Tag Archives: happy

Oct2

Morning Star Meals

Posted on by
Standard
Morning Star Meals

Hello! I have been a strict vegetarian for the closer part of two decades and literally could never imagine eating meat again. Although I have a different diet than Johnny who loves cheeseburgers, bacon, and hot dogs we still both eat the “fake” meat by Morning Star pretty regularly. Check it out:

I have never been one of the vegetarians who are put off by people eating meat so I was tickled when Johnny wanted to try my vegetarian chicken nuggets and sausage patties. I was even more thrilled about the fact that he liked them just as much as me! In fact, I consider it a rarity to have a boyfriend who is excited about me making a veggie option and not asking me to make “regular” meat for him – even though he knows I would be happy to.

We are both huge fans of the Morning Star buffalo chicken nuggets and, this past shopping trip, I got us the buffalo patties for him to try. I was about to start prepping our meal when Johnny took it upon himself to make it, instead. He air fried our patties, then buttered and toasted the buns. We topped it off with lettuce and ranch and my heart kind of melted when Johnny said “it tastes just like a spicy chicken sandwich from Wendy’s”.

My Johnny is just so dear to me and him being willing to always try new things is one of the many things I love about him. I know it seems like a little thing but Morning Star meals with my non vegetarian boyfriend will never cease to put me in all of the happy feels. I’m a lucky girl. ❤

What is the most recent new food you tried? Which other brands make the best “fake” meat? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep18

Lil Red & The Best Anniversary Ever

Posted on by
Standard
Lil Red & The Best Anniversary Ever

Hello! On September first, Johnny and I celebrated our one year anniversary of dating. This past weekend, we celebrated officially by the most wonderful surprise that Johnny had been working on: A specially prepared dinner by a chef friend that I got to choose.

Originally, I wanted something bold like Pad Thai or Indian food but Johnny is not a fan of either so I went with an old favorite of fettuccine Alfredo, garlic bread, and a salad. This was sure to go over well with the both of us and on Saturday I was banished from the apartment while our mystery guest and Johnny got to work.

For a few hours I visited my parents and brother as well as their next door neighbor, Alice. But, the entire time, I was eagerly awaiting a text from Johnny to tell me I could come back home. I had butterflies in my stomach the whole time I was away and I was freaking giddy when I was allowed to start heading over.

I opened the door to our apartment and was greeted by the most delicious aroma of garlic bread you could ever imagine, a cleaned off kitchen table, and our friend Jimmy standing in the kitchen! Jimmy plays in The Outside Voices with Johnny and is an exceptional chef so Johnny hired him to prepare our anniversary feast.

I was literally speechless when I saw Jimmy because I had no idea who Johnny was talking about this whole time. Between that, my kitchen table being cleaned, and Johnny looking so damn fine I was completely floundering, lol!

Around seven, our meal was ready and Jimmy poured us both a healthy glass of wine and left us to begin our celebrations. Saying our dinner was to die for was an understatement. The fettuccine Alfredo surpassed anything I’ve ever had before (Take that, Olive Garden!). The rosemary garlic bread was so crisp and had enough garlic to kill a vampire but that’s exactly how I like it. And, finally, the salad was gorgeous – fresh greens with mozzarella cheese, blackberries, sliced almonds, onions, and an olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing. Can you say, YUM?!

We ate like royalty and immediately after, we retired into our comfy clothes to begin the relaxation portion of our celebration. All night, Johnny and I listened to music, poorly did imitations of our favorite TV characters, and laughed. It was the best day of my life.

Johnny’s anniversary date night was one of the nicest things that anyone has ever done for me and I am never going to forget it. The following morning I told him I thought I gained a pound from dinner but that food baby was just a small price to pay for the most beautiful day! ❤

How did you celebrate an anniversary this year? How about a birthday? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep16

Scent Memories

Posted on by
Standard
Scent Memories

Hello! Ever since moving into my apartment, the foaming hand soaps from Bath & Body Works have been a staple for my kitchen and bathroom sinks. I love all of the delicious fragrances and how clean and moisturized my hands feel after each wash. Recently, I had a huge online haul from B&BW and I have been enjoying testing out all of the different scents.

A couple of days ago, I ran out of soap in my bathroom and began using the Orange Sunrise option seen below:

I pumped the soap into my hands and I don’t really know what I was expecting – maybe a Creamsicle like scent? But, I took a whiff and was nearly blown over by a scent memory. Do you ever get those? When you smell something that takes you back to when you first experienced an amazing or nasty aroma?

