Showing posts with label Paris. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Paris. Show all posts

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Weird, Wet Wonderful Sunday

Favorite Day of the Week!  And it's pouring to boot!  Yay!  Love a good, relaxing Sunday!  And, let's not forget, Vikings season finale tonight on the History Channel!  Such a great show!  Hate that the season is over but it has been renewed!

Finished reading "Wedding Night" by Sophie Kinsella (eh; definitely not my favorite Kinsella book).  Started reading "Paris" by Edward Rutherford (he's not following his usual formula and that's OK!). 

The Hoover Varsity lax team is spanking Oak Mountain as I type in play-offs.  I went to the Spain Park game the other night and we lost (thus ending our undefeated season) so I think I'm the bad luck charm.  I'll just stay away from now on.  I'm good with that. 

My parents are here and today (in the pouring rain!) my dad planted all my flowers for me since I have a black thumb.  His "yuppie" granddaughter helped him for a little bit but the rain got to be too much for her.  The two of them also painted my mail box and the post on Saturday.  Good, quality grandparent/grandchild bonding time. 

T was at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville this weekend for a fraternity prom.  She's texted a few times and sounds like they had a good time. 


Thursday, April 18, 2013

It's OK Thursday ~

Its Ok Thursdays

...It's OK to want to tune out sometimes -- no phone, no computer, no Facebook, no Twitter.  Sometimes the news is just too depressing and I really hate shows were people are being out-right mean to each other (i.e., that damn Abby Lee on Dance Moms). 
...It's OK that I didn't wear a bra to work the other day and no one noticed (I wore a cami with a built in bra under a shirt). 
...It's OK that my daughter texted me the other day and said, "Mom!!!  I had a dream last night that you got a tattoo!!"  (I didn't).
...It's OK to leave work early for a mammogram.  Got to take care of the boobs. 
...It's OK that I just pre-ordered a bunch of books for my Nook (Sopie Kinsella's latest, Dan Brown's new one and Edward Rutherford's "Paris").
...It's OK that I have Journey's Greatest Hits on serious rotation in my car (such a fun CD to listen to with the sun roof open!). 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greatest_Hits_(Journey_album)
...It's also OK that I have Bon Jovi's Greatest Hits in my car.  Don't judge. 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greatest_Hits_(Bon_Jovi_album)




Friday, March 15, 2013

Some Good Reads

Some of my favorite authors have new books coming out this Spring!  Love a good book -- at the beach, on the back deck, in between lacrosse games, at night, in the morning, rainy Sunday afternoon.  I don't think there's ever a bad time for a book!

For all you DaVinci Code fans, Dan Brown's newest book, Inferno, will be released mid-May!
Here's a brief overview:
In the heart of Italy, Harvard professor of symbology Robert Langdon is drawn into a harrowing world centered on one of history’s most enduring and mysterious literary masterpieces . . . Dante’s Inferno. Against this backdrop, Langdon battles a chilling adversary and grapples with an ingenious riddle that pulls him into a landscape of classic art, secret passageways, and futuristic science. Drawing from Dante’s dark epic poem, Langdon races to find answers and decide whom to trust . . . before the world is irrevocably altered.

Sophie Kinsella fans can get excited for her new book, Wedding Night, which should arrive in stores just in time for bridal season!
Lottie just knows that her boyfriend is going to propose during lunch at one of London’s fanciest restaurants. But when his big question involves a trip abroad, not a trip down the aisle, she’s completely crushed. So when Ben, an old flame, calls her out of the blue and reminds Lottie of their pact to get married if they were both still single at thirty, she jumps at the chance. No formal dates—just a quick march to the altar and a honeymoon on Ikonos, the sun-drenched Greek island where they first met years ago. Their family and friends are horrified. Fliss, Lottie’s older sister, knows that Lottie can be impulsive—but surely this is her worst decision yet. And Ben’s colleague Lorcan fears that this hasty marriage will ruin his friend’s career. To keep Lottie and Ben from making a terrible mistake, Fliss concocts an elaborate scheme to sabotage their wedding night. As she and Lorcan jet off to Ikonos in pursuit, Lottie and Ben are in for a honeymoon to remember, for better . . . or worse.

One of my favorite authors of all-time, Edward Rutherfurd, has a new saga, Paris, coming out the end of April.  Rutherfurd has also written New York, London (my favorite!), Russka (not my favorite) and Sarum.  His books are huge, sweeping sagas spanning generations. 
Moving back and forth in time across centuries, the story unfolds through intimate and vivid tales of self-discovery, divided loyalties , passion, and long-kept secrets of characters both fictional and real, all set against the backdrop of the glorious city—from the building of Notre Dame to the dangerous machinations of Cardinal Richlieu; from the glittering court of Versailles to the violence of the French Revolution and the Paris Commune; from the hedonism of the Belle Époque, the heyday of the impressionists, to the tragedy of the First World War; from the 1920s when the writers of the Lost Generation could be found drinking at Les Deux Magots to the Nazi occupation, the heroic efforts of the French Resistance, and the 1968 student revolt. With his unrivaled blend of impeccable research and narrative verve, Rutherfurd weaves an extraordinary narrative tapestry that captures all the glory of Paris. More richly detailed, more thrilling, and more romantic then anything Rutherfurd has written before, Paris: The Novel wonderfully illuminates hundreds of years in the City of Light and Love and brings the sights, scents, and tastes of Paris to sumptuous life.

