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Friday Favorites

Happy Friday Everyone!

It’s my favorite day of the week and time for my favorite post…

Friday Favorites

Is it acceptable for a grown woman to like Marvel Comic movies?  I just can’t help myself.

Favorite # ONE

LB and I watched Guardians of the Galaxy early in the week and we both enjoyed it immensely.  This Sci-Fi  Superhero movie doesn’t disappoint!  The characters are an extraterrestrial team of misfits who each have their own agenda, but ban together to achieve a joint objective.  During the story, their appreciation for each other leads to a heartwarming friendship.  The interaction is amusing.  The plot is interesting.  The music is excellent!  I am looking forward to watching the sequel!

Click the links to watch the trailers

Favorite # TWO

Favorite # Two is a website… susanlucci.com

I’ve never watched the soap opera “All My Children”, but I KNOW who Susan Lucci is.  You know who she is too!

This woman is SEVENTY years old and drop dead gorgeous.  When I found her website, I discovered that she likes to do Pilates.  Well there you have it!  Pilates is the secret to lifelong beauty.

I searched online for her site after I happened to see her in an episode of The Kitchen.

Favorite # THREE

Speaking of the kitchen, I spent some time in My kitchen recently to prepare for the celebration of National Raspberry Cream Pie Day.  Obviously I don’t need much of a reason to celebrate.

Tuesday, August 1st was National Raspberry Cream Pie Day.

Because I am easily distractedI didn’t read the ‘Cream Pie’ part and assumed it was a raspberry cake that was the subject of celebration.  Sadly, instead of a Raspberry Cream Pie, I made a Raspberry Cake.

Happily, it was a GOOD cake!

If a cake hangs around too long in my house, it gets cut into slices, wrapped individually, and stored in the freezer.  Pop a frozen slice into the microwave for 30 seconds and enjoy a warm dessert that is almost as good as it was right out of the oven.

Favorite # FOUR

The Venus catalog that came in the mail this week

The Paisley Boho Dress on the cover caught my eye right away.  Isn’t it cute?  Must have.

Favorite # FIVE

Saving the BEST for last… this picture of my son and his sweet little girlLydia broke her toe recently and spent some time wearing this boot.

Richard has recently started blogging.  His style is very different from mine, but I like it.  You can find his blog here.   I am very proud of him and his desire to complete that which he was called to do.

Show and Tell Tuesday

All day I’ve been asking myself (and a few others) “WHAT am I going to post on my blog today?”

LB says “Post about the Treadmill”.  Wendy just looks at me and goes back to work.  Elvis just looks at me.

So… I come home from work, do my treadmill ritual, and then come outside.  As I sit by the pool with my macbook, I start scouring the other blogs I frequent for ideas.  Currently I have a favorite and when I read her post, I had to replicate what I saw.  http://coasttocoast2.blogspot.com/ has linked up with momfessionals.com to share ideas in a post titled Show and Tell Tuesday.  Today the goal was to share what’s on your phone i.e. what you use your phone for most or what apps do you have that others may also enjoy.

That Said…

When I access my cell phone this is what I see:Let me clarify… when I access my cell phone on Tuesday, July 25 at 9:17, this is what I see.

Because I am extremely organized, my apps are alphabetized (with the exception of my Fitbit and My Fitness Pal).  Some apps have been placed in files according to category.  Here are the app screens on my cell phone:Alarmed is a reminder which I love.  Amazon Alexa allows for communitcation with the Echo.  QT is my home security system.   The Mail is overwhelming because of the AOL email account that I’ve had since the 1800’s.  Every Tom, Dick and Hautelook that I’ve ever subscribed to sends junk to this account.  My Gmail accounts are for important things from Family, Attorney, MaryKay, and, of course, LB and are checked more than once a week.  The 19 messages today are from a group text “The People I Love” formerly known as the FamDamily.

Let me check in and see what they conversed about today…

We have a picture of my nephew at summer camp: A giphy from my daughter Amanda: And a report from my Mama about her first night with the apparatus (more on that another day).  Along with  encouragement from my brother-in-law:

Yes Folks… this is normality.  And because I am not permitted to access my cell phone during working hours, I find all this, and more, at the end of the day.

 

My current app obsession is with my FitBit.

At this point today I’m viewing:

Obviously I’ve outdone myself and will need to hit the sack to regroup.

See you tomorrow.

Maybe.

 

Posing in Italy!

My life is exciting, but I haven’t been able to make time to visit ItalyCinque Terre, Italy, Manarola, Liguria, Rock, Sea (source)

I have just recently started my blog… only three months ago TODAY!  It has been a lot of fun and more work than I imagined… more like a second job than a hobby or pastime.  Last week I enjoyed a summer vacation trip to Captiva Island which I covered in this blog, and wrapped up with a visit to the ER.  It was at some point during the ride to the hospital that I realized how SHORT life really is.  My thought during that ride was that I was on my way out, like my Daddy who was just slightly older than me when he left this world on November 23rd 2001.  I am much like him, so it is no wonder that I assumed I would meet the same type of end.  I may still do that, just not on June 3rd 2017.  I am proud that I am so much like him.  But I am pleased to say that I’m not finished here yet.

As I was flipping through Instagram during my lunch break today, I noticed ANOTHER person that I follow posting photos of herself in Italy.  It seems to be a trend to pose for a picture of yourself in Cinque Terre.

