Unwind

Here's to lots of R&R this weekend.

Kick your feet up and unwind with a good book,

a little bit of Wii competition,

a movie or two,

and maybe a few zzzzzz's.

{Enjoy!}

image courtesy of Paul Massey

'Fun Friday' snack

It's my turn to take the 'fun Friday snack' to my daughter's kindergarten class. Last time I just dropped off a big grocery sack filled with juice bags and individual popcorn bags for each child.

This month I decided to put just a wee bit more effort into it.

Each child has their own brown sack with a 'snack' label afixed to the front and a sticker on the back holding the bag closed (those pics didn't turn out, sorry).

Sorry moms~ yes, you're seeing
oreos,
processed cheese and crackers,
and sugar-loaded-with no real fruit juice added- lemonade.
At least I gave them each their own napkin, ha!

Happy Friday everyone and here's to fun, sugar and preservative filled snacks to get us through to the weekend.

Make it a good one.

The lucky Morning T follower...

...to win {The One Hundred} giveaway...

We did it the old fashioned way.
My trusty little helper pulled your name out of a bowl.

Cue the drum roll...

Congratulations to Alison by the bay, all the way in Victoria, Australia {down under, hmm, maybe I should personally deliver the goods?!}

Yeah Alison~maybe the retail therapy that you'll need after reading this book will make you forget about the terrible flu bug that you've been fighting!

Thanks for all of those who entered and to all of my followers.

Nashville was a hit!

Our last minute getaway to Nashville last weekend was perfect.

We strolled through the incredible gardens in the Opryland Hotel.

On Saturday morning we saw the Zing, Zang, Zoom circus (again, but it was totally different and a much better venue than Houston).

Here are some snaps from inside the Opryland Hotel.
Little one loved the indoor pool and the fountain/light show~
I loved the gardens that went on forever~
hubby loved watching the last two playoff games in the sports bar there.

After the circus we had brunch at Bricktop's near Vanderbilt U:


On Sunday evening we went to a great restaurant for dinner, near downtown Nashville called Germantown Cafe:

And early Monday morning we flew home!

Thanks Nashville~

we enjoyed your rolling hills,

pretty trees,

and fabulous homes {with no fences!}.

::In training::

That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run. So I ran to the end of the road. And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd run to the end of town. And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd just run across Greenbow County. And I figured, since I run this far, maybe I'd just run across the great state of Alabama. And that's what I did. I ran clear across Alabama. For no particular reason I just kept on going. I ran clear to the ocean. And when I got there, I figured, since I'd gone this far, I might as well turn around, just keep on going. When I got to another ocean, I figured, since I'd gone this far, I might as well just turn back, keep right on going ...I was running, and running....


Just a few short weeks ago I posted about Inner Balance (here) and my struggle to find that balance after the hectic holiday season.

Well thanks to this crazy lady, I'm training to run a 10K with her in Houston next month AND possibly a half marathon in Napa in July. I've never been an athletic person.

I lack motivation, stamina, coordination, and a competitive spirit. Having asthma as a child didn't help either, but once I outgrew that asthma I was determined to run. I'm not a gym person and I love the outdoors so it's early am jogs for me.

Although I have been running almost daily for the past few years, my early morning jaunts don't leave me much time to go any further than about 2 miles {ok, who am I kidding, it's my 40 year old mind/body that won't allow for me to go much further than 1-2 miles}.

I've been pushing myself for the past few weeks and am approaching 4 miles pretty steadily. It's so invigorating to have something so positive and healthy {not in the eyes of orthopedic docs of course} to focus on and such a fun and cool person to do it with {cheers to us Elz!}.


I've got my new Nike+ IPOD to keep me going: And my new Reebok Hatana pink ribbon runners
{Reebok has seen me through the last few years quite nicely!}:

For me, greeting the day with an early morning run is the best....
my backdrop is the rising sun,
the rest of the world is still asleep (including my little shadow),
very few people and/or cars out (but enough regulars out to watch out for each other),
and the all too obvious~ the air in Houston is cooler,

AND it leaves me plenty of time in the evening for this:

**Here's to finding time for ourselves, new challenges, good friends AND finding inner balance**
************************************************************************************

{The One Hundred} giveaway update~ today is the last day to enter my giveaway. Please click here to enter and make sure you're a Morning T follower.

The winner will be announced on Friday.