Luckily for me, the Orange Sunrise soap wasn’t a sickening scent memory but quite the opposite. Because, holy cow, this soap smells exactly like the orange bath beads that used to be sold at The Body Shop. In case my fellow nineties kids don’t remember bath beads, they were basically like little jelly spheres filled with scented and moisturizing oil to add into your bath.

When my siblings and I were little, my mom used to take us to The Body Shop all the time and all I wanted were the bath beads. I loved the green ones but the orange Satsuma beads were my favorites. I have so many memories of bath times with those beads and squishing them with my fingers and toes and letting the delicious aroma wash over me.

For a second when I first pumped the B&BW soap into my hands, I was right back in The Body Shop with my mom filling up a huge bag of bath beads to take home. It was one of the best scent memories I’ve ever had and I am so happy to be taken back to that moment that I had almost forgotten every time I wash my hands! ❤

Have you had a scent memory recently? Where can I find bath beads? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep8

Lil Red & The Best Morning Ever

Posted on by
Standard
Lil Red & The Best Morning Ever

Hi! I am and am not a morning person. I love to sleep in on the weekends but when I do need to get up for work during the week I am pretty good about not hitting the snooze button! My mornings before work are usually a bit hectic because I still need to write and get ready before I head out an hour and change later. So, I guess I have to be pretty good about not hitting the snooze button.

A few days ago, though? I hit that snooze button so hard! Fifteen minutes worth, in fact, so I had to kick it into hyper speed if I wanted to make it to work on time, write, and shower. Instead of freaking out, I said “challenge accepted” and ended up having a morning where everything went my way.

First of all, I felt awesome from the little bit of extra sleep. I also managed to leave my apartment earlier than normal because I had to drop some about to be due library books off at my mom and dad’s on the way. But, in my rush out the door as well as carrying a bunch of other crap, I forgot my can of Diet Coke on the kitchen table and didn’t realize it until I got in my car. Too late to turn back so I headed to chez parents.

LUCKY ME, though, because besides from seeing my parents bright and early (Which was nice!) I was able to snag a can of pop from their place and all was well. Then, about five minutes later, things just got a whole lot better.

I haven’t mentioned this on here, but my car radio has not been working for the past month. No radio, no CDs, no plugging in my iPod – nothing. So, I just have to play my iPod really loud while driving but it just isn’t the same. I missed being able to play the radio, specifically on Throwback Thursday, desperately and vowed to get it fixed EVENTUALLY.

Although it sucks, I came to terms with my unfortunate radio situation and was cranking AFI’s decemberunderground on my iPod when a miracle happened. I was sitting at a red light and out of nowhere my radio turned on! I literally thought I was imagining things but it really was playing and I eagerly began going through all of my favorite stations to hear what was good that I’ve been missing out on.

During my twenty or so minute drive to work, I heard all of my favorite songs on the radio and it really did feel like everything was going my way. I was just worried my radio wasn’t going to work again when I was done with my shift. LUCKY ME, though, because it did and I heard even more of my favorites on the way to my next client. It. Was. AWESOME!

Having such an amazing string of luck all morning was just the pick me up I needed to finish my work week strongly and I am still reveling in my good fortune. It really is true that the smallest things can have the biggest impact! 🙂

Have you had something lucky happen recently? Are you an early bird or night owl? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep5

Fun & (Video) Games

Posted on by
Standard
Fun & (Video) Games

Hi! Johnny and I celebrated our one year anniversary on September first – hurray! Pre-Johnny, I never played video games too often. Of course, I played my fair share of Mario Party and Super Smash Bros. back in the day. I was also addicted to Diablo II on the ol’ desktop computer. Watching my brothers play adventure and sports games was always a hoot too. While their expertise was limited to Madden some people can bet on sports and win big. The help is there online or even in sports bars to turn your fantasy league or favorite teams into an extra income!

Besides from those, that’s about as far as my video game expertise goes. Until Johnny and I started dating that is! Before, all I had was a lowly GameCube and Wii – now we collectively have a Switch and a PlayStation 3.

In recent quarantine times, I developed a huge taste for games like Harvest Moon and Animal Crossing and try to check in on my island at least every other day. I also love playing throwback Mario games on the Switch’s Super Nintendo Arcade. Other than that, though? Nothing really. Until Johnny and I exchanged gifts for our one year that is!

For part of my gift (Tune in later for more on our celebration!), Johnny ceremonially turned the Switch on and displayed on the screen was both Paper Mario: The Origami King and Diablo III: Reaper Of Souls. I absolutely LOVE the Paper Mario games and have been telling Johnny I want to try The Origami King for the past few months now. I also haven’t played Diablo III in over half a decade so that was just the cherry on top of a perfect gift.

