NEW BLOG!!!

I'm back!!! I know it's been a while since I've posted. My apologizes. I will be a better blogger this summer. I have all sorts of stories built up from the past two months that I've been DYING to write about.

With that being said, I would like to announce my new blog:

Chopsticks & Pearls

http://www.chopsticksandpearls.blogspot.com/

Please note that I'm still working on the design, layout and profile information!

It will be the same blog....but without our last name blasted across the internet and without so many pictures of our home. Safety first! :) I have tranfered most my posts, so make sure and change your google reader with this new address. I am only going to keep this up for a few more weeks.

Visit Chopsticks & Pearls today to see pictures from our wondeful Mexico vacation!


Happy Thursday!

Laisser les bons temps rouler!

Happy Mardi Gras Day!

To celebrate Fat Tuesday, I slaved in the kitchen all night to make a HOMEMADE King Cake to bring to work. It was not easy, but it was yummy!!! I used a recipe from one of my favorite cooking blogs: Elizabeth's Edible Experience. (please note my first link!)

I didn't put a baby Jesus in it because I didn't want to answer questions all day long about why there is a plastic baby in the cake. You'd be surprised how many times I've explained the tradition of the King Cake and the three wise men's journey to find baby Jesus....AND it would be just my luck that someone would choke on it!

My grandmother used to mail a us King Cake when we lived in Canada from a famous New Orleans bakery. We would get to eat a piece for breakfast before school and it was sooo good! Let me tell you...this recipe did NOT disappoint.

I completely forgot to take a picture of the finished product before I took a piece. ..or before I chopped half of it to take to work! haha.

Time to start thinking about what to give up for Lent....Ash Wednesday is tomorrow!

A Very Productive Lunch Break!

Last week, I had a very productive lunch break! A quick trip to Old Navy! And folks, I did NOT come out empty handed. I had some credit that I needed to use, as well as a 30% off coupon. I couldn't resist. I just wanted a few fun pieces for the spring season.

My recent Old Navy purchases:

A Classic Trench Coat

I have been looking for a standard trench coat for SO long. They are either way too long, way too broad in the shoulders, too heavy, or they are WAY too expensive. I just want something light to throw on a work when I walk to lunch. I wanted one that could be super casual with jeans or nice with black pants.

And...I realize that I'm getting picky...but I also wanted brown tortoise looking buttons. Tar-Jay had a great trench coat, but it was a little heavy...a little tight in the hips when buttoned...and ...gasp....it had ugly tan buttons. I thought about buying it and changing out the buttons, but still.

I LOVE this one! It hits at the flattering part on the leg, and is an A-line form to it...so it gives that extra space in the hips that some of us need! :)

The ONLY negative part about this jacket is that TWO people at work have asked me if I have a bunch of fake Rolex's for sale in there.... whatever.

A Bright Colored Rain Jacket

I just HAD to try this one when I saw it. It was also reduced to $20 bucks. They had them in hot pink and navy too. I just thought the yellow was more "me". The hot pink made my cheeks look too red....and I don't have ANY clothes that work with navy....don't even get me started with picking out shoes to match.

So anyways....I wore this all day yesterday with a white turtle neck and black pants. It was very cute! Now....I'm not gonna lie....Several people at work also mentioned how bright it was! I don't care! :)

A Patterned Lightweight Scarf

Okay. I love the "scarf look"...where you do the "double wrap" around the neck. I got the black and white one (couldn't find a picture). It's so cute and casual. I've tried the look before with my pashmina's, but it doesn't work too well. They are too wide and thick. I look like I'm getting read for an Arctic blast.


Jessica Alba, Nicole Richie, and Charlize Theron pull this look off pretty well. Specifically the style on the far right. I thought this Old Navy scarf looked like those trendy "skull and cross bone" ones. I thought this jazzed up my work outfit pretty well. It also looked cute under the trench coat too.

Now...I WILL say that I fiddled with the scarf several times throughout the day. I don't mind. I just couldn't get it to stay wrapped all the way. Does anyone know any tricks? Do you need a speciality scarf for this look? The one wrap around look is probably more flattering for big busted people anyway. Man...looking at the pink one...I might need to get this one too! :)

Anyways...I just wanted to share my fun new spring purchases! Have a great weekend!

I'm a little tired this morning, folks!

Okay - I would like to re-hash a little "experience" from last night.

12:14AM The Lee's are sound asleep in their cozy bed.

12:15AM Carbon Monoxide Detector goes off. The detector is in our room. It. is. LOUD.

12:15:01AM We both jump up out of deep sleep.

James' reaction: gets out of bed, rips the detector right out of the wall, pulls out the battery, puts the disassembled contraption on the book shelf.....and gets right back into bed and goes to sleep.

Allison's reaction: Start smelling for gas, blow my nose so I can smell better, run into the kitchen to check the stove and oven (both are off)....come back to our bedroom to find James sound asleep.

