Midnight Awaits...

Hello last day of 2012! This year has seriously been one of those years that just flew by...{of course the last year of my 20s would do that to me...}

I just wanted to stop in and wish y'all a Happy New Year and a magical New Year's Eve celebration...I hope you'll be kissing the right person at midnight tonight.

I'm set to go this evening...hubby and I have a babysitter and we're going to our friends' house party rather than braving the bar scene...just hoping to have a great time and be around great people. No better way to kick off a new year.

May your 2013 bring lots of love, blessings and fond memories. Be safe tonight. xoxo.

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Top 15 of 2012

2012 has been a great year. Though I'd been blogging for a few years, I finally settled in my happy blog place here at Style Oyster when I launched it in June. Since then, I've never regretted making that change...though I inevitably lost some readers in the transition, it has definitely been worth it. I hope to continue to watch it grow.

I wanted to showcase a few of my favorite posts from this year...I sorted through and found 15 of my favorites. So here they are - my top 15 posts of 2012 {no particular order - click titles to be redirected to the original posts}:

JEWELRY DISPLAY

SCHOOL PAPERWORK STORAGE

LEGO STORAGE

 

WALL ORGANIZATION SYSTEM

 

SECRETARY DESK MAKEOVER 

 

WALL ART

DECORATIVE MIRROR MAKEOVER 

 

"LOVE" ART 

 

WORKOUT DVD STORAGE

 

CORD STORAGE

KITCHEN REMODEL {UNFINISHED}

Since then, the cabinets have been painted white, but that post is coming soon!

AUTUMN ENTRYWAY DISPLAY 

 

TANNER'S LEGO PARTY 

 

OUR CHRISTMAS CARD 

 

BULLETIN BOARD REVAMP 

 

So wow, what a year it has been! And I still don't feel like I've even scratched the surface with projects around here, so be on the lookout for many more to come in 2013! Thanks for reading. xoxo.

 

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Back on Track

I have spent the last three days getting myself back on the fitness track. My mom was in town for Christmas from the 22nd to the 26th, but after I bid goodbye to her at the airport at 5am on Thursday, I knew that it was time to finally be done with the holidays and done with my little workout hiatus.

I'm finally feeling a little better and back to normal after the surgery I had on Dec. 17th. I hate that it took me out of training for my half marathon. After much thought, I've decided that I'm going to forgo the half marathon in Charleston on January 19th. It pains me to do so because I wanted this so badly, but I am just not ready. Before my hiatus, I was at eight straight miles...which is a great personal accomplishment for me. However, it's not near where I need to be to take on 13.1. And now that I've been out for a couple of weeks, as well as it's pretty darn chilly outside {I know I'm a wuss when it comes to that}, I just decided it best to find a different half marathon that would allow for more time. I am now going to participate in the Columbia Half Marathon on March 9th. I will have to travel an hour and a half, but my family and I are going to make a weekend of it...they will cheer me on and then we will celebrate with a trip to the Riverbanks Zoo. The weather should be much more tolerable for running - especially that distance.

So anyway...as far as being back on track...I have been hitting the gym hard the last three days. Thursday was legs, glutes, abs and the elliptical; Friday was chest, triceps, abs and the elliptical and today I hit the legs and glutes again. I strongly encourage lifting weights when you are looking to tone up - don't just hit the cardio. I am pretty sore right now, but it's a good soreness...the kind that leaves me feeling accomplished and encouraged to go back for more. This past year has been a pretty challenging one for me in terms of fitness...work was crazy and I was putting in a lot of hours - even on weekends and my motivation for fitness was a bit lacking in comparison to my normal level. I almost feel as though this last three days I've just flipped the switch back on and it makes me wonder how I ever got lost in the first place. I turn the big 3-0 this April...so it is becoming even more important to me that I accomplish my fitness goals as well as keep challenging myself. Fitness is a part of who I am...and I don't want to let anything get in the way of that again. No excuses.

If you are looking to get back into fitness...I encourage you to start today...don't wait until January 1.

Oh, and be on the lookout for me to post my 2013 starting stats sometime next week...I'm a little nervous due to the above-mentioned hiatus I've been in, but I've got to do it...seeing those numbers will only fire me up to get them lower. I encourage you to take measurements any time you want to track your progress...photos are a great way to do that too.

Enjoy the rest of 2012. xoxo.

Side note: Do you like the new blog design? Not sure if it's forever, I'll probably keep revamping... but what do you think?

