Laguna Beach Alums & Their Blogs

 

So, I was pretty much obsessed with MTV's Laguna Beach back in the day. It didn't help that I lived within a stone's throw away from it - Huntington Beach.

Well, being a blogger, every now and then I happen upon a famous person's blog and start following. Of course, we all know Lauren Conrad. She has her Lauren Conrad blog and also owns The Beauty Department blog. But what about the rest of the cast? Where are they {blogging} now?

I actually happened upon a cute fitness blog called Beach Babe Fitness not too long ago, written by this pretty gal:

I thought to myself, "Hmmmm....she looks familiar...", and sure enough, after a little digging on her site, I realized she was Christina from MTV's Laguna Beach. {Looks awesome these days, right?} She's a barre instructor at Equinox gym in LA. {I love barre...love.}

After discovering her blog, I started thinking back to the show and remembering that she and Morgan on the show were BFFs back in the day, so I started Googling to find out what ever happened to Miss Morgan. Turns out she has a blog too. Oh, and she's married now. But wait, it gets better.

She married a Smith. She is now Morgan Smith. And her blog is called, Smith, Here! 

Yep, another Morgan Smith running around Blog Land. Her hubby's name starts with a "J" too. If it was Jake, I'd think that was too crazy...but no worries, it's Joel. I actually wrote her and we are now Facebook friends. Our relationship is official now. LOL.

Oh, want to hear another bit of craziness in all this? In college, she had a roommate named Caitlin. Caitlin writes a blog too. You might know of it.

 

Here's a pic of Caitlin at Morgan's wedding in Orange County:

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Not only is Blog Land small, but so is this world we live in. Go check out all of these blogs, you won't be disappointed.

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Online Ordering & Oopsies

Ever since I saw this purse on Caitlin's blog, I was like, obsessed. I had to have it.

 

She didn't put the purse name in the post, so I just started with keywords such as Kate Spade, pink, straw, natural, purse, etc...and it never came up exactly what I wanted.

Long story short, a month or so went by and I was playing around on eBay and I saw this:

 

Yeah, look closely...NOT the same purse!!! I didn't even truly realize it until I opened the box yesterday. I mean, I do love this little tote, but it's more beach/book bag like and not really a purse, per se...so there went $109.00.

I went on an eBay hunt again last night as my last hope and lookie what I found:

Yep, that's the right one. It's $209.99. {Reeeally wishing I still had that $109.00 right about now.} Oh yeah, and it's from the same seller as the other one. Doh! Well, so I'm buying it. Just over $300 later, I will have this dream purse, and a cute little tote to boot.

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iHeart Faces Photo Challenge

I've started following a great photography website called iHeart Faces. Today, I am joining in on their Summer Fun Photo Challenge.

Here is my entry photo:

These boys are definitely having some summer fun!

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Link Love

It's been a while since I threw any Link Love out there...it's time to show some love.

1. Even though I graced the fine age of 30 almost 3 months ago, this list of 30 Signs You're Almost 30 just about made my Pepto Bismol come out my nose. {You 30-somethings can relate to that - especially once you read #15...} The following ones especially hit a chord with me:

2. Instead of drunken party photos, your Facebook friends are all about the baby pics.

Source: facebook.com

3. …and marathon times.

Source: running.about.com

2. Curious when other women think it's time for you to stop wearing that "young girl" fashion item? Check out this survey to find out if it's time to throw some things out. {I think if it still looks good, WEAR IT!}

3. A little Fresh Prince of Bel Air nostalgia...remember "The Carlton"?

4. Not sure which shade of coral/blue/yellow/metallic/etc. nail polish is right for your skin tone? Check out this article and have your problem solved!

5. Aaaaaand...I'm going to throw this one in there. Who has a Fitness pin board on Pinterest? How many of those workout pins have you actually attempted? Take on my challenge now at The Gym Bunny. You won't be sorry!

 

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Monday Musings

Hey y’all! Hope you had a great weekend celebrating our nation’s freedom! I was blessed with a 4-day weekend {let’s be honest, I made that shit happen…no way was I going to work my 4am shift at the gym on Friday. I gave that away. Ain’t no one got time fo’ that.}

4th of July was great – we went to a pool party at a house a block from our spot at the beach, then when it came time, we walked down the boardwalk to get the boys some ice cream and then headed out to the sand to lay out a blanket and sit and watch the big fireworks show. The boys really enjoyed it. {Aside from the fact my husband had to go tell some obnoxious, cursing, crude drunk guys to watch their mouths because they were in mixed company – kids/families, etc. – thankfully it didn’t start any sort of fight, but I’m glad he had the guts to do the right thing for everyone else trying to enjoy the show with their little ones. I can’t believe some people sometimes – no class, no clue; just plain stupid.}

Anyway, I believe I spent Friday catching up on some chores around the house so I could concentrate on enjoying the rest of the weekend. But the boys and I made popsicles out of frozen berries and yogurt {will share that recipe on here with you soon} and they did a bit of running around in the sprinkler, despite the rainy weather. {If you’re already wet from a sprinkler, what’s a little rain?} I also finally managed to find some great pillows for my patio at Kohl’s! They are perfect. I can’t wait to finally reveal this patio makeover on here. Hubby and I sit out there at night a lot now and chat over wine. It’s a nice end to our sometimes crazy-hectic days.

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On Saturday, Hubby worked because he has a lot going on right now to keep up on, so I took the boys to Splash Zone at James Island County Park with my friends Bill & Suz and their kids. It was a great water park – first time I had been to it.

We started off Sunday with church and headed out the beach after that. Once we got home, Suz invited us over for pool and BBQ fun, so we did that too. Gotta love impromptu dates with friends.

