Sick Day

Do you ever have those days where you just feel...upset? Like nothing seems quite right, maybe things aren't exactly horrible, but you feel like your life is lacking something? You're missing a puzzle piece that you didn't even know you needed. Today is one of those days. I'm not sure if it's all the stress I'm dealing with or something else, but I just want to run. Despite how cold it is, or the fact that I'm sick, I want to put in my headphones and tear down the road. But instead, I'm sitting here, writing you guys, and blasting the strongest vocals I can find. My personal favorites today are Adam Lambert and Demi Lovato. I feel like their music shows the pain they've felt, the issues they've conquered, and it makes all the difference. They have passion, fight, strength. And I need a little of that right now. So hopefully through osmosis or some other weirdo phenomenon, I can suck some of it in through their music.
I apologize for the lack of posts recently. I've been super busy and now I'm in bed sick. But I'll be back, full of inspiration soon, I'm sure.
Music, tissues, and lots of soup,
GG

Cleanliness is next to Godliness!

I have sort of a weird obsession. I get made fun of for it, but I think it's pretty awesome. You ready? I love to CLEAN. Yes World, if I could be someone famous, I would probably be Martha Stewart...minus the jail time and lack of personality. She just has the most creative organization ideas and full on cleaning checklists! I can't help myself. Once you clean your house thoroughly, it becomes an addiction. After seeing the full potential your house has to look amazing, you will want to keep it that way. So here are 5 tips on how to keep your house neat and clean.

1. Put things away as soon as you're finished with them! Don't leave your dishes all over the house because the food will crust onto them and making cleaning up even more difficult. Don't leave them in the sink either! Yes, it's easy to do, and I am often guilty of it, but if you put them in a dishwasher immediately, then it'll be all ready to go when it's full- and if you hand wash them, you'll have a nice cabinet full of clean dishes! Put away your clothes rather than dropping them in a pile on the floor or draping them over the ironing board (guilty!)...and just go ahead and put the ironing board away when you don't use it. ;)

2. Scrub out the toilet (especially if your kitty uses it too!), wipe down the sink with Clorox wipes, and sweep the bathroom floor once a week. It'll keep grime from building up too much until that once a month deep cleaning.

3. Always keep Clorox wipes handy in the kitchen. You need them to wipe down the counters, the stove, the microwave, and anything sticky on the fridge. Once you've done the dishes for the day, use the rag to wipe down the sink and keep rust from growing. Sweep and mop the kitchen every other week. We don't realize how much food falls and can attract bugs and other nasty vermin.

Guess who likes dust? Dust mites!

4. Dust DAILY. Especially if you're like me and you have pets. Hair, skin, and general house dust accumulates so quickly, and if you live in an environment where you breathe in dander and dirt all day long you can develop health issues easily. Don't forget to dust the fan blades while you're at it, and vacuum AFTER you dust so you can suck all that nastiness up.

5. Make your bed every morning! I'm preaching to the choir on this one. It's so much easier to leave it unmade in case you want to snuggle back down during the day, but you don't need to snuggle back down. Daylight is for living, going out and getting things done, accomplishing things- not sleeping the whole day away silly goose! So get up and make your bed. It'll make you feel cleaner, happier, and get you more motivated to do all the wonderful things that you need and want to get done!


So there you go guys, five little ways to make a BIG difference in your house, family, and life! What tips do you guys have? Comment below my dears :)
Lots and lots of hugs,
GG

The Vow, Hunger Games, The Lorax- oh my!

Good morning to all you lovely people. Have you guys seen the trailer for The Vow? Yes? No? Well just in case, here it is: 

OHMYGOODNESS. Seriously, that movie looks like the most amazing chick flick since The Proposal. And it doesn't hurt that Channing Tatum is in it. Such a good actor.

Okay okay, as I excited as I am about that movie, another one gives me complete chills and I'm antsy just waiting for it to come out...the HUNGER GAMES! I read all the books in two weeks, I felt so connected to the characters, and now it's coming to life March 23rd.

Oh man. I can barely contain myself! I think they picked perfect actors for the characters, and I hope they portray them accurately. So excited. *squee!*

So those were fairly mature movies that I'm looking forward to...but I'm still a kid at heart and I am a huge Dr. Seuss fan, so whether you agree or not, I'm showing you The Lorax trailer!!

Now c'mon, doesn't that look adorable? I was (and still am) a huge fan of Horton Hears A Who. Not only did it have beautiful graphics and a wonderful story line, but Dr. Seuss's books always convey very important messages to kids. Horton's was that a person is still a person no matter how small. I can't wait to see what the lesson in The Lorax is. Now aren't you guys excited?

Well I'll be sure to review these for you as they each come out. Let me know what you're excited to see
Stay happy!
GG

Taylor, Tyler, and Frank

Hey Everyone! Let's talk music!

Right now, I'm really into the Hunger Games- so my favorite new release is Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift, featuring the Civil Wars.

Having read the books, I feel like this song accurately captures the emotions that Katniss and Peeta feel during the Hunger Games. A little haunting, somewhat of a love lullaby, and hopeful all at once.


Now for my favorite oldie- it's a Frank Sinatra kind of month for me. Honestly, I just recently "discovered" him and I am crazy about him! Michael Buble has a similar sound, yes, but no one can sing like Frank. My favorite song of his is right now is Come Fly with Me. I love the upbeat, happy sound of his songs. I've never listened to Sinatra and felt bad. That's just a fact of life.

