Happy Thanksgiving

It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving day is already here! 

I have so much to be grateful for and am truly simply just blessed. 

Today I am thankful for...

A mother who has stood by me through it all. Who has supported me in more ways then i could have ever asked for. For never putting me down for following my dreams and who is always my number one fan. I can't function without you and just thank you for being you.

To my amazing support group of friends. I am so thankful for all of you. 

You fill my life with joy, laughter and way to much fun. 

I am thankful for the roof over my head, the car to get me places, my grey nail polish, and this amazing fire im sitting in front of right now. 

I am thankful for a life that may have it's hard moments but through 

hard work and a lot of faith truly it all will always work out. 

I hope everyone enjoys their day with family and friends. Eat lots, watch football, and go shopping :) 

Have a Simply Thankful Thanksgiving.

the secrets to black friday

Oh BLACK FRIDAY....how i love thee. Black friday is not for the faintest of hearts. This is not an event to take lightly. Black friday is for the most skilled shoppers. And trust me a skilled black friday shopper can always point out the amateur. If you haven't gotten the clue that i am a little obsessed with black friday... I love it! And to be honest most of the time i'm not really doing hard core Christmas shopping. I am getting my yearly christmas decor, dvds, slippers, and other fantastic deals that all of these stores have. I have a system, a plan, and never stay in a store longer then i need to. This is not about browsing this is about hard core shopping. So here are my tips and tricks...

1. Ad Sorting: one of my favorite thanksgiving traditions is waking up going to get the paper and my starbucks and sitting in front of the fire digging through  ads. It is vital you sort through and pick out what store have good stuff and the ads you don't really care about. There usually is a few rounds of sorting.
2. After sorting comes PLANNING. You cannot attempt the black friday rush without a plan. You must decide what deals you just gotta have. That usually is the first place you will end up going. Decide what is important and what you realistically will be able to get. Electronics will unbelievable prices take much more dedication if you really want them. If you are the first person in line you will obviously get one, but if you show up to best buy an hour before they open...well just forget it...
3. Partner in crime: i think it is always best to have someone with you when partaking in black friday..however, DO NOT bring a whole group of people. They will only slow you down. 
4. Once in the store split up and find what you are there for. Some of the big ticket items and great deals will be in the isles or near the area they normally would be found. Sometimes it takes a little bit of searching but if you can't find it ASK. you don't have time to browse the store for 20 min. 
5. Lines: everyone always complains about the lines. However, most stores are prepared for this day more then we are. they have every checker open and usually will keep moving. However a good trick...go to the pharmacy or jewelry counter. People usually forget about these counters and most of them you can pay at! if they aren't allowing that..have one person wait in line while the other one finishes up the shopping 
6. The biggest tip of all is GET IN and GET OUT. Last year I was in and out of Target in 20 minutes. It is doable. Plan what you want..get it and get out. 
7. Don't forget to have fun! I always love the rush of all the people and getting that good deal. And although i put a lot of though into this you still have to remember it's all in fun. 
8. Be kind. yes there are those extreme moms and dads fighting to make sure they get the good deal on the video game but please be kind to others. Cutting and fighting is just not worth it and does not show any holiday cheer.

So hope you have fun this friday. Looks like stores are getting more crazy and opening doors at 12am...sigh... kind of puts a wrench in my normal black friday plan but im sure i'll come up with something :) Happy Shopping everyone!!

Have a simply wonderful Tuesday! 

i've been weekending since tuesday

This last week was a little crazy...i pretty much had something going on every night which normally doesn't happen. and although it was a pretty good week with so much fun stuff going on i am pretty much just tired right now. haha. and i literately cannot believe that THIS week is THANKSGIVING!? uhh whoa holidays! Way to sneak up on me! I am baffled that by this time next week my house will have a Christmas tree in it...sigh... Anyways here is what i've been doing this last week! 

Starting on TUESDAY we had the OSU Gymnastics preview. Goodness...i love gymnastics and i love these girls! i can't believe season is just right around the corner. and they looked great! I can't wait to see all the new floor routines the girls have this year. Going to be amazing!!! 

Wednesday I headed up to Portland for a concert. We went to see White Buffalo...he kinda looks like a mountain man..but his voice is so powerful and it was an AMAZING concert! 

Thursday I attempted to keep things low key with a house lit in candles, a glass of wine and a delish dinner...my favorite way to spend a night in..

however my quiet night ended up with going out to cocktails...shocking right?

Friday and saturday was filled with dad's weekend activities, football, more football, and more dads weekend cocktails. 

Thankfully sunday was much calmer then the rest of my week.

 I had this cute little mini donut from starbucks! love! 

spent the rest of the day cleaning and doing some crafty things around the house.

Trying to get a head start on all of the DIY christmas gifts i'm doing this year! More on this later! 

Over all a hectic week/ weekend...and let me tell you I am tired. Hopefully this week will be a little calmer...at least until black friday madness :) 

Stay tuned for my tips and tricks of black friday coming tomorrow! 

Hope you have a simply wonderful Monday! 

Thankful Thursday's

Today i am thankful for many things. number one being friendship. and number two being forgiveness. 

Friendship. what would we do without the friendships we have in our lives? I know for a fact that i wouldn't be able to get through half of the things i've had to deal with without a friend there to help or listen or just be there for me. They are the people who make us better, challenge us, encourage, and push you to be better. So thank you to all of my friends who have put up with me, listen to me rant and rave, and who have just been there. I truly would not function without you! 

Today I am also thankful for forgiveness. Forgiveness is always one of those tricky concepts. It seems so simple and yet sometimes it can be so hard to let go of something.  The last couple weeks i've been dealing with forgiving and being forgiven...yea...been a great couple weeks. But i am so thankful for a strong enough friendship that was able to work through the situation and end up in once piece on the other side. I am surly not perfect and I have made my mistakes, but forgiveness is truly a gift. it takes courage and it takes work. It's never easy and yet is so meaningful. It's something we will always have to work on. But I am so thankful that the people in my life are forgiving. 

On a lighter note here are a few other things i've been thankful for this last week :) 

boots to keep me dry and warm, homemade scarves, breakfast with the fam, Starbucks decking the halls with red cups and christmas decor, a phone to get me un lost or more lost...roommates who have to good of a time being silly sitting at home or out to cocktails, warm blankets and fuzzy slippers. 

Hope everyone has a simply Thankful Thursday. 

pinterest love

i think it's time for a little pinterest love. because let's be honest, who doesn't love pinterest!?! Here are some of my favorites at the moment! 

I just love this first one. Keep Calm and SPARKLE! great saying :)

how can you not just laugh when you see this picture. if you have twins this costume is pure perfection.

 obsessed with these pillows. love. 

a little over the top but it's totally me. :)

do i really need words for this mirror?

gotta love the big jewelry right now!

i do live in rainy oregon...gotta have a pair of cute rain boots in my favorite color of the moment 

check out my pinterest boards for the sources!! 

Hope you have a Simply Wonderful Tuesday! 

apparently its a new week

This weekend was kind of all over the place..but it was over all a pretty good weekend.

 Here is my life in some pictures.

 Friday I headed up to Portland to celebrate a friends birthday at Bar XV! Happy Birthday Mike!

Got my craft on and started a couple christmas projects.

Trying to make most of my gifts by hand this year! 

Finally saw the last Harry Potter movie. OMG. craziness. loved it. 

Made this awesome scarf that i am super proud of and was almost to easy to make. 

(horrible iphone pic.  im so yellow)

I also headed to Salem Sunday for a little fam time for lunch and then met up with some good ole friends from high school to catch up. It was great to all be together again. A few years have gone by but it is still so fun to get together and see whats going on with everyone. 

Over all a pretty good weekend. Sadly it is monday again but I actually have some fun things going on this week so it shouldn't be to bad. :)

Hope everyone has a simply fantastic Monday! 

and its finally friday!!! actually this week went by super fast! which i am totally okay with! but you know what happens on fridays! blank time! link up yourself here! 

1.   My favorite new blog of the moment is    Urban Nester...its super cute  .

2.   Something I am thankful for is   my mamma. can always make a blah day turn into a good day      .

3.  Something that made me laugh this week was   when am i not laughing...but i had some good nights in with the roomies this week and we always end up being really silly then laughing for 20min about it   .