I mean....WHAT? How is he not worried that there could be gas in our house? Mr. OCD himself isn't worried that we could die in our sleep?

Well....I woke him up so we could analyze the situation. He somehow convinced me that it was just because the battery was low, and that I should calm down and go back to bed.

After laying in bed for about 10 minutes, I had convinced myself that I was breathing differently, and that it had to have been from the gas in our house. SO....I woke him up AGAIN and made him research our smoke detector online. He patiently read through the entire users manual online, while I paced back and forth....debating on whether I should call the fire department and have them come check out the situation. (Several of us remember the time we smelled gas in the pi phi house!)

After ~20 minutes of reading the "fine print" in the manual, we decided to plug it back in the wall and see if it went off again or registered any alarming levels. Well....of course...it didn't. No signs of gas - We were fine.

12:45 AM The Lee's are soundly back asleep, and my breathing feels normal again.

Another reason why I have a wonderful husband! :)

On Wednesday night, I saw "He's Just Not That Into You" and I swear that the scenario last night could have been straight from the movie!!! haha.

Someone got flowers at work!

I have the best husband in the world! Love you, babe!

We have a wedding on Saturday, so James and I will be celebrating Valentine's Day tomorrow night. Instead of going out to dinner, we are going to cook at home and enjoy our new house and new floors. I am going to plan our gourmet meal today and go grocery shopping after work.

Anyone have any good suggestions? I really want a valentine's day themed dessert!

BEFORE & AFTER

James and I cleaned ALL weekend. 7am to 11pm. Non-stop. Our house is spotless. Every cabinet, drawer, closet, desk, and shelf has been, dusted, wiped down, and organized. We feel very accomplished. Needless to say, our house feels like a brand new home.

We LOVE our new floors!

Before dining room:

After dining room:

Before living room:

Can anyone find Waldo in this picture?

After living room:

Before kitchen/breakfast area:

After kitchen/breakfast area:

If you look closely, we put felt pads under EVERYTHING to protect the floors....even the trash can has a pad under it. Next time you come over to our house, don't be offended if we ask you to take off your shoes. We are being VERY protective over our new floors. I about died when I dropped some ice tea on the floor. You should have seen my panic reaction. I realize this phase won't last for long. ha ha.

I've also decided that I want a very clean and polished look in the house. You might notice that I didn't put everything back out on the shelves, tables, and fire place mantle. I want to start with a clean slate.

I'm ready to go rug shopping!!!

Pre-Installation

Yesterday was a BIG day in the Lee household! The work is STILL in progress and should be finished this afternoon. James and I both took the morning off yesterday to meet the installers and watch them begin to rip up our floors. By the end of the day, they finished laying all the wood, but still have to finish the transitions and shoe moldings today.

I WILL say that our house is a complete mess. There is a THICK sheet of dust over EVERYTHING. We thought that closing the doors would at least protect the bedrooms. No ma'am. The dust is everywhere. We have A LOT of work ahead of us.

I don't have any wood pictures yet....they will come soon....but I DO have some pictures some of the "prep" work we had to do before they came.

Step #1 - To save money, we bought all the shoe molding this weekend from Home Depot. We sanded, primed, and painted them. You would have thought Tiger (my car) was in some kind of jousting match. Let's just say that transporting these long pieces of wood....was not easy.

Please note the red flag we put on the end. James insisted!

Step #2 - Remove all small furniture and accessories. This includes emptying out the buffet will all my china, James' bar, the entertainment center, and the refrigerator!

Step #3 - Pile ALL objects into spare bedrooms.


Step #4 - GRAFFITI the floors!!!! I've been secretly wanting to do this for weeks. I didn't tell James because I didn't want him to stress out. When he left to get breakfast yesterday morning....I went to town!! I REALLY wish I would have recorded his reaction. He was in pure disbelief as to why I wanted to do this. He also couldn't understand why I didn't just write something small....and why I had to completely cover the floors. My response: Go big or Go home!

Note: Now that you've seen the pictures. I can tell you a funny story from yesterday. The workers starting pulling up the linoleum pretty quickly. When one of the guys came to the doorway with my drawing of the "welcome mat".....he stopped....went to his supervisor (the supervisor was the only one who spoke English)...and asked if it was okay to pull it up. I saw this interaction happening ...and started laughing inside and told him it was a joke. I'm flattered that he thought my drawing was so "real". We obviously don't have the same sense of humor.

Step #4 - Picture of the house with all the flooring removed!

Step #5 - James and I had a nice romantic take-out dinner in the study. We had to disconnect our DVR, so this was the only way we could watch the Grey's/Private Practice special!

We definitely have our work cut out for us this weekend! As you can see, our house is a DISASTER zone. We just LOVE how everything looks so far. It's like a completely different house. I can't wait to start cleaning and putting it back together!!!! I will send before and after pictures soon!