 

Bulletin Board Revamp

For months now, I've had revamping Tanner's bulletin board on my to-do list. It's been sitting in my garage for quite some time now, leaving a very large, bare spot above his desk. I finally got around to doing it thanks to some time off from work for the Christmas holiday.

Here's how it started out - just your run-of-the-mill plain Jane bulletin board:

I went to Hobby Lobby and purchased a yard of fabric and some decorative nailhead trim:

 I laid out the fabric over the board and started putting in the tacks one by one right along the edge of the frame. {Warning: This will hurt your good thumb after a while!}

After I finished that, I turned the board over and using a light-duty fabric stapler, I tightly pulled the fabric and stapled in place.



And here is the final product:

Total cost of this project:

Bulletin Board: Had already {You can purchase a similar one for around $10.00.}
1 Yard of Fabric {Hobby Lobby}: $8.99
5 Boxes of Nailhead Trim/Tacks {Hobby Lobby}: $10.00

$18.99 - Not too bad for a custom decorative bulletin board!

So that's one more thing crossed off my to-do list for Tanner's room. I'm still planning on repainting the walls very soon - I think that will be the next thing I do. I should have a finished room to reveal to you not too long from now!



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And So The Holidays Are Over...

Are any of y'all just a teensy bit relieved the holidays are over? {Minus New Year's of course.} Don't get me wrong, I love the holidays {though truthfully I could do without Thanksgiving} and all the fun events leading up to, but it is a LOT of work, especially with two little boys to do it up right for.

 

But I am glad to say good-bye to all the gift-shopping, the obligatory children's events, the holiday baked goods, the candy, the decorations that have been overtaking my home {took those down yesterday!} and just get back to life as normal...and start a new year.

 

 

 

 

Bright and early this morning, I drove to the airport and said goodbye to my mom who had been visiting since a couple days before Christmas. It's always sad to see her go because it is way too long between visits for us. But with that being the official end of the holidays at my household, I decided to start the day off right by getting the house cleaned up before my munchkins awoke and then after breakfast, we all went to the gym. {Hubby is back at work already, but I am off until January 2nd.} It felt so good to be back in there, I have been too lax the last couple months, aside from my running. And when you add in all the holiday calorie-filled delights and wine, well, that scale needle is now leaning a little too far to the right for my comfort. Both hubby and I have resolved to get our asses back in gear.

 

 

 

 

So I'm spending the next six days off of work enjoying my boys and playing with them and their new toys, getting some things in my house cleaned and organized, hitting the gym every day and getting some distance run training in {that half marathon is fast-approaching...and I am not quite ready...}

 

It will be good to get a lot of things back on track before getting back into the daily grind next Wednesday.

 

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Merry Christmas: The Savior Is Born

Merry Christmas to all of you and yours...may you not forget the reason for this day...and may you feel comforted and loved surrounded by those you hold dear.

 

 

 

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What A Slacker!

Wow. Has it really been 18 days since my last post?

Ugh, I knew I had been slack, but geez!

I do apologize...I think I have just been out of it the last few weeks. I find it hard to write about fitness when I'm not being that great about it myself...like I'm a fraud or something. So I suppose that's where the motivation has been lost in keeping up this blog. There of course has been the all time-consuming holiday season hustle and bustle, hectic work schedule and I also had a minor surgery this past Monday that actually put me out a little more than I thought it would as far as working out goes. {You can read about the surgery here.} So needless to say, I've fallen a bit out of the gym routine and my half marathon training. I've got to pick it back up because I now have just under one month until race day. There is another half marathon in March in Columbia, SC that I'm considering instead (it's a much more popular one), but I'd so love to do the January one...I guess I will see how my running goes this next couple weeks to determine if I'm going to be ready for it.

So as I'm feeling sluggish today in writing this post, I've decided I need a kick-start. I'm 5 days post-surgery and I'm ready to start running again {plan on getting in at least 6 miles this afternoon right after I get off work}, but because I have been so bad all-around, I also want to initiate a little challenge for myself. I love perusing Pinterest for great home exercise routines and challenges, so this is the one I'm going to take on this evening {mind you after making Christmas sugar cookies with my boys this afternoon}. If you want to join in with me, I definitely encourage you!

Hope y'all have a wonderful holiday. I hope to be around here during it, but if not, I'll definitely be back at it come 2013! xoxo