Happily, I am taking shots of myself in my bedroom!  Alive and well

… and wearing my beautiful White House Black Market blouse that LB purchased for me in March of this yearalong with my FAVORITE black sandals

and all the Brighton jewelry any red blooded American girl could ask forLimitless Heart Limitless Heart Charm Bracelet

Contempo Medium Hinged Banglemy bracelets are retired.  The above pictured are similar

Thank you Jesus

Boutique Finds

Today as I retrieved this handbag from the back corner of my closet, I remembered my annual trip north to see the fall colors peaking.

It is a pretty little Coach look-a-like that was purchased in a cute little boutique in Dahlonega, Georgia.  Sadly, I can’t remember the name of the boutique.  Happily I do remember the trip to Dahlonega, Georgia on our trek through the mountains along the Blue Ridge Parkway.  We enjoy this trip every year and Dahlonega is often a town that we visit.  What is captivating about this town is the Gold Rush Days event.

Gold Rush Days are always held the third full weekend in October.  It is a Festival when thousands come and celebrate Dahlonega’s 1828 discovery of gold.  There are over 300 art and craft exhibitors and food vendors gathering around the Public Square and Historic District in support of this annual event.  The Festival includes a Parade, a Festival King and Queen, and a Festival Grand Marshal.

It is a fun day of site seeing, people watching, and, of course, shopping.

The boutique had moved when I revisited, but there remain plenty of shops and places to dine in Dahlonega’s Historic Downtown Square.  The Dress Up boutique has a locations in Dahlonega and is another worthwhile shop to visit while at Gold Rush Days.

 

This year Gold Rush Days will take place on October 21, 2017 – October 22, 2017 in Dahloneha’s Historic Downtown Square.  Maybe we’ll see you there.

Two Months!

Today is my two month Blogiversary.

I began posting to prettyis.me on March 10, 2017 and have had a ball writing about “my life and style”!  In that time I have learned so much about wordpress, webhosting, tags, media files, and so much more relating to the World of Blog.

unofficial World of Blog mascot

Though there are days when I have nothing to post, I will continue posting.

On this auspicious Wednesday, I’m celebrating by wearing a Sunday School outfit to work.

Obviously I’m not the best model (poor LB)

 

“If I just keep putting one foot in front of the other, it stands to reason that I’m going to get there.”
― Rachel Joyce, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

About Blogging

Since starting my wordpress blog on March 10th I have learned so much about setting up a blog.


I have been a follower of several fashion blogs for several years.  It was J’s Everyday Fashion that hooked me.  J would find a fashionable outfit, and style a look-a-like from items in her own closet.  She gave me a good amount of styling info.  Then I stumbled onto Grace + Beauty which led me to Jolynn Shane and others.  I arrogantly expected that I could produce the same type of blog with great ease.

Not so much.

I’ve come a long way in one month (learned at lot), but have a long way to go.
That said, if I can help others have an easier time with this process, I am happy to do so.

To begin, here is what I’ve learned:
First of all, wordpress.com is BY FAR easier to manage than wordpress.org.  HOWEVER, if you hope to have a blog like the ones aforementioned, you’ll need to utilize wordpress.org and first find a host (I use Blue Host), then install wordpress from that host site

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Secondly, there are SO MANY themes you can choose from  if you have a self-hosted blog (wordpress.org).  Choose wisely and KNOW that yours will not look the same without modifications.  I have a Genesis theme that I have yet to customize to the point that it looks like the theme I purchased

If you know nothing about CSS (and such), you will need help.  I have spent many hours searching YouTube for help.  It can be found, but it takes time.  This research time will cut into the time you may have spent writing/posting.  If you have a full-time job and spend time commuting like I do, don’t be disappointed when your blog is not all that you expected in a short amount of time.
Next, your photos may seem to lose clarity when you “Add Media” into your post.  In the editing stage, make sure you select “Media File”.  Mine was default set to “None”.  It changed many of my photos when I corrected this.

Which brings me to my “Site Icon” which is set in “Site Identity” when you customize your “Active Theme”.    That was a run-on sentence, but forgive me.  This is the Icon I created on the PicMonkey website

It may not mean all that much; you see this icon in the tab when you visit a website.  I wanted mine to look “clean”.  It took learning PicMonkey to make that happen.  If you are as OCD as I am you’ll understand why this matters.  I’ll be happy to answer any questions.

Now… my post with the most views is dated March 31 and was regarding what I thought to be a super-fail.  Here it is:

As he walked through the kitchen in an early morning funk, LB announced sleepily “well baby, it’s the last day of fall”.  I looked at him and replied, “I don’t even know what you just said.”

Well baby… its the last day of March!

Today I jumped in with my eyes closed and for the first time I posted to Jo Lynne Shane’s [famous] Fashion Friday.

I attached my 50 Shades of Red post because I thought it was a pretty good ‘over 40 fashion blog’ post for someone who doesn’t really know what she’s doing in the world of BLOG.  Only I cut my head off.  How sad is that?  My LB exclaimed “OH NO” when I showed him.  I felt like a failure.

Apparently I’m resilient.

Today I helped [at least] 2 people.  One little old fella (and I say that because he did) who couldn’t figure out a problem.  And one lady who just wanted someone to care, and attempt to fix her problem.  And I Will fix her problem.  I don’t feel like a failure.

As a side note, I looked pretty today.  This is what I wore:

There’s more and I’ll continue my blogging quest and Happily help anyone who has questions.

Let me know yours

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