And my up and coming artist prediction. Who do I think is going to be really popular soon? Well, I've been watching an artist rise to fame over the past year and his name is Tyler Ward. Amazing vocals, very handsome, and a whole team of talented friends is what makes him so successful. He produces his own music and videos, organized his own national (and now international) tour, and continues to crank out new songs all the while. His passion for music is what drives his career, and someone who loves it so much is sure to be going places very soon!

Who are your favorites? Have you heard Tyler Ward sing? Make your own predictions in the comments below. Happy Tuesday!

Wedding Bells

I'm just going to warn you, right here and right now, for the next four weeks I am going to be posting a lot (ALOT) of wedding posts. Call it an obsession as it is all I've been doing for the last month. Call it inspiration because it seems to be the only thing I can think about. But I don't have a choice. The wedding bells are starting to ring and it's the final countdown *insert music*.
 

Yeah. I'm just feeling a little overwhelmed right now.
Just a little overview. I'm doing my wedding on a $4000 budget. Now I don't know if you've planned a wedding before, but it's NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE. I've had to sacrifice several things that I wanted and cling to the things I couldn't live without. But something I've discovered is that weddings aren't so much for you, as they are for other people. It's an appearance. A show. I mean, I won't even officially be Mrs. Allen until AFTER our honeymoon when I can change my name and all that jazz. But on the wedding day I'm declared the Mrs. in Mr. and Mrs. Allen. So. Here are some things I've learned from this process.
1. Don't take things so seriously. Okay, when your wedding is four weeks away and you don't have shoes, wedding bands, or your altered dress...it might be time to take some stuff seriously. But when you're ahead of the ball on things, unlike me, and you know what you want- YOU, not your mother-in-law- then just make sure as long as the ceremony means something to you, other things that go wrong aren't a big deal.
2. Stick to your guns. When other people are trying to impose their ideas of your wedding, just lay down the boundaries. Give them things to do so they can feel in control and special, and save the things you are adamant about for yourself.
3. Never ever ever EVER go to David's Bridal. Yes I know they are so great because they have tons of dresses and sales and yada yada yada, but my personal experience with them has been terrible. They practically forced me to buy the dress and were trying to rush me out the store after only two hours of trying on dresses (I wasn't a difficult customer, I promise). Then they kept getting my date wrong and wouldn't let my bridesmaids order their dresses because my wedding was December 2nd, and it was too late to order them...no, my wedding is March 3rd. THEN, they quoted me a certain amount for alterations and wound up charging me nearly $100 more. Now they're saying my dress will be ready four days before my wedding. If it isn't ready...I will go kamakazi on them and sue!
4. Start planning your wedding a year prior, if possible. I had a year, but no one believed me when I told them I was getting married (I'm 21, and I don't think anyone wanted to accept my young marriage), so by the time they got the picture, we had three months. Yeah. The more time you have, the less stressful the experience is. *sigh* That would've been nice lol.
5. And the final thing- at the end of the day all that matters is that you are his, and he is yours!

So here's to hoping I have a smooth wedding and that I can get everything together before it's here!

xoxo,
GG

love and other disasters

I am an Audrey Hepburn fan. Probably cliche of me, but not as bad as being a full on Marilyn Monroe freak...even though I do like her. I adore Breakfast at Tiffany's, the carefree attitude, the shabby chic appeal- it's completely my style. Vintage is so incredible, it entertains me, defines me in some way, and meshes itself between the worlds of past and present beautifully. I jut watched the movie Love and Other Disasters with the fabulous Brittany Murphy in it. It was sort of a modern day twist on Breakfast at Tiffany's, and I fell in love. Most of all, I love Murphy's character, Jacks. Her fashion style was so simple, yet so stunning. Consisting mostly of black leggings, ballet slippers, and loose fitting tops, it was inspiring to see someone so carefree look so amazing. Her hair was styled much like Hepburn's with short bangs, and long flowing brown hair. And the witty banter of Jacks was so much like the fast-paced dialogue of Hepburn from back in the day. All in all, loved the movie and am completely inspired to do...something. Create. Enjoy. And live.

xoxo,

GG

zombie bride

So some of you may know...I'm getting married in four weeks. FOUR. 4. As in 29 days because it's February. Yes I am spazzing out, but no, I'm not trying to be a bridezilla. My fiance will probably laugh if he reads this and declare me something of a bridezilla. But I consider myself more of a bridezombie. When I get overwhelmed, I go into hiding and don't speak, just go a little crazy every now and then. I tend to make this face alot...

That's when Joe knows to back off and leave me alone. Haha, but jokes (mostly) aside, I'm freaking out. We still have so much left to do. I just got my dress to the alterations place yesterday, which they charged me an arm and a leg for- before I even got it! And then I realized we still don't have wedding bands. So now we're rushing around trying to get that taken care of- which btw, mine is stunning!

Now I have moved on to the task of wedding hair and makeup...and shoes. Ohmygosh, I still don't have wedding shoes. Yeep! *breathe*

Okay so wedding makeup. I wanted to get it professionally done, but the budget somehow disappeared. Funny how money does that. Never seems to be enough to go around. Anyway, I want my makeup to be pretty and natural, but to standout. So help me.

The first look is simple, but shimmery. The second is very pure looking. And the third pulls in my color, which is light pink.

So what do you guys think? Which one is a winner?