Family Pictures, by Jane Green, is expected to be released next week.  I've enjoyed some of her other books, Babyville, Bookends, Mr. Maybe
Sylvie thought she had already experienced the worst that life could deal her: After her husband died, leaving her to raise Eve alone, what more could happen? Years later, Sylvie has a good life. Her daughter Eve will head off to college soon, and her second husband, Mark, may be ready to settle down into a sales manager position. While life with Jonathan brimmed with the glow of young love, life with Mark rings with a secure love. Maybe it's Mark's traveling that has kept their love life sparking after 11 years--years that have seen other marriages fail. Yet all is not well, not well at all, in Eve's life. Struggling to hide her worsening eating disorder, not to mention her secret second Facebook account, Eve's once-close relationship with Sylvie is deteriorating. One fateful weekend, Eve goes to an all-girls party in New York City, where she meets a kindred spirit, Grace, and the two girls swiftly abandon the others to their partying. Grace takes Eve home, where she meets Chris, Grace's older brother, who is instantly attracted to her. Grace's mother, Maggie, is a perfectionist (even her husband calls her the General), who has adopted a posh accent and posted rules throughout the opulent house. And it is there, in Maggie's lovely Connecticut home, that Eve sees a photograph that will ruin two families. Riddled with coincidences and unlikely secrets, Green's (Another Piece of My Heart, 2012, etc.) latest still manages to explore complex family dynamics with warmth. An inverted fairy tale in which the happily-ever-after occurs without the prince.


Apparently there is also a sequel to The Devil Wears Prada but I haven't been able to find much about it.  I think the original date was sometime this Spring but I don't know if that is still true.  If anyone hears anything, let me know so I can update my blog!  Thank you!

Friday, November 23, 2012

Shop Small Saturday

No Black Friday shopping for this kiddo.  I went once, when KJ was only 6 weeks old, with my SIL and that was the one and only time. 

The FL fam was visiting us for our first Thanksgiving in Alabama.  My birthday was in September and KJ was born a few days later in mid-October.  I asked Cosmo not to buy me any b-day presents so that I could go shopping for some new clothes after the baby was born.  We didn't head out super early or at midnight; I think we left the house around 8 AM and had no problem finding a parking spot.  I honestly don't think SIL actually bought anything and I only went into clothing stores trying to find clothes to fit my 6-week post partum body.  We weren't out at Best Buy or Walmart or anything like that.  We had lunch at the mall and the guys took the kids to the McWane Center for the day.

Of course I shop at big mass-merchandisers out of necessity like everyone else, but I would much rather shop small if I could.  I love when Ross Bridge has it's Farmer's Market, I love shopping at the Wrapsody's in Patton Creek, I like to buy unique one of a kind items on Etsy and I would much rather meander here than anywhere else: 



 
 
Well, except maybe here: 
 
 


Thursday, May 3, 2012

Bucket List Update

I think it's important to take stock of where you are at certain times in your life...the good, the bad, the medicore.  Instead of worrying about all the things you don't have or didn't do or didn't get to see, I thought today I would reflect on all the great stuff that I've been blessed with.

Yup. Got a brand spanking new camera for Christmas. 
Hubby and I cruised to Puerto Rico, St. Thomas and St. Martin.
I am and always will be a daddy's girl. No question.
I love Central Park any time of the year but it is definately magical in the snow!
Pulled an all-nighter at the Senor Frogs in Cancun!
Swam with the dolphins in Cabo. Cosmo wouldn't have anything to do with 'em.
I was blessed with not just one, but TWO beautiful daughters!
Stood atop the Eiffel Tower with Daughter #1; quite an accomplishment since I'm not a big fan of heights!
Loved going to the drive-in when I was little! Always went in my pajamas in case I fell asleep during the ride home.
Sweetest place on Earth and home to some of my favorite rollercoasters.
I've been fortunate to have a dad and assorted uncles who have taught me to how to shoot, how to throw and catch a baseball and basically hold my own and still be feminine. 
One of my favorite all-time cities.  I would LOVE to go back to London!!!
Check (and I'd do it again!). 
There is nothing like Christmas in NY! The hustle, the bustle, the tree, the skaters, the store displays on 5th avenue, The Rockettes!
Cosmo & I took the girls for a carriage ride in Atlanta and had so much fun!
Yeah. I smoked a cigar. I was at a bar with a bunch of co-workers before a Cincinnati Reds game. It was disgusting and I'll never do it again.
Love London. I could live there.
Threw a coin in the fountain; so beautiful!
From what I've been told, my 40th b-day in Vegas was GREAT!!!

Monday, November 21, 2011

Parisian Christmas





Macaroon Anyone??







Shoppa! Shoppa!!





If I could go anywhere in the world for Christmas (with Cosmo and the girls, of course!), I can't think of a better place than Paris (although London would be a very, very close second!).






Tuesday, October 18, 2011

I think I missed my calling

The big joke in our house is that we'll celebrate anything. Doesn't matter. Groundhog's Day, National Pancake Day, Star Wars Day (one of my personal favorites: May 4 -- get it??? May the 4th be with you!). For example, Did you know today is No Beard Day????

I luv, luv, luv to throw great parties and because I'm not a good cook, having a theme really helps me plan my menu and bring everything together. I came across these photos of a little girl's party and absolutely fell in love! This mom / event planner paid attention to EVERY little detail! Totally up my alley and I wish my girl(s) were still little enough for me to plan such a frou-frou girl party!










































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