4. An item that is currently on my wish list is    this sequin tank from old navy..sadly paying $40 for a tank top is not in the cards for me but i am meant to have it so hopefully it goes on sale soon  .

5.  I am excited about    heading up to Portland tonight..sigh...i heart portland .

6.  If I were a color I would be     yellow...bright, bold and happy  .

7.  My favorite way to spend a chilly fall day is by    starbucks in hand on the couch bundled in a blanket with a pile of dvds  .

Hope everyone has a simply fantastic weekend! 

Thankful Thursday

in the world of facebook and twitter people have been posting daily about something they are thankful for. i love the idea! there is always so much to be thankful for. so instead of a daily post i have decided to dedicate the next couple thursdays until thanksgiving to list the many things i am thankful for. 

The list is compiled of some silly things and some serious things. :) 

1. I truly am thankful for a good job that keeps a roof over my head and food on the table. Here I am wishing I could find a second job but at least i have one. 

2. I am thankful for my car that despite me not taking the best care of it still has gotten me from place to place.

3. I am thankful for my new straightener. Without it I would have countless bad hair days.

4. I am thankful for my cooleo student workers. They make my day so much more entertaining.

5. I am thankful for Cinta. Thankful I have been blessed to own my own business. Thankful for the worlds best business partner and thankful of the opportunities it has allowed and for what this business could be in the future. 

What are you thankful for today? Hope you have a simply wonderful Thursday. 

Wedding Wednesday: more cinema

Sorry I have ben MIA on the whole wedding Wednesday thing lately... it seems like i get to wednesday and i am all of the sudden super busy that morning..and didn't have time to do one in advance... Anyways this last week I came across two amazing wedding videos. And let me tell you they are AMAZING! I can't wait for you to see them :)

Sigh...As everyone knows I am such a sucker for a  good wedding video. There are some amazingly talented people out there who are able to catch those perfect moments from the best day of your life into a perfect cinematic experience. And like this first video, amazing creative boyfriends who make an engagement something so special and so personal you can't help but fall a little more in love with them. Hope you enjoy! 

                                                           

"From the Groom-to-be… I proposed to my girlfriend of 4 years through a video. I shot it myself, focusing and framing each shot before hitting the playbutton and getting in front of the camera." 

 Videography: Daniel Kim Photography

Thank you Style Me Pretty for another amazing find! 

And finally here is a tear jerker for you ladies! This is seriously just adorable and Modern 8 Films did a great job filming and editing. And they also picked the perfect song.

Beckie + Jung: Super 8 Highlight from Modern 8 Films on Vimeo.

ABC's

I was catching up on posts over  From Portland to Peonies one of the many blogs I follow and she had posted this fun ABC's post for people to get to know her better. I figured it would be a fun little thing to post today considering I didn't really have anything else planned for the day :)
 Hope you enjoy! 

A. Age – 22
B. Bed size – Full..i wish it was a king
C. Chore that you hate – Laundry! omg i hate laundry so much. I wish it would just do itself and hang and fold itself to.
D. Dogs – no dog. maybe someday. 
E. Essential start to your day – CMT/VH1/GAC...musc video central in my house in the mornings. 
F. Favorite color – umm right now its yellow and gray but ive always loved purple 
G. Gold or silver – hmm..mostly silver but gold has grown on me 
H. Height – 5’7"
I. Instruments you play – piano. i have a piano in my house that i do not play enough
J. Job title – Day job: Office Coordinator. Side Job: Owner of Cinta Dinners. 
K. Kids – Nope! someday

L. Live – Good ole Corvallis Oregon
M. Mother’s name – Margaritha. I know I know...its like the drink..
N. Nicknames – mamma and. thats pretty much it though 
O. Overnight hospital stays – never. knock on wood 
P. Pet peeves – slow drivers. people who make promises and don't keep them 
Q. Quote from a movie – "I am Mortified" Sex and the City. im not a movie quote person but i always say that i am mortified :) 
R. Right or left handed – Right.
S. Siblings – Two Twin Half Sisters. 
T. Time it takes you to get ready – Depends. If I'm washing my hair and straightening it and taking my time its like and hour and half. but for the most part I can be ready in 10-15min on work days or any other day. :) 
U. Underwear – lace and boyshorts. enough said. 
V. Vegetable you hate – not a huge fan of carrots
W. What makes you run late – Not knowing what to wear. All you ladies know what I mean...a closet bursting with clothes and nothing to wear.
X. X-rays you’ve had – Hmm.. The ones at the dentist...thats all i got 
Y. Yummy food you make – I like to cook so there are a few things but umm...i make a pretty good chicken cordon bleu  
Z. Zoo animal –Zebras. Im loving zebra print right now :) 