And that brings us to Monday – back to the reality of five-day work weeks. And man, have I got to get back on track! I’m sipping a protein shake made out of nothing but a scoop of vanilla whey, Greek nonfat yogurt and frozen berries as I’m writing this. I had a major “fat” week last week…just felt pudgy…and it didn’t help that my bosses were in town treating me to lunch every day. So with that and then the holiday weekend eating and drinking, well, I’ve got to lock it up. And if you’re feeling the same way, I invite you to head over to The Gym Bunny, my fitness blog, and join in on the Pinterest Fitness Board Challenge I just launched today. I hope you’ll like it and join in on the challenge. Check it out!

Happy Monday!

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Independence.

 

I want to extend a huge "thank you" on this Independence Day to the servicemen and women that have made our freedom in our country possible and continue to fight for that freedom every day. Thank you to my husband, Jake, who proudly serves with the USCG, going on 10 years soon.  It is a huge sacrifice to be away from those you love, to risk your life for others and to do the right thing. May all of those that serve and have served know how very important and appreciated they are.

And as for the rest of you, have a safe and happy holiday weekend!

 

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Outfits of Note {Read: #iwantitinmycloset }

Ever have one of those days, weeks, months, even seasons where you just look in your closet and think "I seriously have NOTHING to wear"? Maybe it's that I grow bored easily...but I feel like I'm constantly cycling the same 10 or so articles of clothing into mix and match outfits until the next few happy purchases come along into the rotation and a few others get cycled out. Well, now I find myself on Pinterest pinning all sorts of outfits lately...inspiration I can use to maybe pull out a few of my old pieces and put together "new" outfits, or even inspiration to take to a cute little store like F21 and find like pieces.

OUTFIT #1

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OUTFIT #2 {This is just plain fun!}

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OUTFIT #3

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What outfit inspiration have you been pinning lately? Are you having one of those "nothing to wear" moments?

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Front Porch {Progress}

I'll be the first to admit that keeping plants alive is not my strong point. But nonetheless, with this new front porch area, I wanted to brighten the space up with some potted plants. I'm going to do my best to tend to them.

Here's a sneak peek of some progress I've made with my front porch so far:

I've got some more flowers waiting to be potted, but I think those are going into my garden just in front of the porch. I have two large barrel pots that have been dying for some flowers for a while now. The last batch died, so I need to start over.

Doormat - Target - $12.99 {I absolutely fell in love when I saw this, it's so "me".}
Yellow Container - TJ Maxx - $16.99 {This is actually a pretty lightweight pot, and I love the pattern.}
"S" on Door - TJ Maxx - $6.99 {I plan on spray painting this a bold color, maybe teal, but haven't yet decided. Waiting for the other things to come together first.}
Hibiscus Plant - Abide-A-While {local garden center} - $14.99 {These are my favorite flowers ever.}

I'd love to paint the front door a bright color, and even the red brick {white?} - but I need to convince Hubby of that first.

Hope you like it, always love to hear your thoughts!

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What Is Old Can Be New Again {Front Porch Bistro}

I let y'all know yesterday that I have begun working on redecorating our front porch. Let me show you the first piece that kicked off the redo.

I got this bistro table off of a Facebook group of local mommies looking to sell their stuff. A Craigslist of sorts, but much less creepy.

Yep, obviously a little used and rusty. But for $10, I thought it was worth it. It came with a round glass top that I took off before taking the pics.

First step was to take a damp washcloth and clean off all the dirt and grime. Then, I added coat of spray primer. I used Krylon's spray paint primer. I let that dry and then added another coat. I let that dry and harden overnight. The next day, I spray-painted it yellow. Again, Krylon brand. I believe it was called Sunshine or something like that. I don't have my cans anymore since I used up the rest that I had. I let that cure overnight again and then I was able to put her in her new spot on the front porch.

This is the final piece:

Not too shabby, huh? I am still in work on decorating the rest of the porch and can't wait to reveal it to you soon!

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Monday Musings

Hey y'all! I've again let this blog go on the wayside for the past week. Having a hard time getting back into it - but I've actually been spending some time getting some things organized around the house, redecorating the front porch {post to come!} and well, playing with my boys - it is summer, after all! {And if I don't live a little or get projects done, well, I'll have nothing to write about here!}

Friday evening, I went to Party at the Point at Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant. It's been years since I've been. It was a great atmosphere, a perfect night weather-wise and just nice to get out. I was with my friend, Suz, her husband, Bill and her mom, Sue, who was visiting from England:

Saturday I went and picked up these lovely things I found on Craigslist:

{pic from ad, not my porch}

As I mentioned above, I'm redecorating the front porch - it was a little too crowded with the large wicker furniture I had up there and we never sat out there and enjoyed it, so I moved those to the back for extra seating. I've so far gotten these chairs, a bistro table in need of TLC {I painted it, will post on that!} and a few cute flower pots and decor, etc. I have more ideas for the space - definitely looking for a cute runner rug and the perfect pillows for the chairs. I may paint the chairs, haven't decided yet, so they are staying as-is for right now. My inspiration is Jen's recent front porch re-do:

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Although the front porch is not complete, I was able to sit outside, enjoy a beverage and watch my boys run through their new sprinkler:

That was the whole plan for redoing the space in the first place...we never enjoy the front yard, and I love that the porch is covered, unlike the back deck, so even if it's raining, we can sit outside and enjoy the warm weather.

Yesterday, we went to church and then the beach. I didn't actually get many "beach" pictures this time, but the boys had fun with their boogie boards and it was a gorgeous Sunday. Here's a pic I did get of my crazy guys:

Oh, and in other news, I chopped my hair last week - a whole 6-7 inches!

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