Johnny and I recently watched an excellent documentary on Netflix called High Score. The series was about seven or eight episodes long and it discussed the evolution of video games from the old school arcades to present day. I think the video game bug definitely bit the both of us while we bingewatched High Score and I can see it reflected in my anniversary gift – I’m so not mad about it though!

In fact, I think I shall dub our one year as the Fun & Games anniversary because I, too, got something entertainment based for Johnny. That’s right, I got him the Millennium Falcon LEGO set from Star Wars. No, not the crazy expensive sets – however, we decided our five year will be the Upgrade the Millennium Falcon anniversary! Johnny put his space craft together in one evening and I am already looking forward to more time with Paper Mario and Diablo, lol. I’m looking forward to more time with my MAN the most and here’s to our one year together. ❤

Which anniversary did you and your partner celebrate this year? How did you celebrate? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep4

Tattoo You: Family Portraits Edition

Posted on by
Standard
Tattoo You: Family Portraits Edition

Hello!! This past month, I treated myself to a tap out tattoo session AKA nine hours straight of getting work done. I prefer this method, as I can get a lot done at one time and my tattoo artist, Emily, completed nine tattoos and some touch ups during our time together. I love everything I got but I am particularly enamored with these family portraits I got on the side of my lower leg. Check it out:

tattootat1tat3tat2tat4

A lot of my tattoos are from comic books that I love but I also find inspiration when I’m scrolling through social media and see something cool. At some point, someone on my Facebook timeline posted the example picture that my tattoos are based on and I fell in love. I decided that I would like to do something similar with my own family and my tattoo artist made the perfect depictions with just lines and patterns.

My tattoos are in the following order:

  • Grandma, Grandpa (Dad’s side)
  • Grandma, Grandpa (Mom’s side)
  • Mom, Dad

Emily told me that the hardest part of sketching out these tattoos was making each silhouette look like the person despite not having a face. I say that she knocked it out of the park and I can see the likeness of all of my loved ones perfectly. In my parent’s house, all three of these pictures have been on the shelves in the living room for as long as I can remember and they have always been some of my favorites. I am proud to have something so beautiful to commemorate each family member and I have not been able to stop looking at my legs since I got the tattoos!! (PS: If you are considering getting tattooed, here is some useful information on: Which places hurt the most when getting tattooed).

Do you have any tattoos? Which one is your favorite? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug30

Hi, How Are You?

Posted on by
Standard
Hi, How Are You?

Hi there! Recently at work, I took a client through a McDonald’s drive thru for lunch. I pulled my car up to the speaker and greeted whomever was working with a standard “Hi, how are you?” A very young and shocked sounding male voice told me “no one ever asks me how I’m doing, I guess I’m doing pretty good”. We chatted for a few seconds and he took my order, then I pulled up to his window to make the transaction.

A barely twenty-something year old kid who looked miserable, at best, had the voice I could finally put a face to. However, when I pulled my car up, he gave me a huge smile and thanked me for “being cool”. My heart somewhat broke and exploded. Broke because this young man working at a Micky D’s right off of the highway had a high point in his day just because I asked him how he was. Exploded because something so simple improved how he felt and, therefore, it made me feel good.

After I rolled up to the next window, I proceeded to give his compliments to the manager because he deserved it. He was prompt and kind and I wanted his day to continue to be the best. When my client and I drove away she told me “I think you made his day” and I told her that he made mine too.

Times are crazy right now. COVID and political unrest do not make for the most ideal living situation! But, times are never too crazy to be friendly to everyone you encounter and I think this story definitely can attest to that. ❤

How has someone made your day recently? How have you made someone’s day? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug24

Sweet Surprises: BFF Edition

Posted on by
Standard
Sweet Surprises: BFF Edition

Hello! My best friend of over twelve years, Lea, is going to be getting married at the end of October and I am one of her bridesmaids! Unfortunately, a pandemic isn’t the best time for a wedding celebration and because of having several high risk clients, I have had to opt out of a lot of the fun. It makes me sad that I can’t participate in good conscious in the different activities but Lea knows where I’m coming from and that’s the only important thing to me.

During our most recent hang out to have an early 26th birthday celebration for Lea (AKA drinks on my parent’s deck), I was expecting for her to be the only one receiving prezzies. But my darling bestie surprised me with the following:

91360F43-4CBC-49A6-8C0D-885643342299F62935F1-9345-4D2B-A830-2399B8B0BD93

Lea is honestly one of the sweetest people I have ever met in my life and it is so like her to bring something for me on a day that should be celebrating her. I am so in love with the comfy cozy “Bridesmaid” tee by Bella + Canvas (I’m wearing it right now!) and the customized glass is adorable enough that I don’t even want to drink out of it!

