home Economics since I like to bake so much 
4. Has being a MilSpouse changed how you view holidays or how your holidays are celebrated? If so, how? If not, what hasn’t changed? It really just make me appreciate everyday I'm able to spend with the hubs especially the 4th of July and Veterans Day because I really feel like they celebrate what America is about the most.
5. What is your favorite Christmas (or whatever holiday you celebrate) memory? I really think this year will be my favorite Christmas- all grown up, married and in our house!

Don't forget to head on over to Wife of a Sailor to join in on the fun!

Ok NOW its Christmas Time!

I refuse to do anything Christmas related until the day after Thanksgiving ha. So the first order of business is to get photocards from Shutterfly :).   There are so many cute ones to choose from. I have a few photos in mind and will share with everyone what the final choice is! We know that we want to include photos of us and our beloved puppies so I am trying to find cards with spots for two photos. For our family it is fitting to send photo cards because all of the hubs family is all over the US and we don't get to see them very often. So the photo card is a nice way for them to "see" us and for us to say "hi" to them!

Here are the final contenders:


Cute

Simple and Elegant



Merry and Bright

 I am leaning towards the first one because it makes me happy ha but the hubs might not want something so girly for the card.  Who I am kidding, he doesn't care!  We have used Shutterfly in the past for many items including calendars, thank you cards and our Christmas cards last year and have never been disappointed. Their products ship quickly so you can get them out quickly!

I am looking forward to sharing with you all the final product :)

Click here to learn how to get 50 free cards from Shutterfly also!