Decisions, decisions...

I am having a hard time deciding which cowboy boots I should get. I'm stuck between two pairs...

Corral Ladies Antique Cognac & Cream Wingtip Eagle Western Boots

or

 Corral® Ladies 16" Black w/Black Eagle Overlay & Wingtip Tall Snip Toe Western Boot

  

Pros and Cons of the Boots

PRO (Brown):

I love the brown/tan colors on the boots.

I saw a picture of a girl wearing these boots with jean shorts and the boots looked so good with her tan skin. She was blonde and the whole look was so classic and natural. Very pretty!

I can wear these over or under jeans.

CONS (Brown):

I have a pair of Tall Chestnut Bailey Button Uggs and a pair of Tall Sand/Natural Sheepskin Cuff Uggs so I have plenty of brown boots.

PRO (Black):

Black is classic.

I don't have any black boots.

My hair dresser said this nicely... "you can wear 'bling' with the black boots, the brown boots will need more muted/natural jewelry"

CON (Black):

They have a 16" shaft so they are rather tall. I tried on a boot with an 18" shaft and I didn't like it. But I also think that standard shaft cowboy boots look funny on my long legs because the top of the boot stops at my calf. (Which isn't exactly slim.)

Since these boots have such a tall shaft, I will probably have to wear them over jeans most of the time. They would probably look funny underneath my jeans.

 Hmmm....

Crayon Melt

I've been had...

by Pinterest.

I'm usually not very crafty... well Pinterest has changed that! I saw this neat crayon activity that looked pretty cool. I thought this activity needed some Child Supervision so I waited until a friend of mine brought over his daughter. She LOVED this!

(Sorry I don't have pics for every step.)

Here is the picture I saw online:

Materials:

White Canvas

Crayola Crayons (don't use the cheapies, they don't work)

Hot Glue

Space Heater

Heat Gun

Razor Blade

Cardboard box

1. Pick out your crayons and lay them on the canvas so you can find out how many you need.

2. Use a razor blade (pictured below) and carefully remove the paper from the crayon. If you aren't comfortable using a razor then just peel the paper off with your fingers. Or you can leave the paper on like in the first photo. (I think it looks better with the paper off.)

 3. Hot glue the crayons to the canvas. I drew about a 3" swirl line that was wide enough for 3 or 4 crayons to lay on. IMPORTANT! Wait a few seconds before you put the crayon on the glue. Let the glue cool off a little.

4. Once the glue is dry, set the cardboard box against a wall and lean the canvas at a slight angle. Make sure you have some of the cardboard box up the wall and and plenty of space underneath it for the crayon wax to land on.

5. Turn on the space heater watch the crayons start to melt! This should take anywhere from 3-10 minutes.

 6. Once you start to see the crayons melting a little, use the heat gun and blow downward from the top of the crayon. Be careful to not point the gun directly at the crayons because the wet wax will just splatter on to the other crayons and end up mixing the colors.

7. Leave the canvas in place for 10 or 20 minutes so it has time to cool down then simply pull the canvas away from the wall to break the dried wax on the bottom.

8. Put the canvas in a cool place, ie: near a window, outside, or in the fridge so it can cool down and dry completely.

IMPORTANT

Do NOT display your crayon project in direct sunlight, near a heater, or in any room that it could get warm enough to melt. This will make a huge mess and crayon wax is not easy to remove from carpet!

And most of all, HAVE FUN!

My Beauty Faves

Every woman has her "beauty must haves" so here are mine!

1. Shimmer Lights Shampoo (Sally's Beauty)

This stuff is amazing for combating gold/orange tones in blonde hair.

2. Matrix Amplify Condition (Target)

Great for fine/thin hair and it smells amazing!

3. Neutrogena Oil-Free Moisturizer Combination Skin (Target)

I have beautiful perfect skin super oily skin and this moisturizer is light enough for me but not perfect. I give it an 9 out of 10.

4. Skintimate Shaving Cream Raspberry Rain (Target)

I love this shaving cream! Smells so good I could eat it! (But I don't. haha)

5. Johnson's Baby Lotion Honey Apple (Target)

This is my favorite lotion. Been using it for... uhh... MY WHOLE LIFE! Lol! It's so light and not oily or slippery like other lotions.

6. Chi Iron Guard (Target)

This spray does a great job of protecting my hair although it leaves me a little weighed down. :-(

7. Influx 33 (Sally's Beauty)

I love this spray in conditioner. My mom and I have been using it forever!

8. Black Raspberry Vanilla Body Cream (Bath and Body Works)

This body cream is great for dry skin. I use it on my legs in the winter and on my hands all year round.

9. Clean & Clear Daily Pore Cleanser (Target)

I have been using this cleanser for years. I love the way my skin feels when I get out of the shower!

10. Clinique Acne Solution Emergency Lotion (Macy's)

I put this lotion on any problem area after I wash my face before bed. When I wake up in the morning the zit is gone!

11. Pummice Stone (Target)

I scrub my feet with these stones at the very end of my shower. That leaves time for the skin to soften and it produces very smooth results!