It has been hard being out of the metaphorical wedding loop right now for Lea because safety is my primary concern. So, these gifts were very special to me because it showed that Lea still thinks of me as one of her bridesmaids no matter what.

2020 has been such a crazy year and I am so sad that Lea’s wedding isn’t going to be everything that she dreamed of and then some. But, as her best friend and STILL her bridesmaid even though I hardly deserve a participation trophy, I will be doing everything I can in the meantime to keep her spirits way up high. I know she would do the exact same for me. ❤

Did you have an event that got cancelled this year? How do you stay safe during the pandemic? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug22

A Change Of Scenery

Posted on by
Standard
A Change Of Scenery

Hello! As you all know from yesterday’s post, Johnny and I went on our first date this past weekend since the beginning of all of this COVID business. It was insanely refreshing, to say the least, and we are both eager to get out and about a bit more under circumstances that we are comfortable with. We really did have the best time and the only thing that was different was that we were sitting outside with our drinks instead of in the bar – and social distanced from our friends, of course.

Although our excursion was edited slightly to fit the current times, it just felt good to get out of the house! If you are itching for a change of scenery, why not try the following:

Picnics:

In Ohio, downtown Kent has a Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA) where you can enjoy food and drinks on spread apart picnic benches. This is how Johnny spent our date night out and we loved it! It was so nice to be in a downtown area and seeing so many people who we’ve been missing since March.

If your neck of the woods doesn’t have a DORA program, pick your favorite Metro Park or even set up a blanket in your own backyard. Purchase take out or make your own meal, sit back, and enjoy the sunshine.

Hiking:

How about a trek through the woods to get you in some different scenery? One of my friends has a goal of hiking one hundred miles by October and he is well on his way to achieving it. If you prefer having company, there are plenty of local animal shelters with lots of dogs to walk along with you. Who knows, you might even end up adopting your new best friend!

Dinner Party:

The next time Johnny and I visit another couple who we are friends with in Kent, I plan on preparing dinner for us. Their house is one you can social distance at. Our apartment? Not so much because it’s so small! I’m bringing the ingredients and “borrowing” their kitchen and we will light a bonfire and eat outdoors. Johnny and I used to go on double dates with this couple often pre-COVID and it will be so fun to continue this tradition in a slightly altered way.

Fun & Games:

There are plenty of games that you can play all while being spread out from people. Video games, charades, Dungeons & Dragons, Bingo, and even silly story telling can all be part of a social distanced game night with your close friends or family. You could even have a paint night right from your own backyard! All it takes is a little creativity and I’m sure you can come up with plenty of social distanced activities, too.

Of course, things are not close to being “back to normal” yet. However, the last date night Johnny and I had was the most normal thing we’ve done in a while. Set up your safety plan so everyone feels comfortable and try out a change of scenery for yourself!

How do you safely see your friends in the COVID era? Where do you go when you need a change of scenery? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug21

Super Happy Fun Times

Posted on by
Standard
Super Happy Fun Times

Hi! This past weekend, Johnny and I went on a date for the first time since March. Now, I know what you’re thinking: “A date? You and Johnny barely leave the house!” Believe me, I would be thinking the exact same thing. But, thanks to a little something called DORA (Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area), Johnny and I were able to enjoy some drinks from our favorite bar in Kent while sitting outside in the park!

We spent two hours eating takeout from Taco Tantos and drinking Moscow Mules from the Zephyr and we did it all completely social distanced. Granted, it was a lot different than back in 2019 when we all had no problem being on the Zephyr’s back patio playing games and hanging out. However, what we did was the next best thing! Some of our Kent friends even stopped by for a chat, which was great because we haven’t really seen anyone since March, either.

Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem sitting in my living room with Johnny day drinking and watching The Last Kingdom. But, there is absolutely nothing better than getting dressed up and going out with my boyfriend. Sitting on that park bench in Kent laughing and taking selfies was one of the most joyous moments I’ve had in weeks and I am going to treasure it for forever. It brought me back to our first date almost one year ago and it was kind of magical.

The best part? Now that we know that the open container areas in Kent are something that we feel comfortable with, we can go on dates again whenever we want! As soon as Johnny brought our drinks to our bench, the first thing we both said was “this is so nice” and we are already looking forward to our next date very soon! ❤

How do you do social distance hang outs? Does your downtown area have a DORA program? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah