Wow-tough crowd. Or am I just that lame?

Apparently my little talk about Beau and I's relationship and our "balance" was a huge hit. not. With a mere 2, mayyybe 3, comments I must apologize for absolutely boring y'all to death.

So! Sorry.

In an attempt to spice things up a bit, (and because I'm sure y'all are sick of hearing about wedding crap) I decided to sift through some old-and I mean old pics of me as a kid. Since I clearly have a good case of writer's, or should I say blogger's, block I decided to split these embarrassing photos up throughout the next couple of posts for none other than your entertainment.

So go ahead. Laugh. Cry. Judge. and dangit!...leave a comment if you stopped by. ;)

((oh & go ahead & excuse the poor photo quality. I haven't figured out how to use my new scanner yet so these are photos of photos. Thank you, iPhone!))

Being from Texas and all I can't help but throw this out there.

...drum roll-please...

Check out those killer bangs.
Thanks, mom.

What a little sass? Bright red boots and matching fingernail polish...

Lord help us all if I have a daughter like me...

What better thing to do when you're taking defensive driving?

That's right...speedy over here got a ticky back in January and am just now doing my part as a good civilian.

P.S.- Officer "Heckler"...don't you know I was in an unfamiliar town and that a twenty something gal like myself has much better things to do than sit in front of a cheesy defensive driving course for FIVE hours?? ...ass.

Anywho...while I patiently wait for these cheesy never-ending videos to end, I thought I'd fill y'all all in on my thoughts on the perfect relationship. I mean, not that we are by any means "perfect" or that my advice means anything to anyone else but I can entertain myself, right?

Ok good! Here goes!

I truly believe the secret to any good marriage is balance. I also believe that while Beau and I do agree on a lot of things, there are several things about us that are completely opposite.

You know-little things.

He loves doing the laundry. I despise it. If it were up to me I'd let them all get dirty, buy all new ones (already on the hanger, of course!) and throw the dirty ones away. But I'd be broke. And homeless. And fiance-less. So I suppose I'll submit to washing mine.

He loves ice cream but hates the bottom of an ice cream cone...it's my favorite part.

He drinks his coffee black. Me? Would you like some coffee with that cream?

He can stay up 'til the wee hours of the night watching movies. I start catching flies right around 5 minutes in.

He can go to bed with dirty dishes in the sink. I. can. not.

He has the patience of a God. I'm like a ticking time bomb.

He hates being in an argument. Sometimes I just want to be mad.

This list could really go on forever...but I think you all get the point by now. (Well, that and chapter 4 of comedydriving.com is coming to a close.)

The one thing we both without a doubt agree on is the fact that making the bed is a complete waste of energy.

So here's to a messy bed, clean clothes/dishes and the bottoms of ice cream cones! :) If in 20 years I start to think to myself that we don't agree on anything, I hope I remember to take a look at our un-made bed. ;)

What's your secret to a happy marriage/relationship?

And since this post doesn't have any pictures (since I don't have any saved on my new Mac), I leave you with this:

Beau's makeshift tv whilst sitting on a tv-less patio.

God forbid he miss March Madness. ;)

I don't know how they do it??

I don't watch much TV-nor do I ever blog about it-but we've all seen the previews for the new TV series on Lifetime, Coming Home. I've been meaning to watch it all along but didn't really make a conscious effort to watch it until I read Megan's post on it.

Oh. My. Gosh.

I don't think I could ever in a million years be a military wife. Poor Beau probably thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown as I bawled my eyes out to this emotion-filled show. (He even asked "Is this going to be a show you watch every Sunday that you cry your eyes out too??") He thinks I'm nuts...

Anyways, I've always imagined it would be extremely difficult to have a husband leave for months on end but it really hit home last night how thankful I am for 1) the husbands that are pulled away from their families and are off fighting for our country 2) the men and women that have died fighting for this country and 3) the fact that Beau has absolutely no desire to be in the military.

I know that last comment sounds really selfish but I couldn't handle it. I can barely survive when he's out of town for a weekend, none the less for months at a time while I'm home alone with a couple of babays on my hips. And I do realize that this may make me seem "dependent" on him as well, which I most definitely am not...I just couldn't bear knowing that he would be millions of miles away with guns and weapons and tanks and that there just might be a chance he might not ever make it home. ugh.

There's nothing sweeter than a daddy with his little girls :)

Could you imagine?