So that's most of my beauty products. I try to keep things simple because I travel so often. It's hard to lug around a huge beauty regimen!!

My fur-child, Bonzai

I thought I would introduce you guys to my pup Bonzai. I tell people I got him in the "divorce". Haha... really what happened was my ex-boyfriend wanted him soooo bad but I knew he couldn't take care of him. Puppies are a handful! Anyways... he ended up getting the little white puppy and when the breeder brought him over he was wrapped in a WASH CLOTH. He was so TINY! Weened way too young. Well about 5 months later, me and the bf broke up AND I TOOK THE DOG! Duuuuh...

Bonzai has NUMEROUS nick names...

Dorito- He's a Mexican dog and I named him Bonzai so since my dad is so old fashion he thought that Dorito was more traditional

Poncho- Another "mexican traditional" dog name my father chose

Sparky- Another "traditional" dog name my father chose to call him

Shorty Pants- He's our smallest dog so my dad gave him this name, too

Spooky- Another form of Sparky but altered for the Halloween season

Shnookey Wookey- When he's being good we call him Shnookey, being bad we call him Wookey... when we don't know which is gonna come first we just call him Shnookey Wookey

Stinky Pinky- He's got a pink nose!

Bitey McBitester- Bonzai likes to bite fingers when he plays

Pooter Bear- This is one of his newest names for when he has "cute turned up really high"

Here are a few pics of Bonz being a handsome devil...

Bonzai's First Christmas

"mom, i look like a retard"

"hot towels are my favorite"

How freaking adorable is he!?

"hot clothes are my favorite, too"

"oh and hot sheets"

"mom... this is not funny. get me off this box now"

Presh.

Look both ways, Bonz.

"mom... this really is not funny"

He may as well be human.

"does my margaritaville bandana make my head look big?"

"look... i'm even cute upside down!"

Ahhh... Love my baby boy. He's such and handsome little devil!!

Random Wednesday... and Tyson's Birthday!

Here's a few random thoughts/photos...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TYSON!!

His mom and I took him to lunch and embarrassed the heck out of him.

Balloons tied to his chair, sombrero on, Mexicans singing to him... we go all out!

How hilarious is this pic!?

I love my hairdresser... been going to her for 10 years!! Her daughter is a few years younger than me and we always do this silly stuff to each others hair.

Oh Pinterest... haha

I thought I would post my fave nail products. I love this Rimmel polish. It's only 4 bucks! They have really great colors and paired with "Oh So Wet" top coat my manicures are lasting almost 10 days!!

Hahaha... I found Scooby Doo!!

Yesterday I went to this adorable boutique in Rogers, AK to try on a bridesmaids dress for Mallory's wedding. This place was ADORABLE!! Isn't their logo so cute!?

I thought today's outfit deserved some recognition. I love my furry Ugg's Tyson bought me for Christmas although I don't have a lot that matches them. I found this cute beige sweater at TJ Maxx for $20. Couldn't pass it up!

My First Pinterest Craft!

Materials:

Medium Sized Vase ($5 at TJ Maxx)

Candle in glass jar (about two inches smaller than vase, but same height) ($4 at TJ Maxx)

A few bags of candy conversation hearts (I used two bags, $1 a piece)

Ribbon

Hot Glue

1. Glue on Ribbon and Bow

2. Put candle in vase

3. Fill the space with candy hearts!

This was so easy you must do it!

My Year in Review: 2011

A loooooot happened in 2011. I traveled more than I ever had in my entire life!! Here's a break down of my year:

BEWARE

photo OVERLOAD!!!

January

I left the country for the first time! Tyson and I went to Toronto and Mississauga, Canada. Let me tell you... it's cold up there. Don't go in January. :-P

This was from the balcony of our condo in downtown Toronto.

February

Miami Boat Show!! Yay!! I love boats... we also did the Miami Boat Show Poker Run with the Florida Powerboat Club. That was my second time to Key West in four months. We had a blast!

Kelley and I on South Beach

You gotta be kidding me. I would live on this thing!!

From our condo balcony in Key West

(I have a sweet sunglasses tan line!!)

I love Key West!

March

In March we had this killer snow storm. The snow weighed so much it sank the docks in Grand Lake, OK... just so happens that is where Tyson kept his 56' Bluewater Yacht.

The docks were completely destroyed!

That's the boat. The back ropes broke but the front ropes held on.

We also went four-wheeling. Not just any four-wheeling--redneck four-wheeling.

Sweet Jeep!

April

In April I got to take my first ride in a private plane... a Bonanza. It seats six. I was only slightly freaking out but I knew I was in good hands. Jim has THOUSANDS of hours in this plane.

The Bonanza with a beautiful sunset.

Taking off in Wichita!

We also had to deliver a boat to a customer in Minnesota so I got to visit the Mall of America!

The Lego store. So cool!!

May

Summer begins!! A local boating group called Midwest Boat Party throws an annual theme party and they chose my idea! Kentucky Derby!

We had so much fun dressing up and wearing big floppy hats!!