my perfect sunday

this sunday was pretty much my perfect day. it was a day full of wedding fun. I headed up to Portland for Bravo's Wedding Show at Embassy Suites. I was not only there to check out the amazing vendors Portland has to offer but also volunteer with Make a Wish Weddings. A non-profit wedding organization that grants wedding wishes to people who are terminally ill. I know, amazing! 

After that I headed back to corvallis to help a good friend with her engagement pictures. It was fun to help pose and come up with fun ideas for pictures. I was able to stop by cupcake Jones in Portland on my way back to pick up two perfect cupcakes for the shoot. I have a preview below :) I heart weddings and i especially heart when my whole day is centered around them :) Below I have some fun pictures of some of the great ideas the show had! And my cupcake preview :) 

(sorry my iphone didn't give me the best pics this weekend!)

fun candy sweets bar!

umm hello fun linens!

love classic china

winter wedding sparkle

i love these glitter menu cards!

Mirrors! 

and i MUST say that this red velvet cupcake i had from cup cake jones was THE BEST red velvet cupcake i have ever had. If you happen to be Downtown portland you must stop by and try one! 

a little preview from the photo shoot we did yesterday. Much more to share in a couple weeks! :) 

 Hope everyone had a simply wonderful weekend! Happy Monday! 

my favorite day of the week

my favorite day is obviously friday! This is gonna be another  busy weekend but i actually think it will be a little more low key then the last few...i hope so at least. Anyways time for the blanks! Link up at The Little Things We Do! 

1.   My favorite thing about this week was/is     that I have finally started to catch up on sleep/ housework/ movies/ finally able to have some down time!   .

2.   Colder weather makes my  feet super cold and i live in slippers and blankets as soon as i walk in the door    .

3.  Three things that make me terribly happy as of late are    my new boots, red cups a starbucks, and the fact that we are now officially in holiday season mode   .

4. If I could only wear one kind of shoe for the rest of my life, I'd choose    flats or these wedges ive been living in...dress up and dress down and add just a little hight    .

5.  My personality type is     I am mostly an extrovert...pretty social and practical  .

6.  I have a serious problem resisting     coffee...but the coffee from starbucks and coffee culture not just straight black   .

7.  My favorite color to wear is   mustard yellow and gray at the moment .

Hope everyone has a simply fun and relaxing weekend! 

The Last of October

I seriously cannot believe it is November already. I will admit I am one of those Holiday fanatics who can't wait to play Christmas music...and I hate to admit that I may have already started...but I really am trying to keep it to a minimum ;) It is just so hard when Michael Buble comes out with the worlds best Christmas cd... Anyways...I figured before I step into full Thanksgiving/ Christmas mode I would share the last bit of Halloween excitement with you. 

This last weekend I did the food for a Halloween Birthday Costume Party for one of my co-workers. They wanted it to be a classic fun party with classic party foods so it was different from what Cinta normally does but it was a fun change. However, with every dinner there was always some obstacle to over come, and this dinner was no exception. What happened? ...lets just say the "full kitchen" was no full kitchen because there was a lack of an oven...yep...so i cooked out of two toaster ovens...sigh...thankfully things turned out great and i only had to nix one thing on my menu...and I was over all happy with things. I wish I would have had more prep time the last couple days before the dinner...but with a full time job time becomes limited. Anyways...here are a few pics my trusty lovely roomie Alissa took for me. 

ghost and halloween character cupcakes

not a halloween party without a little dry ice 

And...because this post doesn't have enough pictures already....Here are a couple from Halloween night..i finally got to do my hair and make-up for my Wonder Women Costume. Over all a pretty fun and eventful Halloween...and it literally is taking me all week to recover from such a jam packed weekend.

Hope everyone has a simply wonderful Thursday!