I've come across a few military wife(s) blogs but never really had a connection with many of them mainly because I didn't really understand it all (and I probably still don't) but after watching Coming Home I have a whole new appreciation for these families.

I think I was crying as much, if not more, than the women on the show-evidence was found this morning on the floor next to the couch...wadded up tissues. Good Lord I'm a baby.

But on a real serious note-my heart goes out to those families with husbands and wives and family members in the military. Thank you for allowing them to serve our country and thank you for going through hell and back to make it possible.

A lil' DIY token of thanks!

I knew I always wanted to do something "different" when it came to gifts for our hostesses, wedding party and out of town guests but just wasn't quite sure what until two things occurred:

1. I realized that Sutter Home wine's logo (SH) is my future initials

and

2. I came across a gem of a website. (myownlabels.com)
*No-I am not being paid to blog about them. They just have great stuff. Period.

I put the two of them together and have the most precious little token of thanks to give my bridesmaids and shower hostesses!! These were so incredibly inexpensive (mayybbeee $2.50 each) so it was just a little "extra" I was able to throw in without breaking the bank!

[[PS-sorry for the shoddy iPhone pics...clearly you can tell I went with the new Mac rather than a new high tech camera...ha!]]

Step 1: Pick your poison
(I chose the mini's)

(Emphasis on the "SH"!)

Step 2: Whip out trusty old Goo Gone
(or go buy some-can be found anywhere...)

Step 3: De-robe your wine mini's and use Goo Gone to remove any leftover residue.

Step 4: Apply your personalized wine labels made from myownlabels.com
*Once again, they are not paying me to say this.

(Just a close up!)
We put our favorite engagey pic on them!

Step 5: Apply labels to clean mini

Step 6: Top it off with some ribbon or rafia and...

VOILA!

These were seriously so easy and I cannot be more excited to share these with the girls on the day of the wedding!! We also had larger labels made and are putting them on full-sized bottles of wine to leave in our out of town guests' hotel rooms!

Happy Thursday girls!! I can smell the weekend already!!!

A Fake Sophisticate

That's me!

For today, anyway.

When I was fresh out of college doing business development for a staffing agency, no one took me seriously. No one. I mean, I can't say I don't blame 'em. I was a 22 year old blonde who didn't know the first thing about the real world...none the less "business development" or "staffing", to say the least. I got zero respect which didn't sit well with me. I decided to do something about it so I marched my 22 year old, blonde, non-respected self into Claire's (yes-Claire's) and bought an $8 pair of fake glasses. There is not one iota of magnification in these babies and since I have 20/20 vision (thank you daddy!) I would have never had the opportunity to wear such a cute accessory on my face. I cold-called my heart out with those babies and got more orders and more appointments than ever!! It really worked!!

Fast forward to now and I just found the good ole' fakers in my old car! I wore 'em for the first time today while working for my current company and got so many nice comments! Even one from the president stating they made me look "more authoritative"-ha! Not sure how they've affected my sales for the day but I can honestly say I feel so much more respected/intelligent/intuitive/authoritative than ever!

Behind this big brown eyed, 24 year old suit wearin' blonde there really is a smart girl...glasses or not...I swear!

Good job, fakers. Good. Job.

(Sorry...no pic. Wasn't feelin' all that cute sportin' a shiny forehead after I went to tan on my lunch break.)

Ooooh...you know...

To say I've had a lot going on is a complete understatement! Our wedding is a mere 25 days away (CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!) and I have a to-do list that's 2 pages longs and consists of far too many unchecked items. Grr.

Anywho...I thought I'd mix it up a little bit today and participate in the ABC's of me! I've had a lot of random info floating around in this noggin of mine so maybe I can get it all out here.

A-Age: 24...I'll be 25 in April so you can start thinking of gifts now! ;)

B-Bed size: Queen, for now. Although a king size bed would be nice, I tend to spread out too much and not snuggle!

C-Chore you hate: LAUNDRY. ugh. Specifically putting it away.

D-Dogs: Tini...even though she lives at mom's house. :(

E-Essential start to your day: Coffee. Two cups. French vanilla creamer. Need I say more?

F-Favorite Color: Really? Pink.

G-Gold or Silver: Silver.

H-Height: 5'5"

I-Instruments you play: Nunca.

J-Job title: Assistant Director

K-Kids: None that I know of! ;)

L-Live: Houston

M-My mom's name: Marlene

N-Nickname: Steph-real original, right?