At the end of May was the Joplin tornado. Tyson lives in Joplin and we were there the night it happened. It was terrifying. We hauled a boat straight through the storm and made it home about an hour before the tornado wiped out Joplin.

The aftermath. Piles of debris filled the streets.

It was unlike anything I had ever seen before. Worse than what is in the movies.

June

Tyson and Jim did the Bimini Challenge-- driving a boat from Miami 90 miles to the Bahamas and back. In 2010 they won first place in the 46' Skater "Freedom". This year "Freedom" was in the shop so they took the 29' Skater.

Here she is! "Lee Aerospace"

Here is the beautiful yacht I got to hang out on while they were go-karting to the Bahamas and back. It's a 98' Westship.

The flybridge. Perfect for laying out and enjoying some cocktails!

Love a double rainbow!

Do I look like the Little Mermaid? Haha

The offshore races were the same weekend so we got to sit on the beach and watch Miss Geico beat everyone.

A good boating friend of ours, Ronnie, decided he wanted to have Skaterfest (a party for anyone who owns a Skater) at his house in Detroit. We couldn't say no!!

He has got the most awesome boat lift!

Aerial shot of his house.

It was a little cold so Summer and I rode with Ronnie. His boat has a hard top so no wind!

Always time for a little photoshoot! Jay is the best offshore photographer but he gets a few good ones of us being silly, too.

Jim and Tyson in the Baby-Skater!

This is Ronnie's house from the street. Absolutely stunning!

July

We have a couple really great friends who build boats down in St. Petersburg, FL called "Statement Marine". They needed an awesome stereo system in one of the boats so Tyson and I went down and helped them finish build the boat.

Here she is! Saddle Up is the name of the boat. Her home is Lake Cumberland, Kentucky!

Beautiful Florida sunset.

4th of July in the Gulf of Mexico. We could see about 20 different fireworks shows off the beaches.

I also got to attend my very first MLB game. Go Rays!

In June we also went to the Osh Kosh air show in Wisconsin.

Jim loaded up the 441 Cessna and we took a day trip to Wisconsin.

Someone had a bad day.

August

The Shootout is the last weekend in August which just so happens to be MY BIRTHDAY!!

"Freedom" is red, white, and blue and we found this guy at the bar. I think he should be our manscot. :-P

Here's a few of my favorite pics from the summer!

Our party-barge: 60' Sunseeker

No seats left on the golf cart so I sat on the front bumper!

Rusty's birthday on the Sunseeker!

Me and Miss Davi

Good times with Steve & Sierra

September

I work on the gas dock at the Horny Toad and when I found out Nelly was going to do a concert on Labor Day weekend, I could NOT miss it!

We were packed!!

The stage is to the right of the TV... we didn't have the best view but I can say I saw Nelly!

September is also the Lake Cumberland Poker Run! Since Tyson and I helped finish "Saddle Up", we drove to KY to see the maiden voyage of the 42' Statement.

Tammy, Me, and Angela

Shots!

State Dock was PACKED in front of our house boat. We were throwing out Statement t-shirts and the weight of everyone sunk the dock!

Tammy & Anthony in the "Saddle Up" shirts are the boat owners. They have great friends! ie- cops. Lol

The party cove at Lake Cumberland is INSANE!

After a crazy weekend we embarked on our houseboat journey.

And we might have put a few bubbles in the hot-tub. :-)

October

Sarasota Poker Run!

View from our hotel room

"Freedom" looking fresh and so clean, clean!

We also went to Los Angeles... my first time west!

We found the Hollywood sign!

That's me with Tyson's engine at SevenStock... a Mazda enthusiast car show.

November

Key West Poker Run

Here we are headed to Key West from Miami. "Freedom" broke down so since Jim keeps this boat (the Cigarette) in Miami, we had back-up. Thank the Lord!

Unfortunately, two good friends of ours flipped their boat during the races and both of them perished in the accident. Jim used to race with Bob (on the left) and JT was a good friend of mine. Both were from the Lake of the Ozarks so this hit home for all of us. Just a tragedy.

Here's a photo I took of them on my birthday before they raced in the Shootout.

While we were away in FL, Tyson's sister had her first baby, Sam. This is Tyson's first and only nephew!

Precious baby boy, Samuel.

Near the end of November, I drug Tyson to watch the Mizzou vs KU game in Kansas City. This was the final Border War game before MU joins the SEC so I had to be there!

Mizzou-Rah!

Everyone breathes, right?

Mizzou fans took over that stadium!!

December

At the beginning of December Tyson sporadically decided we would attend the Performance Racing Industry Show in Orlando. Our friends from Statement were there so I got to hang out with one of my favorite boats!

Saddle Up!

Of course Christmas is my favorite part of winter. (I don't like winter. I like summer!)

Steve & Sierra had a Christmas Party so I visited them in St. Louis. We had a blast!

Me and my baby boy Bonzai on Christmas!

I must have been a really good girl this year because I got SHOES!!!

So that was my year! 2011 was so great. It was the first time in my life I had a whole year to do what I wanted. No school, flexible job, and no kiddos. Everyone always tells me "Travel while you are young, aren't married, and don't have children!" so I did!