May Goals

Posted by Ginna on May 4, 2012 | 3 comments

How is it May already? Weren’t we just toasting in the new year? These months are seriously flying by so fast.

May Goals:

• Have a great time at the beach
• See Wicked at the DPAC!
• Read one book
• Stay within budget, no exceptions!
• Meal plan every week
• Cook 3 new recipes
• Make at least one craft and share on the blog
• Buy J’s birthday present

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I managed to accomplish ALL of my goals in April, how awesome is that?

April Goals:

• Have a wonderful anniversary!
• Go see Steel Magnolias at NC Theater
• Meet with a financial planner
• Have an Easter egg hunt
• Clean out guest room
• Buy a new hair straightener
• Co-host a fabulous shower for my dear friend Michelle!
• Read one book
• Lose two pounds
• Spring clean the apartment

What are your goals this month?

(photo credit)

The Time I Chopped off All My Hair

Posted by Ginna on May 4, 2012 | 9 comments

Last Friday I chopped off my hair to donate to Locks of Love. It’s one of my items on my 30 before 30 list, and it truly was a liberating feeling saying goodbye to those thick locks. I decided I needed to do it soon after looking at this photo from my New York trip:

Yikes! Look how long that hair is! Too long, if you ask me. And running in the 90-degree North Carolina heat? Don’t even think about it. My thick ponytail was like a blanket on my back the last time I ran outside.

So here’s the new short hair. :) What do you think?

Have you ever donated your hair before? Do you prefer your hair long or short?

A Girly Baby Shower

Posted by Ginna on May 3, 2012 | 2 comments

This past weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to celebrate the end and beginning of life. While we were awaiting my grandmother’s death, we were welcoming a new little girl in the world with the most adorably girly baby shower imaginable. My friends and I found out that Michelle was pregnant back when we had a girl’s weekend in October, and afterwards started planning the shower. This past weekend it came together beautifully!

The Food: Mmm we had so much delicious food! Cupcakes with butter-cream frosting, mini cupcakes with strawberry frosting, chicken salad in wonton wrappers, spinach artichoke dip, veggies and hummus, fruit salad, candy sprinkled around the house, and strawberry lemonade with striped straws.

The Game: We were only going to allow classy, make the mother-to-be feel good games, so we decided to let all of the guests leave notes on diapers for the new parents to read when they’re changing Reagan’s diaper in the upcoming months.

Music: Any song with baby in the lyrics, of course.

The Decorations: The shower was hosted at my parents’ house and Allison created some of the cutest decorations I’ve ever seen. Cute wreaths, pretty pom-poms, crape-paper garland around the table, felt pom-poms around the french doors, and the cutest “It’s a Girl!” sign as the backdrop on the back porch. Oh, and we can’t forget peonies! They were in full bloom in my mom’s garden and were scattered across the house.

The Favors: Sugar cookies in the shape of a onesie for each guest.

The Party: Embellishments, ruffles, frills – oh my! She got some of the cutest little outfits!

I love this shot of Michelle with her mom who will be called “Mumsie” — isn’t that the cutest grandmother name? :)

Such a fun party. :) I can’t wait to meet little Reagan Gayle in just a few weeks!

Wellness Wednesday

Posted by Ginna on May 2, 2012 | 1 comment

It’s been a busy week so I’ll keep this short and share a little fitness motivation I found via Pinterest:

(photo credit)

In Loving Memory of Virginia Louise

Posted by Ginna on May 1, 2012 | 9 comments

Yesterday morning my lovely grandmother Gigi went on to visit Jesus.

I’m so lucky that I got to be with her in her last few weeks. We thought she was going to die last week, so I got off work early and drove to be with her. I looked up any passage I could find on heaven and read them aloud to her for hours, crying with my mom and sister in anticipation of her new home.

This past weekend I was lucky enough to spend three days by her side, waiting with my mom and aunts as we all admired the gracious life she lived as she took her last few breaths. It was one of the sweetest and most cherished moments of my life.

I will miss her dearly, but know that she is in a better place with a perfect mind and body. And I simply cannot wait to celebrate her life this weekend with the family that she loved.

Weekly Money Check-Up: 4/30

Posted by Ginna on Apr 30, 2012 | 1 comment

1. The most I’ve spent this last week was on an eye exam for new contacts.

2. Today I am thankful for the chance to spend the weekend with my family as we wait with Gigi as she dies.

3. Money can’t buy happiness. One free thing I did last week that made me happy was host a baby shower for my dear friend Michelle! I’ll write a whole other post on the lovely shower we threw. Also peonies.  My mom has a whole garden full and they are the most fragrant, lovely flower ever.

4. I will consider this week a success if I get some rest.

5. If I could redecorate one room, I would choose my guestroom. It’s the most neglected room of our apartment. Thankfully all of our guests could care less if the room is magazine-worthy or not, but I would like to give it a little more attention one day.

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Weekly Money Check-Up is a weekly series on My Pretty Pennies. To participate, fill in the blanks in the comments section, or post it on your blog and link below. If you do post it on your blog, please credit MPP and link it back here. Thank you for participating!

1. The most I’ve spent this last week was on _____.
2. Today I am thankful ___________.
3. Money can’t buy happiness. One free thing I did last week that made me happy was_____________.
4. I will consider this week a success if I _____________.
5.  If I could redecorate one room, I would choose __________.

Wellness Wednesday :: The Benefits of a Walk

Posted by Ginna on Apr 25, 2012 | 8 comments

You plan to work out in the morning, but when your loud alarm goes off at 5:30 am after a terrible night’s sleep, you snooze right through it. You rush to work to find your day jam-packed full of meetings, assignments, urgent emails and projects that are due ASAP. You leave work late and head home exhausted, throw together a meal to eat, end up eating at 8:30 pm, and then pass out on the couch, ready to watch mindless TV to relax after a trying day.

Sound familiar?

I know I’m not the only one with days like this. I think anyone with a full-time job struggles with finding time to get some exercise in. How do you fit in a workout on days like this?

Take a walk. Even when you are up to your elbows in work, you can always afford to take five minutes and get some fresh air.

But my day is busy and there’s no time!

Schedule it. This sounds a little silly, but when there are days that I know are going to be crazy, I will schedule a walk on my calendar so that I can fit in at least five minutes of fresh air.

More benefits for a quick saunter in the middle of the day…

You get the chance to multitask. One of my favorite things about walking is the chance to multitask and get stuff done. I will listen to podcasts or audio books, catch up with a friend, make phone calls or schedule appointments, or use that time to pray. So often I complain I have no time for these things, but you would be amazed how much you can cram into a 20-minute walk.

Get some vitamin D! There are some days, especially in the dead of the winter, when I get to work in the dark and leave in the dark, never seeing the sun. On days like that, a girl needs some Vitamin D!

It’s sweat-free. One of my biggest complaints about a hard workout is the inconvenience on your clothes and hair. I hate getting sweaty and sometimes I avoid workouts because it seems too much energy to get out of my clothes and into a workout outfit (as silly as that sounds). With walking, you usually don’t have that problem. Unless it’s 90-degrees outside, I can go for a 30-minute walk in my work outfit and not feel disgusting afterwards. If I happen to wear heels that day, I will bring more comfortable shoes for a walk. (Although, I do keep deodorant in my drawer, just in case…)

Helps your digestive system. A quick walk after lunch is a great way to digest your food, especially if you’ve devoured your lunch really quickly, which I have the bad habit of doing.

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What about you? Do you enjoy taking a walk during the day? How do you fit in some exercise in the middle of a crazy, busy day?