O-Overnight hospital stay: None. Let's keep it that way.

P-Pet Peeve: People that drive with their blinkers on. Being late.

Q-Quote from a movie: "What? Did we just become best friends?" "Yup!" (Stepbrothers)

R-Right/Lefty: Lefty

S-Sibling: Chris (21)

T-Time you wake up: 6:05 am

U-Underwear: Always!

V-Veggies you dislike: Peas

W-What makes you run late: Fiance's parents. Hair. Finding something to wear.

X-Xrays you've had: Ankle, teeth

Y-Yummy food you make: Killer turkey patties & spaghetti squash

Z-Zoo animal: ZEBRA!

Help a sista out!

With the wedding less than 4 weeks away (wowzer!), I desperately need help with a few gift ideas and well, since the blogging community is full of creative-minded, thoughtful women, why not rely on y'all to help me?!

I have NO clue what to get our mom's. A monogrammed hanky will be a "must-have" but I wanted to give them something else...something more sentimental. I mean-these are our moms we're talking about here. Any ideas?

We also need a gift for Beau's dad. I mean, we could easily get away with a premium bottle of scotch but if you have anything else is mind for the most sincere, thoughtful, caring man in the world, I could definitely use all your help!

And last but definitely not least...I need a good gift idea for Beau. The knife, flask, cuff links, watch, etc are all out of the question since he has all of those already. I was kind of hoping to get him something he could use the day of the wedding but since the boy has everything I'm completely lost!

Help!! What did you give as gifts or what have you seen given as gifts?? I need to buy/order these asap! :)

Guess what party people?

My name is Stephanie. And I'm a Mac.

Yesssssssss.

Cue tears...NOW!

One month from today will be the day I've
dreamed of since I was a little girl.

One month from today the past 14 months of planning will all come together.

One month from today I will wake up to
my best girlfriends at my side.

One month from today I will be sipping champagne with my
bridesmaids in my bridal suite.

One month from today I will sit in a chair to have my
hair and make up done like never before.

One month from today my maid of honor will help me
get into thee most stunning white dress.

One month from today I will wear
a beautiful white veil.

One month from today I will feel the most beautiful
I have ever felt in my life.

One month from today I will thank my mom for
making me into the woman I am today.

One month from today I will thank Ric & Marsha for
raising Beau to be the man of my dreams.

One month from today my little brother will take
me by the hand and walk me down the aisle.

One month from today I will see Beau
standing at the other end of the aisle.

One month from today I will look him
straight in the eyes and promise him forever.

One month from today I will marry my very best friend.

One month from today I will be the happiest girl in the world.

I cannot believe it. :)

The time I wished it was Monday.

Fiance comes home tomorrow from his bachelor cruise & I am like a kid on Christmas morning. It's 11:24pm on Sunday night. Seeing that I'm about an hour past my bedtime, I should be sound asleep. But I'm not.

You never realize how much you love and miss someone until they're not around.

the way i fall asleep on the couch with my feet in his lap.
kissing his forehead every morning before i leave for work.
watching the lamest shows together.
someone to wash my back for me.
enjoying coffee on sunday mornings.
feeling wanted.
his mess on the bedroom floor that i come home to everyday.
sharing a glass of water with dinner.
repeated nagging phone calls while he's at work & i'm at lunch.
someone to vent to.
cooking dinner.
listening to him cuss violently at his video game.
someone to share the covers with.

every.little.thing.

I love that man. Can't wait to kiss his face soon.

Is it Monday yet???

Bittersweet

Tomorrow Beau leaves for his bachelor party cruise [[copy cat!]] and although I will miss him like craaaazy...I'm happy for him to spend 5 days cruising the deep blue sea with 9 of his best friends. The rowdiest of best friends, that is.

Even though I know I'll have a difficult time going to bed by myself, I know it's important for any healthy couple to spend time away from one another. (Sidenote-it's amazing how quick you get used to falling asleep next to someone every night.)

Did we agree on a phone call or single text message? No. We didn't do it for mine so I don't want to put any "rules" on him. He did send a few sweet texts to me while I was on my bachelorette cruise and I ended up calling him 2 or 3 times (which may or may not have cost me an extra $30 on our cell phone bill) but I don't want him to feel obligated to call me.