Prioritization

How often do you line up your priorities....

and reflect upon how you spend your time....

and where you focus your energy....and with whom you spend quality time?Life is a series of maneuvers and decisions,
all of which are critical,
as we only get one chance.

Go to your special place and find what you need to shift in your life
in order to spend time with those who mean the most to you...

and to whom you mean the most.

images via Bountiful Home

Trend alert

Breaking news....

Neiman's just announced the trend alert for 2010 {likely one of thousands of 'trend alerts' to come}:

NUDE SHOES
{Elizabeth & James Snake embossed zip sandal}

BLUE
{Prada belted dress}

FEMININE DRAPING
{Valentino side draped dress}

DENIM DRESSING
{Valentino denim petale dome bag}

THE WEDGE
{Miu Miu strappy wedge sandal}

ARM CANDY
{Jose and Maria Barrera crystal cuff bracelet}

RELAXED PANTS
{Diane Von Furstenberg flap pocket harem pants}

SHORTS
{Brunello Cucinelli pleated shorts}

GREAT WHITE SHIRTS
{Narcisco Rodriquez sheet yoke shirt}

NOVEL TEES
{Splendid flutter sleeve tee}

TRIBAL
{Tory Burch Stephanie tunic}

Just want to make sure we're all sporting 'DO's' this year....

or this week,

{you know how quickly trends come and go}.

Show your mini-me some luv

Boden just introduced it's mini-Boden line for kids.

Tres Chic!

{The One Hundred} and a Morning T giveaway!

WOWEE....I passed 100 followers this week and I'm SO excited!!

I've been racking my brain trying to come up with a giveaway for the longest time and I just couldn't think of anything.

That is until I thought of the title for this post.

Remember my post here about one of my favorite gifts I received this past Christmas?

Well one lucky follower {must be a Morning T follower} who comments on this post by Wednesday, January 27, will win this very cool, fun, and fashionista-necessary, book {not my used copy silly, you will receive a brand new copy}.

This is just a small token of my appreciation for YOU.

I have so much fun with this blog and of course

that's thanks to YOU,

YOU inspire and motivate me endlessly!

THANK YOU for being one of 'the one hundred'!

::UPDATE::- I just checked and quite a few of the commenters aren't followers~ please click the 'follow' link on the left side bar so your name can go into the hat!

**Please include your email address in your comment so I can notify you if you're the winner.

This giveaway is open to my followers from anywhere and everywhere in the world.

Nashville bound

We just booked a last minute {and CHEAP} trip to Nashville, Tennessee for this weekend. Not a dream destination by any means, but hubby has been before and insists that we stay at the Opryland Hotel.

Aside from the Nashville Parthenon,


and of course all the craziness happenings at the Opryland hotel...

{hopefully I can squeeze in a little of this}


...is there anything in Nashville that we shouldn't miss?

Remember, we'll have the kiddo in tow, but she's got this travel/flights/sightseeing/eating at nice restaurants/thing down pat now.


Please respond with your recommendations!

Travel: celeb style

If you're brave enough to face the tougher travel restrictions (mostly international) and have the itch to travel, you might want to check out the top 10 celebrity owned hotels around the world.

Robert Redford's Sundance Resort and Spa in Provo, UT:

Not into the nature scene? Then certainly Robert DeNiro's Greenwich Hotel in NYC will suit your city escape:

If you're up for crossing the international date line then perhaps Olivia Newton John's Gaia Retreat and Spa in New South Wales, Australia appeals to you:



Francis Ford Coppola's Blancaneaux Lodge in San Ignacio, Belize looks incredible:



I'm sure many of you are ready for the sun and surf and Gloria Estefan's Costa D'este Beach Resort in Vero Beach, FL might be just the ticket:



Or perhaps you're up for a real beach adventure and want to visit Donatella Versace's Palazzo Versace in Main Beach, Australia:



Clint Eastwood's Mission Ranch in Carmel, CA looks peaceful:



And Kate Pierson's (from the B-52's) Lazy Meadow Motel in Tremper, NY looks very quirky and rustic. If the cabin doesn't suit you then maybe her on site camper will?:



Winding down with John Malcovich's The Big Sleep Hotel in Easybourne, Great Britain {how incredible is this room?}:


And finally Bono and The Edge own the Clarence Hotel in Wellington Quay, Dublin, Ireland:


Go here for more info on these hotels.

If you could choose any of these properties which would it be?

I'm thinking Donatella's property would do the trick for me about now.

Happy daydreaming everyone.