I've had a lot of people tell me I'm absolutely nuts about "letting" Beau go on a cruise for his bachelor party during spring break. Well guess what? A) I'm not "letting" him go. He wants to go and I'm not going to be the one to tell him no and B) I'm not "nuts". I'm just secure in our relationship, who we are and what we have. I think girls are absolutely out of their minds for wanting to have a joint bachelor/bachelorette party. really?? Do you not trust your significant other that much to the point that you have to be there for his bachelor party?? Maybe it's just me but I would never want to make Beau feel like I needed to babysit him at his own bachelor party. He's a grown man and can make his own decisions. The last thing he needs is a naggy bachelorette up his ass.

((stephanie-you can now step down from your soap box))

Anyways-don't you worry about me...me and all the wives/girlfriends of the bachelor party attendees will be soakin' up the sun on the riverbanks of the good ol' Frio River, where the weather's always warm and the drinks are always flowin'! Can I get a hell ya?!
PS-can you tell I'm totally on weekend mode and it's only Wednesday night?? ;)

Quite possibly the coolest thing that could ever happen to a blogger & since this is the longest title ever, why not make it longer?

As you've all figured out by now, the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo is in full force, which means yours truly is there almost every night. In saying this, I was there this past Saturday to see good ol' Billy Carrington. Saturday was probably one of the most crowded its been since I've been there this year.

Amongst the hustle and bustle of it all, I was going down an escalator when all of a sudden I hear a girl going up the up escalator pointing and yelling something at me. I typically don't do well with being yelled at in the middle of a crowd but after I figured out why she was what I would consider harassing me, I was more than okay with the situation.

I turn over my left shoulder as she was getting further and further away I hear a faint "Hey! I read your blog!"

You what?!!

I read your blog!!

OH!!! {pointing my finger at myself} You read my blog?!

Ya! A Beautiful Mess, right?!

Ya!!

So ya! Turns out one of my followers just so happened to be in the 50,000+ crowd at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo and recognized me!! If it weren't for the fact that I desperately needed an adult beverage or the fact that by the time I got to the bottom she was long lost, it would have been completely okay to chase her back up the other escalator to actually meet her!!

SERIOUSLY?!?! What are the odds?!

This was by far one of the most legit things that has happened to me lately! Let's be honest...ya I like to blog so that my family and friends can keep up with me but c'mon now...I blog because of my followers and that fact that y'all even consider clicking on my link! I actually never thought anyone would be interested in anything that little ol' me has to say so to the sister that was yellin' for me...please let me know who you are!!

...and since I don't like posts without pics...here's a pic of what Mickey & Minnie sent us back in response to our wedding invitation! (Refer to this post...)

(Beau's "real" name is "William")

Your husband will thank me later

I'm not the kind of girl who has ever wanted a larger "upper half"...if ya know what I mean. To be perfectly honest, I'd rather be comfortable than look like I've got somethin' to offer. I'd be perfectly fine wearing a sports bra everyday but apparently that's not appropriate for a girl my age.

Welllll....very recently I was introduced to the Victoria's Secret Miraculous Bra and oh.my.lanta.

Seriously-I think the demand for plastic surgeons could drastically be affected by this piece of fantastickness. No. Joke.
Beau calls me a "faker" and may or may not be a little unsatisfied with the false advertisement this bra portrays but hey, he'll get over it, right? ;)

Anywho- do yourself a favor and make an investment in this plumping piece of property. You (or your husband, for that matter) will thank me later.

Although I'm far from Pam Anderson (& quite okay with that)...thank you, Victoria. You've done it again!

That's all for today! Hope y'all are having a happy Sunday! :)

Decisions, decisions

So this chick
(that'd be me.)

got a promotion last week!

That's right.
You're lookin' at the Assistant Director of Physician's Preference Vitamins.

HOLLA!

((Don't I look so profesh in that pic?? I know.))

Anyhoo...upon doing so, fiance said I could reward myself with one of the following...
((He really knows what motivates me. God love that man.))

Fancy, schmancy new cam
Nikon D3000 is up for consideration

Mac
((because we've both been dying for one for years now.))

55" 3D/LED TV
((because this is something he's dying for and well, since this whole marriage thing is all about compromise I figure if I get rewarded he should reap the benefits too...right?))

I'll be honest. I'm really pushing for the camera. With our honeymoon ::gasp:: right around the corner, I would love to have high quality pictures to bring home with us. Aaannddd...since we will be having little mini Howard's running around in a few years, I feel like a camera is the best investment.

Doesn't it look good on me?!

But I need help! What do y'all think?! Any suggestions for which model you recommend?!